1.    If a municipality finds that there exist in the municipality dwellings which are unfit for human habitation due to dilapidation, defects increasing the hazards of fire, accidents or other calamities, lack of ventilation, light or sanitary facilities, or due to other conditions, including those set forth in subsection 3, rendering those dwellings unsafe or unsanitary, or dangerous or detrimental to the health, safety, or morals, or otherwise inimical to the welfare of the residents of the municipality, the municipality may require or cause the repair, closing, or demolition or removal of those dwellings in the manner provided by this section.

Terms Used In North Dakota Code 40-58-18

  • Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
  • Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
  • Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
  • Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • following: when used by way of reference to a chapter or other part of a statute means the next preceding or next following chapter or other part. See North Dakota Code 1-01-49
  • Injunction: An order of the court prohibiting (or compelling) the performance of a specific act to prevent irreparable damage or injury.
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
  • Mortgagee: The person to whom property is mortgaged and who has loaned the money.
  • Person: means an individual, organization, government, political subdivision, or government agency or instrumentality. See North Dakota Code 1-01-49
  • Property: includes property, real and personal. See North Dakota Code 1-01-49
  • Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See North Dakota Code 1-01-49
  • Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
  • week: means seven consecutive days and the word "month" a calendar month. See North Dakota Code 1-01-33

2.    Upon the adoption of an ordinance finding that dwelling conditions of the character described in subsection 1 exist within a municipality, the governing body of the municipality may adopt ordinances relating to the dwellings within the municipality. The ordinances must include the following provisions:

a.    That a public officer be designated or appointed to exercise the powers prescribed by the ordinances.

b.    If a petition is filed with the public officer or by at least five residents of the municipality charging that any dwelling is unfit for human habitation or whenever it appears to the public officer on the public officer’s own motion that any dwelling is unfit for human habitation, the public officer shall, if the public officer’s preliminary investigation discloses a basis for those charges, issue and cause to be served upon the owner, every mortgagee of record and all parties in interest in the dwelling, including persons in possession, a complaint stating the charges in    that respect. The complaint must contain a notice that a hearing will be held before the public officer or the public officer’s designated agent at a place designated in the complaint not less than ten days nor more than thirty days after the serving of the complaint; that the owner, mortgagee, and parties in interest must be given the right to file an answer to the complaint and to appear in person, or otherwise, and give testimony at the place and time designated in the complaint; and that the rules of evidence are not controlling in hearings before the public officer.

c.    If, after the notice and hearing, the public officer determines that the dwelling under consideration is unfit for human habitation, the public officer shall state in writing the findings of fact in support of the determination and shall issue and cause to be served upon the owner of the dwelling an order which:

(1) If the repair, alteration, or improvement of the dwelling can be made at a reasonable cost in relation to the value of the dwelling, the ordinance of the municipality shall fix a certain percentage of the cost as being reasonable for that purpose, requires the owner, within the time specified in the order, to repair, alter, or improve the dwelling to render it fit for human habitation or to vacate and close the dwelling as a human habitation; or

(2) If the repair, alteration, or improvement of the dwelling cannot be made at a reasonable cost in relation to the value of the dwelling, the ordinance of the municipality shall fix a certain percentage of the cost as being reasonable for that purpose, requires the owner, within the time specified in the order, to remove or demolish the dwelling.

d.    If the owner fails to comply with an order to repair, alter, or improve or to vacate and close the dwelling, the public officer may cause the dwelling to be repaired, altered, or improved, or to be vacated and closed.

e.    If the owner fails to comply with an order to remove or demolish the dwelling, the public officer may cause the dwelling to be removed or demolished.

f.    The amount of the cost of any repairs, alterations, or improvements, or vacating and closing, or removal or demolition by the public officer constitutes a lien against the real property upon which the cost was incurred and the lien, including an allowance of the public officer’s costs and necessary attorney’s fees, may be foreclosed in judicial proceedings in the manner provided by law for loans secured by liens on real property. If the dwelling is removed or demolished by the public officer, the public officer shall sell the materials of the dwelling and credit the proceeds of the sale against the cost of the removal or demolition. Any balance remaining must be paid to the parties entitled to it as determined by proper judicial proceedings instituted by the public officer after deducting the costs of the judicial proceedings, including necessary attorney’s fees incurred in those proceedings by the public officer, as determined by the court.

3.    An ordinance adopted by a municipality pursuant to this section must provide that the public officer may determine that a dwelling is unfit for human habitation if the public officer finds that conditions exist in the dwelling which are dangerous or injurious to the health, safety, or morals of the occupants of the dwelling, the occupants of neighboring dwellings, or other residents of the municipality, or which have a blighting influence on properties in the area. Those conditions may include defects in the dwelling increasing the hazards of fire, accident, or other calamities; lack of adequate ventilation, light, or sanitary facilities; dilapidation; disrepair; structural defects; uncleanliness; overcrowding; inadequate ingress and egress; inadequate drainage; or any violation of health, fire, building, or zoning regulations, or any other laws or regulations relating to the use of land and the use and occupancy of building and improvements. The ordinance may provide additional standards to guide the public officer or the public officer’s agents or employees in determining the fitness of a dwelling for human habitation.

4.    Complaints or orders issued by a public officer pursuant to an ordinance adopted under this section must be served upon persons either personally or by registered or    certified mail, but if the location of those persons is unknown and cannot be ascertained by the public officer in the exercise of reasonable diligence, and the public officer shall make an affidavit to that effect, then the serving of the complaint or order upon those persons may be made by publishing the complaint or order once each week for two consecutive weeks in a newspaper printed and published in the municipality, or, in the absence of such newspaper, in one printed and published in the county and circulating in the municipality in which the dwellings are located. A copy of the complaint or order must be posted in a conspicuous place on the premises affected by the complaint or order. A copy of the complaint or order must also be filed with the clerk of the county in which the dwelling is located and the filing of the complaint or order has the same force and effect as other lis pendens notices provided by law.

5.    Any person affected by an order issued by the public officer may petition the district court, in accordance with the procedure provided in section 28-34-01, for an injunction restraining the public officer from carrying out the provisions of the order, and the court may, upon that petition, issue a temporary injunction restraining the public officer pending the final disposition of the cause. Hearings must be held by the court on the petitions within twenty days, or as soon thereafter as possible, and must be given preference over other matters on the court’s calendar. The court shall hear and determine the issues raised and enter a final order or decree in the proceeding. In the proceeding, the findings of the public officer as to facts, if supported by evidence, are conclusive. The court may assess costs. The remedies provided under this section are exclusive remedies and a person affected by an order of the public officer may not recover any damages for action taken pursuant to any order of the public officer, or because of compliance by that person with any order of the public officer.

6.    An ordinance adopted by the governing body of the municipality may authorize the public officer to exercise those powers as may be necessary or convenient to carry out and effectuate the purposes and provisions of this chapter, including the following powers in addition to other authority granted under this section:

a.    To investigate the dwelling conditions in the municipality in order to determine which dwellings are unfit for human habitation; b.    To administer oaths and affirmations, examine witnesses, and receive evidence; c.    To enter any premises for the purpose of making examinations, provided that entry must be made in a manner that causes the least possible inconvenience to the persons in possession, and to obtain an order for this purpose from a court of competent jurisdiction in the event entry is denied or resisted; d.    To appoint and fix the duties of such officers, agents, and employees as the public officer deems necessary to carry out the purposes of the ordinance; and

e.    To delegate any of the public officer’s functions and powers under the ordinance to such officers, agents, and employees as the public officer may designate.

7.    The governing body of any municipality adopting an ordinance under this section shall as soon as possible prepare an estimate of the annual expenses or costs to provide the equipment, personnel, and supplies necessary for periodic examinations and investigations of the dwellings in the municipality for the purpose of determining the fitness of the dwellings for human habitation, and for the enforcement and administration of its ordinance or ordinances adopted under this section.

8.    This section may not be construed to abrogate or impair the powers of the courts or of any department of any municipality to enforce any provisions of its charter or its ordinances or regulations, nor to prevent or punish violations thereof; and the powers conferred by this section are in addition and supplemental to the powers conferred by any other law.

9.    This section may not be construed to impair or limit in any way the power of the municipality to define and declare nuisances and to cause their removal or abatement, by summary proceedings or otherwise.

10.    The governing body of a city may adopt ordinances prescribing minimum standards for the use and occupancy of dwellings throughout the city and to prevent the use or    occupancy of any dwelling which is injurious to the public health, safety, morals, or welfare.

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