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The appointment of a receiver can eradicate health and safety threats in your community and is an available and valuable remedy under California law. A receiver is a neutral third-party appointed by the Court to take temporary control over substandard properties that are subject to a lawsuit. By appointing a receiver, the Court can eliminate illegal or unsafe activity occurring at a property. Health and Safety Receiverships are used primarily for substandard properties which include but are not limited to hoarding properties, illegal construction or habitation, fire damaged properties, nuisance properties, deceased owner or abandoned properties, and slum apartments/motels. Once the court appoints a receiver, the property is under the direct control of the court via the court-appointed receiver. The health and safety receiver is then responsible for the general repairs and maintenance for the property and for ensuring that the property is brought into compliance with State and local codes at the property owner’s expense. Utilizing the receivership remedy saves a city, or other municipality, time and resources, and demonstrates to the surrounding community that the city is taking effective steps to remedy the dangerous conditions created by the problem property.

Before Griswold Law Begins Rehabilitation of the Property

The local CBS 8 San Diego news aired a story on the successful completion of one our recent hoarder receiverships (link to news story). This property posed many challenges, but in the end, the property was cleared out and rehabilitated and is now in productive use by a new owner.

Richardson "Red" Griswold was appointed as a health and safety Receiver by the San Diego County Superior Court in April 2016 to take control of a hoarder property in San Diego (Mira Mesa). Under his receivership, Red was responsible for coordinating the clear-out and rehabilitation of the dwelling. The property was in such disarray, the debris overflow could be viewed on Google Street View as well as from satellite images. Click below to view the recent news stories about this situation regarding the property, its condition, receivership status and the neighborhood history:

The Mayo Clinic defines hoarding as “the excessive collection of items, along with the inability to discard them,” and notes the following characteristics as signs and symptoms: cluttered living spaces, inability to discard items, acquiring unneeded or seemingly useless items (including trash), excessive attachment to possessions, and discomfort letting others touch or borrow possessions, among others.