House destroyed, literally gone only dirt left!

[Michael Previtera]

I purchased a house through a tax sale on 3-4-21. The house had a fire about 16 months prior to the tax sale. The damage was confined to the attic and was in repairable condition. I have worked in construction and have an engineering degree. After the sale I went by to secure the property. I put padlocks on the doors and left.

The redemption period here is one year unless I petition the court to shorten the period. I started working on petitioning the court the following Monday. I received no reply from the court. I assumed that these things take time so I didn’t worry. Fast forward to yesterday, 4-10-21, I drive to the property to mow the grass, I don’t want any fines for tall grass, and the house is literally gone! All that is there is a smooth lot with straw spread on the bare dirt. I asked the neighbor what happened and she said the city tore it down.

I was never notified nor was anything posted on the property about the demolition. Nothing was stated during the auction either.

I don’t know what to do. I’m going to call the city tomorrow morning but I imagine that won’t get me anything. And I surely don’t want to pay for a demolition that I was not informed of or authorized. Any advice.

[Michael Previtera]

@Wayne Brooks well I learned a lesson from this. I made a few phone calls and I have found out that I need to call code enforcement as soon as I purchase any tax sale property. By being a new owner I can have the demolition process halted long enough for me to make repairs.

On a positive note a cleared lot in this neighborhood is worth double what I paid including the cost of the demo. I can at least get my money back and make a little extra.