(WSBT) Hundreds of South Bend landlords may soon have to abide by a new set of rules. City leaders say a new bill aimed at reducing the number of vacant and abandoned homes in the city will require them to maintain their properties, or face the consequences.

South Bend's Common Council approved the plan by a 7-1 vote Monday night.

The city's code enforcement department says there are more than 600 vacant homes across the city. At Monday's meeting, dozens lined up to speak out on the problem. Some say the new bill will help bring some of them back to productive use. But others told the council it could create a whole new set of problems.

Step outside Denise Chavous' near west side home, and you can see them.

Six other homes, all sitting vacant. That's why she usually stays inside.

"I don't walk the block," she said. "I just don't. If it's not daylight, I don't come out."

But she says the problem isn't vacant homes. It's vacant landlords who don't keep up their properties. Many sit littered with garbage, boarded up, left to rot.

That's why Denise and dozens of her neighbors have been pleading for a solution.

"Bad landlords need to be made accountable," one told the council on Monday.

Some are convinced they now have it.

The new bill will require property owners from outside South Bend to designate a property manager within 50 miles of the abandoned home.

Those homes will also have to have liability insurance. If they're boarded up, they will have to pass inspection and be registered with the city's code enforcement department.

Officers there say that will help them do their jobs more effectively.

"100 percent more effectively," said code enforcement director Catherine Toppel. "My inspectors will have handheld units in the field. They'll be able to access all the information from a database upstairs. This has been a long time coming. Neighbors have been asking us to do more. This is not the only answer, but this is a tool to assist us along with the other codes we already have in place."

And other city leaders caution the bill won't provide a quick fix.

But some landlords and real estate agents worry it won't be a fix at all.

"These homes are not deserted. They just don't have any residents at the moment," said one. "I don't disagree with the concept, but this isn't the right way to go about it."

Some landlords even told the council they feel like they're being targeted.

City leaders say that couldn't be further from the truth.

"Any good realtor or any honest or just landlord has nothing to worry about," said Councilwoman Charlotte Pfeiffer, who drew up the bill. "This is not a witch hunt. We're not after people who take care of their property. We're not after people who've had some tragedy or hardship. Of course we'll work with those people. We're after people who don't care about our neighborhoods. We can no longer sit silent and do nothing about it."

For now, Denise says she remains skeptical too.

"It's not going to fix the problem," she said.

Still, she's willing to give the new bill a chance, hoping it might help bring her neighborhood back.

"I hope it helps," she said. "I can't say it will. I just hope it will."

The bill now moves to Mayor Steve Luecke for his signature. If that happens, it would go into effect January 1. Landlords who don't register following that date could face fines or liens against their properties.