By AUSTIN FENNER AND NEIL GRAVES
May 12, 2008
Spillover from the foreclosure crisis is costing city homeowners $5,000 each time a bank seizes a house near their property, according to a lawmaker.
State Sen. Jeff Klein (D-Manhattan, Bronx, Westchester) says 2,090,736 homes have been devalued in New York - causing a $9 billion decline in the tax base.
"It takes just one boarded-up home to drag down an entire neighborhood and jeopardize the safety and quality of life of thousands of hardworking families," Klein said yesterday while standing in front of six such homes on West 159th Street in Washington Heights.
He called for the state Assembly to pass legislation that would allow banks to be fined for allowing foreclosed property to remain in derelict condition.
