Landlord Hit With $24K+ In Fines For Failure To Maintain Rentals; Believed Foreclosure Actions On Homes Would Force Court To Dismiss Code Violations

In Winnebago County, Wisconsin, the Oshkosh Northwestern reports:

• A Winnebago County Circuit Court judge fined an Oshkosh landlord more than $24,000 for building code violations he did not address over a two-year period. Judge William Carver fined Kelly Burnett a total of $24,325 [June 30] for city building code violations that went largely unattended to since January, when Burnett pleaded no contest to the charges and was given six months to make progress on the violations. Carver on Monday said he saw little improvement to dangerous situations that included unsafe electrical conditions, failure to maintain units to minimum building code regulations, failure to provide adequate heating and failure to obtain building permits.

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• He [...] said he pleaded no contest in January because he believed pending mortgage foreclosures on the majority of his properties — 30 foreclosure actions are either in progress or complete — would force the court to dismiss the code violations.

For more, see Landlord fined $24,000 for code violations.

Go here for other posts on code violation problems associated with homes in legal limbo; when a foreclosing lender fails to complete a foreclosure action or fails to record its deed after foreclosure sale. responsibility code violations foreclosure