Wilmington could put a year-long moratorium in place on some residential and commercial property foreclosures.
Property reassessment saw many property values jump, especially in low-income residential neighborhoods in Wilmington.
If passed, City Councilmember Coby Owens’s proposed ordinance will establish a year-long moratorium on residential and commercial foreclosures that saw their property taxes increase by 25% or more between Fiscal Years 25 and 26 following property reassessment.
Owens said he’s not sure how many people could be protected by the moratorium, but noted people are facing financial threats from all directions right now.
“We're seeing people who are going to be affected by the federal government passing the Big, Beautiful Bill that has seen reductions from all different types of social programs…” Owens said. “So I think this could have an impact on a lot more people than what we're thinking. But I can see a lot of people needing to take advantage of, ‘Hey, I just don't have it right now.’”
Owens added the moratorium would give the city extra time to plan for the future.
“I think giving us that extra window gives us the ability to really have those authentic heart to heart conversations with all the stakeholders that we need to have,” Owens said. “People who have been affected, our OMB or finance department, the mayor's office, the City Council, the state, the county, and really start to do something to address what happened.”
He said in the wake of reassessment issues, the goal is to collect taxes but not penalize people.
“We know City of Wilmington residents in certain communities are already some of the most vulnerable communities, right?” Owens said. “And we don't want them to lose their homes. So that's why we needed to act as well, while the state works on trying, hopefully, to correct this process.”
A Special Committee made up of state legislators met in Dover the last two weeks to address reassessment concerns.
The moratorium in Wilmington would only apply to property owners who are already on a payment plan, which people can request by contacting the city’s finance department.
