HENDERSON, KY, September 8, 2023– For the fourth time in a little more than six years, the City of Henderson is pursuing a mass foreclosure action to recover back taxes and code enforcement liens.
The mass foreclosure filed contained 20 suits that once again involve a combination of delinquent property taxes and liens or delinquent property taxes exclusively.
“We are allowed by statute to do a mass foreclosure where we can put numerous counts in one lawsuit,” said City Attorney Dawn S. Kelsey. “It saves the City money and time and expedites the foreclosure process. It also creates an opportunity for blighted properties to be put in the hands of homeowners who will rehab the properties back to their original state.”
The goal for mass foreclosure, she added, is to recoup some of the expenses generated by maintaining these properties and to spur redevelopment that will get them back on the tax rolls. The upcoming action contains 6 vacant lots and 14 parcels with a house.
In the 20 filed suits, delinquent taxes owed amount to $17,336.33 and liens owed tally $37,998.17 for a total of $55,334.50.
“If we get a judgment on these, they will go into a Master Commissioner’s public sale and then will be available to whomever comes and bids on them. Ideally, we would like to see houses or businesses built on them,” Kelsey said. “We want them to be productive.”
When they are sold, she said, the properties come with a clear title. Before the City’s foreclosure action in 2017, there had not been any foreclosure proceedings since 1989. That 1989 action was done solely on tax liens.
A second mass foreclosure action was started in June 2019 and completed over the course of several months. Of the suits included in the second mass action, some involved code enforcement liens, three
were for delinquent property taxes exclusively and some are a combination of both. There were 15 vacant lots ready for redevelopment.
The properties in the lawsuit reach condemnation for a variety of reasons, such as the financial inability
of the owner to maintain them. Other scenarios could be an owner who moves away and abandons the
property or heirs having no interest in a property they inherited.
When properties are not maintained, the City incurs expenses for boarding up structures, mowing and,
eventually, demolition.
The City is addressing and managing the issue through the creation of a Code Enforcement Board that
started in July 2017.
“Now that we are making a priority of tearing down condemned properties we had to have a
mechanism to recoup the costs of cleaning up unsafe properties and to make the property available for
redevelopment,” Kelsey said.
This next mass foreclosure also has a goal of including more lots with houses that might possibly be
rehabilitated and improved before they fall into a greater state of disrepair.
“Mass foreclosures are such a crucial part of dealing with blighted, abandoned, or forgotten properties
and turning them back into productive, attractive and affordable homes in our community. I’m proud of
all the work our team has done to get us to this point yet again.” said Mayor Brad Staton.
The 20 parcels in the mass foreclosure suit are:
Vacant lots:
- 424 Sixth Street
- 609 South Adams Street
- 835 Dixon Street
- 449 South Adams Street
- 451 South Adams Street
- 431 Meadow Street
House and lot:
- 1533 Cumnock Street
- 422 Sixth Street
- 1023 Madison Street
- 1426 Wilson Drive
- 1113 Powell Street
- 1023 Washington Street
- 1431 Clay Street
- 602 Letcher Street
- 2179 Augusta Drive
- 214 South Adams Street
- 38 Burdette Street
- 1644 Garfield Avenue
- 1321 South Elm Street
- 1002 Atkinson Street
A map showing the properties included in the action will be available for viewing at the Code Enforcement Office, located in the Peabody Building, beginning Monday, Sept. 11, 2023.
Anyone interested in being notified of Master Commissioner sales related to the mass foreclosure can contact Theresa Richey at theresar@hendersonky.gov to be placed on a notification list.
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