One in every 69 homes fell into foreclosure in Independence Township last year’a total of 195 homes lost in 2008 alone.
Proportionately, the number was slightly higher in Clarkston, with one in 71 families caving to foreclosure under the pressure of a sinking economy.
The numbers, provided by the Oakland County Management and Budget Equalization Divison, paint a grim picture: Independence township currently has a 385 percent increase in the number of Sheriff’s Deeds from 2004-2008.
In Springfield, the township board agreed the problem is now significant enough to justify a new hire–someone whose sole responsibility is the tracking of vacant, foreclosed property.
‘Once the grass starts growing, you notice (vacant properties) everywhere,? Supervisor Mike Trout said during a recent meeting. ‘I can’t drive through a neighborhood where I don’t see this condition exist. Some are on lakes, some are in very nice neighborhoods.?
Trout estimated a $5,000 township expenditure to carry out the duty; the board agreed to spend the funds by unanimous vote.
Springfield’s new hire will work part time during the summer to catalog vacant houses, determine who’s responsible for upkeep and make sure the homes are secured. And security can be an issue.
In Independence Township, buyers were interested in a foreclosed home–until they discovered squatters had moved in after the previous owners left.
‘The home was in a nice neighborhood,? said Lynn Kacy, a Realtor associate with Coldwell Banker Schweitzer in Clarkston. ‘You just never know. I won’t go into any of these empty homes alone.?
Other issues also cause problems. Recently, eight light fixtures, seven entry doors, and six bi-fold doors’along with several mirrors, kitchen cabinets, a hot water heater and an air conditioning unit’went missing from a foreclosed home on Maybee Road, according to a caretaker who report the theft to police July 2. Similar incidents show up in police reports periodically.
But, said Sgt. Matt Baldes of the Independence Township substation, whether a homeowner takes fixtures after foreclosure or a stranger comes to remove items, it’s still a crime.
‘It’s considered larceny and (malicious destruction of property),? Baldes said, noting deputies respond to such reports, but the crime is ‘not prevalent? in the community.
Baldes also said he hadn’t heard of a report concerning the squatters.
‘I don’t know if they ever filed a report or not,? said Kacy, who was representing the buyers in that instance. ‘We walked away from it.?
Kacy, who’s worked 33 years in real estate, said the temperature of the current housing market is unprecedented.
‘I’ve never seen it like this,? she said.
People are impatient and tempers are short.?
But it’s not all bad news.
‘Everything is selling,? Kacy said ‘It’s not just foreclosures. We’re seeing privately owned homes selling, a lot of short sales’everything but vacant land. Vacant land is not selling at all. No one wants to build now.?
Still, the high number of foreclosures are affecting the rest of the market by driving down the selling price of other homes
‘Really nice homes, if they’re priced right, are moving,? Kacy said.