Neighbors are fed up with an abandoned home in The Villages with dead owners and a HUD mortgage.
The home located at 3288 Shelby St. in the Village of Summerhill was the subject of a public hearing Friday morning before the Community Development District 3 Board of Supervisors at Savannah Center.
The home was owned by Billy and Carolyn Mann, who are both deceased. They purchased the home in 2003 for $118,500. The mortgage is held by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Several complaints about the property have been lodged about overgrown grass, weeds and mold.
Neighbors testified Friday that the abandoned home has been a problem for two years. They are particularly angry that HUD is ignoring the situation.
After the death of Billy Mann, someone raked through the property claiming items of value.
“They came like vultures and took furniture and then disappeared,” said Omar Marinoni, who lives at 3282 Shelby St.
As time passed, the weeds sprouted and the mold grew on the house as well as the driveway. HUD has put no effort into maintaining the property.
“When the primary residents have died and the property is owned by a government entity, what are they doing?” asked James Leannah of 3300 Shelby St.
He worries about the future as it seems the number of these cases are increasing in Florida’s Friendliest Hometown.
“There has to be some regulation down the line to help the neighborhoods be ensured a property will be maintained in a reasonable amount of time. If HUD just ignores this, it devalues the entire neighborhood,” Leannah said.
Supervisor Terry Biddle said it’s time to stop accepting the government’s inaction and lean on legislators for help with HUD.
“We need help and we need to get our legislators involved. They need to help us,” Biddle said.
The unpaid fines at the property exceed $23,000 and continue to add up.
