Freehold Township, NJ Property Maintenance: Vacant Lot Maintenance (2026)

Section 245-2B is written broadly enough to reach unimproved and vacant parcels, not just occupied dwellings: the duty runs to 'the owner, tenant or person in possession of any dwelling or lands in the Township,' and the listed conditions, brush, weeds, grass of unreasonable height, heavily matted cut grass, dead and dying trees, stumps, roots, obnoxious growths, filth, garbage, litter, trash, and debris, are exactly the conditions that accumulate on undeveloped land with no active tenant to maintain it. The section also separately addresses solid waste stored where it is 'accessible to and likely to be strewn about by animals such as but not limited to dogs, cats, raccoons, birds or rodents,' a common problem on vacant lots used for informal dumping.

' Enforcement follows the same Code Enforcement Officer process used for occupied properties: an investigation, typically prompted by a resident, Township officer, or employee complaint under Section 245-3, followed by written notice giving the owner 72 hours to 10 days to clear the condition. Because vacant lots often have absentee or out-of-state owners, the Township's remedy in Section 245-4, having the Department of Public Works or a contractor abate the condition and lien the cost against the property, taxed and collected the same way as property taxes, is the practical enforcement tool rather than criminal prosecution.