One in five Detroit homes is in foreclosure and asking prices are dropping to extreme lows. Many in the city question what lies in the future for the struggling city.
"Houses on sale for a few dollars are something of an urban legend in the US on the back of the mortgage crisis that drove millions of people from their homes. But in Detroit it is no myth.
One in five houses now stand empty in the city that launched the automobile age, forged America's middle-class and blessed the world with Motown.
Detroit has been in decline for decades; its falling population is now well below a million – half of its 1950 peak. But the recent mortgage crisis and the fall of the big car makers into bankruptcy has pushed the town into a realm unique among big cities in America."
But while homes sell for just a few dollars and desperate homeowners set fire to their houses to try to claim insurance money, some retain hope for a type of revival in the city.
FULL STORY: Detroit homes sell for $1 amid mortgage and car industry crisis
How Risky Lending Hollowed Out Detroit
Over one half of Detroit's foreclosed homes are blighted or abandoned. Buyers who purchased the homes for as little as $1 have little incentive to keep them in good shape—or pay taxes.
In Detroit, Continuing the Legacy of Land Banks
While the Detroit Land Bank has had its ups and downs, it has made significant progress in a city with no shortage of vacant and delinquent properties.
A Stark Visualization of Detroit's Tax Mess
A Detroit-based maker of "crowdfunding and social mapping systems," has developed an interactive map of the tax status of every property in Detroit. In bright yellows, oranges, and reds, the city's property tax "black hole" is brutally clear.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
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Map: Where Senate Republicans Want to Sell Your Public Lands
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Restaurant Patios Were a Pandemic Win — Why Were They so Hard to Keep?
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Platform Pilsner: Vancouver Transit Agency Releases... a Beer?
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Toronto Weighs Cheaper Transit, Parking Hikes for Major Events
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Berlin to Consider Car-Free Zone Larger Than Manhattan
The area bound by the 22-mile Ringbahn would still allow 12 uses of a private automobile per year per person, and several other exemptions.
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