Port St. John 'hoarder house' homeowner fends off foreclosure as neighbors worry about trash piling up again

Homeowner avoids foreclosure; neighbors fear return of ‘hoarder house’

A Brevard County homeowner has avoided foreclosure on a long-troubled property known locally as a "hoarder house," but neighbors say they remain concerned that years of problems could return.

PORT ST. JOHN, Fla. - For nearly a decade, the residence on Corsica Boulevard in Port St. John has been a source of constant complaint. FOX 35 first showcased the property buried under mountains of "junk." You couldn’t even see the home from the sidewalk.

For years, the community pleaded for intervention as the clutter grew to include scrap metal, old furniture, cars and various debris. 

Homeowner's win

The backstory:

The situation eventually led to the county moving toward foreclosure on the property due to a mountain of unpaid code enforcement liens.

The tide turned for property owner James Mitchell earlier this month. After FOX 35’s first report, a wave of volunteers and community members stepped in to help Mitchell clear the lot.

The progress was significant enough for the county to halt its foreclosure efforts, allowing Mitchell to keep his home.

"Until FOX News got involved, and they put the news up about my situation – I had a bombardment. I thank FOX News for helping me," James Mitchell said.

Neighbors' frustrations

What they're saying:

While the exterior lot is clearer, those living next door say the county’s not addressing all the problems. They argue the home itself remains a shell of a building with holes in the roof and unresolved safety issues.

During Thursday’s code enforcement hearing, several neighbors showed up hoping to testify about the problems they’ve endured. However, the magistrate wouldn’t allow them to speak.

"Nobody was allowed to justify or counter what he said," said neighbor Al Studt, expressing frustration that the community's perspective was silenced during the legal proceedings.

Carolyn Hess-Benson lives right across the street from the home and says the cleanup doesn't erase ten years of neglect.

"We’ve been dealing with this for 10 years and I’m just – totally livid," Hess-Benson said. She remains concerned that the structural integrity of the home poses a threat to the block. "It’s a very bad hazard. Thank God we haven’t had hurricanes."

County's response

The other side:

Brevard County officials confirmed that while the immediate threat of foreclosure has been removed because of the "progress" made on the lot, the property is far from being in the clear.

In a statement to FOX 35, the county said in part, "The underlying Code Enforcement cases remain active, and fines will continue to accrue. While the County is disappointed that it was not able to pursue foreclosure as a means to bring relief to the community, it remains committed to doing all within its legal authority to bring the property into compliance with County Code."

What's next:

The road ahead for the property is still unclear. Currently, the fines against the home have ballooned to around $225,000.

While Mitchell has kept his land for now, the county says those fines will continue to pile up daily until every code violation—including the structural damage to the house—is fully remediated.

For the neighbors, the fear remains that without the threat of foreclosure, the progress will stall and the "hoarder house" conditions will slowly return.

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