Buying a lien to force foreclosure?

[Kevin B.]

I was hoping someone with lien expertise can help me understand how they work.

Background: a neighbors house has been abandoned for quite sometime now (2009?), property is in pre-foreclosure but bank/company "servicing" the property hasn't done anything. It's essentially a zombie foreclosure. Property is falling apart and township inspection team is levying fines which are ignored by bank/company. Other lien-owners exist for this property (one from PA and another from Australia?).

What I want: I would like the home to be foreclosed so this stupid bank is no longer in charge of this property.

Question: Can I buy one of the new liens on the property and initiate some process to foreclose on it? If so, what are my responsibilities? (For instance if I buy a $500 lien--which I don't mind just to get things to change, can I be saddled with the burden of owning place/fixing it up/etc?)

I am a complete novice and reading up on how liens work hasn't been particularly useful.