what can be done about the abandoned house next door?

it has been vacant for at least 5 years and the owner has never
showed up again. Everything inside the house was cleared out.
(even the window curtains are all gone)

The outside of the house is in pretty bad shape... peeling paint, warped
wood on the deck, etc, etc....

Is there a law in this county that forces the owner to do something about it?
Or, if the owner can't be found, can the county take some action?

thanks!

If you have HOA: Complain to them.

If you do not: Call the police or health dept. and tell them that the lack of upkeep has lead to rodent and snake infestation of the neighborhood. Also, get on Fairfax Co.'s Gov't's real estate tax assessment website, plug in the address, and find out 1.) If property taxes have been paid and 2.) who the land book owner is and hunt them down like Charles Bronson would. -§

If the prop taxes haven't been made you may be able to pay them and occupy the house for a while to take adverse possesion.

Yeah, look it up on the fairfax county Web site and see if taxes have been paid. Most likely they have and someone is just leaving it vacant to let the value appreciate. Then when they need the money they clean it up and sell. But if the taxes haven't been paid and you have cash to pony up for the taxes, pay them, clean up the house, and sell it off more massive profit.

Just burn the damn place down. The neighborhood will have a vacant lot and the owner, whoever he/she might be, will get a nice insurance settlement. It's a win-win, right!

Yeah win win unless it's next-door townhouse.

True, so if it is a townhouse, just have a garden hose ready and hope they built the firewall between houses to code.

Arson.

PEBCAK

Burn it down.

Post the address. I may be interested.

I am very interested in this place. Where is it located?

They don't sell tax certificates. They just auction the delinquent properties.

dumbshits.....doc brown wants his delorean back...

pretty sure in the last ten years something has been done...

What do you mean "what's to be done" that's my house. I'll be damned if you're going to interfere with my ghost activities.

Round up some democrat delegates and leave them in the house, then light the house on fire.

Nobody Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Just burn the damn place down. The neighborhood
> will have a vacant lot and the owner, whoever
> he/she might be, will get a nice insurance
> settlement. It's a win-win, right!

Find a drunken bum. Offer him $50 to burn it down. Delay about 15 minutes before calling 911. And if the bum implicates you, no one will believe a drunken bum.

Code Compliance is the place to call, if it isn't cleaned up it will be seized. Too bad there's no one living inside it, they'd be put out on the street, that happened to the woman who managed Craven's nursery before it closed down.

Got a match?