Washington Township Morris County
City Zoning Code
City Zoning Code
ARTICLE XV
Municipal Housing Liaison
§ 217-150 Purpose.
The purpose of this article is to create the administrative mechanisms needed for the execution of the Township of Washington's responsibility to assist in the provision of affordable housing pursuant to the Fair Housing Act of 1985.
§ 217-151 Definitions.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
The entity responsible for administering the affordability controls of some or all units in the affordable housing program for the Township of Washington to ensure that the restricted units under administration are affirmatively marketed and sold or rented, as applicable, only to low- and moderate-income households.
The employee charged by the Township Committee with the responsibility for oversight and administration of the affordable housing program for the Township of Washington.
§ 217-152 Establishment of Municipal Housing Liaison position and compensation; powers and duties.
A.
Establishment of position of Municipal Housing Liaison. There is hereby established the position of Municipal Housing Liaison for the Township of Washington.
B.
Subject to the approval of the Council on Affordable Housing (COAH), the Municipal Housing Liaison shall be appointed by the Township Committee and may be a full- or part-time municipal employee.
C.
The Municipal Housing Liaison shall be responsible for oversight and administration of the affordable housing program for the Township of Washington, including the following responsibilities which may not be contracted out:
(1)
Serving as the Township's primary point of contact for all inquiries from the state, affordable housing providers, administrative agents, and interested households;
(2)
Monitoring the status of all restricted units in the Township's Fair Share Plan;
(3)
Compiling, verifying, and submitting annual reporting as required by COAH;
(4)
Coordinating meetings with affordable housing providers and administrative agents, as applicable;
(5)
Attending continuing education programs as may be required by COAH;
D.
Subject to approval by COAH, the Township may contract with or authorize a consultant, authority, government or any agency charged by the Township Committee, which entity shall have the responsibility of administering the affordable housing program of the Township of Washington. If the Township contracts with another entity to administer all or any part of the affordable housing program, including the affordability controls and affirmative marketing plan, the Municipal Housing Liaison shall supervise the contracting administrative agent.
E.
Compensation. Compensation shall be fixed by the Township Committee at the time of the appointment of the Municipal Housing Liaison.
F.
Administrative powers and duties assigned to the Municipal Housing Liaison.
(1)
Affirmative marketing.
(a)
Conducting an outreach process to insure affirmative marketing of affordable housing units in accordance with the affirmative marketing plan of the Township of Washington and the provisions of N.J.A.C. 5:80-26.15.
(2)
Household certification.
(a)
Soliciting, scheduling, conducting and following up on interviews with interested households;
(b)
Conducting interviews and obtaining sufficient documentation of gross income and assets upon which to base a determination of income eligibility for a low- or moderate-income unit;
(c)
Providing written notification to each applicant as to the determination of eligibility or noneligibility;
(d)
Requiring that all certified applicants for restricted units execute a certificate substantially in the form, as applicable, of either the ownership or rental certificates set forth in Appendixes J and K of N.J.A.C. 5:80-26.1 et seq.;
(e)
Creating and maintaining a referral list of eligible applicant households living in the housing region and eligible applicant households with members working in the housing region where the units are located; and
(f)
Employing the random selection process as provided in the affirmative marketing plan of the Township of Washington when referring households for certification to affordable units.
(3)
Affordability controls.
(a)
Furnishing to attorneys or closing agents forms of deed restrictions and mortgages for recording at the time of conveyance of title of each restricted unit;
(b)
Creating and maintaining a file on each restricted unit for its control period, including the recorded deed with restrictions, recorded mortgage and note, as appropriate;
(c)
Ensuring that the removal of the deed restrictions and cancellation of the mortgage note are effectuated and properly filed with the appropriate County's register of deeds or County Clerk's office after the termination of the affordability controls for each restricted unit;
(d)
Communicating with lenders regarding foreclosures; and
(e)
Ensuring the issuance of continuing certificates of occupancy or certifications pursuant to N.J.A.C. 5:80-26.10.
(4)
Resale and rental.
(a)
Instituting and maintaining an effective means of communicating information between owners and the administrative agent regarding the availability of restricted units for resale or rental; and
(b)
Instituting and maintaining an effective means of communicating information to low- and moderate-income households regarding the availability of restricted units for resale or re-rental.
(5)
Communicating with unit owners.
(a)
Reviewing and approving requests from owners of restricted units who wish to take out home equity loans or refinance during the term of their ownership;
(b)
Reviewing and approving requests to increase sales prices from owners of restricted units who wish to make capital improvements to the units that would affect the selling price, such authorizations to be limited to those improvements resulting in additional bedrooms or bathrooms and the cost of central air-conditioning systems; and
(c)
Processing requests and making determinations on requests by owners of restricted units for hardship waivers.
(6)
Enforcement.
(a)
Ensure that all restricted units are identified as affordable within the Tax Assessor's office and any municipal utility authority (MUA) and upon notification to the administrative agent of change in billing address, payment delinquency of two consecutive billing cycles, transfer of title, or institution of a writ of foreclosure on all affordable units, notifying all such owners that they must either move back to their unit or sell it;
(b)
Securing from all developers and sponsors of restricted units, at the earliest point of contact in the processing of the project or development, written acknowledgement of the requirement that no restricted unit can be offered, or in any other way committed, to any person, other than a household duly certified to the unit by the administrative agent;
(c)
The posting annually in all rental properties, including two-family homes, of a notice as to the maximum permitted rent together with the telephone number of the administrative agent where complaints of excess rent can be made;
(d)
Sending annual mailings to all owners of affordable dwelling units, reminding them of the notices and requirements outlined in N.J.A.C. 5:80-26.18(d)4;
(e)
Establishing a program for diverting unlawful rent payments to the municipality's affordable housing trust fund or other appropriate municipal fund approved by the DCA;
(f)
Establishing a rent-to-equity program;
(g)
Creating and publishing a written operating manual, as approved by COAH, setting forth procedures for administering such affordability controls; and
(h)
Providing annual reports to COAH as required.
(7)
The Municipal Housing Liaison shall have authority to take all actions necessary and appropriate to carry out its responsibilities hereunder.