Michigan Real Estate News

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Thousands of St. Louis Evictions Promise a Wave of Homelessness

Thousands face eviction in St. Louis, Missouri. The backlog of eviction suits threatens to leave many homeless, especially low-income tenants. An eviction defense program and hotline that was set up in August 2020 has received 60% more calls than normal, and many of those calls concern illegal lockouts. The backlog of eviction suits is concerning, with the fear being that all of these tenants may be put out all at once when the eviction moratorium ends.

Postponed Detroit Projects Dependent on Pandemic Effects

The pandemic brought Detroit area projects to a screeching halt. By summer, many of them had resumed. The outcome of these projects, ranging from apartment developments to a small-format Meijer, hinges on how many office workers return to Detroit, how soon sports fans will feel safe at sporting events, if restaurants and hotels will fill up again, and if Detroit-area lofts will remain as desirable as they were pre-pandemic.

Home Value Disparity Cripples Detroit Black Homeowners

The disparity between the average national home value and that of Detroit’s black homeowners has tripled in recent years and has far-reaching consequences for future generational wealth. While some attribute the gap to ongoing systemic racial issues and the foreclosure crisis, one professor of architecture and urban planning feels the study that produced the data is flawed. In the current year, there are no signs of the gap widening further, but also no signs the gap is shrinking. For a great discussion of the role of redlining in impeding African-American wealth, view the PBS documentary The House We Live In.