I own a home in Wayne County, Michigan that I've been trying to sell for almost two years (two house payments, what fun). No U.S. county has been hit harder with a combination of bankruptcies and economic troubles. I've tried almost everything including major updates and severe price reductions. I've even created a blog page to provide additional photos and information. But the one thing I haven't tried is burning my house down. Have I secretly dreamt that the home would burn to ashes or that a tornado would sweep it away to Oz? You bet (no no, this is not a subtle request for you to do me a favor). Though the correlation is difficult to prove conclusively, a countrywide increase in arson seems to be clearly tied to the desperate financial situation many currently face. With Detroit as a prime example, this MSN article discusses a new breed of criminals.
2 comments:
I had a tough time selling a house once. It took two plus years. No problem with the house or the market. The problem was the next door neighbor who was insane. When Realtors would show it, he would stand in his yard and scream and yell. Sometimes he would target shoot in the back yard or prance around in the front yard with his rifle.
He wanted to buy the house but couldn't afford it so he thought we'd eventually lower the price to his range. [Though we had the police visit him a few times, they basically did nothing.]
I never considered arson but I did start over there with a sledge hammer but my husband and my Realtor talked me out of it.
We ended up selling it to an attorney who was a bit of a crazy person, too. Somehow they came to terms.
I had a nutty neighbor who ran a brick laying business out of his home. Employees coming and going, screaming and yelling from about 5 a.m. to midnight most days, outdoor domestic disputes on a weekly basis. City wouldn't do a thing. He had an elementary age son who's nickname at school was "Joe Dirt." I know this because the son told me and was darn proud of it! When dad wanted the kid out of his hair, he'd give him a hammer or screwdriver and tell him to go outside and play. The kid would spend hours banging away at anything within reach. Or he'd give the kid the leaf blower to play with.
Husband finally got kicked out by the wife after getting busted for sleeping with her twin sister that was living with them (if you were going to cheat on your spouse, why would you cheat with someone that looks exactly like them!). Twin sister then slept with the neighbor on the other side who happens to also be named Alex (not me, I swear!), ex-husband found out and drove five hours to her house with a shotgun on his passenger seat, got intercepted by the police two miles before reaching her house (and with MY luck, he was probably planning on taking out BOTH Alex's just to be safe).
The twin sisters finally got evicted from the house after six months of not paying the mortgage. Of course, this didn't stop them from breaking back in with a crowbar and trashing the place some more.
Yep, it was an interesting four years.
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