In the Borough of Bangor, Pennsylvania, the Residential Rental Unit and Landlord Registration Ordinance was updated without much fanfare late in 2024, but when it came to the attention of the Greater Lehigh Valley REALTORS® (GLVR), several of the new provisions raised serious questions. The REALTORS® sought a legal analysis from the REALTOR® Party’s Land Use Initiative program, and the resulting report helped facilitate an updated ordinance that should enable the Borough to achieve their goals while maintaining fairness for Bangor’s landlords and tenants.
According to GLVR’s Government Affairs Director Asher Schiavone, the two most problematic concerns with the ordinance were excessive landlord penalties for vague tenant “Disruptive Conduct” and the barring of members of evicted households from renting anywhere in the Borough for five years. Of the latter, he says, “We’re obviously focused on issues important to our industry and private property rights, but it was clear to us that we needed more information on the eviction banishment. At the end of the day, if you have rentals in a community, both sides must work together.” He notes, too, that there was nothing malicious about these decisions the Borough officials had made. “Our footprint covers 86 municipalities across three counties, and I think they’re all looking to use the current housing market to their advantage to improve their housing stock and bolster the community. There’s so much to stay on top of, as a municipal manager or elected official,” he adds; “it’s a tough job – so it’s helpful when we can offer quality information compiled by a legal team that lives and breathes this kind of thing every day.”
He’s referring to the law firm of Robinson & Cole, LLC, retained by the REALTOR® Party to analyze zoning legislation submitted to the Land Use Initiative program by state and local REALTOR® organizations. In this case, when questions arose regarding Bangor’s newly updated ordinance, Schiavone first ran it by GLVR’s Government Affairs Committee, and then worked directly with the Borough to discuss the REALTORS®’ concerns. “Our approach is based on a mutual level of respect. It is our intention to work directly with the municipality rather than be adversarial out of the gate,” he says.
GLVR received the LUI report in short order and used it as the basis of a seventeen-page document presented to the Borough, spelling out their analysis. The Borough was extremely receptive, reports Schiavone, and the result was a significantly revised ordinance that addressed GLVR’s most serious concerns: the five-year evicted tenant ban was removed; and the first landlord-fine for a tenant’s disruptive conduct was converted to a warning. Additionally, “Disruptive Conduct” was defined more clearly, specifying medical calls, domestic violence, and sexual assault as protected incidents. “There are examples of other municipalities in our region that failed to include this important provision of Pennsylvania State Law (53 Pa.C.S. § 304) from ordinances,” notes Schiavone: “and the legal ramifications can be devastating.” The revisions also eliminated the requirement that the owner’s contact information be posted at rental properties.
Whether GLVR is providing in-depth analysis to a local municipal office, or engaged in a high-profile campaign, the LUI program is an invaluable resource, says Schiavone. “This case was never adversarial, and while we always have the option to implement a full-court press, working directly with municipalities is certainly the way we prefer to operate.”
To learn more about how the Greater Lehigh Valley REALTORS® is working with local municipalities, contact Asher Schiavone, GAD, at asher@glvr.org or 484.821.0512.
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