Anyone want to move to Detroit?

[Truscifi]

They are auctioning off foreclosed houses starting at $1000. The only catch is you have to rehab it and have someone living there within 6 months.

 

Interesting idea.

 

http://buildingdetroit.org/Home

[Gil]

I wish I could afford to move so far up north. I would be interested in taking advantage of such a program.

[Caroline]

In Baltimore, back in the 1980's, they sold row houses for $1. The same type of stipulations--had to be rehabbed and someone living in them within a year.

 

http://baltimorefuture.blogspot.com/2009/07/whatever-happened-to-dollar-row-house.html?m=1

 

It worked for those neighborhoods, but they were select neighborhoods.

[PinkyandtheBrains.]

I hope it works, I don't have the resources to rehab a house and up and move.

[Ottakee]

It would be great if people can then find jobs.

[Guest submarines]

If I were newly married, no kids, I'd seriously consider something like this. There's something of an adventure in this program, and is akin to being a pioneer. I know I'm romanticizing this, but I know DH and I would've made it work for us.

[Matryoshka]

Kinda like the Homesteading Act - you get the property for almost nothing, but you have to improve it to keep it.

[Matryoshka]

It would be great if people can then find jobs.

 

That is a bit of a fly in the ointment....

[Mergath]

If I worked online and didn't have kids, I'd do it in a heartbeat.

[Gil]

I have kids and I'd do it! But I'm so close to finishing school--and I work out of the house. If I could work and finish school online, I'd probably go.

[aug17girl]

What would make this really work is if a foundation or corporate sponsors could bring super fast internet to these neighbourhoods - something like the Google Fiber pilot program in Kansas City.  Then Detroit would attract entrepreneurs and people who work from home to give the economy a little bit of a boost.  

[Seasider]

I'd think Habitat for Humanity, Extreme Makeover Home Edition and other such organizations would be all over this.

[FaithManor]

Just so you know, you'll need a $50,000 - $150,000 because these houses usually have been stripped of their wiring, pipes, you name it. You need to take it down to the studs and start over. Vandalism of empty houses has been epic! Some of them may even look great from the outside, but heartbreaking on the inside.

 

These houses are best bought if you have the ability to do all the work youself to keep your investment down since property is not likely to appreciate again until the municipal bankruptcy has been settled. If you can do that, then it could be good.

[Amy in NH]

Just so you know, you'll need a $50,000 - $150,000 because these houses usually have been stripped of their wiring, pipes, you name it. You need to take it down to the studs and start over. Vandalism of empty houses has been epic! Some of them may even look great from the outside, but heartbreaking on the inside.

 

These houses are best bought if you have the ability to do all the work youself to keep your investment down since property is not likely to appreciate again until the municipal bankruptcy has been settled. If you can do that, then it could be good.

 

But you could probably get a home-improvement mortgage...

[Truscifi]

Just so you know, you'll need a $50,000 - $150,000 because these houses usually have been stripped of their wiring, pipes, you name it. You need to take it down to the studs and start over. Vandalism of empty houses has been epic! Some of them may even look great from the outside, but heartbreaking on the inside.

 

These houses are best bought if you have the ability to do all the work youself to keep your investment down since property is not likely to appreciate again until the municipal bankruptcy has been settled. If you can do that, then it could be good.

 

My understanding is these houses have been chosen to start the program because they don't need as much work. They definitey need some rehab, but it is supposed to be more on the $50k end than the $150k.

 

I hope the program works. It is definitely better to try than just leave them empty.

[FaithManor]

But you could probably get a home-improvement mortgage...

I wish that were true, but again due to the largest municipal bankruptcy in the nation, banking in Michigan is tight and banks willing to take the risk on property in Detroit are few and far between.

 

Many people, when they think of Detroit, think of Rochester Hills, Troy, Auburn Hills, West Bloomfield, Southfield, Sterling Heights, Warren, Grosse Pointe....they do not think of Detroit city proper which is a very depressed area economically and in a total state of disrepair. Volunteers mow the road ways and the abandoned city parks because the city has no money for even the simplest maintenance. It's going to take a statewide if not a national initiative to help the city recover and it is going to have to start with attracting jobs to the area.

 

I really hope this will happen!

[mom2scouts]

It's an interesting idea, but I wouldn't be brave enough to do it.  I recently drove through the city of Detroit and I was horrified by what I saw.  There were entire neighborhoods where all but a few houses were vacant, burned out, vandalized and falling down.  High rise apartment buildings and office buildings in downtown were sitting empty with a few boarded up windows, but mostly just broken windows and graffiti.  The one thought that kept occurring to me was that the people who still lived there could not be protected by the police with so many vacant properties around them. My in-laws were from Detroit and it is heartbreaking to see what has happened to this city.

[Ottakee]

I would love to see the homes that are in pretty good shape rehabbed but maybe they should do like one city close to us is doing.........just bulldoze the condemned properties and turn them into green spaces, community gardens, parks, etc.  I know though that Detroit does not have the jobs/money to do a lot.

 

We are in West Michigan but my dh and I were talking today that he could go and get the same job, doing the same thing he did 23 years ago and make LESS money now than he did then with LESS benefits..........yep, he left an auto manufacturing job in 1991 making $11.50/hour with great benefits, vacation, large bonuses, etc..........and today could take the same job making $10/hour with no benefits until you do your 6 months through the temp service and then not so great benefits, no bonuses, etc.

 

I worked as a cook in an area nursing home.  I left the job at $10-11/hour in 1993 with vacation and holiday pay as a part timer and today could apply for the same job at $8.50/hour with no benefits. 

 

Very sad here in Michigan as the wages are the same or less than they were 20 years ago in many job markets with less benefits but the costs have skyrocketed.

[umsami]

I grew up in a suburb of Detroit. I really hopes this works.  It's sad, because Detroit has this amazing architecture which is just rotting away.  The Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit Historical Museum, Fox Theater, Eastern Market…..all awesome.

 

One thing though to consider is that MIchigan has very high property taxes.  Even though you're getting the home for free, I'd want to know what the actual property taxes would be.  Also, realize that most schools have gone in the toilet in Detroit… many are now charters.  The cops and other services are sparse…and it may not be easy to find a grocery story near where you buy.  It really is almost like homesteading.

[Rosie_0801]

Damn. Wrong continent for me.

[elegantlion]

Even if you don't want Detroit, there are endangered homes all over the country. You can check out your area, sometimes historic preservation sites. 

 

Detroit did have a writer's program where they were giving a home to writers willing to move into the area. I'm not sure if it was through the city or another preservation society. 

[Entropymama]

My dad grew up in Detroit, although they moved out to Grosse Pointe later. I think the whole thing is sad. If I thought I could rehab it and rent it to reputable folks, I'd do it, but I'm sure it's hard to attract renters. 

 

Last year we were in Mobile, AL and they had gorgeous old homes for sale for unbelievably cheap. Like $1,000. Same deal, you had to promise to rehab them. Absolutely stunning turn of the century mansions just rotting away. Tragic. 

[DawnM]

Any continent can be the right continent.

 

 

Damn. Wrong continent for me.

 

[Rosie_0801]

Any continent can be the right continent.

Unless there are circumstances that dictate otherwise.

[Susan in TN]

It would be great if people can then find jobs.

Be the first to buy, hire people to renovate, then rent it to carpenters/renovaters who are working on other homes. Wish I had the capital and rental know-how to make it work.

[eternalsummer]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_cities_by_crime_rate

 

 

[FaithManor]

Yes, ananemone the crime rate is pretty atrocious. For smaller cities, Michigan also has Flint and Saginaw which are two of the most violent cities in the nation when looking at cities with populations under 100,000.

 

I think it can be hard for those on the outside looking in to see the depth of the problems Michigan faces. We have some wonderful places to live, Traverse Bay, Kalamazoo, Muskegon, Ludington, Lansing, Gaylord, Sault Ste. Marie, Marquette, and the Keewenaw Peninsula plus small coastal communities such as Petoskey, Tawas, Harbor Beach, Lexington, etc. But, you have to be able to find work and that is.not.easy. and wages are low. Yes, COL is lower than many parts of the country, but wages still lag too much behind rising utilities,property tax, our ridiculously expensive car insurance, etc. We are extremely fortunate that dh works fo GM in IT on a big global account so they don't care where he maintains an office. He only drives to Warren once per week so we can live 85 miles north of the city and the burbs which keeps his income high, our COL low, and have some land. This is a fairly rare set up. We do have an engineer in our church that works very close to home for a speciality engine research company. They no longer do manufacturing in the states, but the research department is still heere about 8 miles from our house. They just received some tax incentive to keep it here and expand. This won't bring jobs to locals though because math and science education is so darn poor in the public schools locally that the only enineering students who did not drop out of their major in the last 15 years are from Millington High, the other high school rocket team sponsor, due to having a truly inspirational physics teacher and a pre-cal/calc teacher that does an outstanding job. Occasionally, they have students get into Kettering on big scholarships - last year in fact one of their graduating rocket team members made it into Kettering and one of the other girls went to U of MI for aerospace engineering - but mostly college is not on the horizon for most of these kids and the ones that show any science or math bent usually head to nursing, radiology, sonography, vet - tech, vet school, or lab tech. So the 100 engineers that the company needs will be imported from other states and foreign countries.

 

Still, the hope is that as their research expands, they will need support staff for the offices and hopefully pay a reasonable wage and benefits.

[Ameena]

I considered this when we bought our last home. For someone who works online & homeschools, it wouldn't be quite as bad. I really thought about it, even though it would mean moving from TX to MI & being in the same state with family members that I really dislike. And dealing with cold / winter.

 

 

I grew up in a suburb of Detroit. I really hopes this works.  It's sad, because Detroit has this amazing architecture which is just rotting away.  The Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit Historical Museum, Fox Theater, Eastern Market…..all awesome.

 

One thing though to consider is that MIchigan has very high property taxes.  Even though you're getting the home for free, I'd want to know what the actual property taxes would be.  Also, realize that most schools have gone in the toilet in Detroit… many are now charters.  The cops and other services are sparse…and it may not be easy to find a grocery story near where you buy.  It really is almost like homesteading.

 

I agree. It was the lack of a grocery store & semi-decent public transportation that made me say no. If I drove, I probably would have done it. Many parts of Detroit are a food desert - there simply is no where to buy food. You pretty much have to have a car to get around, as the bus system is shoddy at best & doesn't go a lot of places.

 

But those wonderful 1920's houses - I so want one.

 

 

For the record though, you can buy cheap homes like this just about anywhere. HUD sells houses super cheap, homes go up for tax auction, etc. If you hunt, you can find some great deals.

[kubiac]

DETROIT IS DEPRESSING. It feels like a place that is suffering from a systemic disease. Parts of it are literally rotting. People are stressed and pessimistic. It's cold.

 

It's like that classic poll question: Do you feel like the country is going right way/wrong way? Detroit is going "wrong way" and has been for many years.

 

I don't mean to be so harsh, and I love Michigan as a whole and think of it as a "home state" I never lived in, but I cannot romanticize Detroit. I've seen what happened to the communities and neighborhoods my relatives lived in or left behind, and...It's just too far gone.

[J-rap]

I did after I saw the documentary, "Searching for Sugarman"!  But I don't think I'd be brave enough. Plus, the weather isn't any nicer there!

 

 

[Truscifi]

I was thinking of people who work from home when I saw this. That would give them a steady income not dependent on local jobs and more flexibility for fixing up the house while living there (once the necessary for basic living stuff was done). For example, my SIL and her dh would be great for this - he has a good job that he can do anywhere - except she just got accepted into a doctoral program at Penn State.

[Lisbeth]

Honestly, no way...even if they gave me a house, even if they gave me a brand new house. Until they change their policies, there is just no way to fix the city. They are in self-destruct mode, and refuse to recognize why.