We’ve heard tale after tale of bitter homeowners gutting their homes prior to losing them to foreclosure.  Now they might want to think twice: [Hat tip MR!]

MERCER, Pa. — A former Mercer County mortgage broker who gutted his $1.2 million home before a sheriff’s sale has been sentenced to three to 15 months in jail and must pay more than $174,000 to an insurance company.

Authorities say 40-year-old Scott McCuskey, of Sharpsville, stripped cabinets, toilets, a Jacuzzi, locks, garage doors and other items. He was convicted of defrauding creditors and fraud in insolvency in April.

McCuskey unsuccessfully argued to Mercer Judge Thomas Dobson on Tuesday that he didn’t know he couldn’t take the items. His home was collateral on a loan he defaulted on in 2004.

Dobson, noting McCuskey worked as a mortgage broker, didn’t accept the argument.

The article noted that the home that he bought for $1.2 million was worth $180,000 after he finished.  So much for his shot at an HGTV show.

Leaving the fixtures might be a good idea after all.