Bulldozer in Lieu of Foreclosure

I just came across a very interesting story thanks to WLWT in Cincinnati (does Loni Anderson still work there?) about a man struggling with foreclosure. Like most people facing foreclosure, he was very frustrated with his bank – so frustrated, in fact, that he bulldozed his entire house into the ground.

Before: Terry Hoskins' $350,000 house in Moscow, Ohio

Now, I’m not very clear on what the whole story was here, since I am only familiar, for the most part, with Michigan foreclosure proceedings. The article talks about IRS liens on his carpet store, a law suit involving his brother, and a 10 year struggle with his bank. What I do know is that instead of giving his house back to the bank, Terry Hoskins decided to destroy the house – “to send a message.”

: The house, mid-demolition

I know the message that I’m taking away from this one – “Don’t mess with Terry Hoskins. He’s got a bulldozer and he knows how to use it!” All kidding aside, I understand his frustrations, just maybe not the way he handled it. We here at Great Lakes Home Solutions see it everyday:
-You can almost never talk to the same person twice, so each time you talk to the bank, you have to explain your entire story over again.
-They constantly transfer you to the wrong department (or to the wrong company completely, as I experienced last week.)
-They ask you for paperwork and then they lose it. Several times.
-They call you (with their special robot employees), and then make you sit on hold.
-They try to talk everyone into applying for a loan modification, only to deny almost everyone.
-Many bank employees are cold and uncaring about the situation, even though there is a legitimate hardship at hand.

If you have a house which you can no longer afford, please don’t destroy it with heavy machinery. Give Emily a call. She’d love to discuss your options with you! If a short sale is right for you, we’ll handle most of the dirty work for you. And the best part? No one is going to ask you for money! (And, if you think about it, we’re saving you hundreds of dollars in bulldozer rental fees!)