More On Fires & Foreclosures

The following links are to recent stories on homes in foreclosure that are going up in smoke:

• Grayson County, Texas: Homeowner facing a foreclosure sale in a month gets five years after being found guilty of torching home. She had recently renewed the insurance policy on the home after the policy had lapsed for non-payment. See Pottsboro woman sentenced in arson conviction; see also district attorney press release;

• Greeley, Colorado: Homeowner in foreclosure facing arson charges; reportedly told cops he set the house on fire because he was angry at his ex-wife. See Fire "victim" arrested for arson; and Vodka, cigarettes used to start fires;

• Owings Mills, Maryland: Homeowner faces charges of arranging to have someone set fire his home in foreclosure for $10,000, so that he could collect the insurance. The home was burned and a firefighter who responded to the fire was injured when he fell through the floor into the basement. See Owings Mills Man Charged In The Arson Of His Home (U.S. Dept. of Justice press release),

• Deltona, Florida: A $2,500 reward is being offered for information on a Deltona fire that destroyed a house in foreclosure. It took 17 firefighters to knock down the flames Friday night. One was even hurt during the firefight. Investigators said arson and foreclosure is becoming a critical issue across Central Florida and say increasingly, arson is where area homeowners are turning. See Rise In House Fires Could Be Attributed To Foreclosure Rates,

• New Bedford, Massachusetts: In one South End neighborhood last month, four vacant tenements were torched. The South End tenement fires occurred weeks after four vacant apartment buildings in the North End also were destroyed or heavily damaged in apparent cases of arson. Officials said the arson problem is worsening as the rising number of abandoned, foreclosed homes become sitting targets for vandals or desperate homeowners looking to recoup their losses. See Arson becoming growing problem for police, fire as foreclosures continue,

• Pueblo, Colorado: Firefighters say another vacant home in Pueblo has been set on fire, making this the fourth suspicious house fire in just five days. Fire investigators say two of the homes are foreclosures. See Firefighters investigate a string of vacant house fires in Pueblo,

• Salinas, California: Possible arson is being investigated as the cause of a fire that destroyed an unoccupied house, firefighters said. Salinas fire battalion chief said the estimated cost of damages to the recently foreclosed home is $100,000. See Suspicious cause in fire in east Salinas home.

Torching property in an attempt to escape unaffordable loan payments is not limited to homes, as this story illustrates:

• Baltimore, Maryland: Two local residents with unaffordable payments on their auto notes each arranged to have their cars torched and collected on the insurance. One, a former Maryland Transit Authority cop, got a year and a day in prison plus three years supervised release; the other, an ex-MTA bus driver, got two years probation. Both were also ordered to do community service. The torcher that they hired, also a former MTA cop, got five years in prison. See Former MTA Police Officer And Bus driver Sentenced In Arson And Insurance Fraud Scheme (U.S. Dept. of Justice press release).

For anotherstory on the Maryland cases, see WBAL-TV Channel 11 (Baltimore, Maryland): Arsons Due To Foreclosures Increasing, Experts Say (Bail Set For Md. Man Accused Of Arson At His Home)- if link expires, try here for the same story.

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More On One Of The "Burning" Issues In The Foreclosure Crisis

The following links are to recent stories on fires in foreclosures:

• Carmel, New York: The Journal News - Store that burned had mortgage, tax woes (owner of robbed, torched liquor store was facing foreclosure, tax judgments),

• Phoenix, Arizona: KTVK-TV Channel 3 - Arson suspected in fire at foreclosed home (late night fire in vacant foreclosure considered suspicious),

• Fort Wayne, Indiana: The Journal Gazette - Arson charged amid foreclosure (homeowner reportedly admits torching home two days before a scheduled April 17 foreclosure sale; reportedly said he didn't know how to tell his wife that he was 20 months behind on the house payments),

• Traverse City, Michigan: Traverse City Record Eagle - Man allegedly lit house on fire (homeowner charged with arson; reportedly told fire investigator the property was in foreclosure; records show he had inherited the property from his father but couldn't keep up on the mortgage payments; The property was insured, and he allegedly filed a claim after the fire). foreclosure arson whale

Suspected Arson Renews Safety Concerns Among Cleveland Residents Over Abandoned Building Hazards

In Cleveland, Ohio, The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports:

• Arson is suspected in a fire that damaged a vacant building on Hayden Avenue on Monday and has left residents and firefighters concerned about the growing problem of fires in abandoned structures. "I would say there is a 98 percent chance this was arson," said Assistant Cleveland Fire Chief Brent Collins. "It's got to be. There's no one [living] here."
  Fourteen fire trucks responded to the three-story apartment building [...].

• Fire officials suspect that some people may be resorting to unlawful tactics to rid residential areas of such eyesores, which are known to serve as squatters' quarters and cover for drug use and dealing. "They are definitely arson fires at vacant houses," Collins said, adding that the Fire Department has placed arson signs throughout the Fleet-Harvard neighborhood. "We are trying to figure out what this is. We don't know if it's insurance fraud or people setting them for eyesores."

***

• The city set aside more than $11 million last year to deal with up to 10,000 abandoned houses, many emptied by foreclosure. Most of that money - $7.5 million, or more than three times as much as was budgeted in 2006 - went for demolition.

For more, see Fire on Hayden Avenue probably was arson, official says (Abandoned buildings, fed by foreclosure crisis, make easy targets).

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

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Massachusetts Fire Marshal Expresses Concern On Increase In Abandoned Buildings Going Up In Smoke

In New Bedford, Massachusetts, The Standard Times reports:

• Two vacant tenements in the North End were torched Sunday night, fire officials said, underscoring a growing concern among public safety officials that the rising number of abandoned, foreclosed homes are sitting targets for vandals or desperate homeowners looking to recoup their losses. The fires [...] occurred weeks after another apparent arson at [...] an abandoned apartment building the city had boarded up. That fire started inside the first floor, and there is evidence it was set by squatters, fire officials said.

• Similar blazes of uninhabited, foreclosed tenements have been reported elsewhere, including Boston and Brockton, and mirror the trend from the early 1990s, during the last major recession, when arson increased as the rate of abandoned buildings skyrocketed across Massachusetts.

• "The current foreclosure crisis has not existed long enough for us to have a good statistical basis, but it is my observation from the number of fires we're responding to at vacant buildings that there is clearly an increase in the number of fires in those types of structures," said State Fire Marshal Stephen D. Coan.

For more, see Arson in two vacant residential buildings highlights public safety risks of foreclosure crisis.

For story update, see Firefighters back on the scene of North Front Street fire.

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Tampa Woman Charged With Torching Home In Foreclosure

In Florida, The Tampa Tribune reports:

• Investigators say Mia Gayshonne Dix was in trouble. The 37-year-old had been fired from her job. Her car had been repossessed. Her home was in foreclosure. So when the house at 3807 N. Highland Ave. caught fire in December, suspicion arose. Dix, who filed an insurance claim on the home in February, was arrested Monday on arson and fraud charges after an investigation on behalf of the insurance company, according to her arrest report.

Source: Tampa Woman Charged With Arson Involving Home In Foreclosure.

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35%+ Of Cleveland Vacant Home Torchings This Year Were In Foreclosure

In Cleveland, Ohio, The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports:

• Arsonists have torched nearly 100 vacant homes this year in Cleveland, and the blazes are stressing the Fire Department's budget. More than a third of the houses were in foreclosure, leading investigators to believe the blazes may involve some sort of mortgage fraud. Ninety-eight vacant homes were burned through June 10. Of these, at least 35 of the homes set on fire were in foreclosure, according to a Plain Dealer analysis of fire and court records.

***

• Nearly 25 percent of the torched homes have been in the North and South Broadway neighborhoods, which have one of the highest concentrations of foreclosed homes in the country. Councilman Anthony Brancatelli, who represents the area, said most of the 25 homes that were burned in those two neighborhoods had been boarded up before they were set on fire.

For more, see Arsonists burn 98 vacant houses in Cleveland; 35 in foreclosure (More than a third of homes hit by arsonists were in foreclosure Investigators suspect fraud in a growing number of arsons).

For other stories on fires & foreclosures, go here, go here, go here, and go here.

Go here, Go here, Go here, and Go here for other posts on vacant homes leaving their mark on neighborhoods. ForeclosuresDestroyNeighborhoodsApple foreclosure arson whale

Court OKs Stiffing Of Lender On Fire Loss Claim; Servicer's Failure To Notify Insurer Of Commencement Of Foreclosure Action Voids Coverage

Insurance companies looking to get out of having to pay out on a hazard insurance claim when a home in foreclosure goes up in smoke is the subject of this post.

Back in March, Tennessee & Arkansas attorney Toney Brasuell, with the law firm of Wilson & Associates, P.L.L.C. reported at Housing Wire that a Tennessee appeals court ruled that an insurance company properly rejected a fire loss claim submitted by a mortgage lender when the servicer failed to notify the insurer of the commencement of foreclosure proceedings on a home that subsequently caught fire and was destroyed.

Reportedly, the decision is currently on appeal to the Tennessee Supreme Court.

For more, see Insurers, Lenders Fight Over Foreclosure’s Policy Impact.

For the court decision, see U.S. Bank v. Tennessee Farmers Mutual Insurance Company (Tenn. App. Ct.; Case No. W2006-02536-COA-R3-CV - December 21, 2007).

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For another post where a foreclosing lender was left holding the bag on a home in foreclosure that went up in smoke, see Judge Jams Foreclosing Lender's Improper Grab For Excess Insurance Cash On Fire-Destroyed Home.

For other stories on fires & foreclosures, go here, go here, go here, and go here. foreclosure arson whale

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.

***

• 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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South Carolina Woman Guilty In Failed "Torch Home In Foreclosure" Insurance Scam

In Chester County, South Carolina, The Rock Hill Herald reports:

• A 60-year-old Rock Hill woman has been sentenced to five years probation after a Chester County jury Wednesday found her guilty of arson and presenting false claims for payment after a house fire in 2004, according to a spokesman for the S.C. Attorney General’s office. Brenda J. Gallman, 60, of 122 N. Confederate Ave., was found guilty of setting fire to her home that was going into foreclosure in Chester County in May 2004, then filing a claim on her homeowner’s insurance policy the following day, according to a written release from Mark Plowden, spokesman for the Attorney General’s office that prosecuted Gallman.

Source: Rock Hill Woman Found Guilty in Chester County Arson Case.

For other stories on fires & foreclosures, go here, go here, go here, and go here. foreclosure arson whale

Budget Cuts May Force San Bernardino Fire Department To "Fire" Diesel The Arson Dog

In San Bernardino, California, the Redlands Daily Facts reports:

• Looming budget cuts mean that Diesel's job could be on the line. Diesel is the playful "goldador" (a mix of golden retriever and Labrador) the Fire Department sometimes takes to fire scenes to sniff out evidence of possible arson. But Diesel's services may be a bonus that San Bernardino can't afford. A $20 million deficit is forcing all city departments to make cuts; in the Fire Department's case, Fire Chief Michael Conrad said there's not enough money available to keep Diesel in the department.

***

• "The program to me is just valuable," [canine fire investigator Michael] Koster said. "We look at people who set fires to structures and use accelerants and they forget we have a dog who can sniff accelerants." Koster said he expects the increasing number of foreclosures will give fire investigators a lot more work to do in the near future. "The arson fires are going to start increasing. It's known," he said.

For more, see Arson dog could lose job (if link expires, try here).

For other stories on fires & foreclosures, go here, go here, go here, and go here. foreclosure arson whale

"Burning Desire" To Escape Debt: Overall Numbers Still Small, But Some Areas Report Significant Increases

The Los Angeles Times reports:

• Some folks celebrate their last home mortgage payment by setting fire to their loan agreement. Lately, some people behind on their mortgages are simply setting fire to their homes. In what appears to be the latest symptom of the nation's mortgage meltdown and credit crisis, insurers, law enforcement officials and state agencies nationwide report a jump in home and automobile fires in the last year believed to have been set by owners unable to pay their debts. The numbers are small, but they're leading the insurance industry to scrutinize more closely what seem to be accidental blazes.

***

• Few state or federal agencies categorize arson in terms of the financial status of liens on the property, making nationwide figures elusive. Still, pockets of the country are showing a significant increase. [...] Frank Scafidi of the National Insurance Crime Bureau, a membership organization that tracks insurance fraud, says his group has not identified a rise in financially motivated arson. "Everything we've found does not support that," he said. But some observers say state authorities and insurance companies play down the issue -- perhaps out of fear of copycat crimes.

For more, see Debt may be a factor in suspicious house, car fires (Insurers and law enforcement agencies are seeing more cases with possible financial motives. Many involve properties that are near foreclosure).

For other stories on fires & foreclosures, go here, go here, go here, and go here. foreclosure arson whale

Fire Fighting Issues Involving Vacant / Abandoned Homes

An article in Fire Engineering Magazine comments on issues related to fighting fires in vacant/abandoned houses:

• With foreclosure rates dramatically increasing around the United States, has your department looked at how it will address the associated problems? An increase in foreclosure and bankruptcy means an increase in vacant properties. [...] Has your department discussed how to deal with this? Are you making mental notes? As the number of vacant house fires increases, will the number of firefighter injuries climb along with them? At what point does a company officer decide not to go interior? Remember, firefighter safety is our number-one priority. If it isn't safe and justifiable, don't risk life over wood and stucco.

For the entire commentary, see Fire Commentary: The Foreclosure Issue.

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Foreclosed Sacramento Home Goes Up In Smoke; Insurance Fraud Suspected

In California, KOVR-TV Channel 13 reports:

• A Sacramento home went up in flames overnight and arson investigators think this may be an example of insurance fraud. The house caught fire around midnight and by the time fire crews were able to douse the flames, the home was nothing but a charred shell. Firefighters say the house was in foreclosure and the previous residents had been evicted recently. Investigators haven't proved this fire was set by the homeowners but they say they have seen a spike in arsons as the economy has taken a dive.

Source: Foreclosed Home May Have Been Burned For Insurance.

See also, News10.net: Investigators Call Fire at Foreclosed House Suspicious (read story) (watch video).

For other stories on fires & foreclosures, go here, go here, go here, and go here. foreclosure arson whale

Flames Claim Tenant-Occupied House In Foreclosure Owned By Ex-Firefighter; Renter Unhappy With Investigation

In Scranton, Pennsylvania, The Scranton Times Tribune reports:

• [A] month after fire engulfed his apartment at 1021 Mark Ave., [renter Chuck] Smith says his telephone messages to police and fire officials have gone unreturned. “I’m still trying to find out what happened and getting the runaround,” he said Wednesday. “I would really like to know what caused the fire, to take the necessary steps ... No one wants to say anything. It’s hush-hush.”

• The fire started shortly before 2 p.m. on June 17, destroying an adjoining garage — which contained a Cadillac Escalade — before spreading to an apartment building at 1023 Mark Ave. The blaze displaced about a dozen residents. Charred timbers of the garage remained at the scene Wednesday, and the burned-out Escalade was still on the property.

• The 1021 Mark Ave. property is owned by Tom and Martha Gervasi, who were facing a mortgage foreclosure on the property, according to a civil suit filed in Lackawanna County. [...] Mr. Gervasi, a former city firefighter, was on the scene evacuating his tenants after the fire broke out. His brother is firefighter union Vice President Lt. David Gervasi.

For more, see Scranton Fire victim demands answers. foreclosure arson whale

Dry Weeds, Brush Around Abandoned Homes, Unseasonably Warm Weather Pose Fire Threat

In Fresno, California, KFSN-TV Channel 30 reports:

• The foreclosure crisis is having a much more dangerous effect in some of our rural areas and the foothills. The unseasonably warm weather has dried out weeds. It's one thing for neighbors to deal with unsightly yards which haven't been landscaped. Some abandoned rural homes are much more dangerous because they're surrounded by dry weeds and brush. [...] The flood of foreclosures has left many homes abandoned. Some are more than just eyesores. They also pose fire hazards.

For more, see Foreclosure Crisis Adds to Fire Season Dangers in Rural Areas.

For other stories on fires & foreclosures, go here, go here, go here, and go here. foreclosure arson whale

Rockland County Fire In Vacant Home In Foreclosure Under Investigation

In Haverstraw, New York, The Journal News reports:

• Investigators were looking into what caused a fire at a vacant Warren Avenue house yesterday morning. The house had recently been the subject of a foreclosure action, officials said. The 1:25 a.m. blaze at 2 Warren Ave. was quickly put out by Haverstraw and West Haverstraw firefighters. No one was injured during the emergency, police said. A neighbor reported the fire and told police that people were staying inside the vacant building, Lt. Martin Lund said.

For more, see Vacant house fire under investigation in Haverstraw.

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Foreclosed Home Goes Up In Flames, Leaving Four Tenants Homeless; Cause Under Investigation

In Marysville, California, the Appeal Democrat reports:

• At least four renters were left homeless [last week] when a fire swept through a Marysville house. The fire at 527 G Street was reported shortly after 6:30 a.m. All occupants escaped uninjured, said Capt. Matt Furtado of the Marysville Fire Department. The house was in foreclosure and was sold July 22 at an auction in front of the Yuba County Courthouse, according to county Recorder's Office records. [...] Furtado did not comment on a possible cause of the fire. "It's all under investigation," he said. [...] If the house can be salvaged at all, it will have to be gutted, said Furtado.

For more, see Early morning blaze burns house.

For story update, see Hero saves lives in fire (Marysville man awakens tenants, grabs ladder).

For other stories on fires & foreclosures, go here, go here, go here, go here, and go here. foreclosure arson whale ArsonForeclosureAlpha

Gas Leak Found In Foreclosed Home; Neighbors On Both Sides Of Street Forced To Evacuate

In Chillecothe, Ohio, the Chillicothe Gazette reports:

• Neighbors living near 727 E. Main St. had to be evacuated for a time [earlier this week] because of natural gas coming from that address. According to officials at the scene, neighbors called emergency workers when they smelled natural gas coming from the building. Officials said the gas was left on and leaked in the home after the inhabitants moved out due to a foreclosure. Firefighters evacuated homes on both sides of the street on the block between Poplar and Wade Streets as a precaution as they shut off the electric and gas in the home and let it air out. [...] Nobody was injured in the incident.

Source: Natural gas leak causes evacuation. foreclosure arson whale ArsonForeclosureAlpha

Mortgage, Economic Woes Threaten Ranks Of Volunteer Firefighters

In Genesee County, Michigan, The Flint Journal reports:

• Accepting the resignation of a firefighter at a recent Mt. Morris Township Board meeting was just a formality. He'd already relocated out of state days earlier. But District Fire Chief Rick Johnson saw it as an ominous sign that the mortgage lending crisis was knocking on the door of yet another house - this time the fire house. "He left out of our district because he was losing his house, and I'm afraid this is the first of many," Johnson told township trustees. [...] The township lost another firefighter because his car was repossessed.

***

• Volunteer firefighters are being affected by the same things hitting everyone else: skyrocketing gas prices, layoffs and foreclosures. [...] "Having an on-call force depends on people who live in the community. When they start losing houses and vehicles, it makes it hard."

For more, see Genesee County fire departments face another tough battle: losing firefighters because of economic woes. foreclosure arson whale

Abandoned "Triple Decker" Goes Up In Smoke; Latest In Rash Of New Bedford Vacant, Foreclosed House Fires

In New Bedford, Massachusetts, The Standard Times recently reported:

• Fire, police and EMS personnel responded to a fire at 20 Roosevelt St. in the city's South End just after midnight, working to extinguish a fire on the second floor of a triple-decker.

• A call came in at 12:03 a.m. reporting the fire. Four engines and two ladder trucks responded. The blaze, according to fire officials, was extinguished within an hour and a half, and the last piece of equipment left Roosevelt Street at 1:45 a.m. A police officer at the scene indicated that the home was abandoned. The city has seen a rash of fires in abandoned and foreclosed structures over a span of several weeks.

Source: Fire in South End damages apparent abandoned triple-decker.

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