Four Abandoned Homes Torched In Four Hours In Slavic Village; City Official Blames Foreclosure Crisis

In Cleveland, Ohio, WKYC-TV Channel 3 reports:

• Four homes caught fire in four hours on Wednesday night. Now neighbors [...] are surrounded by boarded up homes and arson signs. [...] Two abandoned homes near her were set on fire. Flames spread to two other abandoned homes, all on the same block.

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• What's going on in the neighborhood has caught the attention of people at the highest levels. Cleveland Councilman Anthony Brancatelli took contractors who work with the Federal Department of Housing and Urban Development on a tour of the [Slavic Village] neighborhood. He talked about how the fires were a direct result of the foreclosure crisis. "What happened is a number of predatory lenders came in and created a situation where these houses would get stripped and condemned," he said. "There are homes here that are mortgaged for 90-95 thousand dollars that are not worth 10 and 15 thousand dollars."

For more, see Fear grips Slavic Village neighborhood after arson fires (watch video) (read transcript).

Go here and go here for other posts on vacant homes leaving its mark on neighborhoods.

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