It's not uncommon to see vandalism in a foreclosed house. Obscenities painted on the walls. Garbage everywhere. Shredded carpet. It doesn't actually prevent the bank from selling it; but it does allow the real estate investor who plans to flip it to pick it up for a lower price than he would have otherwise paid.
But sabotage is different. We've seen it a couple of times. We saw one instance of sabotage involving a divorcing couple. The husband (who no longer lived in the house) broke in and removed parts of the HVAC system and cut some wires so that things didn't work properly. (He ended up getting arrested.) Another time the people who were being foreclosed on left the house in pristine condition, but forced a tennis ball wrapped in a tee shirt into the sewer line. Bad mess and big expense for the new homeowner, who of course, immediately blamed the inspector (Mark) for not finding it, even though it's outside the standards of practice. (And that is why we now offer our clients a fiber-optic sewer line inspection.)
But the sabotage on this house was exceptionally bad. The previous owner had placed a rather sophisticated obstruction into the sewer line. Mark found it, but it took out his fiber-optic camera. The repairs to it will end up costing somewhere in the neighborhood of $1,000. Not to mention the call backs we won't be able to charge for. It will be a particularly expensive repair for a new owner, as well. It will chew up any roto-rooter type tools. The only way to clear it is to dig the line up and take that gadget out.
But this guy (I assume it's a guy) didn't stop with a sabotaged sewer. He cut a live cable and tucked it under the roof so it touches the downspout. Mark said that it would energize the downspout when it rained, meaning that if someone touched the downspout while it's wet, they'd very likely be electrocuted. I guess he's taking the attitude that "if I can't live in my house, someone else can just die there".
Now, if he's been that sneaky with things that can be detected, what has he done that Mark couldn't see? He could have put things into the HVAC system that would never be detected in a home inspection. He could fool around with gas lines. The possibilities are endless.
Personally, I think this guy should be charged with attempted murder. Clearly, the sabotage of the sewer line is intended to cost the new homeowner some grief and some cash. But what is the intention of the live cable?
The guy who is responsible for the sabotage seriously needs to grow up and stop blaming everyyone else for his problems. I can only imagine that foreclosure is awful. Especially if you have a young family. The reality is that I don't know anything about this guy, except that he was in financial trouble, lost his house, and then booby-trapped it. I hate to think that someone with his mindset has children.
But any of you who are considering buying a foreclosure (or any property) without having it thoroughly inspected are taking a serious risk.
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