Governor Cuomo has signed the “Zombie Property” bill, requiring banks and mortgage holders to take responsibility for empty properties, even if foreclosure proceedings are still underway.
The bill is designed to prevent homes and other buildings from becoming rundown eyesores while courts are settling who owns them. Banks will have to keep aware of the state of foreclosed properties and pay to maintain them in good condition.
It responds to local officials statewide who say properties abandoned before the foreclosure process is complete pull down the value of surrounding properties and cause urban blight. State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman estimates there are some 16,000 such properties statewide.