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Another day, another default in Wasco

By GRETCHEN WENNER, Californian staff writer
e-mail: gwenner@bakersfield.com | Tuesday, Jul 8 2008 6:32 PM

Last Updated: Wednesday, Jul 9 2008 9:25 AM

A 10th housing development has defaulted in Wasco, the city of 24,300 — including a state prison population of nearly 6,000 — that touts itself as the “rose capital of the nation.”

On Tuesday, a 48-home tract that stretches between Central and Beckes avenues on the south side of Highway 46 received a default notice for a $7.5 million construction loan from First Bank made in fall 2006.

The San Diego-area developer behind the tract, Thomas Dobron of Innovative Communities Inc., was late on more than $1.5 million in payments as of July 7, the filing indicated.

A default notice is the first legal step in possible repossession by the lender.

Dobron, who borrowed the money through subsidiaries IC-Wasco LP and IC/NoCal Inc., signature pages show, did not return a message left late Tuesday afternoon at Innovative Communities’ Escondido office.

Eddie Aguilar, one of nine or so homeowners in the tract, property records show, said the house he bought at auction in November has given him major trouble.

A cracked ceiling, unraveling rug, water-spewing shower and other problems have gone unfixed despite dozens of calls to Innovative Communities, he said. The company did fix a cracked countertop, he said.

The lights in his house also blink.

“If you ever walked into a disco — it’s like that,” he said, adding he’s worried the flashing lights might be a sign of something more dangerous, such as an electrical short.

The house came with a one-year warranty provided by the builder, he said. He estimates he has tried to call about 150 times for fixes, but so far only the countertop has been a go.

Aguilar bought the 1,484-square-foot Bettis Avenue home through Pacific Auction Exchange Inc. for about $180,000. With its current problems he’s afraid he’d get $40,000 to $50,000 less than he paid, if he could sell it at all.

“I sold a beautiful home I loved to be here,” said Aguilar, an oilfield supervisor, who said the new house is closer to his work.

He estimates about 15 of the tract’s 48 lots have completed houses, including several model units. Tall weeds grow on many of the empty lots, he said.

Nine other residential sites in Wasco have defaulted or foreclosed since the beginning of the year. All were projects of out-of-town developers.