Observations of Detroit after a visit

[Hermod]

At what point does a house in suburban Detroit get deemed "beyond repair"?

Attracting new residents and workers to Detroit could prove difficult if there is little more that urban prairie for them to moved into.

If there are people [[with money) wanting to move into Detroit and occupy houses, the builders and developers will show up in force. If there is enough demand, the builders will buy a lot with a good house on it and tear it down to build a bigger, grander house. The problem is that right now no one [[with money) wants those houses or vacant lots in Detroit.

[Richard]

Most that are relocating are looking for older housing stock,cookie cutter new homes are a dime a dozen across the country.

I would love to divest and relocate to something like this http://detroit.curbed.com/archives/2...ce-of-800k.php

other then it may bee a bit over priced as I have found 6 more in different cities in more original shape,non painted woodwork and original baths,priced from $35,000 up to $150k,comparatively the rust belt cities are pretty much the same.

The biggest difference is the property taxes are 1/3 of Detroit,so at this point what is the incentive investment wise? Between Orlando and Tampa I could divest and double my holdings on day one in Detroit,but in Detroit the property taxes on one house is equal to 4 here,we still get somewhat decent city services although the catch phrase is always "well because of budget cuts" and yes if it is not a gunshot expect to wait an hour for a non emergency.

That is why I am saying is for the quickest and biggest bang for the buck is to use the funds to incentive the property tax reduction,the city is not spending out of pocket and five years down the road it has gained the population to rebuild the tax base,in the meantime people have to eat,shop,buy clothes,hire contractors,dock their boat in the marina,day care etc. so the trickle down gives that boost directly in cash now to the local economy.

It all goes back to what does Detroit have to offer that cannot be found elsewhere comparatively to an outsider looking to relocate,forget about because you can get a house cheap,everybody knows cheap comes with reasons,and you can find cheap anywhere.

So the strength would be lots of stock to choose from in all price ranges to suit all budgets,people that are into vintage houses see them as individuals and each one is unique,so anytime you drive down the street past one you always see something different,not so much in the burbs,everybody is different but most relocating are doing so because of existing neighborhood vintage stock,it is an asset to a city,milk it.