Some Foreclosures Showcase Big, Bad, Ugly
Some Foreclosures Showcase Big, Bad, Ugly
In Lane County, Ore., real estate professionals have practically seen it all when it comes to foreclosed properties, from one property owner cutting a hole in his kitchen wall so he could take his jacuzzi bathtub with him as he left to other evicted home owners’ who have smashed walls in with golf clubs or covered walls in obscenities.
Often times home owners will stop paying garbage bills before they’re evicted so it’s not uncommon to find large amounts of trash and abandoned possessions--or even pets--left behind too.
"I've learned to tie garbage bags around my feet," said Brian Schartz with John L. Scott Real Estate in Eugene.
Sometimes home owners also try to take as much of the house with them as they can, such as one departing property owner who hauled away the kitchen’s cabinets, counters, sinks, and appliances before he left.
After a property has been repossessed from foreclosure, real estate professionals often do the initial inspection. They will then call in “asset preservation contractors,” contractors the bank pays to fix any problems with the house and get it ready for resale.
"A lot of [the properties], you have to wear masks inside," said Lynn Hunter, a broker with Century 21 Westover Realty. "They're filthy dirty. We're plugging our nose. We're covering our faces. You run in and do your work-up and get out."
Source: “Ore. Foreclosures Bring Trash, Abandoned Items,” Associated Press (Jan. 3, 2011)
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