§ 504-A — Abandoned dwellings and mortgage foreclosures in Nassau, Suffolk or Westchester county

§ 504-a. Abandoned dwellings and mortgage foreclosures in Nassau,\nSuffolk or Westchester county. 1. Following site designation, pursuant\nto section five hundred four of this article, a municipality or an urban\nrenewal or community development agency in Nassau, Suffolk or\nWestchester county may certify a one, two or three family dwelling as\nabandoned. Upon such certification, an action to foreclose any mortgage\non such dwelling may be commenced by. Process in such action shall be\nserved pursuant to subdivision four upon natural persons who are record\nowners.\n 2. Said certification of abandonment may be made if such municipality\nor agency finds that: (a) all or a part of the subject property lies\nwithin an area that has been designated by the governing body as in need\nof urban renewal, pursuant to such section five hundred four; (b) the\nsubject property has been vacant for sixty consecutive days; and, (c) in\nthe opinion of the certifying municipality or agency the subject\nproperty has become a danger to life, public health or public safety\nand/or has, because of its physical condition and appearance, caused a\nblighting influence to surrounding properties and is adversely affecting\nneighborhood property values.\n 3. Said premises shall be deemed vacant within the meaning of\nparagraph (b) of subdivision two of this section if three or more of the\nfollowing conditions exist: (a) termination of service by the lighting\ncompany, which termination has lasted for fifteen days; or (b)\ntermination of telephone service by the telephone company, which\ntermination has lasted for fifteen days; or (c) failure to maintain the\npremises in reasonably good repair; or (d) information from the\nneighbors that the premises have been vacant for sixty days or more; or\n(e) accumulation of mail at the premises; or (f) blatant evidence of\nvandalism; or (g) lack of furnishings inside the premises.\n 4. Upon said certification of abandonment, the certifying municipality\nor agency may file or record in the office of the clerk of each county\nin which all or a part of the subject property is situated, without fee,\na certification containing such findings and the facts upon which it is\nbased, describing the property and providing that an action to foreclose\nany mortgage on said property, may be commenced by filing of the summons\nand verified complaint with personal service to be made either as\nprovided in subdivisions one through four of section three hundred eight\nof the civil practice law and rules, or, with respect to natural persons\nwho are record owners, by publishing, without the necessity for a court\norder, of a copy of the summons together with notice to the defendant, a\nbrief statement of the nature of the action and the relief sought, the\nsum of money for which judgment may be taken in case of default, and a\nbrief description of the property, at least once in each of three\nsuccessive weeks in a newspaper in the English language of general\ncirculation in the municipality wherein all or a part of the property\nlies and by mailing a copy of the summons and verified complaint to the\nlast known address of the record owner or owners of the premises,\ncertified mail, return receipt requested and by tacking a copy of the\nsummons and verified complaint, to the front door of the premises.\nService shall be deemed complete twenty days after the last date of\npublication, date of mailing or date of posting, whichever occurs last.\n 5. All other parties to the lawsuit, other than record owners, shall\nbe served with the summons and verified complaint as presently provided\nin the CPLR.\n