The Fate of Newburgh’s Zombie Homes

  |  February 11, 2014
william street newburgh

William Street, Newburgh

If Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has his way, banks would be forced to take responsibility for abandoned properties in parts of New York most affected by economic downturn, according to a recent article in the NYT. The new legislation, which Schneiderman announced earlier this week, states that “Zombie homes”, or residences that have been left vacant before a bank has the chance to finish foreclosure proceedings, would have to be sorted out by banks, saving the municipality from dealing with abandoned properties that have become unsafe in places like Newburgh, the article continues. Abandoned properties account for around 10% of all homes in Newburgh, and while banks and municipalities will no doubt quibble over what is “abandoned” (a term Schneiderman plans to define), this could help quell Newburgh’s vacant, run-down properties issue. Of course, we would like to see some of these places turned around and renovated, but that’s another story.  The legislation merely states that the banks must “maintain” the properties, which might simply mean mowing the grass and kicking out vagrants. We’re interested to see how this develops. Stay tuned…

About Kandy Harris

Kandy is a writer and musician/music teacher living in Saugerties, NY.

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