EAST PALESTINE, Ohio — Ed Byard lived in a house in East Palestine for 28 years and raised seven children there.
“I do,” Byard said when asked if he misses the place. “Some things about it. Some things I don’t. The steps. I don’t miss the steps.”
Steps are why he planned to eventually downsize to a home with only one floor.
“We got a little nudge on Feb. 3 last year,” Byard said.
After the derailment, Byard found a buyer and sold below his asking price.
“We were,” Byard said when asked if he was surprised that he found a buyer. “We were surprised. But when we found out it was someone local who wanted to stay in the area, that worked out.”
He applied for the Value Assistance Program, or VAP, which is how Norfolk Southern will reimburse homeowners for lost property value because of the derailment. To qualify, homeowners must sell their home through a realtor approved by the program and they must get an appraisal from an appraiser approved by the VAP program.
Byard said he put a lot of work into the house and hopes that increased the value of the home, creating a return on his nearly three-decade investment.
“I think probably something, but I’m not holding my breath,” Byard said. “I just don’t have a lot of faith in the system.”
A spokesperson for Norfolk Southern said residents get to choose their approved realtor, and any real estate agent can join the VAP program if they complete a short seminar. The spokesperson added residents can challenge the appraisal of their home if they don’t agree with it.
Ron Black is a realtor in the East Palestine area and said the village is a seller’s market right now. But he said the optics of the village could deter some people from buying.
“It’s a case-by-case basis,” Black said. “Either you’re ok with being there and the conditions and what’s going on there, or you’re not. Some people are not looking to be in a situation like that, or, ‘Nope. We’re running. We don’t wanna be there.’ Other people are like, ‘I think it’s fine. It’s gonna be okay.’”
Data from The Columbiana County Auditor’s office shows that 99 East Palestine properties were sold since the derailment. 44 of them were sold over the appraised value by the auditor’s office. Spectrum News asked Black about these numbers.
“That’s probably pretty normal,” Black said. “Like I said, there in the past, just moments ago. East Palestine is a special little place. If you’re from East Palestine, you love East Palestine. And some people just aren’t gonna leave no matter what happens. That’s their home.”
Only homeowners who live within a specific radius would qualify for reimbursement for lost property value. Byard said he’s been waiting about a month to see if he will get any reimbursement. He still said he wishes he could have left his home on his own terms.
“It just doesn’t feel the same,” Byard said. “And we were wondering and pondering if it would have been different, if we had chosen a time.”
Norfolk Southern said if you agree to get reimbursed, you must agree to not sue the rail company for any more damages in lost property value. Norfolk Southern said any residents who sold their home after the derailment can qualify for the VAP program, even if they sold before the program was created.