Foreclosure Crisis. neighborhood stabilization

Real estate speculators are being fined big bucks in Cleveland for letting properties sit vacant, but the jury's still out on whether this is the key to stabilizing neighborhoods.

As bank-owned homes become a source of blight and crime, cities struggle to effectively hold banks accountable for their maintenance. Large banks tend to be the worst offenders, often failing to remove trash and weeds or paying fines.

Shelterforce magazine takes a look at one of the hardest hit areas in New Jersey by the ongoing foreclosure crisis, and a first-in-the-nation property acquisition project that aims to stabilize neighborhood in decline.