North Willow House to be Sold to Recoup City Loan

City officials will try to negotiate a short sale for a house on North Willow Street to try and recoup a home rehabilitation loan.

Kent City Council authorized the short-sale action this week on the house at 216 N. Willow St. The house is owned by Victoria Krancevic, according to Portage County Auditor's Office records.

The city loaned $26,000 to the property owner for remodeling work as part of a rehabilitation loan program run by the Kent Community Development Department.

But the owner failed to repay the loan on the house, which has been listed for sale for more than three months, according to the property's listing on Prudential realty.

Kent Law Director Jim Silver said Krancevic agreed to the short sale because she's been unable to sell the house through traditional means and wants to get out from under it.

Silver said the city hopes to recoup between $2,000 and $10,000 of the original $26,000 rehab loan. The loan was made available as a second mortgage on the property.

"We'll try to recoup as much as we can," Kent City Manager Dave Ruller said.