Yes, I've seen this too, and in Orange County (SoCal) there are houses being bought like this and then nothing is done with them at all. They just sit there. I guess you can get away with it in a climate that never freezes so no issues with the pipes bursting, etc. The owners are foreign corporations, off-shore funds, etc., and a lot of Chinese.

I think the only solution is some kind of state or national tariff on foreign purchases of property or a tax on property owners that do not reside in the state. Of course then they'd incorporate shell corps but it would at least reduce the phenomenon a bit.