Charlotte County looks to buy distressed homes [South Florida]
The housing crisis peaked in Charlotte County in 2008-2009, with foreclosure filings running at about 400 a month.
While the numbers are down so far this year, the problem of vacant homes remains for neighborhoods.
Now the county is trying to salvage some of those homes through the federal Neighborhood Stabilization Program. The program provides grants to communities hardest hit by foreclosures and abandoned homes. In January, the Florida Department of Community Affairs distributed $6.7 million to the county from a $91 million allocation for the state.
The goal is to create construction jobs and revitalize housing. The county is purchasing foreclosed properties to rehabilitate them and give them, free, to local nonprofit housing groups.