Foreclosure Bargains An Oxymoron

Charleston, AZ Abandoned town but not vandalized by those who lived there

I pose that title as a question.   I’m sure there are some bargains in foreclosure purchases.   I’m also sure there are some people that win thousands of dollars at the casinos.

I was glad to see the “Arizona Daily Star” providing some valuable information on Foreclosure properties instead of the sensationalize headlines that often accompany the word foreclosure.   “Foreclosure bargains aren’t a snap”   does a good job of showing the many pitfalls that can beset a bargain hunter when it comes to foreclosed properties.

Focusing on the purchase price compared to what a property last sold for is not a good way to accurately asses the value of a home.   This formula leaves out a very important factor which was the last thing stated in the article.

“When people realize they are going to lose their homes, they are going to start beating them up.”

This is one component of the foreclosure issue that has not been adequately addressed by anyone.

Last week I talked about the American Dream of Home ownership and the sacrifices that used to be associated with achieving the goal of owning your own home and burning the mortgage.   None of us really “Own” the home till it is paid for.   Till then we are making payments on the home and it can be repossessed.

There is no punishment or penalty for trashing and almost destroying a home on which payments have stopped being made and the lender is requiring payment or vacating of the property.   “Stripping” and vandalizing a property should not be allowed.

Many people if found in the situation of loosing their home wouldn’t think of destroying the home before they left.   But the way homes were being sold recently with the “Fog a Spoon get a Loan” mentality there were a lot of people purchasing houses they never intended to make a home.   There was no emotional attachment and in most cases very little financial attachment either.   With a first and second mortgage on a home and closing costs folded into the second, where was the “investment”?

What is being done to many of these properties is criminal.   There is never a reason to rip out pipes, or remove furnace, water heaters and air conditioning units.   There is no reason to destroy the floors, throw paint all over the walls and pour tar in the toilets.   These acts of pure vandalism should not be allowed under any circumstances.

Till there is penalty for such actions they will continue.

The wanton destruction of property has to be taken into account when arriving at the value of buying a foreclosed property.   It is sad it is happening and it should be stopped.