Tag Archives: Rust To Riches

Detroit makes millions from parking meters, can’t afford to power them

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“Detroit is missing out on potentially millions in revenue because just about half of its 3,404 parking meters are out of service, according to city officials. It’s estimated that the city could get an extra $6 million in revenue just by getting the rest of the meters in working condition.  As part of efforts to reduce city spending, the Duracell batteries that power the meters were swapped out with off-brand units. The cheaper batteries apparently can’t hold a charge as long as the Duracells.  To make matters worse, the old locks used to secure the batteries easily seize up from water or grime, leaving even more meters out of service.”

http://www.theverge.com/2014/8/10/5988135/detroit-makes-millions-from-parking-meters-but-cant-afford-batteries

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‘I’ve been priced out of downtown Detroit’

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“Amid efforts to revitalize Detroit’s downtown, some residents are finding they can no longer afford to live there.  One program, called Live Downtown, has attracted as many as 15,000 new residents to the downtown area, according to the mayor’s office.  Under the program, local companies, including Quicken Loans and Blue Cross Blue Shield, give employees $20,000 loans that will be completely forgiven if they buy and stay in a home downtown for five years. Renters there receive $2,500 their first year and $1,000 the second.  The newcomers bring with them money and much needed tax revenue. But they are also causing housing prices to skyrocket.”

http://www.clickondetroit.com/money/I-ve-been-priced-out-of-downtown-Detroit/26182568

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12 Detroit Houses Demolished Accidentally, Including Couple’s [2013]

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“The couple had purchased a dilapidated two-story townhouse in Detroit (pictured at left) for $500 at a tax auction in October 2012. But weeks later, when they drove to the home on the city’s east side to get measurements for boards that they were planning to have installed, the couple was shocked to discover that their house was nothing but ‘a pile,’ Diven told The Detroit News. And their house wasn’t the only one: 11 other properties, which had been purchased by a local investor, were also demolished.  It was a mistake made by the state’s Land Bank Fast Track Authority — who had demolished all 12 properties as part of a program to eliminate blight near three local schools.”

http://realestate.aol.com/blog/2013/01/11/detroit-houses-demolished-accidentally/

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$1M in forgivable loans offered to rehab seized Marygrove homes

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“Talmer Bank is committing up to $1 million in forgivable loans for people who commit to buying homes in an area south of Marygrove College in Detroit in upcoming auctions.  The individual loans from Troy-based Talmer Bank require that the recipient live in the home and would be up to $25,000, with $5,000 of the loan forgiven for each year the owner stays in the home, up to five years total. The money could be used to rehabilitate or renovate homes in the neighborhood.  The administration will target the owners of 79 abandoned homes that are still in good condition in a west-side Detroit neighborhood as it begins going after negligent landlords who leave houses to rot in a city flush with blight.”

http://www.freep.com/article/20140409/NEWS01/304090028/Detroit-blight-Mike-Duggan

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Detroit Is Auctioning Off Incredible Old Homes For $1,000

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“A new program introduced by Mayor Mike Duggan Monday addresses one of Detroit’s largest problems — thousands of vacant and blighted houses — by auctioning off some of the nicest ones to people who want to live in a Detroit neighborhood.   The catch? Unlike the thousands of properties in the county’s foreclosure auction each summer, a winning bidder in the Building Detroit auction must agree to bring the home up to code within six months, and then actually live in it.  Building Detroit is restricted to Michigan residents, companies and organizations who have not already lost a property due to back taxes in Wayne County in the last three years.”

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/14/cheap-detroit-houses-auction_n_5148152.html

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Want to make money as a landlord? Try Detroit

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“Want to make money as a landlord? Consider Detroit… seriously. Real estate investors are flocking to the city — not only to take advantage of some of the best deals in the nation, but also because occupancy rates are soaring and so are rents.  In fact, after comparing the median sales price of homes to average monthly rents in nearly 1,600 counties, RealtyTrac found that Detroit’s Wayne County offers landlords the best return on their investment in the nation.  Investors who buy homes in the metro area can expect a 30% gross annual return from rents. That’s triple the national average of 10%.  One of the reasons is the ultra-low prices investors pay for rather sizable homes.”

http://money.cnn.com/2014/04/16/real_estate/detroit-landlord/

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Write A House Is Giving Writers Free Homes In Detroit

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“A new Detroit nonprofit called Write A House has figured out something to do with Detroit’s thousands and thousands of vacant and blighted homes — fix them up and give them to writers.  Write A House will accept applications from working, ‘low-income’ writers in the spring, who will be asked to send writing samples and a letter of intent. The judges include former National Poet Laureate Billy Collins, poet Major Jackson, writer and filmmaker Dream Hampton and editor of the Farrar, Straus & Giroux publishing house Sean McDonald. Writers from all over the world, or living just a few miles away, are all encouraged to apply.”

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/12/19/write-a-house-detroit_n_4474976.html

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Developing Detroit: Billionaires say city is worthy of investment

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“The second-wealthiest man in the country, Warren Buffett, stopped by Detroit this week to celebrate the arrival of Goldman Sachs’ $20 million small business lending program. Flanked by Goldman CEO Lloyd Blankfein as well as Gov. Rick Snyder and other prominent political figures, Buffett was asked if he would advise others to invest in Detroit. ‘Of course we would,’ he insisted, comparing the city’s comeback to the retooling of the American auto industry after two of the Big Three automakers went bankrupt five years ago.”

http://www.mlive.com/business/detroit/index.ssf/2013/11/developing_detroit_billionaire.html

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Free at Last! Detroit Stiffs the Municipal Unions.

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“A judge has upheld the bankruptcy of Detroit. In one fell swoop, the taxpayers of Detroit have freed themselves from the economic burden of the retirement and health programs that had been promised to municipal union members.  For decades, the liberal political establishment had bought votes from the unions. They had signed agreements guaranteed to bankrupt the city.  Taxpayers moved out of Detroit. Welfare recipients stayed put. It took 40 years, but the city went bust. The judge has now confirmed the obvious. The unfunded liabilities of cities across the nation will produce a similar result. There is no escape. The solution is comparatively painless.”

http://teapartyeconomist.com/2013/12/04/free-last-detroit-stiffs-municipal-unions/

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Pssst, Those White People Are Moving Back to Detroit

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thelrcblog-5002

“During Detroit’s pre-2007, pre-renaissance period, young whites who would graduate from local colleges would leave here as fast as they could pick up their paper diploma and pack their vehicle. These same young folks are flooding into the city to live the creative and exciting urban life that was never before available to them. Empty nesters who left have also come back.  However, while private investment ramps up and takes over basic services; commences restorations; builds new housing; and provides creative entertainment, dining, and nightlife, ‘race warrior’ Shirley Stancato says white people coming downtown ‘is an issue’ and ‘are we willing to have a conversation about it?'”

http://www.lewrockwell.com/lrc-blog/pssst-those-white-people-are-moving-back-to-detroit/

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