Housing
| Bills | Committee | Last action | Date |
| HB 27 - Marshall, R.G. - Residential energy efficiency standards; exempts certain homes from federal cap & trade legislation. | (H) Committee on General Laws (S) Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources | (S) Referred to Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources | 01/26/12 |
| notes: Exempts any residential building or manufactured home in Virginia from being subject to federal legislation relating to residential energy efficiency standards if such building complies with the Statewide Uniform Building Code. Except to the extent required by the Statewide Building Code, the owner of such building or home cannot be required by the federal government to (i) have an energy efficiency analysis conducted on his residence, (ii) have his residence meet federal energy efficiency standards, (iii) participate in a building performance labeling program, (iv) make modifications to the residence in accordance with federal legislation, or (v) post a label showing the energy efficiency of his home prior to its sale. The bill also prohibits any state agency from assisting any federal agency in the implementation of global warming or climate change legislation. | |||
| HB 28 - Marshall, R.G. - Foreclosure procedures; assignment of deed of trust. | (H) Committee for Courts of Justice | (H) Subcommittee recommends laying on the table | 02/01/12 |
| notes: Provides that the trustee under any deed of trust or mortgage shall not proceed with any sale of the property unless the land records of the county or city in which the property is located contain a duly recorded assignment to the person who asserts that he is the holder of the obligation. The trustee may proceed with the sale (i) upon the recordation of any assignments not recorded or, if an intervening assignment cannot be located, upon the receipt of an affidavit from the party secured that he is the party secured by the deed of trust, and (ii) upon the payment by the person who asserts that he is the holder of the obligation of any fees and taxes for recording the assignment. The bill also provides that a nominee of a grantee or mortgagee for a deed of trust or mortgage has no authority to request that the trustee proceed with any sale of the property conveyed to him by the deed of trust or mortgage. The bill also requires that the party secured by the deed of trust or mortgage provide notice of his intent to foreclose to the property owner at least 45 days before any proposed sale. The bill provides further that a person who (i) knowingly makes, uses, or causes to be made or used any false or fraudulent record, document, or statement or (ii) knowingly swears or affirms falsely to any matter, in support of any foreclosure is liable for a civil penalty of $5,000, which shall be paid into the local treasury. The bill also creates a civil cause of action for such a violation in favor of the owner of the property foreclosed on. | |||
| HB 79 - Orrock - Disability Commission; establishing work groups to assist in carrying out powers and duties, etc. | (H) Committee on Rules (S) Committee on Rules | (S) Referred to Committee on Rules | 01/24/12 |
| notes: Provides that the Virginia Disability Commission shall establish work groups to assist the Commission in carrying out its powers and duties. Such work groups shall include work groups focused on issues related to (i) housing and transportation, (ii) education and employment, and (iii) publicly funded services, and may include such other work groups as the Commission deems necessary. The bill also repeals the sunset provision for the Commission, which is set to expire July 1, 2012. | |||
| HB 121 - Morrissey - Virginia Housing Trust Fund Authority; created, report. | (H) Committee on General Laws | (H) Assigned GL sub: #1 Housing | 01/27/12 |
| notes: Creates the Virginia Housing Trust Fund Authority to administer the Virginia Housing Trust Fund also created by the bill to assist in increasing the capacity of community housing organizations and encourage private sector businesses and individuals to contribute capital to community-based housing organizations and assist them in providing safe, decent, and affordable housing to Virginia citizens. The bill sets the powers and duties of the Authority and its Board of Directors, and the lawful purposes for which the Fund may be used. | |||
| HB 408 - Watts - Real property tax; exemption for elderly and disabled. | (H) Committee on Finance | (H) Subcommittee recommends reporting (10-Y 0-N) | 02/01/12 |
| notes: Provides more flexibility to localities in determining the income and financial worth of the elderly and disabled, for those localities that choose to have caps on income and financial worth in establishing eligibility for the real property tax exemption. | |||
| HB 412 - Watts - Condominium and Property Owners' Association Acts; foreclosure on lien for unpaid assessments. | (H) Committee for Courts of Justice | (H) Subcommittee recommends laying on the table | 02/01/12 |
| notes: Provides that a property owner or condominium association may conduct a foreclosure sale on a lien for unpaid assessments subject to the lien of a first trust. The bill also provides that such portion of the unpaid assessments due and owing the association for a period not to exceed three years that is directly attributable to providing the maintenance and upkeep of the common areas and such other areas of association responsibility expressly provided for in the declaration, including capital expenditures, shall be prior to all other liens and encumbrances, except real estate taxes. The bill contains technical amendments. | |||
| HB 502 - Dance - Landlord and tenant laws; receipt required for payments in form of cash or money order. | (H) Committee on General Laws (S) Committee on General Laws and Technology | (S) Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology | 01/26/12 |
| notes: Provides a tenant with a written receipt from the landlord, upon the tenant's request, whenever the tenant pays rent in the form of cash or a money order. This bill is recommended by the Virginia Housing Commission. | |||
| HB 571 - Marshall, D.W. - Housing crisis; extends sunset date for several measures related to various land use approvals, etc. | (H) Committee on Counties, Cities and Towns | (H) Assigned CC & T sub: #2 | 01/17/12 |
| notes: The sunset date for several measures related to various land use approvals, the timing of cash proffer payments, and bonding requirements is extended from July 1, 2014, to July 1, 2017. The bill also expands the scope of such measures that will be subject to the extension to include those measures approved by January 1, 2011. | |||
| HB 621 - LeMunyon - Veterans; repeals obsolete defense housing projects laws. | (H) Committee on General Laws (S) Committee on General Laws and Technology | (S) Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology | 02/02/12 |
| notes: Repeals two chapters of Title 36 that deal with World War II era defense housing projects and housing projects for veterans. The bill is a recommendation of the Virginia Code Commission. | |||
| HB 790 - Lopez - Virginia Housing Partnership Revolving Fund; renames to Virginia Housing Trust Fund. | (H) Committee on General Laws | (H) Assigned GL sub: #1 Housing | 01/17/12 |
| notes: Renames the Virginia Housing Partnership Revolving Fund to the Virginia Housing Trust Fund. The bill provides that 20 percent of the moneys deposited in the Fund in any fiscal year shall be used by the Department for grants for the construction of new or rehabilitation of existing housing units, rental assistance to individuals and families experiencing homelessness, and other appropriate assistance to facilitate the achievement of housing stability. Under the bill, moneys in the Fund are derived from 10 percent of the annual general fund revenue collections that are in excess of the official estimates in the general appropriation act and 10 percent of any unreserved general fund balance at the close of each fiscal year whose reappropriation is not required in the general appropriation act. The Fund also consists of such other sums as may be made available to it from any other source, public or private, and shall include federal grants solicited and received for the specific purposes of the Fund. The bill contains technical amendments. | |||
| HB 821 - Marshall, R.G. - Wrongful foreclosure; creates civil cause of action for owner of any residential real property, etc. | (H) Committee for Courts of Justice | (H) Subcommittee recommends laying on the table | 02/01/12 |
| notes: Creates a civil cause of action for the owner of any residential real property against any person who wrongfully asserts that he is, or has the authority to act as, the holder of the obligation secured by a deed of trust or mortgage on such property and who wrongfully initiates any foreclosure proceeding upon the property. The owner is entitled to recover actual damages incurred as a result of the wrongful foreclosure, in addition to reasonable attorney fees and costs. | |||
| HB 822 - Marshall, R.G. - Mortgage modification; application, limitations on foreclosure. | (H) Committee for Courts of Justice | (H) Subcommittee recommends laying on the table | 02/01/12 |
| notes: Provides that if a borrower has submitted an application to modify the terms of a loan securing a debt on any residential real property that serves as the primary residence of the borrower, a mortgage lender or mortgage servicer may not initiate foreclosure on such property until (i) it has denied the application or (ii) if the modification was granted, the borrower has defaulted under the terms of the modification. A mortgage lender or mortgage servicer shall also notify in writing the borrower of its denial of an application for modification and its reasons therefor within 30 days after receipt. | |||
| HB 839 - James - Defective drywall; redefines term. | (H) Committee on General Laws | (H) Assigned GL sub: #1 Housing | 01/17/12 |
| notes: Redefines the term "defective drywall" to mean drywall or similar building material composed of dried gypsum-based plaster that (i) contains elemental sulfur exceeding 10 parts per million as has been found in some drywall manufactured in the People's Republic of China and imported into the United States between 2004 and 2007 and, when exposed to heat, humidity, or both, releases elevated levels of hydrogen sulfide gas into the air or (ii) has been designated by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission as a product with a product defect that constitutes a substantial product hazard within the meaning of § 15(a)(2) of the Consumer Product Safety Act (15 U.S.C. § 2064(a)(2)). | |||
| HB 890 - Alexander - Mortgage foreclosure; right to reinstatement. | (H) Committee for Courts of Justice | (H) Subcommittee recommends continuing to 2013 | 02/01/12 |
| notes: Provides that the grantor under a first priority deed of trust securing a loan on residential real property may, at any time up to the date of the sale of the property, cure any default, de-accelerate, and reinstate the loan by paying all sums that would have been due in the absence of default, paying other fees and costs incurred by the trustee and beneficiary in connection with the default, and performing any other obligation that the grantor would have been bound to perform in the absence of the default or acceleration. The grantor may exercise the right to cure a default as to a particular loan and reinstate that mortgage only once. | |||
| HB 901 - Brink - Condominium and Property Owners' Association Acts; suspension of rights, rules violations. | (H) Committee on General Laws | (H) Assigned GL sub: #1 Housing | 01/17/12 |
| notes: Gives condominium and property owners' association boards the authority, even in cases where the declaration does not expressly grant the authority to the boards, to (i) suspend a unit owner's right to use facilities or services, including utility services, provided directly through the association for nonpayment of assessments that are more than 60 days past due, to the extent that access to the unit through the common elements is not precluded and provided that such suspension shall not endanger the health, safety, or property of any owner, tenant, or occupant and (ii) assess charges against any owner for any violation of the declaration or of the rules or regulations promulgated pursuant thereto for which such owner or his family members, tenants, guests, or other invitees are responsible. The bill contains technical amendments. | |||
| HB 902 - Minchew - Virginia Condominium Act; time limits for expansion, contraction, or conversion of condominium. | (H) Committee on General Laws | (H) Reported from General Laws (22-Y 0-N) | 02/02/12 |
| notes: Increases from seven years to 10 years from the date of recordation of the declaration the time limit in which a declarant/developer of a condominium must exercise his rights to expand, contract, or convert a condominium. | |||
| HB 979 - Scott, J.M. - Virginia Property Owners' Association Act; adoption and enforcement of rules. | (H) Committee on General Laws | (H) Assigned GL sub: #1 Housing | 01/17/12 |
| notes: Authorizes the board of directors or its agents to enter onto a lot subject to the declaration as may be reasonably necessary to remedy the failure of the lot owner to comply with the declaration or rules and regulations of the association. The authority may be used only after the board has exhausted all other internal efforts to achieve compliance, including an opportunity for the lot owner to take corrective action, and reasonable notice is provided. | |||
| HB 993 - Robinson - Homestead exemption; increases if householder is 65 years of age or older. | (H) Committee for Courts of Justice | (H) Subcommittee recommends laying on the table | 01/25/12 |
| notes: Raises the homestead exemption from $5,000 to (i) $25,000, (ii) 20 percent of the property's tax-assessed value, or (iii) 40 percent of the property's tax-assessed value if the householder is 65 years of age or older. The bill requires that the real or personal property subject to the exemption be claimed as the householder's homestead. | |||
| HB 1008 - Ramadan - Condominium and Property Owners' Association Acts; rights of owners. | (H) Committee on General Laws | (H) Subcommittee recommends laying on the table | 02/01/12 |
| notes: Provides that no provision of the declaration or rules or regulations adopted pursuant thereto shall prohibit an owner or any person entitled to occupy a unit or lot from exercising his constitutionally protected right of freedom of speech upon property to which the owner or person entitled to occupy has a separate ownership interest or a right to exclusive possession. The bill further provides that any provision of a declaration or rule or regulation adopted pursuant thereto that prohibits the exercise of such right upon such property shall be void as against public policy. The bill allows, however, an association to establish reasonable time, place, and manner restrictions on such property provided the restrictions are necessary to protect a substantial interest of the association. In any action brought by an association for a violation of such restriction, the association bears the burden of proof that such time, place, or manner restriction is necessary to protect a substantial interest of the association. Finally, the bill provides that the association may restrict an owner's exercise of freedom of speech upon the common areas. | |||
| HB 1073 - Hugo - Residential rental properties; establishes criteria by which an assessor determines market value. | (H) Committee on Finance | (H) Assigned Finance sub: #1 | 01/20/12 |
| notes: Establishes criteria by which an assessor shall determine fair market value for real estate used in whole or in part as residential rental property as defined by ordinance or the locality. Criteria include actual gross income generated, losses due to vacancies, collection losses, and rent concessions as well as actual operating expenses and expenditures. Evidence as to fair market value presented by the property owner shall be considered by the real estate assessor in his property assessment. | |||
| HB 1082 - Hugo - Recordation tax; eliminates exemption for certain deeds of trust securing a refinanced obligation. | (H) Committee on Finance | (H) Assigned Finance sub: #1 | 01/20/12 |
| notes: Eliminates the recordation tax exemption for certain deeds of trust securing a refinanced obligation, and establishes a reduced tax for all refinancing deeds of trust or mortgages that is equal to a maximum of 18 cents ($0.18) per $100 of the amount refinanced. Under current law, there is an exemption for a deed of trust or mortgage that is refinanced with the same lender on the principal amount of the original debt; all other such instruments of refinancing are subject to the tax at rates higher than the new rates established in the bill. | |||
| HB 1100 - Herring - Virginia Housing Trust Fund Authority; created, report. | (H) Committee on General Laws | (H) Assigned GL sub: #1 Housing | 01/27/12 |
| notes: Creates the Virginia Housing Trust Fund Authority to administer the Virginia Housing Trust Fund also created by the bill to assist in increasing the capacity of community housing organizations and encourage private sector businesses and individuals to contribute capital to community-based housing organizations and assist them in providing safe, decent, and affordable housing to Virginia citizens. The bill sets the powers and duties of the Authority and its Board of Directors, and the lawful purposes for which the Fund may be used. | |||
| HB 1110 - Greason - Landlord and tenant laws; dwelling units. | (H) Committee on General Laws | (H) Assigned GL sub: #1 Housing | 01/17/12 |
| notes: Allows a plaintiff in an unlawful detainer action to submit electronic or paper copies of the lease under certain circumstances. The bill also (i) removes the four-residential-unit limitation on the exemption from licensure as a mold inspector or remediator; (ii) revises the definition of dwelling unit; (iii) allows a tenant to stay in the dwelling unit after foreclosure of the property containing the dwelling unit under certain circumstances; (iv) provides in unlawful detainer actions, the proceeding shall be dismissed if the tenant may pay the landlord or his attorney, or pay into court all: (a) rent due and owing as of the court date, (b) damages and other charges contracted for in the rental agreement, (c) late charges contracted for in the rental agreement, (d) reasonable attorney fees, and (e) costs of the proceeding; and (v) allows the landlord to recover from the tenant the tenant's prorated share of the actual costs of other insurance coverages provided by the landlord relative to the premises, including the landlord's administrative or other fees associated with the administration of such coverages. | |||
| HB 1122 - Morrissey - Derelict and blighted buildings; authorizes locality to serve as receiver to repair. | (H) Committee for Courts of Justice | (H) Subcommittee recommends laying on the table | 02/01/12 |
| notes: Authorizes a locality to serve as a receiver, appointed by the circuit court, to repair blighted and derelict buildings. Buildings must previously have been determined to be blighted under current spot blight provisions. The owner of the property may redeem the property subject to receivership during the receivership process or prior to sale and will be awarded any profits gained through sale at public auction. This bill was recommended by the Virginia Housing Commission. | |||
| HB 1128 - Johnson - Real property tax; modifies procedures governing delinquent taxes. | (H) Committee on Finance | (H) Subcommittee recommends reporting with amendment(s) (10-Y 0-N) | 02/01/12 |
| notes: Modifies procedures governing delinquent real property taxes by (i) requiring the commissioner of the revenue to correct land records that incorrectly report property as having delinquent taxes; (ii) requiring the owner of real property to pay all delinquent town taxes, in addition to paying delinquent county taxes under current law, in order to stop a judicial sale of the property; and (iii) conditioning a court's referral of a judicial sale to a commissioner of chancery for a ruling prior to sale, upon a proper objection having been made by an interested party. | |||
| HB 1144 - Watson - Contractors, Board for; waiver of license requirement for Habitat for Humanity. | (H) Committee on General Laws (S) Committee on General Laws and Technology | (S) Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology | 02/02/12 |
| notes: Adds the rehabilitation of single-family dwellings by Habitat for Humanity for which the Board for Contractors may waive the requirement for licensure. Currently, the authority of the Board to waive licensure is limited to the construction of single-family dwellings by Habitat for Humanity. | |||
| HB 1167 - Jones - High Performance Buildings Act; created. | (H) Committee on General Laws | (H) Assigned GL sub: #2 FOIA/Procurement | 01/27/12 |
| notes: Provides that any executive branch agency or institution entering the design phase for the construction of a new building greater than 5,000 gross square feet in size or the renovation of a building where the cost of the renovation exceeds 50 percent of the value of the building, shall conform to Virginia Energy Conservation and Environmental Standards (VEES) and the building shall be designed, constructed, verified, and operated to comply with the high performance building certification program. The bill defines "VEES" and "high performance building certification program." The bill allows the Director of the Department of General Services to grant an exemption from this requirement due to impracticability. | |||
| HB 1229 - Orrock - Persons with disabilities; SHHR to convene work group to develop plan to address needs. | (H) Committee on Rules | (H) Referred to Committee on Rules | 01/20/12 |
| notes: Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Resources to convene a work group composed of various stakeholders to develop a plan for addressing housing and transportation needs of Virginians with disabilities. | |||
| HB 1261 - Ware, R.L. - Landlord and tenant laws; energy submetering. | (H) Committee on General Laws | (H) Assigned GL sub: #1 Housing | 01/27/12 |
| notes: Provides that energy submetering equipment, energy allocation equipment, water and sewer submetering equipment, or a ratio utility billing system may be used in a campground if clearly stated in the rental agreement or lease for the leased premises or dwelling unit. | |||
| SB 34 - Locke - Rental payments; landlord accounting of tenant credits and debits upon written request. | (S) Committee on General Laws and Technology | (S) Read third time and passed Senate (34-Y 4-N) | 02/03/12 |
| notes: Compels a landlord, upon the written request of a tenant, to produce a written accounting of charges and payments from the tenant over the tenancy or the past 12 months, whichever is shorter. This bill is recommended by the Virginia Housing Commission. | |||
| SB 35 - Locke - Landlords; recovery of possession limited. | (S) Committee on General Laws and Technology | (S) Read third time and passed Senate (32-Y 6-N) | 02/03/12 |
| notes: Clarifies that an unlawful detainer action and the execution of a writ of possession is needed to evict a tenant from a residential rental unit. A provision in a rental agreement saying otherwise is unenforceable. "Dwelling unit" and "residential dwelling unit" are defined. This bill is recommended by the Virginia Housing Commission. | |||
| SB 130 - Stanley - Building Revitalization Grant Fund; established, report. | (S) Committee on Finance | (S) Rereferred to Finance | 01/23/12 |
| notes: Establishes the Building Revitalization Grant Fund administered by the Housing Development Authority to award grants of up to $100,000 to businesses that make a capital investment of $1 million in revitalizing or retrofitting buildings to serve as a new place of business. | |||
| SB 163 - Petersen - Foreclosure; use of false records, documents, or statements. | (S) Committee for Courts of Justice | (S) Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice | 01/10/12 |
| notes: Provides that any person who knowingly makes, uses, or causes to be made or used a false or fraudulent record, document, or statement in support of any foreclosure shall be liable to the injured party. Upon proof of both a violation and damages, the injured party shall be entitled to appropriate equitable relief and compensatory damages. If compensatory damages are awarded, an injured party may also be awarded punitive damages. A person violating the provisions of this bill shall be liable for reasonable attorney fees and costs of a civil action. | |||
| SB 166 - Petersen - Homestead exemption; exemptions in bankruptcy petition, etc. | (S) Committee for Courts of Justice | (S) Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice | 01/10/12 |
| notes:
Makes various changes to homestead exemptions, including providing that the official schedule of property claimed exempt filed with the United States Bankruptcy Court in a bankruptcy proceeding constitutes a sufficient writing to exempt such real and personal property from creditor process. Currently, the person claiming such an exemption must record a writing in the manner deeds are recorded where the person resides for personal property or where the real property is located. The bill provides that a claim of exemption shall only be effective for seven years from the date the exemption is first claimed. The bill also provides that a householder may hold exempt from creditor process real or personal property that the householder or his dependent claims as a primary residence not exceeding $25,000 in value. This exemption is in addition to the current $5,000 ($10,000 if the householder is 65 years of age or older) exemption allowed by law. The bill adds certain specific items of personal property to the list of what a debtor may hold exempt from creditor process. The bill also repeals the provision that establishes that only the exemptions allowable under Virginia law, and not the exemptions specified in subsection (d) of § 522 of the Bankruptcy Reform Act, may be claimed in any bankruptcy proceeding. Currently, Virginia, as permitted by federal law, has opted out of the federal exemptions in favor of its own exemptions. |
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| SB 627 - Petersen - Solar panels; restrictions by community associations. | (S) Committee on General Laws and Technology | (S) Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology | 01/20/12 |
| notes: Removes the provision that allows covenants restricting the installation of solar power devices to continue to be enforceable if they became effective prior to July 1, 2008. | |||
| SB 644 - Colgan - Foreclosure counseling pilot program; established in Cities of Manassas and Manassas Park, etc. | (S) Committee on Finance | (S) Rereferred to Finance | 01/30/12 |
| notes: Directs the Director of the Department of Housing and Community Development to establish a pilot program for Prince William County and the Cities of Manassas and Manassas Park under which qualified employees of the Department will provide foreclosure counseling to homeowners at no charge. Counseling will include facilitated negotiations between homeowners and mortgagees for the purpose of reaching an agreement for mortgage loan modification or other agreement in an attempt to avoid foreclosure or to mitigate damages if foreclosure is unavoidable. Participation in the program is optional. The Director is required to report on the effectiveness of the program. The measure expires July 1, 2017. | |||
| SJ 71 - Deeds - Foreclosure procedures; Virginia Housing Commission to study. | (S) Committee on Rules | (S) Referred to Committee on Rules | 01/11/12 |
| notes: Directs the Virginia Housing Commission to study the foreclosure procedures of the Commonwealth. | |||
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