Pete Flint’s Blog

I stumbled across this article this morning about the detroit real estate market and how International investors are moving in to snap up detroit foreclosures and short sales.

From the article:
"Welcome to Landlord Nation, where foreclosure notices are plentiful and for-sale signs offer at least 1,800 homes for under $10,000 that once were worth at least 10 times more. In extreme cases, homes are on sale for $1 or less, which has enticed investors to Detroit from as far away as the United Kingdom and Australia."

“Despite a stagnant retail housing market, real estate sales of foreclosed homes are booming. Shannon regularly fields calls from eager prospects, and recently sold 30 homes in one day to one buyer. A trio of U.K. investors has bought a half-dozen and plans many more.”

“Outside buyers are the latest in a long line of landlords taking over the deteriorating housing stock of a city that because of its once mighty auto industry boasted one of the highest owner-occupied housing rates in the U.S. And unlike many large cities, Detroit's single-family homes dominate its landscape, not high-rise apartment buildings.”

From AP

So, I wondered if there was truth in the story?

Absolutely! Just check out these recent questions from Trulia Voices:

Adrian in Ireland asks:

Hello, I'm from Ireland&I'm looking to purchase 5 or 6 properties to refurbish & rent out in Detroit.

I will be looking for 3/4/5 beds that will provide a good rental yield when refurbed. Where should I be looking and what areas should I avoid? Are the taxes based on the property value or set by the county / state?

Ian from the UK asks:

Hi all im from uk an looking at property investment in detroit. Spent alot of time working for investers

fixing there houses up!

Could anyone provide a list of current houses in detroit for sale please?

Mikem asks:

Investing in Detroit Property

i am looking to buy an invesment property of two in detroit. can anyone give me an idea of some the nicesuburbs to buy into and worth looking at?

John Gitre responds with:

Mick, we have a lot of homes priced from as low as $1,000 or less up to $50,000 and above. Detroit is not the only place with very well priced homes for investors. How familiar are you with the Detroit area? When do you plan on coming here? With so many properties in such a large area you would be best served by looking at them yourself. If you could send me your criteria for the type of property you are interested in, I would be glad to provide you with some assistance. You may contact me through my Trulia profile. Thank you and good luck.

So while there are tough times in the Detroit economy overall, it looks like prices are so low that investors are coming in, do you think this signals the bottom for Detroit house prices?