BANKS ARE NOT KEEPING UP


By Gigi




Most of us, who own homes, are concerned about the state of real estate. The mortgage bust has had a big impact on our communities and neighborhoods. There are too many empty and abandoned homes; due to the result of bank foreclosures or residents simply walking away from a home because they don’t have a job to support it. The impact is huge!!!


Neighborhoods look rundown because these homes get no maintenance, the lawns don’t get mowed and the trash is piled around the doorways. The banks are not doing their part to keep these properties (which they own) in decent shape and are moving too slowly to get them back on the market.


The market value of neighboring homes goes down as does the tax base. Counties and cities have less money to provide services like repairing the streets, mowing the medians and fixing street lights and signs. Schools suffer because empty houses don’t contribute to the school tax.


I believe that the banks which created the problem in the first place should be pushed to complete the foreclosure process on the homes that are currently in limbo, fix up the ones they own, get them on the market and offer them at reasonable prices with decent mortgages.


For retirees, most of their home represents a major portion of their assets. The lack of action on the part of the banks is devaluing the homes and robbing the retirees of their biggest savings. The banks need to be pressured to do something about the problem. If that means regulation, so be it. They obviously cannot keep up without oversight.