It is not just House Owners that are Suffering from Foreclosure
It is not just house owners that are suffering from foreclosure blues. The problems linked with the housing market are endless. It is increasing along with the foreclosure numbers. Together with this come violations related to dumping and public nuisance.
In Mercer County the problem is acute with houses in neglected condition dotting the landscape. The towns do not know who the real owners are and this is leading to maintenance problems. The adjacent houses are suffering from health and crime related problems.
Jeffrey Plunkett of the townships of Hamilton and East Windsor said that the problems are prevalent everywhere. The Times have taken up investigation of a case that involves both the townships as well as DEP (Department of Environmental Protection) of the state. The apparently vacant estates have turned into landfill targets with debris being dumped. This has led to harming of the environment. The officials are continuing their hunt for the site’s owner.
This is one of the extreme examples of what can happen when an estate goes into foreclosure. Officials are reporting their problems from right across America. The most common ones are regarding overgrown lawns and decay of the structure.
Jill Swanson of Environmental Health Services said, “We do receive weed complaints and property maintenance complaints, some of which we can cite as a public nuisance”. Swanson works in tandem with the health department of West Windsor and Robbinsville as well as Hightstown. The complaints are motley – littering of trash, overgrown grass, weeds, stagnant pools etc. The officials in these three regions generally get six complaints per week regarding foreclosed properties.
Swanson noted that in general the towns are able to contact the institution that owns the estates and they are cooperating. She said the banks have reached out in correcting problems relating to public nuisance and violations of health code when it is brought to their notice.
But there are instances when response is nil and the officials fail to find out the owner. They then remedy the troubles by themselves but using equipments from the public works departments and taking the help of the personnel in the department. After correcting the fault n a tax lien is filed against the property to recover their expenses.
Swanson said, “That is a rare occurrence. We usually don’t get to that course of action.” Referring to the banks she said that they have an interest in caring for the estates for their own benefit.
