In January 2019, Trenton City Council passed an ordinance to amend Trenton City Code and increase the fees vacant property owners will have to pay in order to register their properties as vacant properties. In addition to an escalating annual fee for registration, it requires owners to maintain the property to the standards set by the City of Trenton.

The text is available here (.pdf). |  The FAQ is available here

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The ordinance, which unanimously passed City Council, goes into effect immediately.

“This ordinance is meant to deter property owners from sitting on vacant homes and refusing to rent or sell them,” Gusciora said in a written statement. “When a home is vacant, it’s a blight on the surrounding neighborhood and slows down economic development."

The fee increases are based on existing fees in surrounding and comparable cities in New Jersey:

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The fees:

• Initial registration is $500 or prorated amount per Sec. 2(d) of the ordinance

• First annual renewal is $1,300

• Second annual renewal is $2,000

• All subsequent renewals are $3,000 or 5% of the assessed value, whichever is higher.

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• The ordinance went into effect on January 31st, 2019.

 

• The fees will apply to vacant buildings only, not vacant lots.

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• Non-profits will be subject to the fees, but City, County, and State government will be exempted. (Note that only 10% of vacant buildings citywide are owned by the City of Trenton, and the other measures below are designed to address those properties.)