The Columbus Dispatch-

Xavier Salek worked a decade to save enough money to buy his first house.

Now he and his family are too terrified to move in.

Salek’s story should be one of triumph. Instead, it illustrates an ugly aftermath of the housing collapse.

Salek moved to Columbus a decade ago, a 28-year-old refugee from violence-torn Mauritania in western Africa. During the next several years, he delivered packages, slowly putting money away to buy a home for his family.

After saving $15,000, he found a house in foreclosure on the Northeast Side with the help of real-estate agent Lyuda Dehlendorf. He borrowed $3,000 from friends and, in late September, paid $18,000 cash for the 1,000-square-foot, three-bedroom ranch.

[THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH]

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