San Jose Attempts to Get Away with Foreclosures

September 25th, 2008

San Jose Attempts to Get Away with Foreclosures
San Jose City Council is asking the homeowners facing foreclosure to cleanup their homes as that can have a bad effect on the real estate of the neighborhood areas. Whenever a homeowner leaves behind his home, the area gets filled with overgrown lawns that can be hazardous. Besides, open windows and door can lead to hooliganism.

The people are being requested to get everything cleared while they move up. East of Highway 87 is one of the neighborhoods of San Jose that has been heavily hit by foreclosures over the past three months. Apart from that, the maximum rate of foreclosure filings was seen in ZIP code 95122. In this area, about 2.6 percent of the homes were facing some sort of foreclosure activity.

The three other ZIP codes, where the rates of foreclosure filings were 2 percent or higher were 95111, 95116, and 95127. Majority of the homes that are left vacant in San Jose are possessed by lending companies. The lenders are supposed to maintain that property. Those lenders who fail to manage these real estate properties can be subjected to a fine of up to $1,000. Director of the Department of Housing of San Jose Leslye Krutko said, “When you look at the number of families impacted, it’s a large number, and we need to be responsive as much as we can.”

Krutko has further said that the most important concern of the Department of Housing in the coming 6 weeks is to find out the best way in which the funds of the US Department of Housing and Urban Development can be used. About 305 vacant houses in San Jose between November 2007 and July 2008 were found in a state that was in violation of the ordinance on the neglected vacant house. However, this number has come down to 92 by the close of July.

Michael Hannon, who is the deputy director for code enforcement said that it is not at all a fair thing to make the citizens of San Jose pay for the management of vacant homes. Hannon is very happy about the fact that his division is able to work on the complaints lodged by the citizens. Krutko is expecting that there will be more of foreclosure prevention programs that will be city-sponsored, which would help the lenders to provide on-spot assistance to the distressed homeowners on loan modifications. Nearly 400 people attended one such program in the month of August.