Arson Incidents In The U.S. On Foreclosed Homes Up

Washington, D.C. (AHN) - There is a link between the high foreclosure rates in some states and the rash of arson incidents involving foreclosed homes, officials say.

According to fire safety officials in Nevada, Massachusetts and Ohio, the seven-decade rise in the number of mortgage defaults is connected to the spate of blazes which destroyed the empty homes.

In 2006, when the median price of a U.S. home peaked to $221,900 based on data from the National Association of Realtors, 31,000 arson cases were recorded the same year by the U.S. Fire Administration. In Ohio, fires that razed vacant units rose by 18 percent in 2006, at about the same time that one in 161 households got a foreclosure notice during the first quarter.

James Quiggle, spokesman of the Coalition Against Insurance Fraud, said profit is usually not the only motive behind the deliberate burning of foreclosed homes since the former owner becomes a suspect and the replacement cost paid by the insurance company is normally below the value of the property.

Some fires were caused by accidents like toppled candles of intruders or neighborhood kids. But two-thirds of fires in unsecured vacant buildings were done on purpose, said John Hall, research head at the National Fire Protection Association. The arson rate went down to 32 percent for empty buildings and 7 percent for occupied units.

James Wright, chief of the Nevada State Fire Marshal Division said battling empty and foreclosed homes is more perilous for firefighters because they are not aware of the conditions of the burning structures.

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson's had earlier forecast that oil prices will continue to rise while home prices will dip further and the economic slowdown will prolong further. This bleak outlook signals to firefighters to be on red alert for more arson incidents involving foreclosed houses.