North Carolina lets cities and counties adopt minimum housing codes. Under G.S. 160D-1203, after a complaint a housing officer may serve the owner and hold a hearing 10 to 30 days later. If repairs would cost a reasonable amount compared with the home's value, the officer may order them. During the repair period, the officer may require the house to be vacated and closed if staying there would create a significant threat of bodily harm. If the local code has a housing appeals board, an appeal must be filed within 10 days.
If an owner does not comply, the local governing board may pass an ordinance for that property and record it with the register of deeds under the owner's name. The local government may do the work itself, but it must give the owner a reasonable chance to repair before using this process to demolish the house. The cost can become a lien on the property, behind only tax liens and collected like a special assessment. In a city, that cost may also become a lien on the owner's other property in the city or within one mile, but not the owner's main home. See Article 12 of Chapter 160D and G.S. 160A-233 on special-assessment lien priority.
Selling does not erase a recorded lien, and a court case or statutory deadline does not automatically end with the sale. Send us any notices or orders so they can be checked before closing. When you sell to us, we're the buyer, so the repairs become our job.