When his bank began foreclosure proceedings on the remaining $160,000 on his mortgage, Terry Hoskins offered the bank a $170,000 buyout. When the bank refused, he came up with a compromise.
Hoskins, a Moscow, Ohio man, let the bank take his land — after he used a bulldozer to level the home that he built, which was valued at $350,000.
The entire story leading up to the home demolition, however, is complex. After Hoskins’ brother, a one-time business partner sued him, the IRS placed liens on his carpet store and commercial property. Then, the bank claimed his home as collateral and went after both his residential and commercial properties.
Hoskins fought back — spending a significant amount of money on attorneys — but, in the end, he took the matter into his own hands. As Hoskins put it, “As far as what the bank is going to get, I plan on giving them back what was on this hill exactly (as) it was.”
The story has created quite a stir online, and Mr. Hoskins has become something of a folk hero recently.
For example, a printing company in Amelia, Ohio, is making 1,000 shirts and 1,000 hats with a bulldozer under the words “Take ‘Er Down,” referring to Hoskins’ use of a bulldozer on his home.
The owner, Guy Robinson, is donating the shirts to Hoskins to help with his debt.
And then there’s this Hoskins-inspired song by Ronnie Ray Jenkins.
