Why would someone do this?!?! Foreclosure Rage...

Question

I just bought a home in Michigan that was foreclosed. I have since found out that the previous owners bought this property in late 2006 in the amount of $175,000. At some point the property, appraised over $200,000 while in their possession. During this time I can clearly see they have made a few updates before going into default. November 2007 the mortgage lender foreclosed and it was sold at Sheriff's Auction to another bank for $113,000 and that bank then went through court proceedures to evict the owners by March 2008. In this time frame, the home owner completely destroyed the home by:

[ ] removing all fixtures: (toilet, sinks, lights, outlets)

[ ] cutting all the electrical wiring in numerous places (and just left the wire hanging),

[ ] destroyed the garage area and broke rafters,

[ ] taking down all the mini blinds to threw them on the garage floor,

[ ] ripped the door k***s from the doors (completely destroying the doors)

[ ] then threw the door k***s on the floor,

[ ] ripping out the baseboard heaters leaving gaping holes in the floors and walls,

[ ] sawed off all the copper plumbing, tearing out drywall to get to it.

The bank that won the auction ended up listing the home for a jaw dropping $33,000! Mr. AngryHomeOwner went through an awful lot of hard work to throw this temper tantrum after paying $175,000 just the year before and my questions are this:

IS THERE ANY ADVANTAGE WHATSOEVER for this type of temper tantrum on the house owner in default was about to vacate? Obviously he needed to vent some frustration but does he GAIN anything from this type of behavior? Obviously the bank will now get a fraction of what they paid at auction at a massive $80,000 loss from just a few months ago. Who does this financially hurt? Him or the bank? Can this guy be held financially responsible for his destruction to the now bank owned property he was living in? Does the rightful owner, the bank, have a right to go after this guy for thier loss? Or does the bank just chalk this up to a "bad investment" and the home owner gets away with this vandalism free and clear? If this is the case why would a bank (or anyone) bid on a foreclosed home at auction with this type of considerable risk?

Can anyone help me understand when the ramifications of this type of behavior would be? What would keep everyone from gutting their own homes when faced with eviction from foreclosure?

I know there are several question here to be answered but I'm at a complete loss as to why someone would do this and at what cost they face for doing such a thing....

Answer 1

Wow. I have heard people taking things with them (fixtures, cabinets, flooring) to later sell it or to fix up their next home but that's pretty crazy.

This is between him and his bank.  I doubt anything will come of it.  Theoretically, when he still technically owned the stuff, he could do with it as he pleased.  Nothing stopping you from doing the same thing (other than the fact you seem quite sane).

Answer 2

My parent rent out a house. The tenant was eviction for non payment of rent. We noticed after few day some of electrical wiring was cut. Therefore this kind of behavior is very common. There is not much point suing him for he have no money. Maybe we can make this kind of behavior criminal. And also, make sure, the people we do business with is honest.

Wait a moment! When you take out loan for house. The Bank always make you buy insurance for the house. Don't they?

Answer 3

It's sad to see people are taking such extreme steps like destroying their house due to foreclosure. But what they don’t realize is venting out their frustration like this not going to help them anyway. It's only going to create more problems.

Such people have to understand that foreclosure is not end of the world, but who will tell them? I read in an article that "There is great power in shifting from seeing oneself as a victim to seeing oneself as a survivor". So these foreclosure victims need moral support, proper guidance, confidence from their family, friends, neighbors to plan for better future.

Answer 4

I saw things like this on the local news tonite. They are saying that this is becoming more prevalent across the states. Not only by former homeowner but thieves. They are breaking in these foreclosed homes and literally stripping them of everything. I don't know why the banks do not secure these properties. There are so many desolate houses in so many neighborhoods and they stick out like sore thumbs. I even read an article in the paper about a whole neighborhood that had so many forclosures that only 6 out of 28 houses had people living in them. The residents were saying that they would run into their homes because it looked so spooky.

Answer 5

Sorry Jeni,   the American Dream is actually a Nightmare,

just ask any Third World country.

King Bush will never get near his subjects, they will have his head.

Answer 6

I've heard that a lot of people are doing this (gutting) to their homes for some profit before they are foreclosed. I saw this same problem on the news last night. I had found a gorgeous home that was in foreclosure and was selling at $95,000 but it was gutted. It all just sucks!

Answer 7

He deserves to be sued.  The foreclosure laws all assume adult behavior.  This is criminal behavior.

Answer 8

Mr.Angry Home Owner wouldnt be at fault. technically it was still his home to destroy before the bank took it AS IS. and if u bought it at such a cheap price...by the thousands it shouldnt really matter the cost of repairs on the house cuz either way, ur still ahead. it just sucks the trouble of going through all the fixing

edit: he ruined "his" house at the time cuz he was mad. he lost EVERYTHING, he wasnt just about to give his lovely home to someone for free in mint condition. i dont think he sold the copper on the streets for money he probably threw it in the trash for all we know.