John Newby is the author of the “Building Main Street, Not Wall Street” column “dedicated to helping communities combine synergies with local media companies allowing them to not just survive but to thrive.”

In a recent article Newby takes on the subject of blight, focusing on what MuniReg has championed since our formation. Though property owners have rights that must be protected, the rights of the neighbors are equal. The negative consequences of vacant or blighted properties to neighboring properties are well documented (many on our website), and well beyond “simply” being an “eyesore”. From increased crime rates, health issues, and lower property values, the direct impact can be devastating.

Though we have not (yet) experienced the referenced situation which seems to imply blight is totally ignored, we have come across many situations where concerns for the rights of the property owner is prioritized above all other considerations.

Striking the right balance between protecting everyone’s rights, while balancing other challenges i.e. lack of resources is a herculean, but necessary task. In the numerous of reports that we have seen or read where local leaders are confronted with a challenge of infringement to “my rights”, rarely do we see what should be the first response.

“We value your rights, but equally value the rights of the neighboring property owner. Your action/inaction (regarding property mainenance) is an infringement on the rights of …..”

We at MuniReg understand the need to strike a balance that is why we don’t advocate for risky and too broad ordinance language, excessive registration fees and penalties, or overly aggressive enforcement on the penalties etc. (subject of a future blog post.)

Following are some critical points Newby makes. To view the article in its entirety, please click on the following link:
John Newby: Allowing blight in name of ‘freedom’ damaging communities

“They in fact are allowing blight, decay and uncaring to have greater freedom than those who want to live in a community that is a desirable place to work, live and play. The minority is being allowed to hold the community hostage and draining whatever future that community might have.”

“Shamefully, communities will allow trash to accumulate, attracting rats, animals and diseases that spill over onto nearby properties.”

“What about the rights of those nearby property owners?”

“Don’t the nearby owners have any freedom or rights to live in a clean area?”

“They in fact are allowing blight, decay and uncaring to have greater freedom than those who want to live in a community that is a desirable place to work, live and play. The minority is being allowed to hold the community hostage and draining whatever future that community might have.”

“You will always have a few residents who will yell and scream they have rights to live as they wish; you must push ahead and think of the good of the community as a whole.”

It is clear that Newby, is passionate about strong communities and his article is a case of “tough love”.

Well said Mr Newby, well said!

 

Update January 17th, 2025
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) new blog post discusses its effort to protect homeowners from “forgotten second mortgages”
To view the blog post, please click here

Update October 7th
Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell announced an agreement that requires mortgage servicing company to permanently cease collections on all “zombie second mortgage” loans in Massachusetts, effectively relieving over $10M in debt for consumers
To view the press release, please click here.

Update May 10, 2024
NPR “Planet Money” focuses on second mortgages “coming back to life” and discusses various legal strategies that appear to assist homeowners avoid foreclosure and forfeiture.
To listen to the audio report, please click here.

Update October 16th,2023
Another report of “zombie debt” rearing its head. This time in Carson CA.
For more information, please click here.

Update Sep 27th, 2023
“Zombies” rise again. This time in Utah. As reported by KSLTV on one particular instance  “I never heard from the second mortgage company ever again,” she said. But after 13 years, she heard from someone. She found a notice posted on her front door notifying her that her house was going to be auctioned off. It was that second mortgage, back from the dead.”
Homeowners attorney reports several other cases that he is working on.
To view the report, please click here.

Update June 4th
The Wall Street Journal published a piece on “zombie debt” titled, Zombie Mortgages Could Force Some Homeowners Into Foreclosure, (Homeowners say they are getting bills and foreclosure threats on second mortgages they thought were taken care of long ago)
To view the article, please click here

Update April 26th, 2023
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued guidance on debt collectors, covered by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, threatening to foreclose on homes with mortgages, that it is illegal to sue or threaten to sue to collect debts past the statute of limitations.
For more information, please click here

Update December 16th
Another case of “zombie debt” appearing again, this time in Port St. Lucie FL.
“They sat on it for, what, 12 years,” Dixon explained. “No letters. No postcards. Nothing. This is not fair.”
To view the article, please click here.

A recent article discusses, “a wave of homeowners who say they were blindsided by the start of foreclosure actions on their homes over second loans that were taken out more than a decade ago”.
The article discusses that “many of the loans are owned by purchasers of troubled mortgages and are being pursued now because home values have increased and there’s more equity in them.”

For more information, please click here.

In a thorough report, the The Atlanta Journal-Constitution focuses on the various challenges local governments face in dealing with negligent and often deep pocketed landlords.

Included are concerns about lack of resources, lack of incentives to ensure compliance, and coordination between local, county and state agencies.

To access the article, please click here.

Your community may or may not have the same volume of these types of properties as New Orleans, but the following quote should apply across the board.

“Foster said the city must come up with creative ideas for properties that have reached the end of the process without interest from buyers. “There’s not many more tools that we have in the delinquent tax toolbox,” Foster told the City Council.”

To view the article, please click on the following link:
New Orleans has 1,000 adjudicated properties attracting no interest from buyers

The University of Memphis School of Law’s Neighborhood Preservation Clinic is filing 25 lawsuits on behalf of the Klondike-Smokey City Community Development Corporation.

For more information on the Clinic please see below overview from their website.

For more information on the recent lawsuits, please click on following links;

ABC 24: Law students help fight against the blight in Memphis neighborhoods

Action News 5: North Memphis neighborhood files lawsuit against blighted properties

The University of Memphis Neighborhood Preservation Clinic represents the City of Memphis in public nuisance lawsuits seeking recourse against the owners of badly neglected, vacant and abandoned properties. Under the supervision of clinic co-directors Danny Schaffzin and Steve Barlow, and in collaboration with Neighborhood Preservation Staff Attorney Brigid Welsh, clinic students investigate property ownership and conditions; communicate with field code enforcement professionals; and research, prepare and file civil cases alleging claims arising under the Tennessee Neighborhood Preservation Act (NPA), T.C.A §13-6-101 et seq.

Once litigation is commenced, clinic students handle all aspects of those cases as they proceed in the Shelby County Environmental Court, a unique court of special jurisdiction concurrent with the Tennessee Circuit and Chancery Courts for certain purposes. Student case handling responsibilities include weekly appearances in the Environmental Court, during which students present at hearings and status updates, negotiate with opposing counsel and parties, and do all else that is necessary to move their cases forward. As their cases evolve, students grapple with issues of civil procedure, contracts, evidence, property, secured transactions, decedents estates, business organizations, and bankruptcy.

To complement their casework, clinic students participate in a weekly classroom session focused on the pervasive challenge of property vacancy and abandonment in Memphis. The seminar segment of the weekly class exposes the law students to substantive code enforcement and housing law, national models of legal strategies to address problem properties, practice and procedure in the Shelby County Environmental Court, and the issues of ethics and professionalism that arise in the context of their cases. The seminar also includes a case rounds component, during which students engage in an ongoing dialogue about the challenges they are experiencing while managing clinic’s cases.

SB510, introduced in February 2022 would “prohibit municipalities from imposing any fees or registration requirements on unoccupied residential or commercial property.”

The legislation died in committee in May 2022.

Please see below for a link to the legislation webpage to view the bill language. However, please click here for access to the testimony by proponents and opponents of the bill.

Testimony given by representatives from;

Legislation Webpage

The Indiana Court of Appeals previously ruled that a law passed by the General Assembly prevented the city from using emergency calls as proof of a public nuisance.

In order to use the calls as proof of a public nuisance and sue property owners for the cost of constantly sending out emergency responders, the city intends to bring a test case forward with a different “problem property” to challenge the ruling.

For more information, please click here.

In July 2022, a local Chicago news station reported on “Zombie foreclosures stick former homeowners with major fines from city after bank doesn’t claim deed”. Now in a follow-up report in October 2022, examples of both “Zombie Foreclosures” & “Zombie Properties” affecting Chicago residents.

According to the attorney representing the residents “The party that’s to blame is right now our legislature and it stems from the fact that here in the state of Illinois, there’s no requirement to record a deed. So if you purchase a property, you do not have to record that deed with the Cook County Clerk’s Office,”

To view the most recent article please click here.

To view the original article please click here.