The hundreds of foreclosed houses in the Lansing area are good for Matt Johnson's business, even if he acknowledges the work can be downright disgusting.

Tri-County Property Preservation maintains foreclosed properties for banks and others. Johnson says his Leslie-based company maintained about 500 foreclosed properties last year and expects to tend to 300 or so this year.

Johnson says he and his employees cut grass, remove snow, haul away trash and treat pipes to protect them against freezing in the winter. He says they also keep the vacant houses clean -- or in some cases clean up piles of trash left by the former occupants.

Johnson tells the Lansing State Journal that since starting his company nine years ago, he's found just about everything except a dead person.