Saddly Neglected Homes

I accompanied a buyer couple to see a foreclosed home last night and what a sad sight it was. I was actually expecting what we ran into, but it still hit me as sad that such a once nice home had fallen into such disrepair. Foreclosures are rampant right now in Michigan and this home is just one example of what happens to them when they go into foreclosure.

This house was last sold to an owner for $375,000. Now it is listed for just over $200,000. It is bank owned and being "cared for" and marketed by a repo specialist company. I say "cared for" because it was obvious that almost nothing is being done to keep the place up. ratter it is just being marked down to reflect the poor condition of the house and grounds. From what I can see in public records, the house has likely set empty for between 1 and 2 years.

The grounds look like they had been nice at one time. what happens when they are neglected for that long is that nature reclaims the land, mainly in the form of weeds and saplings in what was a yard. At this point the whole yard would have to be plowed under and re-seeded or sodded.

Inside, the place is a mess. As I walked around it was obvious that all of the exterior doors had been kicked open at one time or another, likely by vandals or thieves. There was abandoned junk (personal belongings of the last owner) all over the basement and bits and pieces throughout the house. Plumbing problems, perhaps from frozen pipes or some other cause, had wiped out the kitchen ceiling, which had a half done (and poorly at that) repair job. Almost all of the carpeting had been ripped out and what carpeting was left now needed to be replaced. The walls and windows looked to be in fairly good shape and the structure still appeared to be sound.

Sometimes people who are foreclosed and evicted from homes take out their frustrations or somehow imagine that they are "getting even" with the bank by damaging the home. That didn't seem to be the case with this house. Sometimes either the ex-homeowner or thieves will strip out items of value - fixtures or plumbing items - and try to sell them. This home seemed to have everything in place, although there appeared to be a jetted tub installation in the master bath that had gone awry or been interrupted by the foreclosure process. It was just kind of sitting in the bathroom buy not installed.

As I walked though this place, I couldn't help but wonder about the people who built it. Where they still there when it was foreclosed? What happened to put them in such a condition. What happened to them afterwards. What about the kids (there were obvious kids rooms in the house)? What good times did this house see, what parties and birthdays and other happy occasions were celebrated here? And, what is to become of it now?

The young couple that I was showing through are looking for a foreclosed bargain house that they can fix up themselves. My counsel to them on this house was to get a good home inspector and have It inspected first, before even putting in a bid. A good inspection will provide them with a list of the things that will need to be done to bring this home back. This is not just a re-decorating project, there are some major and expensive projects ahead for this house. They may well be looking at $50-100,000 worth of expenses to bring this house back up to good, livable condition. That would still give them instant equity, if the market recovers and the house can be valued at more than $300,000 again. I think they were slightly overwhelmed at the size of the project and may keep looking for something that requires a little less work.