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With as many as two million homeowners finding themselves entering foreclosure in 2008, some aren't leaving without taking out their anger on the home itself.
In an Annandale neighborhood filled with manicure lawns and well maintained houses, at one lender-foreclosed home, the previous resident turned the small back porch into a fire pit. The door to the basement was off the hinges and the basement was collecting standing water. The mess dropped the listing price by $40,000.
In March, ABC 7/NewsChannel 8 opening the door to two D.C. Homes stripped of appliances, light fixtures and even the plumbing while the bank foreclosed. A recent national survey of 1,500 real estate agents found roughly half of all foreclosures have significant damage.
Realtor Anand Barnes said he see major, intentional damage in at least two out of every 10 foreclosed homes. It's such a problem nationally, lenders are increasingly authorizing "cash for keys." It has agents like Barnes pay thousands of dollars to the person being foreclosed on, to not trash the house.
"We've seen cracked toilets where people took a sledge hammer to the commode, we've seen a lot of people cut pipes and let the water run, cut the evaporation line on HVAC, cut power lines," said Barnes.
From the outside of one Sterling home, it looks like any other house on the block, until you go inside. When you come down the stairs into the basement, the stench is horrible. The carpet is floating in standing water and mold is creeping up the walls. The problem won't go away because experts think the water is coming from the pool outside.
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For more information:http://www.anandbarnes.com
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