On Monday, April 28, City Council approved the first of three phases of updates to the City’s point of sale (POS) process. These updates will go into effect May 28, 2025.
“These are the first major changes to point of sale in more than 20 years,” notes Director of Building & Housing Kyle Krewson. “Our goal with these and future updates is to make this process more efficient and equitable, while also addressing concerns raised by realtors, homebuyers and community members.”
Any property being sold in the City of Shaker Heights is required to undergo the POS process, which includes a visual inspection of the interior and exterior of the property. Housing code violations discovered during this inspection must be corrected, which in more than 70 percent of all cases occurs before the property is transferred to the new owner.
“Historically, point of sale has helped protect the quality of the city’s housing stock by ensuring properties meet certain standards for maintenance,” explains Krewson.
The first phase of updates approved by City Council includes the following provisions:
- Escrow account holders can request more partial disbursements and a lower threshold.
When properties are sold with outstanding violations, the City requires an escrow account be established with funds representing 150 percent of the cost of making those repairs. The City disburses funds from escrow accounts once repairs have been made, which means the account holder – typically a buyer – must first pay for repairs out of pocket and wait for reimbursement. This update helps address community concerns about housing affordability by ensuring escrow account holders get reimbursed more quickly than in the past. Additionally, the previous threshold for being eligible for a partial disbursement was accounts with a balance of at least $5,000. This is being reduced to $2,000. This change will be retroactive for any open escrow accounts.
- The POS Certificate of Compliance will now expire 24 months from the initial inspection.
This update ensures consistency in how certificate expiration dates are determined, making the process more efficient. Specifically, the new approach will make the expiration date uniform for all sellers—24 months of the issuance date of either the certificate of inspection, or certificate of compliance when no violations are identified at the initial inspection—removing inconsistencies and streamlining administration. Previously, the POS Certificate of Compliance was valid for a period of 12 months from the date the certificate was generated. This change is retroactive for any existing POS where the initial Certificate of Inspection was issued within the last 24 months. Please contact the department for assistance or to have a new document created showing the revised expiration date.
- Require escrow accounts to be established in the buyer’s name.
This update ensures that the party responsible for correcting violations—the buyer—has direct access to the escrow funds and helps alleviate conflicts that have arisen when the seller has been the account holder. This will have no impact on any existing escrow accounts. If there is a signed purchase agreement prior to 5/28/25 with the escrow account being established in the name of the seller, please contact the department to have the account setup in the name of the seller.
Phases two and three of updates to the POS process will be introduced later this year.
“We look forward to working with the community to implement these updates,” says Krewson, noting that the Department of Building & Housing will offer a series of webinars to inform realtors and the general public about the changes before they go live. To learn how these changes affect your existing point of sale or escrow account, contact the Building and Housing staff at 216-491-1471 or housingdepartmentstaff@shakerheightsoh.gov.
Learn more
- Watch a recording of a webinar about the updates
- Read the April 28 Council Memo (PDF)
- Watch the April 9 Neighborhood & Economic Development Committee meeting