Legal Issues in the Control of Vacant Houses and How to Deal with Them

Abstract

As the vacant houses get old, there is a higher chance that they may collapse or that their building materials may fly apart. They may also harbor insects and wild animals, they may be easy target of arson, and they may also have criminal invaders. All of these could be a big threat to the neighborhood. In response to this situation, many municipalities set up ordinances which require the owners of the vacant houses to keep them safe. Many ordinances eventually allow the municipalities to scrap the houses. However, the ordinances do not pay much attention to legal issues in this attempt of the control of the vacant houses. There are issues of the protection of land lease right and the house lease right, for example. There are issues of compensation for the owners of the vacant houses, for another. This article examines the ordinances and proposes the legislation for the regulation of vacant houses referring to the relevant laws. It also examines the effect of the Local Tax Law which gives lowered tax rate to the land with house.