Nation's Most Affordable Real Estate Found in Detroit
Detroit was once a thriving metropolitan area where people from the South flocked by the thousands for the outstanding automotive jobs, good schools, and affordable housing. In fact, my own mother-in-law as a newlywed lived there once with her husband who was fresh out of the Korean War and ready to work in order to support his family.
Like that once happy relationship, the love affair with Detroit began to go sour when the car jobs began fading away. As factory after factory closed down, the housing market also began drying up. Today when you hear about houses you can get that are nearly free, it's Detroit, Michigan where many are found.
So really, no house is really free unless it's inherited or someone has just dumb luck. But in Detroit, there's currently a duplex available that has over 2500 square feet, five bedrooms, and two baths with a starting bid of just under $5,000. Now THAT is a real estate deal!
In 2009, 877 homes sold in February in Detroit, but in 2010, they dropped just over 23 percent when only 671 homes sold. The average price in February 2009 was $11,557 for a house. This is a bright spot for the city because in 2010, the average price increased almost 17 percent to $13,514. Perhaps the market value of homes is increasing – certainly good news for Michigan home owners. The good news for buyers in the market is that prices still remain incredibly affordable!
Along with affordable homes, Detroit entertainment is wonderful for people with a sense of humor. Entertainers like Home Improvement's Tim Allen, Comedians Jerry Seinfeld and Howie Mandell, and Talk-Show Host Chelsea Handler are some of the headliners who keep visitors and residents laughing.
If you just want to relax while in the Motor City, you might consider a river cruise on the Detroit Princess. The boat offers a 2 1/2 hour ride and can include a meal if you choose to dine. Otherwise, car museums are a huge attraction for the city, as well as the Motown Museum where the music of the 50's and 60’s helped make America renowned for blending rhythm and blues with rock and roll.
Detroit remains an entertainment mecca where people can still afford home ownership!
Michigan Mortgage Rates - Compare mortgage rates for Michigan to stay on top of the average home value, market value changes, mortgage rates and more in Michigan at Banks.com.
Like that once happy relationship, the love affair with Detroit began to go sour when the car jobs began fading away. As factory after factory closed down, the housing market also began drying up. Today when you hear about houses you can get that are nearly free, it's Detroit, Michigan where many are found.
So really, no house is really free unless it's inherited or someone has just dumb luck. But in Detroit, there's currently a duplex available that has over 2500 square feet, five bedrooms, and two baths with a starting bid of just under $5,000. Now THAT is a real estate deal!
In 2009, 877 homes sold in February in Detroit, but in 2010, they dropped just over 23 percent when only 671 homes sold. The average price in February 2009 was $11,557 for a house. This is a bright spot for the city because in 2010, the average price increased almost 17 percent to $13,514. Perhaps the market value of homes is increasing – certainly good news for Michigan home owners. The good news for buyers in the market is that prices still remain incredibly affordable!
Along with affordable homes, Detroit entertainment is wonderful for people with a sense of humor. Entertainers like Home Improvement's Tim Allen, Comedians Jerry Seinfeld and Howie Mandell, and Talk-Show Host Chelsea Handler are some of the headliners who keep visitors and residents laughing.
If you just want to relax while in the Motor City, you might consider a river cruise on the Detroit Princess. The boat offers a 2 1/2 hour ride and can include a meal if you choose to dine. Otherwise, car museums are a huge attraction for the city, as well as the Motown Museum where the music of the 50's and 60’s helped make America renowned for blending rhythm and blues with rock and roll.
Detroit remains an entertainment mecca where people can still afford home ownership!
Michigan Mortgage Rates - Compare mortgage rates for Michigan to stay on top of the average home value, market value changes, mortgage rates and more in Michigan at Banks.com.
The Two Faces of Michigan
Michigan is a state with a split personality. First you have the industrial, blue collar areas where you'll find the well-known cities of Detroit, Lansing, Flint, and Kalamazoo. Kalamazoo is fun to say, isn't it? But hiding up north is the other face of Michigan, the Upper Peninsula.
To live in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, you must have an eye for beauty. Of course given the tranquil surroundings consisting of lakes, waterfalls, and forests, finding the beauty in this stunning area is fairly easy to do. You can start lakeside where the "U.P." offers 1,700-miles shorelines from three Great Lakes: Superior, Michigan, and Huron.
Surrounding the lakes are gorgeous forests of cedar trees, but interspersed are trees that offer breathtaking foliage in the autumn including, black gum, black ash, red maple, and pin oaks. My favorite tree is plentiful in the U.P. as well, the sometimes a nuisance box elder which releases the whirly-gig helicopter seeds that children love to gather and throw into the air.
Another favorite of kids and adults alike is a food introduced to the area by Cornish miners. If you have ever wondered what a meat pie would taste like, try munching on a pasty (pronounced pass tee). The flavorful turnover is filled with chicken, venison, pork, hamburger, and sometimes pizza. You can make a pasty at home, but none will ever be as incredible as those made in the UP.
Perhaps the biggest and best surprise is the fact that housing is incredibly affordable in the UP. You can easily find a home for under $50,000, but even some of the nicest with wood floors, tile counters, and numerous bedrooms can cost well under $150,000. For under $200,000, houses on the lake are easily obtainable with architecture ranging from stone fronts to A-frames. Real estate priced over $250,000 range from older wooden houses with a lot of lake-frontage to gorgeous new brick construction with all the modern features.
If you prefer low maintenance real estate, condominiums can be easily found in the Yooper state. They too overlook lakes, rivers, or are convenient to the tourist areas where most jobs can be found. The Upper Peninsula of Michigan is truly a hidden diamond whose beauty and affordability shine.
Michigan Mortgage Rates - Compare mortgage rates for Michigan to stay on top of the average home value, market value changes, mortgage rates and more in Michigan at Banks.com.
To live in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, you must have an eye for beauty. Of course given the tranquil surroundings consisting of lakes, waterfalls, and forests, finding the beauty in this stunning area is fairly easy to do. You can start lakeside where the "U.P." offers 1,700-miles shorelines from three Great Lakes: Superior, Michigan, and Huron.
Surrounding the lakes are gorgeous forests of cedar trees, but interspersed are trees that offer breathtaking foliage in the autumn including, black gum, black ash, red maple, and pin oaks. My favorite tree is plentiful in the U.P. as well, the sometimes a nuisance box elder which releases the whirly-gig helicopter seeds that children love to gather and throw into the air.
Another favorite of kids and adults alike is a food introduced to the area by Cornish miners. If you have ever wondered what a meat pie would taste like, try munching on a pasty (pronounced pass tee). The flavorful turnover is filled with chicken, venison, pork, hamburger, and sometimes pizza. You can make a pasty at home, but none will ever be as incredible as those made in the UP.
Perhaps the biggest and best surprise is the fact that housing is incredibly affordable in the UP. You can easily find a home for under $50,000, but even some of the nicest with wood floors, tile counters, and numerous bedrooms can cost well under $150,000. For under $200,000, houses on the lake are easily obtainable with architecture ranging from stone fronts to A-frames. Real estate priced over $250,000 range from older wooden houses with a lot of lake-frontage to gorgeous new brick construction with all the modern features.
If you prefer low maintenance real estate, condominiums can be easily found in the Yooper state. They too overlook lakes, rivers, or are convenient to the tourist areas where most jobs can be found. The Upper Peninsula of Michigan is truly a hidden diamond whose beauty and affordability shine.
Michigan Mortgage Rates - Compare mortgage rates for Michigan to stay on top of the average home value, market value changes, mortgage rates and more in Michigan at Banks.com.
