Pitt County, NC Property Maintenance: Property Blight (2026)

S. 153A-366, to condemn as unsafe any building judged especially dangerous because of fire hazard, bad wall condition, overloaded floors, defective construction, decay, unsafe wiring or heating, inadequate egress, or other causes. The Inspector posts a notice of the dangerous condition on the building's exterior and, under subsection A, notifies both owner and occupant of the specific defects, hazardous conditions, or code failures found. From there the county follows a set statutory sequence rather than acting unilaterally. If the owner does not promptly correct the problem, Section 31 requires the Inspector to mail, or personally serve, written notice that a hearing will be held within ten days, at which the owner may appear with counsel and present evidence; if the owner cannot be located, notice is instead posted on the building for ten days and published once in a local newspaper.

Section 32 lets the Inspector, after that hearing, issue a written order to repair, close, vacate, or demolish the building, giving the owner not less than 60 days unless the danger is imminent, in which case a shorter deadline applies. Section 33 gives the owner ten days from that order to file a written appeal with the Pitt County Board of Commissioners, which can affirm, modify, or revoke it; an order that is not appealed becomes final. Section 34 makes failure to comply with a final order a misdemeanor and lets the county separately sue to force compliance.