The Foreclosure Next Door

OS lives in a small county, and news travels. Which is a good thing.

Some good friends in the neighborhood now face a quandry, here in the Great Recession. OS attempts below to tell their tale. Suggestions welcomed from around the world, and he'll pass them on.

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This family has lived in one small house for almost twenty years, and it has been a blessed place to live, work, and raise the kids. When we moved in, it was a wreck, as were we, but that story's for another time.

Over time, very slowly, we've maintained the place, and improved it. Faithfully paid the mortgage to the bank down the road. The end is in sight on the mortgage, and we're paying ahead. 

And we've quietly fought the problem of the house next door. The occupant is not the owner, but an old gent who served as a surrogate uncle to both kids, and his contribution was substantial. He's a real character, an eccentric, and a defacto member of family. Age and macular degeneration are taking their toll upon him.  This is where he lives, and has, for most of the past twenty years. 

The owner is not a bad person, but not particularly competent at life. It fell to the old gent, years ago, to essentially pick up where her absent parents left off when she was orphaned. Some important stuff didn't happen in the process, but he did the best he could.


Over time, the house next door, with which our house shares a long driveway, has become ever shabbier, as has the pasture and the ancient horse that hangs out there.  Were codes to inspect, the house would be condemned, and it is not salvageable. I could tell tales, but again, another time.


Another neighbor mentioned in passing that he thought the house was in foreclosure. I called our local attorney, who knows where all bodies are buried, and in a brief letter received yesterday, he confirmed that indeed, the house is in foreclosure.


So, my call went back to him, to get more details, and the process of thinking through what happens next begins.  


Someday, we will need to sell our house and property.  The  value of this little well-loved house, sitting on nine lovely acres of our beloved Middle Tennessee, has just taken a real hit. And life has just become a bit more complex.

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OS will keep you posted on their progress. 

This may be a good way to track this phenomenon, and put a human face on it.

Check back from time to time.  OS will try to label these 'foreclosure next door'.