Abandoned properties could worsen the hurricane season - South Florida Business Journal:

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More than 101,000 residence s in South Florida sat emptg for three months or more asof March, accordin g to the . Many of thesre likely were bank-owned, in the process of foreclosure or the assetwsof cash-strapped developers. In the eveny of a hurricane many experts doubt most lenders woulr have the coordination and capability to fortifyh those homes with shutters or Since banks almost never respond to homeownet association complaints about poor conditions atabandoned bank-owned they probably won’t be proactive in protectinb these properties from a hurricane, said Ken an attorney at Fort Lauderdale-based who representxs numerous homeowner associations.
Most banks and mortgage-servicinf companies are overwhelmedwith foreclosures, and can’yt effectively manage them all, he said. “I woulsd be shocked if banks mobilizse in front ofa storm,” Direktor said. “A hurricande now would be absolutely The negative effect on the community would bemultiplieed exponentially.” Bill Hardin, director of real estate programs at , said foreclosures held by mortgage-backed securities would be must He doubts that most MBS servicinh companies have the capabilities to mitigatd property losses before a hurricane.
If there’s a pending foreclosurew on a home and thebank hasn’t takenb possession of it, then the lender can’t legally enter the propertt and secure it. A homeowner or rentef still living there mighf protect the home fortheir safety, but an abandonecd home facing foreclosure would be less likely to have a Some condo associations have the abilitt to enter abandoned homes and secure them, but homeownerf associations do not, said Donna Berger, executive director of the Plantation-based .
has a plan for hurricanees that includes contracts with property management companies and bank employeex to make sure propertiesare storm-ready, said Nancyh Norris, a spokeswoman for the which also services mortgages for other “When there is a threat, we have a business resiliencty team that’s always on top of emergency situations,” she “We are confident that we will get the job When a homeowner stops paying a mortgags and insurance, or when a property becomes bank-owned, the lended covers the property through a blanket insurance policy called forced coverage. Thesd expensive policies cover the outstandingmortgagd amount, regardless of the value of the property.
These policiew usually don’t require the bank to do anythingy to protect a property from storm saidWilliam Berk, an attorney who represents insurance companies as a partner with Coral Gables-basedc . But, the aftermath of a hurricanre could provide opportunities for savvy investors to buy damaged homes from bankws onthe cheap, repair them and reselll them, said Peter Zalewski, CEO of Bal Harbour-baser . “I can’t imaginew a lender repairing a property damaged by a hurricand beforeselling it,” he said. “Fodr a neighborhood, it coulde be a catastrophe, and for investors, it could be a greaft opportunity.
” THE DETAILS: Nobody’s home Palm Beacn County: 36,348 residences, or 5.3 percent Broward 37,707 residences, or 4.6 percent Miami-Dade County: 27,70 0 residences, or 2.9 percent Source: U.S. Posta l Service