Hempstead, NY Property Maintenance: Vacant Lot Maintenance (2026)

Section 128-61B of the Town Code, in Article V (Maintenance of Premises), applies specifically to vacant unimproved real property and makes it unlawful for the owner, an agent, or anyone else in possession to allow lawns, weeds, grass or brush of any kind to exceed eight inches in height, to let garbage, litter, refuse, rubbish or rubble accumulate on the lot, or to plant, grow or maintain bamboo of the genera Bambusa, Dendrocalamus or related genera on the property, including bamboo encroaching from a neighboring parcel.

When the Sanitation Department finds a violation, Section 128-62 requires it to serve a notice of violation on the owner, using the address on file with the Town's Receiver of Taxes, by personal service or certified mail. Section 128-63 gives the owner five days after service to cut the weeds or remove the debris; if that deadline passes, the Sanitation Department may enter the property, cut and clear the excessive growth or remove the accumulated material itself, then charge the actual cost plus 6% annual interest to the owner's next regular tax bill, with a sworn statement of the cost filed with the Town Clerk creating a lien on the property.

1 separately requires the foreclosing bank or lender to post a $25,000 undertaking, in cash, a cash bond, or a letter of credit, within 45 calendar days of starting the foreclosure action, to fund maintenance of the property for the duration of the vacancy, with failure to post it triggering fines of up to triple the standard maximum under Section 128-65A. 1.