Posts Tagged ‘Arizona Foreclosed houses’

Stagnant pools in abandoned foreclosed houses are posing problems for authorities in Arizona. The challenge is being met by releasing a particular type of fish known as minnows into the fetid pools to stop the spread of mosquito borne diseases like the dangerous West Nile.
The officials of the Health Department of Maricopa County that is inclusive of Phoenix Valley said that the best way of tackling the problem of foreclosed pools is to breed these mosquito fish that feasts on the larvae multiplying in the foreclosed house pools. The small silvery fish are being offered to the people of this dry desert county. There are thousands of swimming pools in this region that has a record breaking number of foreclosures to its credit.

John Townsend of the Vector Control of Maricopa County commented that when the pools become stagnant they turn into fetid swamps – ideal for breeding mosquitoes. He added, “It is an important public health issue to keep the mosquito population down … and the fish are very effective at that.” The West Nile Virus entered American from Africa during the 1990’s and now it endemic in Maricopa County. In cases of severe attack high fever breaks out accompanied by stupor, rigor and paralysis. It is a fatal disease.
From January to March this year 17,214 foreclosed houses had been put up for sale in Maricopa County. Since 2007 the increase has been three fold according to RealtyStore.com. On top of this many houses (number not known) were just abandoned by owners who wanted to skip debts. They left behind untreated pools to stagnate and rot.
Mosquito-fish breeding has been stepped up on a war footing. For this year the target is to breed 40,000 minnows. Tanks at Phoenix Zoo are being used so as to make the minnows available throughout the country. The minnows are a better alternative to chemicals. Chlorine is ineffective as the sun burns it off within few days. This requires repeat treatments. Daniel Anderson is a city official from Chandler. He set free a shining shoal of fish into a murky swamp that once was a clear pool and felt pleased that “once these fish are in the pool, we are not concerned about mosquitoes until someone either buys the house or the pool dries up.”
The snowballing effect of foreclosures has led bad loans to end up with the breeding of minnows!

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Keeping in pace with the rising number of vacant foreclosed houses are problems relating to it. Nature hates vacuum and in the void enters snakes, weeds and human beasts otherwise known as criminals. The neighbouring community shivers at the growing menace although these houses are not in foreclosure. Shenee Martin walking through her locality look at the eyesores and are concerned about the weeds and deserted pools causing health hazards and danger. In Martin’ southwest Valley this is a common scene with nobody caring for the abandoned units. Squatters have moved in increasing fire hazards.

Marc Slavin works in the Arizona Short Sale Office and has been to some localities where all the houses have been left vacant, thanks to foreclosure. Once the foreclosure process is completed the lenders, usually the banks, take over the responsibility. But while the matter is pending the houses are in a state of limbo, belonging to no one. The lender has to be notified about the impending grave danger. The matter has to be taken up with them, says Slavin. The best way is to educate the people about foreclosures. Fear traumatizes the victims so that they bury their head under the sand. It is this that has increased the number of foreclosures. The best thing for the borrowers is to talk to the lenders and open up communication lines. Lately the banks are more than eager to sit down at the same table with the borrowers to thrash out matters. Slavin says that there are many alternatives to foreclosures.

But such arguments do not impress the neighbours who feel that the equity on their own houses suffer because of the foreclosed houses adjacent to them. Maricopa County had to place a sticker on one unit warning of the unsafe pool. It is such a common occurrence (that is getting worse by the day) that the some of the neighbours are cleaning the houses themselves. Sometimes rowdy parties are disturbing the neighbourhood as these usually ends up in violence. Gangs move in to strip the houses of whatever if left of fittings, doors and windows. Vagrants are having a ball moving from one house to another lurking in the dark.

Last Tuesday new 354 foreclosures were filed leading to a sense of despair that things will not work out easily after all. It seems there are even darker days ahead.

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