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Trenton moves to prioritize residents in city property sales, tightens vetting and monitoring of rehab projects
Summary
After a lengthy discussion, Trenton City Council advanced a housing resolution prioritizing resident buyers for city-owned properties, and directors described new vetting and deed reverter tools to enforce rehabilitation timelines and guard against absentee or out-of-state investors.
Trenton City Council on Feb. 4 advanced a housing policy intended to prioritize city residents when the city conveys vacant or deteriorated properties and to strengthen oversight of purchasers who agree to rehabilitate buildings.
The measure, discussed at length with members of the Department of Housing and Economic Development, directs staff to prioritize residents and to include monitoring provisions and deed-based reverter clauses to enforce rehabilitation timelines.
Why it matters: City officials said the policy aims to prevent absentee investors from buying multiple rental properties, failing to maintain them and driving up rents — problems council members said have affected neighborhoods across Trenton.
Director Aris Liston, Department of Housing and Economic Development, told the council the department “vet[s] everyone who comes through, especially with the investors who wanna buy rental properties. We vet them through the code department. Do they have rental licenses? What's their history of rental license? What's their violations?” He added staff sometimes sends inspectors to view properties owned by prospective buyers outside the city to verify upkeep.
Liston said the city will put “reverters in the deeds” so that if buyers fail to complete rehabilitation within required timelines the property can be reclaimed. He described a monitoring plan with 90-day check points and the city’s intent to coordinate its oversight with HUD’s 203(k) rehabilitation program, which provides construction financing and includes its own inspections and appraisals.
Council members pressed for specifics on timelines and enforcement. Councilwoman Frisbie asked whether the city will require “6 months, a year” for work, and Liston said the agreements will include timelines but allow for limited, documented extensions when contractors encounter unexpected structural problems. “We would do timelines into the redevelopment agreements…one of the things we're looking at every 90 days to have a monitoring step,” Liston said.
Council members also raised the issue of historic homes. Several councilors asked whether buyers will be advised when a property lies in a historic district and of the likely higher costs for approved materials such as wood windows or slate roofs. Liston said staff will involve the Landmarks office earlier in purchases to ensure prospective owners understand historic requirements and potential costs; he said HUD 203(k) appraisals and inspections often surface those needs early in the process.
Council members welcomed the emphasis on resident priority. Councilwoman Feliciano urged that scorers and evaluators documenting applicants’ qualifications provide more written justification when ranking proposals so council can follow decisions.
Outcome and next steps: The housing resolution was placed on the consent agenda and carried as amended during the meeting. Council members said staff will return with implementation details — including the exact timelines used in deeds and the monitoring protocol — and with data the council requested on licensure and enforcement of rental properties.
