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The foreclosure crisis is anything but old news, especially for Geneva resident Daniel Gurbal, whose home was sold last week in the Kane County Sheriff’s weekly foreclosure sale.
Although officials said the foreclosure crisis has not impacted Geneva as much as it has in other parts of the county, it still occurs regularly.
“What our experience has been ... is that some weeks Geneva doesn’t see any foreclosure and sometimes we might get three or four in a week,” said Geneva Community Development Director Dick Untch. “Nonetheless, foreclosures are occurring. It’s a phenomenon we continue to watch.”
He said the city’s job is watching foreclosed properties and making sure the exterior, at least, is being kept up to code, such as with mowed lawns to protect the character and value of the surrounding neighborhood.
“For the most part, the property owners are responsive to the property maintenance issues,” Untch said.
Between last week and the end of the year, 13 properties in Geneva alone were scheduled to be sold in the Kane County Sheriff’s weekly foreclosure sale. In all of Kane County, 505 properties are scheduled to be sold in the foreclosure sale between July 21 and Dec. 29.
Gurbal bought the house at 202 Richards St. in Geneva 20 years ago to use as an office for his business, Gurbal’s Pro Search, where he performed research for real estate attorneys.
“We bought it back when things were good, at least in business,” Gurbal said.
The property is also a residential home and Gurbal lived there for a short time when he and his wife went through a rough patch in their marriage. He and his wife are back together now and have been married for 37 years. In addition, one of Gurbal’s sons lived in the house for a short time.
“It got to the point where I didn’t have enough money to pay for the mortgage on that and the mortgage on my (other) house as well,” Gurbal said, referring to the home in Geneva where he lives with his wife.
In hindsight, Gurbal feels he should’ve tried selling the house years ago. But after working in the real estate business for several decades, he said he witnessed several up and down cycles.
“This time it just started going down and never came back up, which is kind of sad,” Gurbal said.
Looking back, he’s a little jaded about the foreclosure crisis and questions why banks received a bailout from the government when property owners did not.
The foreclosure crisis is anything but old news, especially for Geneva resident Daniel Gurbal, whose home was sold last week in the Kane County Sheriff’s weekly foreclosure sale.
Although officials said the foreclosure crisis has not impacted Geneva as much as it has in other parts of the county, it still occurs regularly.
“What our experience has been ... is that some weeks Geneva doesn’t see any foreclosure and sometimes we might get three or four in a week,” said Geneva Community Development Director Dick Untch. “Nonetheless, foreclosures are occurring. It’s a phenomenon we continue to watch.”
He said the city’s job is watching foreclosed properties and making sure the exterior, at least, is being kept up to code, such as with mowed lawns to protect the character and value of the surrounding neighborhood.
“For the most part, the property owners are responsive to the property maintenance issues,” Untch said.
Between last week and the end of the year, 13 properties in Geneva alone were scheduled to be sold in the Kane County Sheriff’s weekly foreclosure sale. In all of Kane County, 505 properties are scheduled to be sold in the foreclosure sale between July 21 and Dec. 29.
Gurbal bought the house at 202 Richards St. in Geneva 20 years ago to use as an office for his business, Gurbal’s Pro Search, where he performed research for real estate attorneys.
“We bought it back when things were good, at least in business,” Gurbal said.
The property is also a residential home and Gurbal lived there for a short time when he and his wife went through a rough patch in their marriage. He and his wife are back together now and have been married for 37 years. In addition, one of Gurbal’s sons lived in the house for a short time.
“It got to the point where I didn’t have enough money to pay for the mortgage on that and the mortgage on my (other) house as well,” Gurbal said, referring to the home in Geneva where he lives with his wife.
In hindsight, Gurbal feels he should’ve tried selling the house years ago. But after working in the real estate business for several decades, he said he witnessed several up and down cycles.
“This time it just started going down and never came back up, which is kind of sad,” Gurbal said.
Looking back, he’s a little jaded about the foreclosure crisis and questions why banks received a bailout from the government when property owners did not.
Gurbal said he hasn’t seen a real check from his company in four years, but is still operating out of his basement. He sold most of his investments and has borrowed against his life insurance policy to make ends meet.
“I’m just trying to get through this year,” Gurbal said.
In April, Gurbal will be 62 and able to collect Social Security.
He also receives some income and health benefits for his medical disability from the VA, having served in the Army during the Vietnam War from 1968 to 1969.
Gurbal said he contracted an illness because of exposure to Agent Orange while in Vietnam, which was part of a chemical warfare program conducted by the U.S. Some of the symptoms include diabetes and heart disease, and Gurbal said he underwent triple bypass heart surgery four years ago.
Now, he’s looking forward to putting the foreclosure on Richards Street behind him and spending time with his grandchildren while doing work around the house. Gurbal also ran for Kane County recorder of deeds seven years ago, but is not looking to get back into politics because of his medical condition.
“I’m looking forward to doing things I want to do,” he said.
