I was recently asked by an Eastern Bank to do a brokers professional opinion (BPO) as to the listing value of a property. This is not an appraisal, but a value based on six properties that are similar, three recently sold and three that are active that would compete for the property for which the bank wants a listing value.

 We had done an earlier BPO on this property several years ago when the home owners were in the process of building their home.  The bank had given them a loan to build their home and the homeowners wanted additional money to finish their home.

The market at that time was red hot and the value for additional financing was there, based on the value of similar properties in the area.  What a change, going back there now, the owners had left, leaving behind their dreams, broken like the thousands of pieces of garbage they had left behind. Yes, they had left behind a home unfinished, garbage strewn all over the property, vehicles left behind that had been cannibalized. To further complicate matters, it is off the power grid, and the home was provided power by a generator and solar panels, all of that gone, leaving behind only one battery in the living room.

The kitchen was unusable, with the stove inoperable, and in a big mess. I would estimate that before the bank can even put this house on the market, it is going to cost $15,000 to clean up the garbage, haul away the vehicles, (including a trashed RV).  Due to the poor workmanship on the home, the home being off the grid, the cleanup necessary, the bank is going to lose a tremendous amount of money. Of course, this foreclosure will further depress the market in the area, as all foreclosures are doing to all of our property values.