Innumerable Flaws in the Foreclosure System
There are innumerable flaws in the foreclosure system as is evident from the fact that in Bridgeport City tax debts amounting to a meagre $51.69 can cause foreclosures to snap up the property. The system of collection of back log taxes seems to have broken down as can be seen in the case of Jean Castro.
Although the judge of a Superior Court permitted the request of the city, he postponed the final action till the last month of this year thus allowing plenty of scope for the matter to be resolved in a more sensible manner.
It poses the question that if the city had been as diligent in chasing jumbo delinquent taxpayers, Bridgeport would have become a different place.
The focus of the issue is on Jean Castro who owns the house on Harral Avenue in Hollow locality of Bridgeport. There is no dispute about the fact that he owed the city over $3,000 in property taxes. When the city officials demanded the dues Castro says that he turned over this request to the mortgage firm.
Bridgeport City assigned the foreclosure case to Lee Samowitz – a private attorney. He has been so far a known figure in the Democratic Party and was a former representative of the state.
Meanwhile Castro paid a good part of the due taxes but a negligible balance kept pending. It was at this point that some safety valve should have taken over action automatically. The attorney contended that since he had already started taking action a considerable sum of money had become due to him as fees together with court charges.
When Bridgeport officials have been asked as to why they never took action against empty foreclosed units that posed a blight to the community, the attorney general’s office had a ready stock reply that the laws prevented walking over into the property of others. There are influential developers who owe hundred times more taxes than Castro. They can postpone foreclosure operations by finding loopholes in the law.
The city contends that if people do not pay taxes others have to step in. In chasing tax money the city has to put into force not only aggression but judgment as well. It is a potent question to ask how much is being paid by the city to external attorneys and whether they are submitting proper bills for chasing these nickel and dime cases.