House of Cards

I spoke with the city this morning and this is the information that I got:

Basically with the Schwartz property, like other properties, there was a maze of ownership channels.

Joe buys property. Property is financed by Bank A, a small local financier. Bank A sells the loan to Bank B, a larger finance company. Bank B sells to Bank C, larger yet, in a "package" with a group of other properties. Bank C sells to Bank D an international financier in a larger package yet.

Joe ditches property. The property may or may not be foreclosed on. Foreclosure costs banks money. Banks don't like to spend money. Complaints pile up as the property becomes dilapidated. Joe has defaulted and the house is no longer his. The city forwards the complaint to Bank A. Bank A is no longer the owner of the property and forwards city to Bank B and so on... By the time the city contacts bank D, if that bank is even solvent anymore, they have no idea and no interest to pursue this small portion of the total package. The city contacts the bank, the attorney's and anyone they can to inform them of the complaint. (Bank D feels a tiny mosquito buzzing around it and swats it away.) The city proceeds through the legal processes the last of which is demolition and charges the demolition to the bank that owns the property. The land is still there, but ownership and care for the property is difficult to assign.

This is what happened to the Schwartz home. It was not on the historic registry. Not that the historic registry can save a home from demo... I have a feeling this will not be the last we hear of this happening.