Detroit as Target City!

[Ken Williams]

Anybody here doing deals in Detroit? What does everyone think of the opportunities there? Are there opportunities?

I would like to look at targeting this city and zoning in on some good properties. For those that invest, live, or have interest in Detroit, I have a few questions for deal analysis and advice.

1) What are the target residential areas in Detroit? Including neighborhoods, areas, etc.? Where are the renters, what areas cash flow best?

2) What are the target commercial areas?

3) What is the future of Detroit? What do you see happening to the now empty city?? When and Will it ever come back?

4) What property management companies are located in Detroit? Who would you recommend?

5) How is it rehabbing in the city right now? Are there contractors still in the area and are they reliable, etc.?

6) How is the city to work with? What do they demand for home owners, landlords, etc.? Any licensing, fees, taxes to look out for?

I think we should pick a city every month or so and focus our efforts on where the deals are at, and what makes sense in the area. As we all know, there are deals in every market, we just have to track them down.

Also, I am personally looking for contacts in the Detroit market. If you are interested in this network and putting some deals together please pm me.

Thanks

[James Hiddle]

Detroit is not a market I would invest in because it's shot to pieces over there. IMHO there are much better markets out there but that's just my opinion.

[Jeff B.]

Ken, I am with James in that Detriot is not a city I would focus my efforts on due to the risk.

The short is that Detriot was a manufacturing town and due to competition from foriegn workers the jobs moved elsewhere. I know that the dollar is weak and that a small amount of those jobs are moving back but it is a very small amount. There is a small city Franklin, VA that will be just like Detriot in a couple of years. The main source of income International Paper is closing and there are no surrounding cities or jobs that could benefit from the additional housing or workers.

So basically you want to go fishing were the fish are, not hope they come to you.

[James Ward]

My only question in this would be:

If you are not looking for an immediate return on your investment, is Detroit not a adequate location? I think that if you are able and willing to hold out, Detroit might be a location that you will see returns, but not in the near future.

Or am I totally off on this?

[Ken Williams]

That would be my take on Detroit. It would be buy and hold very long term. But if it cash flows and meets the specs you set out to find, then you can wait for the upside.

I think Detroit is too big of a part of America and manufacturing to die out totally. I think it will reach a point where it looks very attractive to some of these big companies manufacturing oversees that want to bring production back to the U.S..

Just a thought. Detroit seems to be ideal for some of that.

[Jeff B.]

If done some research on economic outlook for a bunch of major cities and there was little positive future growth for the area.

When there are better potential growth cities were housing is good and business cost are low like
Houston, TX
Jacksonville, FL
Indianapolis, IN
Louisville, KY
Cleveland, OH
Salt Lake City, Utah
then name some good reasons that I should invest in Detriot's future?

[James Ward]

If an area completes/ meets what you as the investor has set as the parameters, then it by defination is a good place for your investments.

Does that mean you will make money? Not at all! Does that mean it is a good location for anyone else? Once again, no.

It is not in good form for anyone to solely base an investment descision on what others think.

[Mark Yuschak]

Originally posted by Tom Cullen:

I was raised in west metro detroit. I was home to visit family in October. People are migrating to the west and NW areas outside of detroit. Brighton, Milford, Canton, Farmington. Those are areas that have grown the most since I moved in 1974.

If you are looking for blue-collar areas, there is Hazel park, Warren, Dearborn Hts, Garden City. Personally, I wouldn't invest in Wayne county which encompases most of Detroit.

When home, I heard a rumor they Michigan Truck Plant in Wayne (where I am from) is making the ford fussion and focus lines and they may actually increase hiring. Who knows.

Good place to grow up and lose your virginity, but I wouldn't move back. But there is way more to Michigan than Detroit and Wayne Co.! Like Grand Rapids, one of my best friends growing up is a County Commisioner up there. I think the future of America is going to be in city's like Grand Rapids.

TC

I strongly agree with Tom. You hit the nail right on the head!

There are still very affluent areas which encompass Detroit, but aren't Detroit. Only a very small handful of those cities are in Wayne County. Oakland, Livingston, Macomb, Genesee, etc. are remaining stable considering the overall economic climate.

Grand Rapids is a great town with growth thanks to multiple hospitals and universities. It's a well-kept secret of the midwest, in my opinion. Lansing is another great area. Thanks to the state government, Lansing is full of lawyers and consultants. People of those caliber come with money. Unlike Detroit, Grand Rapids and Lansing proper are not dismal places to invest and/or live.

[Scott Williams]

I am in the process of relocating to western Mi mostly to invest and work in real estate.

Grand rapids is a nice city, lived there briefly way back when.

I am looking more at Battle Creek/kalamazoo though, lots of family there and love the idea of living in a smaller to medium sized city.

Ken, If you are interested in Detroit you may look at Flint, same region although hugely smaller and I have read some good things from people investing there.

[Account Closed]

i've lived in canton and plymouth..suburbs of detroit..the people there are proud of their city and i think it will come back eventually..if you can afford to wait it out a decade or 2, i think it would be a great investment...remember, the best investments are the opposite of what everyone says to do...think...right now, everyone is saying to stay way from detroit...DO THE OPPOSITE OF 99% OF PEOPLE

[Steve Doyle]

If you are planning long term then you might be able to make it work but it is very risky. Taxes in Detroit proper are notoriously high which will likely kill any potential long term profitability. I see plenty of good opportunities in the burbs. Cities like Lansing, Grand Rapids, Plymouth, Ann Arbor, Sterling Heights and Kzoo are much more stable and worthy of looking in to.

The only way I can see to profit in Detroit itself is to buy a low dollar craphole. Insure it to the hilt and hope someone promptly burns it down!