Detroit’s Median Home Price Is $7,500

[Gpond]

The median price of a home sold in Detroit in December was $7,500, according to Realcomp, a listing service.

Not $75,000. Remove a zero—it's seven thousand five hundred dollars, substantially less than the lowest-price car on the new-car market.

Among the many dispiriting numbers that bleakly depict the decrepitude of this onetime industrial behemoth, the steep slide of housing values helps define the daunting challenge to anyone who wants to lead this shrinking, poverty-pocked city of about 800,000 people.

Detroit's outlook falls along with home prices -- chicagotribune.com

 

[Koolau]

To a first approximation, you can add two zeros to Honolulu home prices - i.e., almost 100 times higher.

Honolulu Board of REALTORS® December 2008 Housing Sales Statistics for Honolulu (Oahu, Hawaii)

 

[FIRE'd@51]

The article doesn't say how many homes were sold, so the $7,500 median sales price is probably not representative. Also, I would presume the vast majority of homes sold in December were probably foreclosures on properties in terrible shape with property tax liens on them. That's not to say that Detroit isn't in bad shape, but the article may be sensationalizing a statistic. I'd be more interested in knowing what the median sales price was in Grosse Point, or one of the other suburbs.

 

[FinallyRetired]

I'd be more interested in knowing what the median sales price was in Grosse Point, or one of the other suburbs.

I know nothing about Grosse Point, or Detroit, but Zillow shows a median price of $189,500 for zip 48236 which is Grosse Point Woods. Don't know if this is good or bad.

 

[MasterBlaster]

I know nothing about Grosse Point, or Detroit, but Zillow shows a median price of $189,500 for zip 48236 which is Grosse Point Woods. Don't know if this is good or bad.

The high end homes are in the (Detroit suburb) area called Grosse Point Shores. This area is nearby but should not be confused with Gross Point Woods. I suspect that these homes sell for considerably more than $189,500 even in this horrible market.

 

[Purron]

I found this hard to believe so took a look at realtor.com. I found lots of smaller homes in Detroit selling for about $10,000. Here's an example:

20110 Stansbury St, Detroit, MI, 48235 - MLS ID#29024376 - Single Family Home real estate - REALTOR.com®

The weird thing is, Zillow shows the same property for sale for $25,000, a value of $98,000 and most of the homes around it valued at about $100,000. I would assume the low sales price is attributed to the fact it's a foreclosure and not in the best condition. The listing agent is an place called "rehabahouse".

 

[Gpond]

Around 300 houses for sale for $500 and under. About a dozen for $1.

Detroit, MI, Real Estate Listings and Detroit, MI, Homes for Sale - REALTOR.com®

If you have ever been to Detroit (it is up the road from me) there are many houses in the same sale price range that are not listed here. You can buy a dozen houses in a row for under $1200 - total.

 

[Purron]

Around 300 houses for sale for $500 and under. About a dozen for $1.

I looked at the link and did see a lot of homes for $1. Then I checked the stock market and saw it was down about 200 and Citigroup is now trading for 98 cents a share. I'm off to Wal Mart to get some tin foil for a hat then on to Costco for a couple of 50 pound bags of rice.

 

[ziggy29]

A lot of these require many thousands more in tax liens in order to close.

Sounds like some kind of marketing promotion: "Buy all these back taxes and get the house for free!"

 

[atlas888]

Around 300 houses for sale for $500 and under. About a dozen for $1.

Detroit, MI, Real Estate Listings and Detroit, MI, Homes for Sale - REALTOR.com®

If you have ever been to Detroit (it is up the road from me) there are many houses in the same sale price range that are not listed here. You can buy a dozen houses in a row for under $1200 - total.

Those houses foreclosed after the owners defaulted on a mortgage of $600,000 for each house. Those mortgages were given out by suckers at Fannie Mae and Citigroup.

 

[Midpack]

The median price of a home sold in Detroit in December was $7,500, according to Realcomp, a listing service.

Not $75,000. Remove a zero—it's seven thousand five hundred dollars, substantially less than the lowest-price car on the new-car market.

Among the many dispiriting numbers that bleakly depict the decrepitude of this onetime industrial behemoth, the steep slide of housing values helps define the daunting challenge to anyone who wants to lead this shrinking, poverty-pocked city of about 800,000 people.

Detroit's outlook falls along with home prices -- chicagotribune.com

Do you want to live in Detroit?

 

[DougViages]

Hey, I live in a Detroit Suburb

I witnessed the rampant fraud in City of Detroit real estate transactions first hand. I worked for a construction guy who owned 10 -12 Detroit houses as rentals. It never made him any money, only lots of headaches. He decided to sell out, and I worked with a Detroit RE agent to sell the houses. At the time, maybe 6 -7 years ago, the average small, old brick bungalow sold for $40,000 to $50,000. That was reasonable at the time in that market.

What actually happened: I went to my closings, and sometimes glimpsed other paperwork for a SECOND closing right after mine was done and they showed me the door. If my 'real' closing was for $45,000, the second closing might be for $75,000. The parties involved, RE agent, fake buyer, appraiser, Detroiters all, defrauded the lenders, and pocketed $25,000 in total after costs.

Guess what, these mortgages 'held no water'.

Come on to Beautiful Detroit!

 

[tryan]

Nothing like buying at the bottom! FWIW I bought half a dozen properties below $15k. Rented and managed them for ~10 years and sold many for 10 fold what I paid. Still have few of them.

Detroit will come back and lots of people will be remembering what they could'a/should's/would'a paid for that SF accross the street.