Cleveland Counts Its Vacant Homes, Finds Hope in Shrinking Numbers

Surveyors hitting the streets in Cleveland have found that the problem of vacant homes in the city isn't as bad as first feared.

1 minute read

December 7, 2015, 7:00 AM PST

By jwilliams @jwillia22


Vacant Home, Cleveland

Ed Kohler / Flickr

Through a partnership with the non-profit Thriving Communities Institute, Cleveland is getting a better hand on understanding its stock of vacant homes that litter parts of the city. Michelle Jarboe of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports that an assessment carried out by Thriving Communities, using a 16-person team, has determined that 8.8 percent of the 158,851 properties surveyed can be classified as being vacant. Of those, more than a third "might be a lost cause." This would result in a total of 6,100 structures that would need to be demolished, at a cost of $60 million to the city. However, there is an upside to the survey results.

Here's the good news: The blight isn't as bad as it appeared, based on past estimates from the city and other researchers…

The pool of deeply tainted properties actually has been shrinking, thanks to demolition, fewer foreclosures and a healthier housing market. The tally of decrepit houses fell from 2013, when the city found more than 7,700 distressed or empty homes. Nearly every neighborhood saw improvement.

Jarboe reports that a recent study found that demolition programs for vacant properties in other cities, including Detroit, has resulted in the value of occupied homes within 500 feet of the demolished property increasing 4.3 percent. 

Saturday, November 21, 2015 in Cleveland Plain-Dealer

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Use Code 25for25 at checkout for 25% off an annual plan!

Redlining map of Oakland and Berkeley.

Rethinking Redlining

For decades we have blamed 100-year-old maps for the patterns of spatial racial inequity that persist in American cities today. An esteemed researcher says: we’ve got it all wrong.

May 15, 2025 - Alan Mallach

Interior of Place Versailles mall in Montreal, Canada.

Montreal Mall to Become 6,000 Housing Units

Place Versailles will be transformed into a mixed-use complex over the next 25 years.

May 22, 2025 - CBC

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

May 21, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

View from hilltop residential neighborhood of downtown Los Angeles, California on a cloudy day.

LA Falling Behind on Housing Goals

Last year, the city permitted just 30 percent of the number of housing units needed to meet a growing need.

May 27 - LAist

Canada geese and ducks on the shore of a lake with red brick boathouse in background across the lake in Lincoln Park, Los Angeles.

Connecting Communities to Nature Close to Home

Los Angeles County’s Nature in Your Neighborhood program brings free, family-friendly wellness and nature activities to local parks, making it easier for residents to enjoy and connect with the outdoors.

May 27 - Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation

Children inside large slide at water park.

Palmdale’s Beloved Water Park Gets $2 Million Upgrade

To mark its 20th anniversary, DryTown Water Park has undergone major renovations, ensuring that families across the Antelope Valley continue to enjoy safe, affordable, and much-needed water-based recreation in the high desert.

May 27 - Antelope Valley Press

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.