Cleveland Housing Judge Invites Homeowners Living Near Blighted Houses To Submit Restitution Claims Against Absentee Property Owners

In Cleveland, Ohio, The Plain Dealer reports:

• Cleveland Housing Court Judge Raymond Pianka is ratcheting up the costs for absentee property owners who spread the damage from the foreclosure crisis. They will have to pay neighbors for economic losses caused by their neglect. Pianka plans to hold his first restitution hearings on the issue this month. The move comes as Cleveland's lone housing judge contends with the fallout from the foreclosure mess.

***

• A troubling number of homes have become vacant, neglected commodities bought and sold -- often by out-of-state companies -- for dirt-cheap prices and left to languish. That can undermine safety and nearby property values.

***

• In prior rulings involving companies that dealt in distressed properties and routinely defied local law, Pianka levied substantial fines. His aim: to deter illegal practices and make fines more than just a cost of doing business. Now he is broadening the lens on financial liability.

• To be sure, restitution is not new -- nor is holding property owners responsible for nuisance conditions. But Pianka's strategy is considered unique because he has determined that neighbors could be victims under state law and he's giving them the chance to make a financial claim as part of the prosecution of another property owner.

***

• Pianka declined to comment because the cases are pending. But the judge has sent letters to potential victims telling them they have a right to present their claims in court. Owners who live near the property and can show they suffered economic loss as a direct result of the defendant's criminal failure to maintain the property may be eligible for restitution under state law.

• For instance, a person may be able to recover costs associated with maintaining the cited property to lessen its impact on their property, such as for mowing the lawn or picking up garbage. And former owners who sold their nearby home during a certain time period and can show that the property lost value because of the condition of the house in question may seek restitution. The companies can challenge any claims, with the victim having the burden of proving the amount of the claim.

For more, see Cleveland Housing Judge Raymond Pianka requiring negligent property owners to pay victim restitution to neighbors.