Moving from Royal Oak to Highland Park

**majohnson** · October-27-11, 05:47 PM

I have made great progress on the home, and planned to move in within a week or so.
All I had left to do was hang the bathroom sink, reconnect the toilet, and reconnect the kitchen sink. [[after removing the bathroom walls, floor, and ceiling; roof, plumbing, wall repair, etc.)

Sadly, the home was robbed twice this week. The radiators I purchased and the heating boiler was stolen.
The costs have risen and the potential benefit has not.
Also, I will find it difficult to have peace of mind sleeping there after two robbings in one week.

BTW, the robbers were not able to see the supplies from the windows, the acted on a belief that with all the work going on, there would have been property of value inside.
The robbers removed steel security bars from the window to gain entry.

I have not given up on Detroit though. I have given up on cheap living in Detroit.
Sadly it looks like one has spend a lot of money to live safely in Detroit.
I would be willing to move into a multiple dwelling building with secure parking.

Many people warned me. Some warned me against Detroit, others suggested Woodbridge.

Perhaps I should have moved to Woodbridge.
For now, I will stay in Royal Oak.

**Scottathew** · October-27-11, 05:58 PM

This is heart breakingly frustrating.

I know that the majority of folks in Detroit are good people, but it drives me nuts that there are people that don't care about anything. They don't care about the neighborhood they steal from. They don't care about morality. They don't care about Detroit making a comeback.

Those thieves only care about one thing; maintaining their lifestyle without having to do a single day of honest work. These aren't the kind of people that are going hungry, these are the type of thieves that are stealing so they can have nice things that most people work for.

It makes me angry.

majohnson, you're an honorable person. I'm sorry this happened to you. I hope this universe makes it up to you somehow.

**Goose** · October-27-11, 06:39 PM

one word - LARGE ROTTWEILLER

ok two, but it would help with security

**animatedmartian** · October-27-11, 07:13 PM

Or security cameras so at least if they struck again, they could be identified. But then again that all depends on how much more you're willing to invest. Sad to hear this story that's probably happen to far too many people trying to make a difference in Detroit.

**pgn421** · October-27-11, 08:00 PM

Stop be Red Hots Coney Island, on Victor off of Woodward. See Rich the owner, he is like the mayor of Highland Park

**stasu1213** · October-27-11, 08:07 PM

Hope you got a car to get around. You may get mugged waiting 3 hours for a Hamilton or Woodward bus. Do your shopping a Kroger and not market such as King Coles

**Patrick** · October-27-11, 08:34 PM

Originally Posted by majohnson

I have made great progress on the home, and planned to move in within a week or so.
All I had left to do was hang the bathroom sink, reconnect the toilet, and reconnect the kitchen sink. [[after removing the bathroom walls, floor, and ceiling; roof, plumbing, wall repair, etc.)

Sadly, the home was robbed twice this week. The radiators I purchased and the heating boiler was stolen.
The costs have risen and the potential benefit has not.
Also, I will find it difficult to have peace of mind sleeping there after two robbings in one week.

BTW, the robbers were not able to see the supplies from the windows, the acted on a belief that with all the work going on, there would have been property of value inside.
The robbers removed steel security bars from the window to gain entry.

I have not given up on Detroit though. I have given up on cheap living in Detroit.
Sadly it looks like one has spend a lot of money to live safely in Detroit.
I would be willing to move into a multiple dwelling building with secure parking.

Many people warned me. Some warned me against Detroit, others suggested Woodbridge.

Perhaps I should have moved to Woodbridge.
For now, I will stay in Royal Oak.

This is why we said a prayer for you. Good luck!

**Zacha341** · October-27-11, 10:20 PM

Or two pits! The kind that don't like scrappers!

Originally Posted by Goose

one word - LARGE ROTTWEILLER

ok two, but it would help with security

**corktownyuppie** · October-27-11, 10:55 PM

What's amazing about this story is that it really illustrates how different parts of the city are like different worlds. I lived in EEV for 12 years without seeing anything close to this, and I've been living in Corktown for 3 years with the same experience. My friends in downtown and midtown haven't had an attempted robbery once, let alone twice in one week.

Detroit can be a great place, but it's not for the naive or the uninformed.... I hope you come back. There's another side to Detroit that could be great for what you're trying to do.

**softailrider** · October-28-11, 12:04 AM

Originally Posted by majohnson

I have made great progress on the home, and planned to move in within a week or so.
All I had left to do was hang the bathroom sink, reconnect the toilet, and reconnect the kitchen sink. [[after removing the bathroom walls, floor, and ceiling; roof, plumbing, wall repair, etc.)

Sadly, the home was robbed twice this week. The radiators I purchased and the heating boiler was stolen.
The costs have risen and the potential benefit has not.
Also, I will find it difficult to have peace of mind sleeping there after two robbings in one week.

BTW, the robbers were not able to see the supplies from the windows, the acted on a belief that with all the work going on, there would have been property of value inside.
The robbers removed steel security bars from the window to gain entry.

I have not given up on Detroit though. I have given up on cheap living in Detroit.
Sadly it looks like one has spend a lot of money to live safely in Detroit.
I would be willing to move into a multiple dwelling building with secure parking.

Many people warned me. Some warned me against Detroit, others suggested Woodbridge.

Perhaps I should have moved to Woodbridge.
For now, I will stay in Royal Oak.

I'll bet your neighbors tipped off whoever broke into your house. If you're re habbing in Detroit, you better be living there, or, paying somebody to stay there.

Unfortunately, somebody sees you bring a boiler into a house and you can have problems. In other places you can drop 20,000.00 worth of lumber on the front lawn and nobody would touch it.

**Dexlin** · October-28-11, 02:46 AM

I'm glad you are continuing what you want to do, but why did you pick that neighborhood? There are just as nice, and just as affordable homes right off Woodward along better parts of the avenue even in Detroit.

**mikefmich** · October-28-11, 05:08 AM

Sorry to hear of your trials majohnson.

Dexlin, what does it matter to you why? It was their decision to make. Besides, hinsight is 20/20, ya know?

**Zacha341** · October-28-11, 05:38 AM

Yep, you got to bring the SAME LEVEL of bold, bluntness and perseverance to protect yourself and keep your possessions in some areas of city where matter-of-fact theft is the standard of practice.

The criminals in this context are relentless, seeking an opportunity to steal quickly AND without hesitation. Property not watched and highly secured is an 'invitation' for the strippers who make it their job to seek opportunities and they pay their 'look outs' a cut too probably.

Sadly, sometimes it is the next questionable block over that can be the culprit to theft and stripping that can occur on a better street.

Originally Posted by softailrider

I'll bet your neighbors tipped off whoever broke into your house. If you're re habbing in Detroit, you better be living there, or, paying somebody to stay there.

Unfortunately, somebody sees you bring a boiler into a house and you can have problems. In other places you can drop 20,000.00 worth of lumber on the front lawn and nobody would touch it.

**Dexlin** · October-28-11, 05:57 AM

Originally Posted by mikefmich

Sorry to hear of your trials majohnson.

Dexlin, what does it matter to you why? It was their decision to make. Besides, hinsight is 20/20, ya know?

Not if you research pretty carefully the area you're moving too, and in this case, not even carefully because the area is visibly disturbed and on the decline. The area east of Woodward and north of 6 Mile lost more of its population than any other area in the city looking at the 2010 Census data [[51-54% from 2000 depending on the Census Tract). But, even before knowing that [[the data wasn't released until earlier this year), it was clear from a simple visible inspection and word of mouth that this is one of the most quickly dying hoods in the entire city. Like everywhere, there are always good blocks here and there, but she might as well have just moved into Brightmoor.

I honestly wasn't trying to be offensive; I was genuinely shocked someone would move from Royal Oak to anywhere east of Woodward in the northern end of the city.

**Zacha341** · October-28-11, 08:10 AM

^^^^ Agreed. A nice block flanked by bad blocks with poor lighting is not good. Your block ends up being a causality to what is around it. The wrong kind of 'neighborhood' watch is always enforce. Not good. It's better to live in a area with several well kept blocks, with lighting and that east side chunk of Woodward is obviously not doing well. I would have considered the west side of Woodward which is more dense of good blocks. This is not the time for pioneering against the odds.

**1953** · October-28-11, 08:18 AM

Maybe this can become a reason d'etre for revitalizing the city. What if this one house can become a new Fort Pontchartrain? You could organize volunteers to watch it and help maintain it. Then we could get some hipsters to buy other houses on the block and do the same. Then someone could open a shop nearby, then another, then another. Soon enough the city will be thriving!

**jolla** · October-28-11, 09:57 AM

Originally Posted by 1953

Maybe this can become a reason d'etre for revitalizing the city. What if this one house can become a new Fort Pontchartrain? You could organize volunteers to watch it and help maintain it. Then we could get some hipsters to buy other houses on the block and do the same. Then someone could open a shop nearby, then another, then another. Soon enough the city will be thriving!

Hi, long-time lurker, first-time poster here,

The idea of a concerted effort to focus resources and 'good' neighbors in an area to revitalize it is a great idea; does anyone know if anyone's organizing anything like it? I'd be more willing to buy a house to fix it up if I had a reasonable expectation that the majority of my neighbors would be decent citizens.

[[1953, I know you were being tongue in cheek.)

**Eric_c** · October-28-11, 10:34 AM

Two words: The Villages

**sirrealone** · October-28-11, 11:14 AM

Any before and after pictures?

**Kathleen** · October-28-11, 11:36 AM

Majohnson: So sorry to hear of your experiences. Hope that you are able to turn things around and make the best of it. Best wishes!!!

**XDetroitr** · October-28-11, 11:41 AM

The old cliché - "you get what you pay for..." really applies here. I believe the primary reason that Detroit real estate is so extraordinarily cheap is the crime. There are, of course, other factors like the local economy, lack of basic city services, and higher taxes. There is still a stark difference in price between city and suburb. And it's due to crime... burglaries and muggings being the most common. [[I was a victim of both during my time in the city.)

It is very easy to be lured into Detroit by the beautiful big houses at bargain-basement prices. But as 'majohnson' found out, it comes at a very high price... your sense of safety being the 1st casualty. As another poster stated, there are definitely safer neighborhood that need to be supported and are much more viable.

The moral of the story is that you can't go into any Detroit neighborhood until you do your homework. Private patrols, active neighborhood watches, and friends who already live there, are important ingredients.

**rsa.313** · October-28-11, 12:02 PM

Originally Posted by corktownyuppie

What's amazing about this story is that it really illustrates how different parts of the city are like different worlds. I lived in EEV for 12 years without seeing anything close to this, and I've been living in Corktown for 3 years with the same experience. My friends in downtown and midtown haven't had an attempted robbery once, let alone twice in one week.

Detroit can be a great place, but it's not for the naive or the uninformed.... I hope you come back. There's another side to Detroit that could be great for what you're trying to do.

finally a voice of reason. despite numerous statements about this home being in highland park, everyone still loves to point out the detroit is bad. yes, SOME parts of our metro area are bad, but not all. i've lived in 4 areas of the city over the past 15 years and have never had any of these problems. sorry for your troubles, but nowhere is the idiom "location, location, location" more evident than here.

**Mipade** · October-28-11, 12:26 PM

I made the opposite journey from Eason St. in HP to RO as a young child in 1980.

Love the historic area of Highland Park - great homes!.
I often day dream about that area being vibrant again.

**prokopowicz** · October-28-11, 12:48 PM

Before this thread wanders into HP, the location in question is in Detroit. As was pointed out, for some reason, maybe the zip code, this area is incorrectly marked in google maps, etc as HP.

**GoGrixdale** · October-28-11, 01:27 PM

I truly get how this can deflate your enthusiasm for the area. I recently donated $750 worth of yard equipment from my garage to the “Save-A-Thug” foundation.

I’ve been a “live-in” renovator here for almost 3 years. During which I’ve had two break-ins, one to the house and one to the garage. The first break-in was 10 days after closing.

City living, in and of itself, requires a heightened sense of awareness that is uncomfortable sometimes. Other times it becomes part of the energy you were probably seeking when you planned to move to Detroit. While I agree that the current En Guard lifestyle here is crazy, I do smell change. This neighborhood needs people like you to solidify.

Moving from Lafayette Park I chose this neighborhood not looking entirely at what it is but what it pragmatically will be. With the rehab money I’ve invested [[and donated) I could have easily moved to an established neighborhood in or out of Detroit. The centrality, the anchors, the architecture and the infill potential [[again all IMNSHO) bode well for a viable future in this area. Those who attack such thinking can kick rocks, I’m in it for the long haul. It’s easy for those with no skin in the game to pontificate.

I hope you can brush this latest setback off your shoulders and finish your project. I have a great boilerman that knows were inexpensive radiators can be purchased. Maybe even the ones you lost [[sigh). I’ve also just gone through a major security system installation and would be more than happy to share the good, bad and ugly with you.

Me and my “Sunny Disposition” are just down the avenue if you need a hand.