Nearly all foreclosures translate into vacant properties. Vacant properties lower property values and the visual appeal of the neighborhood. If they are unsecured and/or unmaintained, they can quickly become eyesores and targets for criminal activity.  Because of these negative impacts, it is important to stabilize vacant properties as soon as possible to prevent further deterioration of the property and the neighborhood.  The property owner is legally responsible for this, but when they shirk that responsibility, neighbors can contact the local unit of government to help resolve the problem. The reality in Michigan, however, is that local units of government are struggling with reduced revenues and don’t have the capacity to step up the basic service they are already struggling to provide. That’s where responsible, alert and involved neighbors come in. There are a number of things neighbors can do on their own or in partnership with local government. These include:

A.  Improving the exterior of the property – approaches range from cutting grass and planting flowers to providing exterior lighting to make a house look occupied.

B.  Code Enforcement – approaches range from organizing a code enforcement patrol to monitor the condition of vacant homes and notifying the proper authorities when a building becomes open or dangerous.

C.  Security – approaches range from boarding and securing vacant homes, creating a security task force, or creating a buddy system for neighbors arriving home after dark.

IMPORTANT!

While there are many things neighbors can do to soften the affects of foreclosed properties, it is not wise to take on maintaining a property without the permission of the owner. There can be important legal consequences so we urge you to take the following steps before doing anything. 

1) Identify the legal owner:

Regardless of how neighbors get involved the first step is always to identify the legal owner of the property. The legal owner is responsible for keeping it up to local municipal code, whether it is vacant or occupied. The best way to search for the legal owner is to do a Deed search through the County Register of Deeds.

Here’s the info you’ll need for Jackson, Lenawee and Hillsdale Counties:

Jackson County Register of Deeds – Mindy Reilly – (517) 788-4350

Hillsdale County Register of Deeds – Bambi Somerlott – (517) 437-2231  

Lenawee County Register of Deeds – Victoria Daniels – (517) 264-4538

 2)  Contact the Owner & Field Servicer:

With foreclosed homes, the legal owner is nearly always the lending institution or other party that acquired title through foreclosure. In this case, you will need to contact not only the property owner but also the Field Servicer. A homeowner usually makes the mortgage payment each month to the Loan Servicer that the mortgage company has hired to collect payments. Subsequently, Mortgage Field Service Companies or Property Preservation Companies are typically employed by these loan servicers to maintain properties in the foreclosure process or after they have become vacant. The role of the Mortgage Field Service Company or Property Preservation Company is to inspect and perform property maintenance on properties that have gone into default and during the Real Estate Owned (REO) phase.  The REO phase is the period of time from when a mortgage has been defaulted until the time that the property is sold to a third party or new buyer. They are typically responsible for:

• Mowing grass
• Plowing snow
• Boarding and securing properties
• Clearing debris from a property where that debris constitutes a code violation.

How to Identify the Field Servicer of a Foreclosed Property.

1)      Check to see if there is a sticker affixed to the property containing the field servicer’s contact information.

2)      Contact the real estate agent associated with the property to see if the agent has been made responsible for maintenance or knows which field service company is responsible for the property.

3)      Use online resources to identify the original lending institution and field servicer.  The Mortgage Electronic Registration System (MERS) Servicer ID System is a free online search that, given the address of the vacant property or the owner name, will provide the lending institution name for any active, registered mortgages:

https://www.mers-servicerid.org/sis/

Once you have determined who the lending institution was for the mortgage, contact them and ask for the name and contact information for their field service company.

Working with the Field Servicers

Once you have identified the Field Servicer, contact them and offer assistance with property maintenance or to look after the property. The most important thing is to open up lines of communication with the field servicer understanding that both the servicer and the neighbor have a shared interest in the properties preservation and security.

If you are getting nowhere, contact your local unit of government for help.

There is a vacant foreclosed property in the neighborhood and we suspect it has been broken into, what should we do?