This year’s Wayne County Tax Auction is now history. It ended sometime around 6pm last Friday, after the Packard Plant received a false final bid topping $6 million. My quantitative involvement in the auction is limited, however the variety of what I and my cohorts purchased or attempted to purchase is extensive. Let’s run through a recap from my personal perspective:

I bought this townhouse (on the right) in the first round for a steep $6700. It needs a new kitchen and a coat of paint throughout, but is surprisingly  updated with new plumbing, electrical, and HVAC. I reached out to a previous owner the morning of the auction, and felt comfortable purchasing it “sight-unseen”.

This is a very unique home built way back in 1885. The homes around it were built between 15 and 35 years later, so it must have been a “lone estate” back in the day. It’s constructed with true brick and field stone, something that’s a rarity 3.5 miles north of downtown. It sold for $2100, but has high taxes and needs a new roof/windows. Plus, the current occupant is a cute old lady and appears to have a green thumb.

This little home has been majorly updated. While the vinyl siding and strange balcony lacks charm, I’m sure the $4600 price tag is going to make somebody very happy.

This lot on Leicester Street appears to be all too common and uninteresting. I personally found it a good investment, simply because I own the two adjacent lots, and have now secured over 100 feet of road frontage only a half block off of Woodward. The $500 price tag seems like a steal, but the dozen of hours to get it reassessed as a vacant parcel and years of mowing prior to redevelopment will surely be a drag.

This house, at 90 Glynn Court, certainly needs some work, but it’s on a quiet one-way street that faces the backyards of Boston Edison mansions. So for $6000, somebody inherited a seemingly leaky roof, but also has the only house on a block of ornate apartment buildings and charming craftsman homes left to be restored.

This one was a favorite of mine. On the somewhat isolated Josephine street, it’s a solid brick American Foursquare. While, it sold for $210,000 only nine years ago, it went for $3600 two weeks ago! Judging by the character in similar nearby homes, it’s likely original and charming on the inside. A friend of mine claimed it and then backed out at a lower price without notifying me. A lot of communication occurs in the last 5 minutes of an auction like this!

Two days before the auction closed, a Seattle-based couple Greg and Maina (the latter originally from Brazil), approached our non-profit, The Michigan Urban Farming Initiative (MUFI) for advice on purchasing property around our farm site. We told them that we had plans for everything adjacent to our area, but they insisted they wanted to be close. A property I had previously written off, actually piqued their interest, and they were able to get it for $3900. It’s an absolutely huge 6500 square foot duplex jam-packed with early 20th century artifacts. Luckily they plan to run their own home, a hostel, and resale shop out of the space. They secured it last weekend and plan to return in about a month to move in. We’re all excited to have these new neighbors interested in green renovation and urban agriculture!

I bid on this property up to my “happy-happy” point, and barely lost it. It’s a 4 or 5 unit “large flat” that has all new windows and a great roof. It is occupied by at least one family and the former owner moved to Round Rock, Texas. It’s on the southern side of Euclid Street, and therefore barely qualifies for the Live Midtown incentive that renters could utilize. I still feel that with its large adjacent lot and new updates, this would have made an excellent financial return, however emotion must be kept out of the auction! It went $100 over my pre-determined maximum, and I had to sit back. Maybe I can assist the new owner in attracting tenants and manage the property moving forward.

MUFI bid up to $2700 to secure this half acre of land just north of our farm. We already have black tarps on the soil in preparation of a berry and fruit orchard. Somebody really wanted it, so hopefully they’ll be okay with what we’re about to grow.

This house on Horton Street needs tons of work and directly faces one of my houses. I sincerely wanted to purchase it personally, but knew it would be a much more strategic purchase for MUFI. It needs a lot of labor (and love), but will eventually make a great urban farmhouse- hostel. Maybe I’ll be able to grab a few antique furniture pieces out of it – after all, the entire place was only $500.

Anything but beautiful from the outside, this thing looks great on paper. It’s large, fronts a park, is near our farm, and has some updates. We helped a neighbor (our current farm manager) and her brother purchase this for only $3000. They aren’t in the best living situation currently, and this will be a BIG improvement.

This “terrace-house” on Horton was a steal at only $1600. It’s currently occupied by a squatter, who has been getting by since May without electricity, but he’ll likely leave under a cash-for-keys deal I’m working on. While the only yard is in front, it has big south-east facing windows. It’s walking distance to New Center and is in the epicenter of the new North End art district. Fortress Studios and Red Door Gallery are across the street, and the Jam Handy is a block away. Both adjacent neighbors were ecstatic to meet me and even offered up their beautiful back yards and patios anytime I want to have a party.

I personally purchased two condos and a vacant lot. Not nearly the number I would have guessed, but this year the keyword was Quality instead of Quantity. My hope is that the two condos will be a seedgerm of additional income, allowing me to more extensively renovate other properties and get this snowball rolling downhill.

Next year, I plan to formalize my involvement in the auction. Last year, I only spent $1200 of personal funds. This year, my account and my associate’s account handled over $20,000 worth of transactions.  Next year, with a bigger push into other neighborhoods and into commercial property, only the clear skies of Detroit are the limit.