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In upscale neighborhoods in the Memphis suburb of Germantown, foreclosure home units are taken care of very well.
Germantown and the county of Shelby make it their priority to ensure that foreclosed houses are well-maintained and that yards are free of tall weeds and fallen tree branches.
For the yard maintenance of a foreclosure home valued at $1.3 million five years ago, Germantown charged the mortgage holder, a Florida bank, a total amount of $325.
Germantown is focused on preserving home values in the neighborhood, with many houses valued at over $1 million. The Assessor’s Office of Shelby County reported that home values in its suburban towns have been rising since 2005.
John Jordan, owner of the real estate appraisal company called The Appraisal Network, said that the total number of foreclosure homes in the Memphis suburbs of Germantown and Collierville is relatively low compared to other suburban neighborhoods because subprime loans were not typically offered to borrowers in the area.
In Germantown, there are many other reasons for foreclosures, according to Bob and Jimmie Tapley, executives at Memphis-based Crye-Leike Realtors. The Tapleys have been making foreclosure home deals for about 20 years in the Memphis area.
Bob Tapley said their first foreclosure home belonged to a doctor who was unable to continue paying the mortgage after his wife died.
But Tapley also admitted that the common causes of foreclosures were loose lending practices and risky mortgage loans that led to extremely high monthly payments. He however argued that many foreclosure homes could have been saved if the homeowners’ job or businesses were not clobbered by the recession.
He also said that there were many mortgage loans that should have not been made.
Foreclosures are the results of pushing the envelope, according to Phyllis Betts, head of the University of Memphis’ Center for Community Building and Neighborhood Action. She explained that teaser mortgage rates enticed homebuyers to buy expensive homes when they could have chosen lower-priced homes.
Homebuyers thought that home prices would continue to increase and that they would refinance before the scheduled higher mortgage rates would be applied.
Betts said that foreclosure home units in upscale areas in Memphis suburbs are well-maintained. She said these units are good deals for families seeking home ownership.
Tapley also reiterated that there are many families and individual buyers getting good deals from foreclosure home inventories in the area.
