Shelby, NC Property Maintenance: Property Blight (2026)
Key Facts
- Nuisance trigger
- Unfit for human habitation
- Repair deadline
- Up to 90 days
- Demolish threshold
- Repair cost over 50% of value
- First citation fine
- $50
- Also covers
- Abandoned structures
Summary
Shelby can order a dilapidated or abandoned dwelling repaired or demolished, treating it as a declared public nuisance under city code.
All buildings or portions of buildings which are used or intended for use as places of habitation and which are, under this article, unfit for human habitation are hereby declared to be a public nuisance and shall be repaired or rehabilitated to the standards of this chapter or demolished in accordance with the procedures set forth in this chapter.
(Ord. No. 20-2025, § 1(Exh. A), 5-19-2025)
Sec. 24-3.1. - Abandoned structures declared nuisance. All buildings or portions of buildings which are found to be abandoned, as defined in section 24-2 above, shall be subject to the same provisions and procedures as are prescribed herein under this chapter 24 of the City of Shelby Code of Ordinances for repair, closing, or demolition of dwellings found to be unfit for human habitation in compliance with G.S. 160D-1201 et al.
(Ord. No. 20-2025, § 1(Exh. A), 5-19-2025)
Secs. 24-4—24-29. - Reserved.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 23).
Full Breakdown
Under Sec. 24-3, any building or portion of one used for habitation that's unfit under the housing article is declared a public nuisance and must be repaired to code or demolished. Sec. 24-3.1 extends the same nuisance status, and the same repair-or-demolish process, to abandoned structures. The code enforcement officer investigates, orders repair within 90 days if repair costs would be under 50% of the dwelling's value, or orders demolition if costs would exceed that threshold, per Sec. 24-36.
Violations & Fines
First citation $50, second $100, third and later $500 per Sec. 24-45; each day of noncompliance is a separate offense, and violations are also a Class 3 misdemeanor punishable by up to 20 days in jail and a $500 fine.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can Shelby force demolition of a rundown house?
Does an abandoned building count the same as an unfit dwelling?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Shelby
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