BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Birmingham will launch a sweeping crackdown on neglected, blighted properties next month under a new ordinance that allows the city to foreclose on non-owner-occupied homes with unpaid code enforcement liens.
The measure, approved by the City Council and set to take effect Oct. 1, enables officials to seize abandoned, vacant or nuisance sites where liens for weed abatement, demolition, or other violations have lingered unpaid for six months or top $1,500. Properties with three nuisance abatements within a 36-month stretch or delinquent taxes may also face foreclosure.
City leaders say the policy aims squarely at absentee owners rather than residents. “We have wasted a lot of money. We could’ve been paving the streets and doing things residents wanted us to do. Of course, the residents who live near these dilapidated properties are very upset, but it’s just the most of us want to spend money on positive things instead of negative things,” said Valerie Abbott, a Birmingham councilor for District 3.
Council members emphasize the law is designed to protect occupied homes, not displace families in need. Instead, neighborhood groups hope to see the end of “wanton neglect,” with foreclosed properties transferred to the Birmingham Land Bank Authority for potential redevelopment.
Officials plan an outreach push to educate community members and prioritize the city’s growing list of troubled addresses. Supporters argue the law will help curb public spending on repeated cleanups and preserve Birmingham’s historic neighborhoods before derelict homes are lost for good.