(Courtesy Century 21 Premier)
It's been said that the three most important things about real estate are location, location, location. But a look at the 10 most-searched homes nationwide on Realtor.com last week reveals as surprise: five of the top 10 homes are in economically depressed Detroit. A sixth home on the list sits in a suburb of the Motor City.
"Folks are either looking for incredible value or real estate investments," says Julie Reynolds, a spokesman forMove Inc, the company that operates Realtor.com. "The economy is still in recovery and people are just looking for good value right now."
Depressed home prices are likely behind the surge in interest in Detroit real estate, say observers. The average sale price of a home during the first nine months of the year was a paltry $12,063 - down from $73,000 just three years earlier. In September, the median price of a Detroit single-family home hovered just above $7,000, according the National Association of Realtors.
Eye-popping numbers like that have unleashed a cavalcade of intrepid real estate investors who are trying to capitalize on the housing meltdown by buying astoundingly cheap homes in foreclosure. Foreclosed properties in the city can be had for as little as a few hundred dollars, say local brokers. Well-maintained Georgian and English Tudor-style properties, in better neighborhoods, cost $10,000 to $30,000.
"The Detroit metropolitan area offers everyone from first time-home buyers to investors terrific deals," says Bob Bellack, chairman of home auction firm Zetabid. The company is planning to auction about 155 bank-owned properties in Troy, Mich., just north of Detroit, Nov. 14. "We're expecting strong interest because of the affordability and upside in these properties."
The Realtor.com survey, compiled each week, includes homes priced within 20 percent of the national median list price of $215,000. The list reveals an interesting comparison of what you can buy in different locations for the same amount of money.
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