You're watching...
San Diego Councilmember David Alvarez on efforts to fine banks if they neglect homes to ensure homes are well maintained.
Also in this playlist...
Auto-advance: ON
Auto-advance
This transcript is automatically generated
California for an Iraq by the housing mess banks will -- closing on properties -- are left and right.
But now the banks are being accused of making a mess of these foreclosed homes.
The city of San Diego considering -- banks -- thousand dollars a day for neglecting foreclosed homes joining me now -- -- -- member David Alvarez -- was pushing the ordinance welcome to the show thanks for being with us we really appreciate it.
Tell us what you're trying to do here -- is such an important issue in San Diego.
Well thank you very much for -- for having me on.
In San Diego to -- throughout California and a lot of major cities since 2008.
The foreclosure problem has been hitting our communities really hard.
And what that means for our neighborhoods is that a lot of homes are being foreclosed a lot of homes are being left vacant.
And that creates a problem for a lot of neighborhoods because these homes are being used as centers for -- -- for criminal activity.
Overgrown vegetation with fire hazards.
And so there's a lot of problems that are left behind when their homes that are for closed.
-- alert it shorted some -- rate I mean you know everything from -- and today.
Mosquitoes.
In all kinds of staff I wouldn't give back our viewers -- some numbers about what's going on.
If you look at the back home value loss estimate in San Diego alone -- nineteen billion dollars since 2008.
So that just -- loss in value of homes.
Because a lot of these have gone -- -- foreclosure than if you look at how much it's costing taxpayers those numbers.
It's a range yeah clearly there's nothing but it's hard to get a very specific number between -- 134 and a 855.
Million so.
Clearly this is it big price tag for -- CN Diego -- but should banks have to pay a thousand dollars a day -- seems like hefty sum to me.
Well you know this has been a drag on our economy and the -- is -- limited resources that government has.
In order to make sure that our communities are maintain safe and so that's -- we're trying to get network.
If the end of the day -- we'd really like -- -- just like we would expect every homeowners take care of their home.
We expect the banks -- take on the responsibility of foreclosed homes to take care of those homes.
And so the goal is not to get millions of dollars out of -- banks from these fines the goal is to get them to actually comply.
And make sure the homes are up capped and that vegetation is cut down.
And that doors and windows are locked so that young people who have nothing else to do after school don't have another place to go hang out and in tried create activity that's that's disturbing to neighbors.
Well okay so you have the support of the public on this 70% of folks who have the opportunity to vote on yeah.
Support it they like it don't support 14%.
Decided only sixteen.
He you say that it's not about the thousand dollars a day in collecting all its money in fees and fines but carrying -- spend it when you get it.
And you.
I -- that the goal.
You have the goal is to make sure that we have enough.
Of the information ahead of time so what this does -- essence of this is a registry.
We want banks to let us know when -- from close on -- home.
So that we know when there is a complaint from the neighbors.
In the -- in -- particular neighborhood about a home we know exactly who is responsible for the home.
We don't have to go and track them down go to the county clerk office to find out who's registered as the owner.
We would expect banks let us know ahead of time.
And then we can go to them and send them a notice and say if you don't take care of this mess then you're going to be fine but we're giving him the opportunity to take care of it before these clients come into place.
Well I've got to tell you at the end of the day you'll also I have the unintended consequence of helping homeowners there because.
When those homes are abandon and they start losing value it hurts everybody on the block you out -- and thanks for coming on tonight telling us your story it must be up at pretty depressing problem for you guys to take this kind of step thank you sir.
-- thank you very much.
