Early wake-up "call"

Not only did I have a lengthy conversation with Junior on Saturday, I got the nickel tour of the remains, inside and out. No real update on the situation, of course. It's more of a "horse's mouth" report. Either I observed what follows first-hand, or it was literally told to me by him. The level of stupidity at work here is astounding. It's hard to grasp.

We'll start with the inside of the house. The paint is jumping off every vertical surface in the house due to waterlogging. He is convinced he can just "chip off the old stuff" and repaint. It'll be fine. The roof is absolutely smote--at least ten rafters are burned about halfway through for most of their length. They were only 2x4s to start, so not much is holding the roof up where light isn't visible, and what they're holding up (planks, not sheeting) is simiarly charred. His friend takes trusses from demolition sites, so they're "just gonna patch that with good wood". Where it'll be attached/secured I have no idea since there's literally no unburnt wood nearby to which that could be done. The floor in the room below the hole in the roof--it has a matching, even larger hole in its ceiling--has a floor that's like a soggy bounce house, but scarier. I've never gone through the floor of a bounce house. "This is the only room that's bad." Say what?! While I was in there, I noticed that at some point in the past, his mom or uncle painted over some of the black mold. That means it's gone, right? If you're not familiar with the smell, douse your next campfire with wet, moldy bread. Then, transfer the burn pit contents to the interior of a car that's been junked for 30+ years. It smells like that, but worse. He really thinks that odor will abate. When it gets hot or rainy, I can still smell the smoke.

He mentioned fixing the electrical, and I advised him of the $6,000 estimate to install a new service in my garage/house. I told him that was a bit more involved than what he needed, but he should expect at least $3,500, probably closer to $4,000. "Nah, it won't cost that much. I don't need good stuff. It's just knob & tube wiring. No point in getting fancy." Yeah, read last bit that again: The whole house is still knob & tube wiring. I did not bother to tell him new service or not, the power company ain't hooking up to that, no way, no how. I also did not mention the lack of a "not good stuff" option when shopping for electrical service parts. The power company has advised him of the required inspection and sign-off. I truly don't think he understands that there are actual rules (codes) involved beyond "get some new stuff" and that those will involve all the wiring, not just the stuff to the panel.
Pre-fire, the main wire from the pole into the meter (visible in a previous photo) had little/no insulation in one section, which was contacting the corner of the roof: "That's been like that for years." How it took until last year for that place to start burning is beyond me.

His son (the one in the beer box in the Jass Hole) has repeatedly told him to knock it off and just abandon the place. He "can't do that" because his mom left it to him. It's his "legacy"--whatever that means. He also truly believes the house is worth $47K as-is. Except, his mom didn't leave it to him, she just died whilst owning it and he's her sole heir. Clearly he has no idea of the ownership dilemma involved due to failing to bother completing the transfer of ownership she started (it's worthless now). It's not his, which we've covered but bears repeating. He also mentioned in a very nonchalant, dismissive manner, "I mean, I'm a little behind on the taxes but that's no big deal." "A little behind" is a year and a half, meaning the city isn't too far from expropriating it--something he doesn't actually believe they can do.

If this isn't enough to convince you that light bends around this dude, this should be the final nail. He literally said this, out loud, and without comprehending any problem with making such a statement:

"I just don't know why she wouldn't have some kind of insurance to cover something like this." Mind you, his mom died in September of 2021.

That statement left me dumbfounded. I could not respond, but my thoughts were similar to: "Well, Junior, let's start with 'she's dead' and work from there. Exactly how would anything your mother may or may not have done about insurance have any bearing on you burning the house down? Did you make any payments or receive any bills for insurance? No? Then why would lack of insurance come as shock? Do you believe insurance is a one-time expense, pay $X.XX and you're covered for life?"

This is the level of intelligence with which I'm dealing.

So, without advising him of his situation in any way beyond "This is going to cost a lot of money, more than you think," (and he's obviously in denial on that subject) my only recourse at this point remains waiting it out.

However, if the police come a-knockin' wanting to talk to me about the cars and parts in my yard, I will tell them in no uncertain terms: "My yard isn't the issue. You want blight, look at the burned-out house next door. When will something be done about that? It burned in November. Has the building inspector even been notified?" Whether it keeps me from getting a ticket isn't really the issue; it's just a great way to broach the subject with the authorities.
 
Madness. Def agree on broaching the subject, but like 74DartSport said - nobody needs the heat.

It sounds to me like it would need a complete tear out electrical job for inspection, and since you'd be half way there to do that, just go ahead and tear it all the way down instead. It's too bad he failed to hang onto what Mama had, but such is life.
 
Well, the cops come and visit me almost annually about the stuff in my yard. I make it vanish for a week, they sign off on the ticket, then it all comes back. One year later we dance once again. I've been there 23 years and had at least 18 visits, so any heat on me is essentially pre-existing. I'm like a bookmark in their blight-ticket list. I'm not going to say anything to anyone until they're standing in my yard ready to write the ticket, because I'm almost sure they'll show up. I don't even care if they write me, because I know the process so well and will deflect it as usual. This year, it just provides me an opportunity to bring the situation next door to their attention.

b-body-bob said:
It sounds to me like it would need a complete tear out electrical job for inspection, and since you'd be half way there to do that, just go ahead and tear it all the way down instead. It's too bad he failed to hang onto what Mama had, but such is life.
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It's really not too bad. As one who's made his own share of pretty awful life decisions, I recognize them pretty well. Junior's full of 'em.
He moved here from AZ when his kids' mother went to prison the first time because it was much easier to apply for welfare and live with mommy. It took him a year or two to find a job, mostly for lack of trying. She finally forced the issue; why I have no idea. He never contributed to bills or household finances in any way, including groceries for five people--three of whom were his direct responsibility. He and the son finally moved out around '16, leaving his daughter there. She didn't want to move with them. When grandma died, she kept working and living there until she'd saved enough money for bus fare back to AZ, to get away from Junior and her brother since they'd moved back into the house. She hasn't been back and I doubt I'll see her again.
Junior's workplace caught fire (no surprise, long story) a couple of months later. He was without a job while they rebuilt, but they never have. He's been on unemployment since, plus working for cash on the side (previously covered). Despite not paying any bills anywhere, no kids, and having at least $600/week--probably closer to $800--in untaxed income, he literally doesn't have a kettle in which to urinate. He's been crashing on couches since the fire, drinking/inhaling the money the Red Cross gave him for rent and furnace repairs with his hosts. The party never ends and likely never will. Now that warm weather is back, he's itchin' to move back to his party pad.

He's done this to himself, by himself. He's just cruising along, perpetually buzzed, with no thought or preparation for eventualities. When those arise, he's always the victim: He had plenty of cash to fix the furnace a year ago, but summer was nigh; beer and weed were more important. He was still getting unemployment and working for cash when cold weather hit; he still didn't make the repair (a $65 ignitor) because party on, Wayne: "We'll just build a bonfire and drink outside!"

I have no sympathy whatsoever. His situation is of his own creation, and he's not willing to work to better it.

Predictions: Generator, jugs of water, and bags of ice. He already asked me if he could plug a fan in at my place to help dry out his house. I told him that would be OK for a little while, but with his cord. I will plug/unplug it as I see fit (I don't have an outdoor outlet, so he can't just pirate it--which probably why he actually asked). It won't be long before he wants a hose connected; that ain't happening. I shut that off inside; the outside valve does naught. Being a nice person only lengthens the time I have to deal with him, and my own expense.
 
Dr.Jass said:
Being a nice person only lengthens the time I have to deal with him, and my own expense.
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That's a hard lesson to learn. I know people that fall for it every time. Then they call me grouchy because I don't hesitate to make "No" my first answer.
 
b-body-bob said:
That's a hard lesson to learn. I know people that fall for it every time. Then they call me grouchy because I don't hesitate to make "No" my first answer.
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In this case, I know I'm dealing with someone who would gladly just plug in or connect to my hose outlet without asking, were either an option. He'll ask permission only if he can't easily steal it. The sooner someone like that is gone, the gooder. 😶
 
Stretch said:
This post is full reasons why I love my place! 32 acres makes the neighbors much more tolerable.
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8ft fence on a flag lot...few even knew we were here even before the fence went up we just look like someone elses back yard from all directions LOL

what i wouldnt give for your chunk tho...and trust me ive looked at moving many times, but location and speed to get emergancy services, is unbeatable while still being more or less out of town...anything you could need in 10 mins or less when youve got someone "old" in the house is worth its weight in gold
 
The beginning of the end:

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It's a notice for a "show cause" hearing regarding forfeiture of the property for unpaid property taxes. It's been taped to the door since Thursday or Friday, and is in his mother's name. He's too stupid to know, but his attendance to such a hearing would be akin to sticking his face in a hornet's nest. I hope he sees it and attends. It's a long way off (early next year) but knowing his proclivity for coasting, he'll not worry about it until the last second--having missed yet another tax payment in the interim.
 
74DartSport said:
Holy crap a three year process. <grabs popcorn >
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By the time it's done, probably. The way time flies by these days, it'll seem like no time before he's gone.

According to the notice the house is already forfeited. The city/county doesn't want to own property, so they're still willing to allow the taxes to be paid up to April 1st of next year (despite the hearing being in January). Because Junior isn't the owner of title, any other option listed in the notice is not available to him, i.e. he can't contact the court by mail or file a motion contesting the validity of the forfeiture. "Legal interest" as defined for this situation would be "having a legal right to own" and since that right has never been established (no will, no probate), he's out. Payment is the only option, and that's going to put a serious kink in his ability to party.

I wish I'd taken a better shot and gotten the whole notice in the photo. The past-due amount is just out of frame, and I didn't notice it. Based on my own taxes and that his mother and uncle (Brucefighter) paid 35% more for their place than I did for mine, he's probably about $1,600-$1,800 behind at the moment. Between now and April 1st, there'll be another $1,200 or so added to that.

I still wish it would be condemned. That 1-2 punch would make it case closed, game over.

Kev nailed Junior on the phone last night: "What am I supposed to do now?!" It's the battle cry of people who feel victimized by the bed they've made for themselves. It's never their fault.
 
74DartSport said:
summer and winter tax? WTF? Our taxes are quarterly and the same amount every period .
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We generically refer to them as "summer" and "winter" but the way it runs locally, you pay your city (or township) property tax in June/July and your county property tax in Nov/Dec. County taxes are significantly lower than city; I'm not sure what township taxes are like but I'm sure they're similar.
 
Each of the things you listed is part of our taxes as well, but it's not broken out as such. The city gets their road money from the city taxes; county gets theirs from their taxes (both heavily subsidized by the state). The library is a county obligation, parks are primarily city. There aren't any county schools, so money for those comes from the city tax rolls and the state, the latter often being pilfered from funds we've been told for decades were to fix the roads. A higher gas tax (multiple times) was to fix the roads. Higher licensing fees would go toward roads. Extra sales tax was for the roads. MI still has what are widely regarded as some of the worst roads in the US, because none of that money went to fix the roads. Most of the money seems to have gone to high-school sports. We had four school-funded sports options when I was young. Students today have 14... but the roads still suck.
 
I was just checking out some information online about my own property, and got a little curious about the lot next door. I found another plot twist.
Not only is the house in Mother Boozefighter's name, but ownership is shared 50/50 with her brother, Uncle Boots (Brucefighter). As you may recall, he is similarly dead and much like his sister, left no will. Boots had no children or spouse and preceded Mother Boozefighter in death. That would seem merely an interesting side note were it not for this fact: According to MI law, Boots' legal next of kin is now his remaining sister. As such, in order for Junior to assume ownership of the house, his aunt must settle Boots' estate, then sign over her half-ownership of the house to her nephew. I've no doubt she'd sign it over, but no way would she take on any expense (lawyer, court costs, outstanding debts, etc.) to do so.
 
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