In light of the controversial Cobo Hall transfer deal, Detroiters seem more protective than ever regarding city assets. And while the city spotlight been on the Cobo drama for weeks, another city asset—real estate—has been slipping out of local ownership in big numbers. 

A recent article in News One, a news service of Blackplanet.com, reports that Detroit has 1,800 homes selling for less than $10,000 and in “extreme cases” for less than $1.

These fire sale prices have attracted international investors from countries such as United Kingdom and Australia, according to the article.

One Metro Detroit realtor, Mike Shannon, told News One that outside investors were buying devalued Detroit real estate “in bulk.”

Shannon states:

“In the past few months, I’ve picked up 10 new clients from out of state that are buying in bulk. “They’re coming to us, saying `Look, I want to buy 50, 100, 1,000.They want to own every decent and cheap house they can find.”

This means that when the economy does start to recover and Detroit is restored it will be a renter’s city full of absentee landlords. There’s nothing wrong with investing in Detroit, but when investors who have no interest in the city are buying large swaths of real estate for little to no money it could become a serious problem.

Often renters don’t treat property as well as owners because they have little invested in it. And if revenue from these leases is going abroad or out of state to wherever the landlords live, how does Detroit benefit?

This could be an issue that the Detroit City Council should be looking at when considering devalued city assets. Although private land is not a municipal asset, there could be ordinances put in place that monitor this activity.

Currently there is no cap on how much residential property non-resident investors can buy; no one is vetting these investors short- and long-term intentions. In order to buy multiple houses in Detroit, one might suggest that buyers should first prove that they have plans to improve these structures and the city should give then some sort of incentive to follow through with those plans.