Saturday, May 10, 2008

NYS Homeowner Cops Guilty Plea To Building Code Violations On Home Abandoned After Falling Behind On Payments, Lender Opts Against Foreclosure

In Lockport, New York, the Lockport Union-Sun & Journal reports:
  • Judge Thomas M. DiMillo sentenced a former homeowner to fines and community service Tuesday for his part in the deterioration of an Elmwood Avenue property that he lost to foreclosure. [...] David Stewart, formerly of 31 Elmwood Ave., was ordered to pay a $1,000 fine and perform 60 hours of community service within 60 days to avoid jail time on his guilty plea to four building code violations. When he moved out of the house he’d lived in for 17 years, he left behind a structure with foundation, exterior and sanitation defects. [...] The bank never completed foreclosure by taking back the property title, suggesting it didn’t want the house.
For more, see Debtors tagged for problems at vacant houses.

Go here for other posts on liability for building / housing code violations when the foreclosing lender fails to complete foreclosure or fails to record its deed after foreclosure sale. responsibility code violations foreclosure