I'm sorry

To whoever you are,
I walked through your house yesterday, it was in shambles. The pipes burst and the first floor was destroyed. Despite this, I could easily see that your house must have been beautiful and it must have been very hard to leave it. And you must have left in a hurry, because when I opened the oven, there was chicken fingers, cooked - sitting on a baking pan. The place was a mess, there was garbage everywhere; poop in the bathtub and a dead cat in the corner. Words can't describe how bad it smelled.

When I got to your little girl's room, all I could do was shake my head. It was bright pink, there was a doll on the floor.

I don't know you, I didn't even know that the house was a short sell. The pictures on the internet showed a clean, nicely decorated house.

I cried for you and your family, because I could be you. I also cried because you are one of many, and it's so sad.

I've sat in my home, and watch the news, hearing about people like you. I shook my head thinking how you must have lived beyond your means. I'm sorry. Maybe you did, maybe you didn't. But now I know, now I see and I really am sorry.

.

to die alone of starvation or thirst?

I have no sympathy for those people, sorry.

read through the responses.

read the responses to the post.

Thank you.

Does it turn you on or make you want to take them down?


Inquiring minds want to know.

HMMMM What university are you posting from?

no sympathy whatsoever. Zero, nothing could be added to the story to make me understand this aspect, and I couldn't have written the emphathic OP with that sentence in it regarding the dead cat, because it erased any "sorrow" for their situation.

I've been reading quite a few stories of animals left behind to die in homes by rotten bastards like this lately. I used to be upset about those who took their pets to shelters so that the shelter staff would be stuck with the hard job of killing a loving animal because no one feels like feeding it anymore (you don't want the burden, don't get the damned pet in the first place. If you do, then you feed your children and the pet before you feed yourself. Most of these stories are just because the pet has become a "burden" they don't want to have, not because there is literally no food in the house. This subject makes me barking mad in the head).

This is a worse category - too fucking lazy to drive the pet to the kill shelter on the way out of town. I wish bad things for these people, and hope that karma treats them fairly.


There are good people in bad straights who need my sympathy. These weren't them. I need to stop this post because I am about to say really bad things.

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I saw that "living beyond their means" thing at the end. This post seems contrived to me, too.

Zero sympathy now. :grr: That just infuriates me.

the pound so it can find a new home...then you ain't gonna get a new home either. I feel sorry for the daughter...Goddess knows what is being done to her.

too selfish to be a parent. I feel awful for the child-she probably misses her pet, too. :cry:

I've only got so many hours in a day, and I'm caring for a sick wife, fixing the DVD player, and trying to get some laundry done. I wish the OP would have mercy on such unfortunates as I.

They must have lived beyond their means.

yeah.

...or does it sound contrived?

on right here in Michigan. Reports like this are coming from people looking for a deal and finding chairs thrown through dry wall. toilets pulled out of the floor and the like. These are not thieves b/c fixtures and pipes are in tact. These are pissed off homeowners (former).

and a beautiful pink room w/ a doll in the corner?


My sis-in law (DUer ProzacNation) reviews foreclosed houses for a living. I've heard horror stories, but not such well staged ones concerning 'those that lived beyond their means'.

NEW YORK—As the downturn in the economy continues, the ASPCA® (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals®) today responded to the flurry of recent media reports about pets being both left behind in foreclosed homes and abandoned in shelters. The ASPCA wants to remind pet parents everywhere that they have options when faced with these heart-breaking decisions.

http://www.aspca.org/pressroom/press-releases/012809.ht...

The pet foreclosure problem was so apparent that Assembly Bill 2949 was passed so that Animal Control could rescue animals in abandoned properties. An organization called No Paws Left Behind was created to help place animals in safe hands and shelters are in overdrive trying to keep up with the increase of displaced pets.

http://xpress.sfsu.edu/archives/magazine/011859.html

It’s very difficult to bring up cases against animal cruelty because it’s not possible to prove that the animals were left behind with a spiteful feeling. However, when Timmers found dead animals in foreclosed homes, he filed a case against each of the owners. It’s very sad when one walks in to find the dead animals. The owners often try to offer an explanation but there could possibly be no justification for it.

http://www.foreclosure1.com/blog/foreclosure/pets-deser...

The mortgage mess is getting even messier. Literally.

Malnourished and flea-ridden animals, feces-covered floors and urine-soaked furniture, piles of rotting garbage, swarms of diseased mosquitoes -- these are the horrors that may await the sheriff, property inspector, real-estate agent or passer-by making that first visit to a deserted home.

http://realestate.msn.com/article.aspx?cp-documentid=13...

--------------
It does happen, enough that there are pages of these stories on google.

....playing to heartstrings.

Seriously?

PS - no profile.

where do they come from?

this is the 2nd short sale I walked into. The first one was sad, but not nearly as sad as this one. I don't know for sure, but I do think they got kicked out -I really don't know the difference between a short sale and a forclosure. The first house I walked into was a mess (things left behind), but this was MUCH worse. Also, this house had at least one small child. THis is happening every where and it's only going to get worse. Why do you people not want to believe me? Is it too hard? And why do we all want to demonize these people - it could be you, or me.
The people didn't wreck the house, a pipe burst (froze and broke) and there was water damage. There was also a lot of garbage everywehere and the fridge was FILLED with food (and, boy, did it stink). The furniture was gone, so I guess they did pack - but, damn, the cat really bothers me. The poop in the tub was from the cat (not the people). If they left the cat there to die, then, of course, my pity factor really goes down. BUT, this is the reality of many families and if you don't think it's sad then you have no heart.

me thinks thou does protest too much.

I wouldn't buy that house if it was 1/2 of what they asked, just based on how I would feel everyday living there!!!!
I did not know it was a short sale.

"living beyond their means" a statement for which you have absolutely no proof.

God bless you and yours.

Foreclosure - they kick you out....next fairy tale please.....

I walked thru the house yesterday and it really bothered me.
At first I was angered about the cat, but me being who I am figured that the cat was left there by mistake. I can't imagine anyone leaving a cat to die on purpose. There was chicken in the oven - I turned to the real estate agent and made a comment about Pomei.
My post contrived? No, it bothered me to tears (several times). I guess I'm more sensitive than everyone else. If you asked me a week ago about these people, I would have showed no mercy, but it's real to me now and very sad. There was a pink room with a doll on the floor. It was a damn shame...the whole thing.

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The cat may have been an indoor-outdoor cat. And the people obviously had to leave in a hurry. Have you ever moved with cats? The little weasels hide like nothing else. What may have happened was that this family was hustling out the door and couldn't find the cat, even after looking all over the house, and assumed it was outside. So they locked up and hoped for the best for the poor thing.

An hour or two later, cat comes out of some cubbyhole, or out from under an appliance, or wherever it was hiding, to find itself alone in a very quiet house.

I refuse to believe anyone would knowingly lock a cat inside when they left the house. It's inconceivable for me, that someone would go "Ahah, we'll just leave Miss Muffy snoozing on the couch while we move to another state. She'll be fine!" People don't do that, Especially people with a little girl who I'm absolutely certain would never let something so barbaric happen and who is, right now probably heartbroken still over the missing cat she has no clue is dead.

No, it doesn't win the family any bonus points. But if you're being evicted and facing legal action if your ass isn't out by this hour on this day...

That makes a lot of sense. Very sad... poor little cat. Poor family, too--I hope they found a place to stay.

There was a cat carrier in the hall with cat food around it. I think they were trying to coax the cat out. Maybe the house was furnished at that point and it was hard to find the cat. Being that there was food in the oven, I think they left in a hurry- forced out. This is sad. My point of my post (which I got BLASTED on so many levels for) - was that THIS is happening and this is sad. I'm at a loss at why everyone is blasting me.
Just imagine being these people.

Even to the point of having to leave the cat! Luckily my neighbors took her in and she's doing fine (aside from getting fat...)

Renters have surprisingly few rights, I found out...

My daughter (who was with me) thinks they left in a hurry. She saw a cell phone on the counter (who leaves their cell phone?). There was a cat carrier in the hallway and cat food near it. We think they were trying to get the cat, which (I know first hand) can be hard to do if the cat is hiding. I think they were kicked out. I'm going to post pics for everyone who thinks I made this up.

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in this horrible market why would a real estate agent leave shit in the tub, rotting food in the oven and a dead cat in the corner when he/she could have cleaned it up themselves or paid someone a few bucks to do it?

This story has so many holes in it.

and I don't know why the house was shown that way. The agent showing it was not the listing agent, so he had no idea. I'm thinking about calling the listing agency to tell them not to show it until it's cleaned up. I brought my kids in there, and it was disturbing. I'm going to ask about the cat. I'm (REALLY REALLY) hoping that the cat was not dead, cause the poop didn't look that old, and maybe it was just sleeping (we saw a pile of fur in the corner, I don't know if it was a cat - and I didn't really want to find out)!

Sometimes former homeowners wreck the place out of spite. But again, I can only speak to what goes on around here. I think the OP knew he'd hit a nerve or two by mentioning a dead cat though. DUers love cats.

:shrug:

thinking it was for sale as shown on the Web site, and saw a home that had become a nightmare. I think it's terribly sad.

it seems to play into the 'blame the ppl for the economic disaster' model that many newcomers here put forth.


Poop, dead cat, pink room w/ doll........

they understand that 'these people' once had jobs. Good paying jobs. Two incomes that could have easily allowed a substantial mortgage.

that these people who don't understand,must have bought their houses and paid for them in full.Trully all of us live above our means if our houses are not paid for in full.People are losing their jobs left and right, where is the sympathy.

I trully felt for the people in the OP.Obviously, the police came and kicked them out of their house, maybe the cat did not get grabbed so the little girl will always wonder what happened to her cat.The cat was locked in the house and died,ok hypotheticalbut use your imagination a bit.Have a heart,sheesh guys.

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I believe they tried to get the cat out but it hid on them.
There was a cat carrier in the hallway with the food next to it. I think they were forced out quickly. Being forced to leave your pet makes it all that much worse.

heard news reports of thousands of 'pets' left behind as a result of foreclosures. You nor I know the details re: this animal but that is FAR FROM THE POINT.

was speaking compassionately about what s/he saw.

actually seen a foreclosed home, and what happens to it, and how it can happen to almost anybody, the OP had a change of mind. But you can continue to mock, I suppose, if it makes you feel better.

The reason I posted was because it changed my mind about this and made it real. That was my point. I'm surprised by the DUers' responses, I thought they were more compasionate (they're acting like a bunch of Rush Limbaughs).

but it looks like a bunch of people.Thanks for sharing your story it was very touching, I am sorry you had to see that.

DUer ProzacNation is my sis in law. She sees many of these houses over a weeks time. She works in the Silicon Valley suburbs. She has told me about some weird sh*t, but yours takes the cake.


Those DAMN 'ppl living above their means' must make you....sad...mad.... creative?


Exactly how did you find this travesty? My sis-in-law would have been there 1st evaluating the property.

Where is the OP? I didn't bother to click the profile. Why should I? Where I live, this doesn't surprise me at all. And after visiting San Fran last summer, I'm thinking you really can't compare Silicon Valley (or its suburbs) to most of the country. You sure as hell can't compare it to anywhere in Bama. Where I live we make a whole hell of a lot less money and have a much smaller social safety net and when the Sheriff's Dept knocks on your door and says get out, they mean like right this second. I wasn't that upset about the cat. I used to be in law enforcement, and it sucks, but sometimes animals get into abandoned buildings and end up trapped.

As for living above means, have you watched the MSM? Have you read any housing post on DU? This is a common, really common, attitude. I am personally very happy to see someone step up and insinuate at least, hey I was wrong! The OP should not be attacked for admitting that. People should feel comfortable, here of all places, stepping up and saying, wow was I wrong. If reviewing this foreclosure makes it more real for him/her, why attack? Imo, that really defeats the purpose of trying to foster open discourse.

and a pretty pink childs bedroom with a beautiful doll in the corner...... Think of almost all movies with a supernatural theme involving a child.


The staging is creepy.



Think.

dead mice and kittens. And one with a dead dog. Gross. All long, long absent houses. And I've seen many houses (in the last 3 years especially) with left over "stuff". Furniture and toys mostly. We almost bought a house 2 years ago where the previous owners had left several feet-and mean at 1k square feet-of uninstalled wood floors. Shit happens. It sucks. But it happens and it happens everywhere. Creepy? For damned sure. But that doesn't change the fact that it happens and probably more in less affluent areas than others. I don't believe the OP's story should be dismissed out of hand because it sounds unbelievable to you. I hear unbelievable shit every day that is still true, ya know?

.....left by ppl living 'above their means'.

I've seen plenty of pink rooms (my girls even have one) and lots of left over toys. Yes, even dolls. And none of that really matters. I don't think the OP was trying to make any point other than in general we as a country have vilified ppl for foreclosures (living above your means) and he's seen it's not so cut and dried. Since I live in a place where there are haves and have nots and nothing in between, I just don't find this that hard to believe. Hell, I live it.

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on the folks who left their home.

It was picture perfect, but I should have know b/c the price was too good to be true.

It was good that I saw this b/c I was judgemental being that I'm a person who lived without for so many years while we saw everyone getting just about everything. My husband and I would wonder how they did it - well now we know. Is that the case for this family? I don't know - maybe it was a lost job, an illness or maybe they charged everything under the sun. No matter how it ended up, it's sad.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHdZvH0LJhY

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Funny that.

are those "living beyond their means" as you stated in your OP.

Might want to unlock that profile of yours before you go around calling DUers "a bunch of Rush Limbaughs."

Maybe they weren't living beyond their means.
This made me very sad. I'm not judging them, I'm actually judging myself. I was very very upset that this family lost their home, and you missed my point (don't know how).
As for my profile - I didn't know it was locked - I'll have to change that. I'm not fake at all, just a mom of 2 who went looking for a house this past week. I'm going to try and post the video that I took so you all can see that I'm not making this up. Why would I make this up, what's the motive?

them anymore. Which is what I think is sad.

Sometimes people are just assholes, of course, and I've found that the ones who assume assholery in others tend to have that trait running pretty strong in themselves.

What a thought provoking post. Thank you.

BTW...wellcome to DU

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think of new posters, anyway.

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makes my fakedar go up.

OP USED to think. And now doesn't. Thanks to this experience.

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Always sorry when someone can no longer afford payments on a home, but pooping in the bathtub and LEAVING THEIR CAT TO DIE OF STARVATION?? BULLSHIT!!

That's total bullshit. They should be in jail for animal cruelty. I have no sympathy for people who trash a house when they leave. None. And you can be sure they had 0 money invested in that house.

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were most likely not from the former oweners but from squatters who crashed the empty house. That is 95% of the time the case.
a horrible person did that. but chances are not the previous owners.

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when people face foreclosure. It's not like an eviction where clothing and furniture is put to the curb. From what I understand, some people may not know the exact time or day they are coming until someone shows up with a locksmith. The homeowner is asked to leave and the locks are changed.

There's also a possibility that the house had been foreclosed or was simply for sale and squatters moved in along with their cat. That would also explain the fast exit minus their cat and the food in the oven. There was a story on DU not too long ago about a poster's mother's home that was vacant and for sale. It was broken into and a homeless person and IIRC, their pets had moved into it. The Du'er's Mother was lucky that a neighbor told her and they were able to contact police and after many hours got the issue resolved.

My heart goes out to whoever it was.

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PS - happy to see you!

it makes an ASS out of U and ME.

Did it ever dawn on you these people weren't "living beyond there means"????

There are a lot of reasons for this to go down into today's economy.....

But maybe you just ASSUMED this as you wrote in your post: "because I could be you."

So, maybe you are living beyond your means and are projecting your precarious circumstances on this family.

Besides a doll, some pink paint, a dead cat, and some chicken finger you don't know the first thing about this family.

that was the point I was trying to make. I don't know the family and was caused them to move out. This made me so sad that I really felt for the family, they weren't just a statistic that I heard about on the news. Again, that was my point.

No, I don't live beyond my means - we live under. But I'm a mom, and when I see what was once a pretty room for a little girl, my heart aches. She didn't cause any of this, but she is a victim. THAT is what makes me sad. I posted the video of the place if you want to see first hand.

.... well, it's not really possible to imagine the extent to which this must be happening. :cry:

Thank you for this snapshot... sometimes it's easier to take in an individual story than millions, even though we know millions of people are losing their homes and often through absolutely no fault of their own. (And even if it is their fault--not everyone receives a good financial education; it used to be that the bank simply wouldn't give you a loan if you didn't qualify and that was the litmus test people used to determine whether they could afford a house or not.)

Again, thank you.

it is a doublewide, which was in a trailer park. we happened to know someone who knew the woman and her kids who had lived there. let me tell you... it was HORRIBLE. not as bad as poop in the bathtub or dead animals... but the people had taken all the appliances... even the dishwasher. They had taken everything out of the refrigerator and put it on the counter. there were eggs, dishes with stuff in it. and when we got a hold of the place it had been empty for months. there was clothes, junk, toys, furniture.... we have pictures of what it looked like. we scrubbed and cleaned and there was a lot of garbage. papers!! bills. I kind of felt bad for the people, because I think that they were paying someone for it who was not paying the bank. so they pretty much got screwed.

we had looked at a lot of repos before we got that one. mostly doublewides. people had taken cupboards, lighting. it was amazing some of the things we saw they had done to the place. it was disheartening to me. when we lived in a house that we were going to buy several years ago, bob (my husband) remodeled the whole place. gutted it, put the cabinets in, the floors, the carpet... everything. and when we left because the guy refused to give us a proper deed for the place, we didn't take anything but our appliances. Not a thing. Not even the microwave. It wasn't right. We sweat and toiled to make that house what it was.... and there was no way we would leave it messy or take any of the things out of it beyond our own things.

Here's the video that I took.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHdZvH0LJhY

And, NO, I'm not out to profit from this, I didn't know it was a forclosure. After thinking about it, I could not live in that house.

The point of my post was to make this real for others as it was made real for me.
When I used the Rush Limbaugh reference, it's because many of you people sounded like him (sorry, but you did).

I wish I posted the video in my orignal post, but I didn't think I'd need to. It's to late to edit so I'm doing it here.

It's working ok.

I don't know why people are having such a hard time believing your post. I guess for some if they haven't personally witnessed it or had it happen to them, then it's not happening.

The rabid nature of the accusations, along with the familiarity with RW hate radio, makes me wonder if it's deliberate.

It's not that hard to imagine the different possible scenarios, about the cat, about the food. Whether it was squatters or the family forced out in a hurry. Doesn't matter. It is the tragedy of losing a home that is evident.

I'm really sorry you've been piled on by so many insensitive DUers. There's been a lot of attacking around here lately. Perhaps those who appear to be insensitive are actually just people living in fear themselves, possibly on the verge of losing their own homes. It is really the only reason I can think of that would make our good members here on DU act so callously.

Welcome to DU. And hang in there. Things here will begin to improve as everything else around us does, i believe.

And I felt bad for the folks being foreclosed on, until I took a look at the recent sales records of this property. Here's what THESE folks did.

The Father, a man of about 70, purchased this home in 2005 for about $750,000. In 2006, his son purchased the same property for a little shy of $1.2 Million. The father promptly returned to Pakistan and the son and his family soon followed.....