Anyone home? Anyone at all? One of the unfortunate results of a bad housing market is an increase in vacant homes, which has grown by 43.8 percent since 2000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Homes can be vacant for a number of reasons, but are defined as both rental inventory that are unoccupied and [...]
Detroit
The challenges of remaking a city
With apologies to Eminem, this story about urban reengineering of Detroit shows how hard it is to remake a struggling city. Mayor Dave Bing wants to save Detroit by persuading residents to leave their homes for better neighborhoods, but the city has struggled to accomplish the smallest of relocation projects — even when they involve [...]
The future of Detroit
City Journal has a good article on the problems and future of Detroit. The new mayor’s boldest argument may be that Detroit needs to shrink to revive. Detroit has contracted from 2 million residents to about 900,000; whole areas of the city have virtually emptied. As many as 70,000 homes stand abandoned. On some blocks, [...]
Crime and Corruption in Detroit
Mother Jones investigates crime and corruption in Detroit, where the police cook the books, criminals stoke the fire, and reality TV is the only way out. This may be the best bit of writing I have read this year. Make sure you read the entire article. IT WAS JUST AFTER MIDNIGHT on the morning of [...]
$7000 per home in Detroit
Wow, CBS News is saying that the average home price in Detroit is only $7000. Detroit real estate broker Ian Mason currently has 200 listings, largely foreclosures banks are desperate to get off their books. And that desperation is making for some incredible deals. Bowers asked him how much he sold one house for. "One [...]
