Irvington’s eminent domain plan not the answer
“Irvington Mayor Wayne Smith and Udi Ofer, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey, suggested the adoption of a program that requires the township to use the power of eminent domain to acquire mortgages on 900 to 1,100 homes in order to reduce the principal balance of the mortgages for these lucky owners.
If you are scratching your head and wondering why a municipality would go down this road, simply follow the money and your questions will be answered.
The authors reference Richmond, Calif., as a model for his program, which works as follows: Assume a home is worth $200,000, but the owner stills owes the bank $300,000 on his or her mortgage. The home is “underwater” by $100,000. “
Duggan, Timothy. Star Ledger 29 January 2014.