More On Foreclosure Eyesores

The Daily Tribune reports on the "tall grass" problem of Royal Oak, Michigan. Many of the problem properties involving overgrown grass in the area are in various stages of foreclosure. One homeowner who lived next to a home with an overgrown lawn that has since been cut now reports on a related problem. The wild animals that were once living in the uncut brush of the house next door have moved and have now taken up residency under her porch. For more, see City tackles foreclosure blight (Commissioner calls for steps to address overgrown yards).

The Cleveland Free Times has a story of the Cleveland, Ohio area community known as Slavic Village and the blight of hundreds of homes with peeling paint, boarded-up windows, and littered and weed-choked lawns, most of which being foreclosures owned by banks that once held the former owners' mortgages. Banks are reportedly considered among the most negligent property owners in Cuyahoga County, Ohio. The foreclosed houses they now own are reportedly left vacant, unattended and unmaintained, resulting in arrest warrants against some 30 banks for not showing up in court to answer criminal code violations. For more, see Stealing Home (Slavic Village Combats The Effects Of Foreclosures At The Street Level While Waiting For Solutions).

KFSN-TV Channel 30 in Fresno, California has a story on the danger that abandoned houses create for the community at this time of year. With the 4th of July (and the expected use of fireworks) coming up, Atwater, California officials are especially concerned this year because of the number of homes people have moved out of, leaving them abandoned with dead, bone dry lawns, creating a major fire hazard. Like many Valley cities, foreclosures in Atwater are on the rise. The other neighbors that surround these homes, are very concerned about their homes. For more, see Abandoned Homes Causing Concern for Atwater Residents.

The Washington Post has a story about the rise in foreclosures in D.C.-area suburbs. In addition to abandoned homes with untended yards, wind-borne trash, peeling and faded paint, and torn screens, homes are beginning to be used by their owners as transient lodging, taking in boarders to generate enough rent to make mortgage payments. For more, see Area Suburbs See Rise in Foreclosures (Even Affluent Neighborhoods Feel Effects of Subprime Mortgage Free Fall).

CBS13 (TV Channel 13 - Sacramento, California) reports that the local county mosquito control officials are seeking the help of local real estate agents to notify the county office of abandoned pools, which serve as breeding grounds for mosquitos. For more, see Foreclosed Homes Turn To Be Mosquito Haven, or watch the Channel 13 TV report (by reporter Edmundo Aguilar).

The Lodi News-Sentinel (Lodi, California) has a story of a local couple who moved into what they thought was their dream home in November, 2005, only to shortly discover that their dream was turning into a nightmare (ie. homes in the subdivision sitting empty for months at a time, green lawns turning to brown, tall weeds sprouting in place of neatly landscaped front gardens, "For sale" signs popping up throughout the neighborhood, replaced later by "for rent" signs, pigeons roosting on top of abandoned homes, leaving a mess below, tenants that throw loud late night parties moving in). For more, see Lodi homeowners find dream neighborhood not so charming.