Housing

Gov. Whitmer has banned evicted tenants unable to keep up with rent during the COVID-19 crisis.

On Monday, Gretchen Whitmer signed the Pay as you Stay bill, which eliminates fees, penalties, and interest on back taxes for more than 30,000 residents of Wayne County.

A man who was forced to leave his home after several contaminants were discovered in his Allen Park home is suing the city for never inspecting the property. He plans to take the case to the state supreme court.

Tears of joy from Monique Irvin, she thought she wouldn't be able to afford repairs to her home and was at risk. But she got help.  

Lawyers, academics, activists and politicians announced a class action lawsuit for over assessing, overtaxing thousands of Detroiters, costing them $600 million between 2010 and 2017 - and costing many others - their homes.

FOX 2 went to look at three properties on the list filed in Wayne County Circuit Court against Steve and Stephen Hagerman a father and son team, Salameh Jaser and Michael Kelly.

The founder of the Detroit Anti Slavery society and its first president was Shubael Conant. Conant is also attributed to cultivating one of several prosperous historically black neighborhoods in Detroit.

The apartment's management company - Elite Management out of Flint - told her they are "working diligently" to fix the problem - a faulty boiler.

Mayor Duggan says it's a similar story throughout the city with property values increasing in 186 of Detroit's 194 neighborhoods. In most cases, values increased in value by 20 percent or more - and the value of commercial properties in neighborhoods is finally on the rise as well.

Fed up, a woman called FOX 2 for help as she lives in deplorable conditions on Detroit's east side with no help from her landlord.

After living in separate cities and states, two Detroit sisters have moved back to their childhood home to restore their neighborhood. They are restoring the Canfield neighborhood on Detroit's east side.

A Detroit veteran of the Navy and the Army was in desperate need of help with his home. All it took was a Facebook post answering the call for help.

City and state officials have begun spying the creeping affordable housing crisis that low-wage earners face when looking for places to live and have worked out solutions. However, these solutions are either not being used or have faced scrutiny that they don't help those most vulnerable to the housing issue.

While the issues of a lack of affordable housing may feel very personal, they are the result of housing trends and market forces far beyond the control of any single person. For as simple as subsidizing the cost of one housing unit might be for government agencies, it won't solve the systemic barriers facing low-wage earners in Detroit - that not enough housing has become cheap over time.

When someone lacks sustainable housing, the effects are wide-reaching and potentially damaging. Without a reliable place to live, other questions concerning hunger, transportation, education, and health care loom much larger. Unfortunately, as one author put it, "rent eats first" and that means all other necessities of living a comfortable and safe life are jeopardized.

For Detroit's lowest-earning renters, living in the city can be difficult. With the weight of expenses bearing down on their finances, unpredictable costs and a lack of affordable housing options can exasperate an already systemic problem for the poorest people in the city and state. The longer investment lags and affordable options dwindle, the more this problem will persist - and bury its victims with it.

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan announced the "Pay as you stay" plan on Wednesday. The housing plan is intended to help residents avoid tax foreclosure by easing the financial burden on the city's lowest earners. About 31,000 residents could help avoid foreclosure with the aid of the plan, which would eliminate all interest, penalties and fees and the only balance due would be back taxes or 10 percent of the home's value. The plan still needs approval by the state legislature.

A duo of Denver residents now living in Detroit are flipping houses in the city - and they're starting with their neighborhood. Keith Bynum and Evan Thomas, two residents of northwest Detroit are purchasing some of the worst homes in the city and fixing them up and selling them. The profits aren't big, but more people are moving into their neighborhood as a result of their pet projects. And they're hiring locals to help with the labor.