Home Foreclosure? Just Stay Inside!

"Mmm . . . peanut butter and crack sammich!"
Apparently, in Philadelphia, you'll get to keep your home this way. Read on:

CLEVELAND (AP) — The nation's foreclosure crisis has led to a painful irony for homeless people: On any given night they are outnumbered in some cities by vacant houses, and some street people are taking advantage of the opportunity by becoming squatters.

Foreclosed homes often have an advantage over boarded-up and dilapidated houses abandoned because of rundown conditions: Sometimes the heat, lights and water are still working.

"That's what you call convenient," said James Bertan, 41, an ex-convict and self-described "bando," or someone who lives in abandoned houses.

Are you ready? Here comes the money quote:

In Philadelphia, the risk is too great to send case workers into vacant homes to check for homeless needing help, said Ed Speedling, community liaison with Project H.O.M.E. "We're very, very wary of going inside. There's danger. I mean, if the floor caves in. There's potential danger: Sometimes they are still owned by someone," Speedling said. (H/T - AP)

Oh, thank God! In Philadelphia, we couldn't possibly enforce the law if there was a chance of someone getting hurt!!!