I was talking to my neighbor who is a realtor and she said banks are going to begin a huge number of foreclosures. Apparantly banks dont want to pay utilities thru the winter so they let the borrowers stay there and pay the heat bill - but no more.
It is also better for the bank to have someone living there, even if it is practically free. That way the house is less likely to be damaged by frozen pipes or to be gutted for its copper pipes, etc.