|
|
Post by admin on Oct 4, 2009 21:18:41 GMT -5
flanj.org/Well folks, I suppose it was a matter of time. I have heard rumblings that the landlords in town were uniting with concerns. The above link is proof of it. It appears they will be advocating for landlords and their tenants. It certainly raises a lot of questions. Will they be people who live here or out of town? Will they be another hostile group or one that wants to work with he town? For starters it looks like they are ready to challenge some aspects of the towns methods. From their site: The Borough of Freehold has a policy in place that requires all landlords to pay an annual licensing fee for the privilege of renting their property. This ordinance is known as "The Ordinance of the mayor and council of the Borough of Freehold, County of Monmouth and State of New Jersey establishing rental property regulations and licensing of landlords."
This ordinance might not be legal! Work with us to investigate the legality of this document. In the past I have written extensively for the need for rental regulations to be balanced and take all parties onto consideration- tenants, landlords and surrounding home owners. I know the fear of the landlords fighting the town is real and we may just see that. It happened in Lakewood and other places. Lets hope the town can work with them and address their concerns so that we do not wind up with really nasty problems. As it is, we are facing a real uphill battle in this town. Neighborhood preservation is very real and the bad economy has ironically been our only friend. This topic will need to be watched very closely. The work the newly formed rental committee has done could easily be erased.
|
|
|
|
Post by truthinesshurts on Oct 5, 2009 14:17:08 GMT -5
flanj.org/Well folks, I suppose it was a matter of time. I have heard rumblings that the landlords in town were uniting with concerns. The above link is proof of it. It appears they will be advocating for landlords and their tenants. It certainly raises a lot of questions. Will they be people who live here or out of town? Will they be another hostile group or one that wants to work with he town? For starters it looks like they are ready to challenge some aspects of the towns methods. From their site: The Borough of Freehold has a policy in place that requires all landlords to pay an annual licensing fee for the privilege of renting their property. This ordinance is known as "The Ordinance of the mayor and council of the Borough of Freehold, County of Monmouth and State of New Jersey establishing rental property regulations and licensing of landlords."
This ordinance might not be legal! Work with us to investigate the legality of this document. In the past I have written extensively for the need for rental regulations to be balanced and take all parties onto consideration- tenants, landlords and surrounding home owners. I know the fear of the landlords fighting the town is real and we may just see that. It happened in Lakewood and other places. Lets hope the town can work with them and address their concerns so that we do not wind up with really nasty problems. As it is, we are facing a real uphill battle in this town. Neighborhood preservation is very real and the bad economy has ironically been our only friend. This topic will need to be watched very closely. The work the newly formed rental committee has done could easily be erased. From a cursory glance at the site you linked to, it appears the landlords in town are quasi-literate at best. |
|
|
|
Post by admin on Oct 6, 2009 9:48:00 GMT -5
Momentum is gaining with this group. From their site:
SPECIAL NOTICE: There has been a tremendous response for our upcoming meeting on October 20th, 2009. We would like to make everyone aware that only those who are residential landlords within the Borough of Freehold will be permitted to attend. Regrettably, all others will be turned away at the door!
Truthy, you mention the literacy of the landlords based on their site. Interesting observation. What jumped out at me is the pictures. They used really nice ones from the borough. I am tempted to jump on my bike with a camera and take pictures of some of these rentals we have. I know of one that is so neglected that it has a tree growing out of the roof. Lots of big, formerly beautiful houses that are not so nice looking now because of the rentals. Bed sheets for curtains, bikes chained everywhere, landscaping run down etc.
On another note and to be fair, I heard from a very credible source that this group is looking for constructive relations with the town. Lets hope that is the case.
|
|
|
|
Post by admin on Oct 11, 2009 8:55:34 GMT -5
I meant to get back to this thread a bit earlier. In the above quote I mentioned a house with a tree growing out of the roof. That tree had been there for months. I will chalk it up to coincidence, but the day after I made this post, the tree was gone. This house I have in mind is a formerly cute little Tudor and sits on a main road in town. Even without the tree growing on the roof, it is quite evident that the owners and tenants do not care for the property very much.
|
|
|
|
Post by admin on Nov 2, 2009 20:07:04 GMT -5
I have come across some really nasty whispers in the wind. Time will tell if they are true. I was mentioned to me that some landlords are looking to sue the borough. I am not sure if it is the group which is the focus of this thread, but I also understand that they are using a very familiar lawyer.
If any of this is true, it it not good news. Lets keep our ears open on this one.
|
|
|
|
Post by admin on Nov 10, 2009 7:04:03 GMT -5
I have come across some really nasty whispers in the wind. Time will tell if they are true. I was mentioned to me that some landlords are looking to sue the borough. I am not sure if it is the group which is the focus of this thread, but I also understand that they are using a very familiar lawyer. If any of this is true, it it not good news. Lets keep our ears open on this one. I appreciate the feedback I have received from anonymous sources. I have had another, more credible person, tell me that the land lords association is not looking for a suit against the town, but to build a good relationship and work with the town. This is an interesting topic that has to be watched and put out in the open. I will strive to get the best possible information I can and post what I can as I can. |
|
|
|
Post by admin on Nov 28, 2009 20:29:57 GMT -5
Did a bit of research. The web site for the Freehold Landlords association is that of a person who is listed as living in PA. Definitely not a local. whois.domaintools.com/flanj.org |
|
|
|
Post by admin on Nov 30, 2009 7:09:28 GMT -5
Did a bit of research. The web site for the Freehold Landlords association is that of a person who is listed as living in PA. Definitely not a local. whois.domaintools.com/flanj.orgI have been informed that the owner of the web site does live in Freehold. I have no idea why the PA address. |
|
|
|
Post by admin on Dec 2, 2009 5:58:58 GMT -5
Being very curious, I sent the following questions to the admin of the Freehold Landlords web site. I do not know if I will get a response let alone answers, but it can't hurt to ask:
1. What are the specific issues that the association is concerned with? The web site says the landlord registration fee is one, are there other concerns about what the town should or should not be doing?
2. Are all of the landlords in the association residents of Freehold Borough?
3. Have any of the organizers of this group or its members been subjected to enforcement measures from the town?
4. While it is understandable that the association may have its own concerns in mind, the town has often acted on behalf of the surrounding home owners. The increase in rentals in town has caused many home owners to have justified concerns about their quality of life. Will the association work with the town, home owners and residents in addressing their quality of life concerns? Any specific ideas to meet that goal? Safety concerns of tenants?
5. The town now has a rental review board in place. Has the association approached the rental board with its concerns? How about having a representative on that board?
6. How strong is the desire of the association to engage in or avoid a law suit against the town?
7. Would the association, at any point, allow non landlords into meetings to see what is going on and address the issues?
8. Is there a definable point when the landlord association will be happy with results and not need to continue, or will this be an ongoing project?
9. Does the association have any ties with any outside interests? ones that have sued our town in the past?
|
|
|
|
Post by admin on Dec 7, 2009 10:30:26 GMT -5
I am still waiting and hoping for a response to the questions I Submited to the landlord group. I would think they wlecome the opportunity for some public exposure.
|
|
|
|
Post by admin on Dec 11, 2009 19:06:22 GMT -5
Being very curious, I sent the following questions to the admin of the Freehold Landlords web site. I do not know if I will get a response let alone answers, but it can't hurt to ask: 1. What are the specific issues that the association is concerned with? The web site says the landlord registration fee is one, are there other concerns about what the town should or should not be doing? 2. Are all of the landlords in the association residents of Freehold Borough? 3. Have any of the organizers of this group or its members been subjected to enforcement measures from the town? 4. While it is understandable that the association may have its own concerns in mind, the town has often acted on behalf of the surrounding home owners. The increase in rentals in town has caused many home owners to have justified concerns about their quality of life. Will the association work with the town, home owners and residents in addressing their quality of life concerns? Any specific ideas to meet that goal? Safety concerns of tenants? 5. The town now has a rental review board in place. Has the association approached the rental board with its concerns? How about having a representative on that board? 6. How strong is the desire of the association to engage in or avoid a law suit against the town? 7. Would the association, at any point, allow non landlords into meetings to see what is going on and address the issues? 8. Is there a definable point when the landlord association will be happy with results and not need to continue, or will this be an ongoing project? 9. Does the association have any ties with any outside interests? ones that have sued our town in the past? I received a response to my questions from the landlord group. They have refused to answer any of the questions. I did not expect that I would get every answer to every question, but the questions were overall fair and deserve to be in the public arena. Upon further investigation, I have learned that the news papers have approached the group as well and also have not been able to get any information. I consider this a red flag and am determined to continue pushing for answers that can and will be made public. The landlord industry in this town is big and it is no surprise that they will have very valid concerns, and I do hope their concerns are respected by all. But, there are other people in this town with concerns and it is right to put it all out there as any actions will affect all of us. We deserve to know about everything that will affect us. |
|
|
|
Post by admin on Dec 14, 2009 8:41:39 GMT -5
5. The town now has a rental review board in place. Has the association approached the rental board with its concerns? How about having a representative on that board?
From multiple sources I have confirmed that the landlord association has been to rental committee meetings. I understand that all went well and the dialog was very good. This is a good sign because these issues belong in front of that committee, this is what the committee is for. '
Still no word on if FllaNJ will be getting a representative appointed to the Rental committee, or even if they want one. I believe they should have one appointed and I am also well aware that the governing body set up that committee so that all sides and voices can be represented.
|
|
