Housing, Home Ownership, & Neighborhood Revitalization

Trenton needs more homeowners, safe and stable rental housing, fewer abandoned properties, and a redevelopment system that produces results.

As mayor, I will connect housing, property rehabilitation, enforcement, and neighborhood investment under a coordinated plan. Residents deserve a clear path to homeownership, protection from unsafe conditions, and visible progress on neglected properties.

Expand Paths to Homeownership

I will work with housing counselors, lenders, nonprofit organizations, and county and state partners to connect residents with homebuyer education, credit readiness, and available down-payment and closing-cost assistance.

My plan includes:

• Making homeownership resources easier to find through city communications, neighborhood workshops, and a centralized resource page.

• Helping prospective buyers understand financing, rehabilitation costs, property taxes, insurance, and ongoing maintenance before purchasing.

• Connecting qualified buyers with rehabilitation financing and established assistance programs.

• Pursuing partnerships that help existing homeowners access eligible repair and accessibility assistance, particularly seniors and residents with disabilities.

The goal is to help residents purchase homes they can afford to maintain and remain in.

Put Qualified Owner-Occupants First

City-owned residential properties should help create opportunities for residents to establish roots and build wealth in Trenton.

I will work with Council to establish a transparent sales policy that prioritizes qualified owner-occupants for appropriate residential properties, while setting clear expectations for rehabilitation and occupancy.

Pricing should reflect property condition, rehabilitation needs, and market value. I will pursue a tiered approach that distinguishes homeownership opportunities from investor purchases and considers affordability alongside the city’s financial interests.

Applicants will receive clear eligibility requirements, evaluation criteria, and explanations of decisions.

Modernize City-Owned Property Sales

Residents and responsible developers should not face a confusing process with applications that sit unresolved.

I will modernize property disposition through:

• A searchable public inventory showing available properties, their condition, known restrictions, and application status.

• Online applications and status tracking, with automated routing, notifications, and a documented record of decisions.

• Published requirements and processing timelines, including clear steps from application through Council consideration and closing.

• Adequate staffing and coordinated legal support to resolve title issues, prepare agreements, and complete approved transactions.

• Consistent review standards and documented exceptions so access and timely service do not depend on personal connections.

• Regular public reporting on applications, approvals, closings, rehabilitation, and properties returned to the tax rolls.

Approving a sale is one step. My administration will track whether the transaction closes and the promised work is completed.

Protect Renters and Improve Housing Conditions

Residents deserve safe rental homes and a dependable response when serious problems are reported.

I will strengthen coordination between rental registration, inspections, code enforcement, and complaint response so the city can identify responsible owners and follow unresolved violations through correction.

My priorities include:

• Hiring and retaining qualified inspectors and strengthening supervision.

• Establishing consistent inspection procedures, documented findings, and quality checks.

• Prioritizing serious health and safety hazards and repeat violations.

• Giving tenants a clear way to report unsafe conditions and track the city’s response.

• Coordinating referrals for residents displaced by unsafe housing.

• Reviewing how rent protections are working, using evidence to guide improvements that support housing stability and responsible maintenance.

Address Abandoned and Neglected Properties

Vacant and deteriorating buildings threaten neighboring homes, public safety, and neighborhood confidence.

I will establish a coordinated approach to identify, assess, and prioritize neglected properties, with particular attention to dangerous structures and properties with repeated complaints.

Inspections, legal staff, public works, and redevelopment personnel will work from a shared tracking system with assigned responsibilities and deadlines. Depending on a property’s condition and ownership, the response may include enforcement, securing the building, rehabilitation, redevelopment, or demolition when necessary.

For city-owned properties, I will implement an asset management plan covering inspections, maintenance, stabilization, and disposition. The city must take responsibility for the condition of its own properties.

Hold Developers and Buyers Accountable

Property transfers and redevelopment agreements must include clear expectations for performance.

I will work with Council and legal staff to establish realistic rehabilitation milestones, completion deadlines, and reporting requirements, with enforceable remedies when commitments are not met.

My administration will track projects after approval, identify stalled work early, and distinguish legitimate obstacles from persistent failure to perform. Responsible buyers should have a clear process for resolving problems, and the city should act when properties continue to sit neglected.

Rebuild Neighborhoods Around Residents

Housing investment must connect to the conditions that make a neighborhood livable: safe streets, reliable infrastructure, nearby businesses, healthcare, food access, recreation, and transportation.

I will coordinate neighborhood revitalization with business recruitment and improvements to lighting, sidewalks, streets, and public spaces. This includes focused planning along corridors such as Bellevue Avenue, Prospect Street, and Stuyvesant Avenue, linking housing rehabilitation with commercial investment and essential services.

I will pursue a mix of homeownership and rental opportunities and engage residents early in redevelopment decisions. Neighborhood progress should improve the lives of the people already living there.

Put the Plan Into Action—and Measure Results

During my first 100 days, I will review the city-owned property inventory, pending applications, approved sales awaiting closing, redevelopment agreements, inspection capacity, and unresolved dangerous-property cases.

That review will establish a public baseline and a phased action plan. I will work with Council to align staffing and funding with priorities and pursue eligible county, state, federal, and nonprofit resources.

My administration will report regularly on completed sales, rehabilitation milestones, new owner-occupied homes, corrected housing violations, and properties returned to productive use and the tax rolls.

GOAL: Return at least 25 percent of eligible city-owned property to productive use in my first term.

We will publish the eligible inventory and explain how progress is counted. Productive use may include an occupied home, an operating business, a maintained side yard, or a completed community use. A sale approval alone will not count as a completed result.