Selling Spiral Staircases on EBay: Arizona's House Stripping Problem
Arizona is currently prosecuting those who feloniously strip their homes prior to foreclosure.

February 24, 2010 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Selling Spiral Staircases on EBay: Arizona's House Stripping Problem

As Arizona's home foreclosure rates have increased by approximately 600 percent since 2005, thousands of Arizonians have recently been forced to pack up their personal property and vacate their homes. Some however, have taken more than their personal property with them. Law enforcement estimates that thousands of former home owners have stripped their houses of an untold amount of property that is legally considered to be "part of the house" and is thus owned by the bank according to mortgage contracts.

The Scourge of House Stripping

It has been estimated that 85 to 90 percent of foreclosed houses valued under $200,000 have been stripped. Houses with far higher values are not immune however, from the vandalism and stripping opportunism that many former owners have engaged in as a result of anger or ignorance that their actions are criminal.

When signing the deed to a house or negotiating a mortgage contract, home owners agree not to intentionally devalue the property. As the act of stripping inherently devalues the structure, it is illegal by its very nature.

What May be Taken v. What is Being Taken

Posts on Craigslist advertising property stripped from houses close to being finally foreclosed upon have become commonplace. Similarly, foreclosure "garage sales" have been advertised on flyers affixed to light poles and on the Internet. While it seems innocent enough to sell objects found in one's own home, there are certain items which are considered to be "affixed to the land" and thus "part of the property" and may not be sold by a home owner whose mortgage reflects the bank's true ownership of the property.

Home owners may remove all moveable personal property that they brought into the home. Personal property includes furniture, stationary lamps, clothing, easily removable window coverings such as curtains and common household items such as dishes and artwork. Owners may not necessarily move items that they purchased but have become "affixed to the land" and whose removal would devalue the property. Such items include trees which have been planted in the lawn, light fixtures and ceiling fans, flooring and hardware.

Other assets or fixtures which may not be removed include:
-Cabinets, countertops, tile, built-in shelving, staircases, doors and windows
-Sinks, toilets, showers, built-in pools or spas
-Plumbing, copper pipes, wiring, furnaces, air-conditioning units and vents
-Appliances such as dishwashers, built-in stoves, etc.

Consequences

In many states, there is no criminal consequence to house stripping and penalties are mainly imposed by civil suits brought by banks or homeowner's insurance companies. In Arizona however, house stripping may be charged as criminal damage or theft. Either crime is a felony with substantial prison and fines possible. If you have sold items taken illegally, you can also be charged with trafficking in stolen property. If so charged, you open yourself to racketeering charges and criminal forfeiture actions. Banks and homeowner's insurance companies are also capable of filing civil claims or pushing criminal prosecution of home owners who have stripped their houses.

Though, it can be challenging to do so, as banks, insurance companies and law enforcement share the difficulty of proving that it was indeed the home owners who stripped the property and not strangers. However, banks and insurance companies are invested in pursuing collection for the losses they suffer at the hands of house strippers and are likely to take their grievances to court when the damages done to the property are extreme.

For Further Reference

As the problem of stripping is more pervasive in Arizona than anywhere else in the nation, law enforcement agencies are cracking down. Homeowners can be falsely accused of stripping their houses and have been prosecuted for stripping even when they had no knowledge that their actions were criminal. If you have been accused crimes such as the stripping of a home, criminal damage or theft, please contact an experienced criminal attorney.

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