A once-beautiful detached house has been vandalised so many times it has been dubbed by locals "the unluckiest house in the village".
Desperate residents say the abandoned recently-built home, called Tara House, in Bagworth, Leicestershire, should now either be "sorted or demolished".
Windows, the front door and even tiles on the roof have been smashed, the front wall demolished and the walls daubed with white paint and graffiti in just the last 12 months.
Ozzy O'Shea, borough councillor for Bagworth, said a number of attempts have been made to block off the house to keep the vandals out, but they keep coming back and causing more damage.
He said: "The property has been empty for some time and has been repeatedly vandalised for some time. A few months back, I arranged to have it secured with the help of the council, so kids can't play on it.
"There was fencing put around it due to the damage but as far as I'm aware, the family who own it have moved on. I know it's very dangerous. Residents have been complaining and the last thing we want is anyone going on site and getting injured.
"I'm not a building expert, but it may well need to come down due to the state of it. In the past, I've had racist graffiti removed from the property as I won't stand for anything like that.
“I was a policeman for 43 years and I won't tolerate that kind of behaviour."
Most of the damage to the home appears to have been caused in the last 12 months. Pictures from 2011 showed the property looking new and well cared for.
And while much more sturdy gates had been installed, by April last year graffiti had started to appear, although the home itself still largely remained intact.
However, vandals have now left nothing more than a broken shell behind.
A post, on the Spotted: Coalville Facebook page, said: "What the hell went on here? Tara House, Bagworth".
One resident replied: "It's the unluckiest house in the village."
Another resident replied: "Guessing you don't venture out to Bagworth much, it's been like that for over six months lol", with another weighing in: "fair dos, it's even updated on Google maps Street View to that lovely sight."
One local said the property had been "smashed up" three times, writing: "It’s been like that for years it gets repaired then smashed up about 3 times now".
Someone suggested action had not been taken against the homeowner: "I go by this house sometimes 3 days a week, years ago the front wall was knocked down and graffiti over the house. The house was refurbished, garages and workshops built and seemed to be someone selling commercial vehicles from there.
"Obviously a deal went wrong and the community decided to wreck the house again on a weekly basis until its looked like this. If this happened anywhere else and there would be action against the homeowner / landowner but as normal it gets ignored."
Councillor O'Shea said that Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council was trying to liaise with the owner over the issues.
He said: "The last update I've had is that the council are currently liaising with the owner.
"Personally, I just want to make sure it's safe for the community. It's an eyesore yes, but in that state it's a danger and it needs to get sorted or get demolished. The owners need to make it safe."
