Looking To Dodge Tear-Down Costs On Condemned Home, Nationwide Real Estate Operator Comes Up Empty In Effort To Rope In An Unwitting Buyer Willing To Bite On Lease-To-Own Bait On Eve Of Demolition

In Green Bay, Wisconsin, WFRV-TV Channel 5 reports:

• Last month, we told you about a house off Ashland Avenue that was condemned by the City of Green Bay but offered as a lease-to-own home by a company called Vision Property Management.
  
  In our 5 Investigates reports, we told you that offering a condemned home for lease is a violation of city code, and the city was ready to tear the house down on Thursday [Sept. 29].
  
  But now, the owner tore it down before the city could - something Green Bay's neighborhood development specialist Ken Rovinski says is not very common.
  
  "Typically that doesn't happen," he said. "Typically once it gets to my desk, it will be our contractor that will take it down. You don't usually see the owner step in if it's already been contracted out."
  
  Vision Property Management has been advertising the condemned house as lease-to-own, which is a violation of city code. In fact back in August, the company offered to lease our producer the house for $750 a month.
  
  Just last week when crews arrived to remove asbestos, Vision had posted a 'best offer' for sale sign in the front yard. This was concerning to the city.
  
  "If they would've sold this property and then our demo contractor would've come in, that bill then could've been put on the new owner," said Ravinski. "That's something they weren't advertising, that the demo was scheduled to happen at all. That would've been the extra on top of their $20,000 that they were charging for the property, there would've also been the added bill for this demolition."
  
  If the property did not sell, that demolition bill would have been on Vision Property Management, which could be one reason the company chose to demolish the home with its own contractor.
  
  On Monday, 5 Investigates spoke with Mike Murray with Strategic Vantage, a PR firm which represents Vision Property Management.
  
  "Vision Property Management decided to retain its own company because basically it costs more for the city to do it, so they decided to retain their own company," said Murray.
  
  City officials admit the company demolishing the house was a bit of a surprise, especially since they've been trying to talk with Vision about the property since it was condemned in April.
  
  Vision currently owes the city about $9,000 for repairs and damages at other properties in Green Bay.

Source: 5 Investigates: Rent-to-own follow up (Ashland property demolished before scheduled date). rent to own land contract for deed