Flood buyout process at halfway point

The city's number one priority is moving at a snail's pace.  The flood buyout program is only halfway through the process of buying properties so the city can demolish them.  Some 600 flooded homes are still tied up in paperwork and federal red tape.  That's out of a total 1,200 properties on the list.

“This is the city's number one priority and it always has been,” said Flood Recovery Director Greg Eyerly.

Flooded eyesores still stand; more than 600 of them waiting to be bought by the city.

“It's an excruitiating detailed slow process we're trying to push through,” said Eyerly.

30 months after the floods of 2008 and some flooded homeowners are still waiting for a check from the city.  It could take eight to twelve months to get through the entire process.

“We require all this information all this documentation. It's not a pleasant process for the homeowner to have to go through,” said Eyerly.

But the biggest obstacle is getting rid of liens, loans against the property.

“It can be anything from a contractor's lien, spousal support or child support,” said Eyerly.

It's anything that would not give the property a clear title.   Another problem is upside down mortgages, which is when  homeowners owe more than the house is worth.

“We don't hear from the lenders for a long time or at all so that's what's mostly frustrating to them,” said Horizons' Scott Shook.

The city referred some homeowners to Horizons for credit counseling.  Director Scott Shook acts as a mediator between the homeowner and the mortgage company.

“We're telling the mortgage lenders here's the situation what can we do to work this out,” said Shook.

The city is also working with local law firms and other credit counseling services to get through the buyout process.

Eyerly says most homeowners will get 140% to 180% of their home's pre-flood value.