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Detroit’s Revitalization Could Have A New Focus

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The global pandemic has turned many things upside down. The office markets around the U.S. are one of those things. Congress may offer developers incentives to repurpose old office buildings into residential, institutional, hotel or mixed-use spaces. While Mayor Mike Duggan has come out in support of the Revitalizing Downtowns Act, area developers do not have active plans to utilize it should the law be passed. The number of Detroit’s residential units lags behind other downtown areas. The legislation isn’t limited to downtown redevelopments but could be used to convert old office properties in the suburban locations into new uses as well.

 

Chaldean Community Foundation Plans Affordable Housing Projects

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The Chaldean Community Foundation has broken ground on its first mixed-use affordable housing site and has another$25 million project in the works. The Macomb County site which got under way on Friday, Oct. 1, will bring 135 apartments and street-level retail to Sterling Heights. It’s a beginning toward addressing the long-term housing needs of almost 1,000 families who go to the foundation for assistance. It will include 9,000 square feet of retail for the Chaldean community. The foundation is negotiating a purchase of more than 6 acres in Farmington Hills for a new Chaldean Community Foundation Campus. The Farmington Hills campus will house a new office for the Chaldean Chamber, a satellite office for the foundation and a senior living center.

 

Affluent Atlanta Neighborhood Self-Segregates

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The affluent Atlanta neighborhood of Buckhead wants separation from Atlanta. Spikes in crime across the city are contributing to the fear, but racial division plays a part. Buckhead is a majority-White neighborhood, while Atlanta has a Black majority. Should Buckhead gain its cityhood, it would drain revenue from a critical tax base and deepen the residential caste because residents often support policies like exclusionary zoning and neighborhood school boundaries.  These practices lock others out of community advantages.

Novel Financing Helps With Inadequate Housing Issues

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An inadequate supply of housing is creating problems for businesses and crippling economic development in many communities. As a result, some communities are turning to tax increment financing. Tax increment financing (TIF) enables a developer to regain some of the upfront costs for a project by securing an increase in property taxes for a period of years and diverting them until the spending is repaid. Once the agreed-upon costs are paid off, the higher tax increment goes to local government. TIF has been around for a while but using it to allow new housing to be built that would be affordable to residents is a novel idea. It’s being used where labor and supply costs wouldn’t otherwise allow affordability.

 

 

 

The Lake Lifestyle Carries a Price Tag

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A recent report from LakeHomes.com is based on real estate property for sale and listing data collected in August of 2021. It includes list price and the volume of listings. Any lake with fewer of 10 home listings for sale was eliminated from the report. Michigan has $2.7 billion in lake homes and lots for sale, with the number of listings totaling 5,508. Lake Michigan makes up for half of the top 10 most expensive lakefront areas. It is also number 5 on the top most expensive lake home markets, nationally. Smaller inland lakes also landed on the state list and include Torch Lake, Lake Leelanau and Lake Charlevoix.

Detroit’s Roosevelt Park Plans Affect Vernor Highway

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Detroit has plans for improvements to Roosevelt Park that involve permanently closing a section of Vernor Highway. The plans will make the park safer and uninterrupted by vehicle traffic. Currently, the highway cuts through the park and a section of 15th Street in the Corktown neighborhood.  A temporary closure of the highway at 17th and Newark streets will begin Tuesday. Construction will be completed in 2 phases and is expected to be complete in February 2022. Resident input is welcomed by the city, via a survey that closes on October 31.

Ann Arbor Land Trust Plays Matchmaker

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Ann Arbor’s affordable housing crisis has prompted the city to look at creative ways to address the shortage. A retiring U of M real estate professor has started a nonprofit called the Equitable Ann Arbor Land Trust with a goal of creating 1,000-5,000 affordable and market-rate housing units in the next 5-10 years. It’s job would be to match the developer to the project. The land trust would get advance zoning change approvals, site planning, utility taps and other public approvals and negotiate the land sale or lease terms so the site would be “shovel ready.” The advance legwork would help eliminate some of the risk of real estate development. The land trust would earn a fee based on the developed land value from the land owner and possibly earn a long-term partnership interest in the development. The land trust’s revenue would be reinvested in further deals to improve Ann Arbor’s sustainability and affordability concerns. It benefits the city and the developer, too. The city increases its tax revenue, and the developer lowers its risk.

Buying a Home Is The Less Expensive Option in Metro Detroit

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According to data from Realtor.com, it’s 14.1% cheaper to buy a home in metro Detroit than it is to rent. Other data suggests that it’s 17.1% less expensive. Detroit lands in 10th place on a list of places where buying a home is more affordable than renting one. The president of RE/MAX of Southeastern Michigan suggest that those numbers don’t consider the other costs associated with owning a home. Low rental inventory and high rental demand, low rental turnover, and low mortgage interest rates have contributed to the trend.

Macomb Subdivision Sold to Ohio-Based Builder

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Columbus, Ohio-based homebuilder, M/I Homes has purchased 66 lots in Washington Township.  The shovel-ready lots sold for more than $3 million. The lack of inventory for homebuilders heightened M/I Homes interest in the lots. The company is expected to build homes between 2,800 and 3,500 square feet.

Metro Detroit Home Purchases Decline

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According to data from RE/MAX, home purchases in metro Detroit had the fourth largest decline in the country. RE/MAX surveyed metro areas, and Detroit had a 19.6 percent decrease in closed homes in July. Factors that likely contributed to the decline include Michigan’s coronavirus-related lockdown that lifted in June last year, creating a backlog of pending sales that exploded into July. This lifted that month’s 2020 total. Buyers are exercising more caution and questioning the prudence of paying more than the asking price. Add the recent weather and flooding into the picture and potential buyers hesitating while flood-damaged homes are fixed. Limited inventory is also a contributing factor.