Seriously, before anyone would want to dump at least $100,000 into these “fixer uppers”, prospective owners should ask:
1. Are all liens against the property forgiven or waived (including back property taxes)?
2. Are the utilities still functioning to this residence; that is -- water, sewer, electricity, gas, telephone?
3. Are there any restrictions on “sweat equity” labor to fix-up this house part of the sale, or do all the renovations have to be done by union labor?
4. What about the building permits? How many and how much?
5. What about inspections? How many and how much?
6. After the work is completed, will the property be reassessed and at what rate? Will the rate reflect the blighted neighborhood where this house is, or will that be disregarded?
7. Will property taxes be waived or reduced during the rehabilitation process or not? If not, why not?
8. What city services will my taxes support and will I get them? [One reason why property and other taxes have gone unpaid is because the City of Detroit took the money and did not provide the services that taxpayers were paying money to receive.]
In fact, no matter what the politicians there answered, I wouldn't believe a thing they say. If it can't move they will loot it unless the neighbors get to it first.