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I'm wondering, with millions of folks losing their homes, how many choose to gut their homes before leaving. Whether a ceremonial act or a last dig at the lender, this trend seems to be happening more & more, especially in urban areas. I don't mean the salvaging of plumbing & wiring. . .but rather the unapologetic & wanton sacking of homes being repossessed. My brother in law laid waste to his home before the bank got their hands on it. He claims it was "therapeutic", personally I find it dispicable.
Just remind me not to invite him over for the holidays! lol
Anyone seeing a lot of this in your area? (i imagine Detroit is horrible for this)
Things like above really show how childish and ignorant some people can be, but it's not an uncommon sight. I looked mainly at foreclosures on my last home purchase recently and checked out about 10. Out of them, all were trashed on some degree except for two which were simply gutted of just the appliances. Some were just completely trashed, garbage everywhere, kicked in walls, broken windows,..etc.
I look at REO's regularly. I don't see much intentional "spite" damage but I see many homes stripped of built in appliances & fixtures. Even more sad, however, are signs of how poorly the owners lived the final months residing in their homes......climate systems inoperable, leaking roofs, broken windows, termites, insect invasions, toilets and faucets broken, bathroom tiling missing from tub and shower surrounds..and serious mildew, broken doors. I sometimes say a silent prayer that the former residents are in a healthier environment even tho they lost their homes.
I've only seen one totally damaged home in my area and it was a million plus dollar foreclosure. They took a saw to the hardwood floors, sledge hammers to the walls. Go figure that the person that lost their $200,000 home did so with class...Those just tend to be poorly maintained but not intentionally damaged.
Most renters are required to make a security deposit. Many of these homes were acquired without the buyer having any skin in the game when they bought what they thought was their express ticket to Easy Street, U.S.A.
When things did not pan out as planned, most live without paying their mortgage, property taxes or HOAs fees for 2 +/- years before being required to leave. People tend not to value things they do not pay for.
Some become angry at the system they believe pulled the rug out from under them and demonstrate this by trashing the place. In other cases, squatters and looters come in to finish the job.
No telling the actual breakdown of root causes for foreclosure, ARM resets, inability to refi or sell without bringing money to the closing table, job loss, relocation, medical issues, intent.....
Instead of surrendering his house, which had an appraised value of nearly $245,000, Terry Hoskins decided to "send a message to the bank. It took me three years and eight months to build from the ground up but just two hours to tear down." Hoskins demolished his house on Feb. 12.
Instead of surrendering his house, which had an appraised value of nearly $245,000, Terry Hoskins decided to "send a message to the bank. It took me three years and eight months to build from the ground up but just two hours to tear down." Hoskins demolished his house on Feb. 12.
He said he sought legal counsel before tearing down his home and understands the possible consequences, but he has never doubted his decision once he made it. Last I read, he was planning on taking down his business property too.
I would love to see someone like this sentanced to 15 years of community service cleaning public toilets, by hand.
He said he sought legal counsel before tearing down his home and understands the possible consequences, but he has never doubted his decision once he made it. Last I read, he was planning on taking down his business property too.
I would love to see someone like this sentanced to 15 years of community service cleaning public toilets, by hand.
The Hoskins story is so much more convoluted because the IRS is involved.
With a lot of IRS property liens, it's like a catch-22 ... they place a lien on your property so you can't sell it without clearing the lien. And yet, you can't sell it because you can't convey clear title. A big stinking mess is what it is.
The bank blinked. They took back his business assets and called it a day. I think he is a hero.
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