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I would look at Indian Village or Sherwood Forest. Sherwood is more central, you'll have access to 8 Mile and Woodward Avenue, plus all the freeways.
Quote:
Originally Posted by docmts2
Thanks for the replies thus far. I've been to Detroit several times, but only as a guest. I'll be coming back very soon to get a more intimate feel for the area. I'll be checking out all the areas mentioned. But who can tell me more about the old mansions within the city? I kind of like the idea of buying a huge mansion dirt cheap and renovating it so that I can have an abundance of space in an up and coming, rehabilitated community. That way I can hook it up just the way I want it instead of buying someone else's design. docmts2
To the doctor if see's still paying attention to this thread,
The suburbs of Farmington Hills and Farmington have alot of black professionals as well as whites, Asians, jews, and Middle-Eastern folks. Typical suburban houses with larger lots and attached garages.
I am elated that you are considering the city of Detroit, though. If you are serious about the city, then...
"And the" pretty much gave you all you need to know.
What size old mansion are you looking for?? 4000 sq feet?? 3500 sq feet??
His/Her "diss" of the University District is perplexing. Right now you can get a 3,500 square foot house that just needs updating and with relatively low taxes, for less than $150,000. And that neighborhood is well taken care of.
GO to the realestateone dot com website. Type in the following street names on the website's search engine:
Parkside, Wildemere, Muirland, and Fairfield. The houses with the address numbers from 17000 to 18950 are in the University District
The adjacent neighborhoods - Palmer Woods and Sherwood Forest - have larger houses on larger lots, but cost more.
The Boston - Edison, and the adjacent East Boston-Arden Park district are deep in the heart of the city. The neighborhoods surrounding these two districts are a little sketchy. There are lots of mansions for sale, because many people have had them foreclosed. The names of the street to look for are Boston, Chicago, Longfellow, Edison, and Arden Park. The address numbers range from 1 to 2500.
Currently, there is a 5,000 sq feet mansion on Boston Boulevard selling for just $55,000, but it needs some work. (The taxes on the house are outrageous, but once it's value is reassessed when someone buys it, the taxes will drop a lot).
Indian Village on the Eastside also has foreclosed mansions that need some updates. But they are cheap, and the neighborhood association is great. Some of the surrounding neighborhoods are on the upswing as well. The street names are Iroquois, Seminole, and Burns, and those houses in IV have address numbers from 1 to 3500. If you see a house with an address # higher than 3500, it's in the 'hood.
His/Her "diss" of the University District is perplexing.
Not really a "diss", I just wouldn't live there if I had the kind of money I assume a Dr. makes. Too close to Puritan, too close to Highland Park and too close to Livernois for me if I had "Dr. dough".
I'm very much paying attention to this thread. My application for a license to practice in the state is being processes as I post this. I'm coming to the area next week and again in March. I plan on moving to the area for good in July '08. Thanks again for all the input. I've been on realtor.com saving home ads to my laptop and I'll be checking out all the areas mentioned thus far when I get there. I'm still open to any other input that might be out there, though you've all made sure I'll be quite busy once I get there. Thanks again. Docmts2
I would suggest Southfield, Lathrup Village , or the Vinsetta area of Royal Oak. There are some beautifull houses in Detroit but if you live there or work there you have to pay city income taxes and this is not so in the areas I mentioned. Southfield/Lathrup has a school district that offer engineering, medical and fine arts acadamies and there is a great education available for motivated students. Southfield has the Providence hospital medical center and Royal Oak has the William Beaumont medical center. I work in Southfield and live in Royal Oak, both are culturally/ethnicly diverse and all amenities are close by. The real estate taxes and school taxes are somewhat more reasonable in Royal Oak but due to the declining enrollment many of the schools have closed and they have consolidated to one high school and soon to be one middle school. Southfield has closed one elementary school but still maintains either 7 or 8 elementary schools, early childhood developement center, 3 middle schools 2 k-8 schools one of which is an acadamy school, and 2 high schools. There are many doctors living in my neighborhood and there are large new homes being built here. I live very close to the Beaumont Royal Oak campus, you can walk or cycle from here. The old large houses in Royal Oak are mostly in the Vinsenta area.
I know your feelings on moving. I am moving to Detroit in a couple of weeks and I just came back from looking for a place to live. I ended up stopping and just talking to people to get a feel of the area in general. So many people told me to look in Farmington Hills and West Bloomfield. I did look in Troy and I was told that there is one way in and one way out and that was I-75; however, you can take street routes, but my job will be downtown. I also looked in Canton as Canton is up and coming. I was also told that I would probably pay big time in taxes in Detroit. I finally decided on West Bloomfiled. It's not too far from Southfield and to me, it sits in the middle of things. Good Luck.
I'm a new family med doc (finishing residency in June, 2008) who's moving to metro detroit in less than a year and I need some help on finding housing. Let me give a little background to explain my situation.
I'm originally from Chicago and I love large metro areas. I went to med school in the south and found myself doing my residency there, too. I chose a rural residency program because I think rural programs make better family physicians, but the racism in the small city south is unbearable. That's saying a lot for a guy from Chicago (a city that competes with Boston for the most segregated city in America). Anyway, as a Black man I know racism well and frankly, I prefer northern racism as the better of the two evils (northern vs. southern racism).
I'm looking to move back to the midwest and I would have gone back to the Chi but the housing costs there are obscene. On the other hand, the metro Detroit area has everything I'm looking for; a large metro population, lots of diversity, countless things to do and a housing market that's built for buyers. I like that the area is politically progressive like Chicago, too. My problem is that I have no clue where to look for a home in metro Detroit.
I've worked damned hard to get where I am and I want to live in a community that will fit my income, but I also want to live in a community where I'll feel comfortable. Like many African Americans, I'm not racist but out of necessity I'm constantly on guard against all the people in this country who are racist. I'd like to live in an ethnically diverse community within the metro area but if that's not possible, I have much love for my people and can easily settle down in an upper middle-class African American neighborhood, too. Specifically, I'm looking for a modern two story home at 3000+ sq. ft., four+ bedrooms and three car garage in a very nice neighborhood. Any ideas as to where I should look? The more in put the better. Thanks in advance. docmts2
Honestly,if you are a doctor, you should not have a problem finding work, but if I were you, I woudn't choose Michigan, at least not now. Detroit metro has a problem and my best bet for you is Ann Arbor.
There are a lot of great old neighborhoods in Detroit. If you have kids, they better be exemplary students so they can get into Renaissance High. Most of the other public schools are really bad. We looked at the old mansion in Detroit concept for a long time. There are neighborhoods that make the Indian Village houses look wimpy, but the neighborhood locations are not as good. The one Indian Village resident that we actually met was moving out because her neighbor was mugged on their front porch. One incident does not mean anything though.
We decided not to pursue one of the old Detroit mansions primarily because we had already restored a quaint Victorian house in an inner city atmosphere in California and wanted to do something different. We also wanted a quieter more natural environment for our children (play in woods, streams and fields rather than parking lots). From what we could find, most of the cool historic Detroit mansions are in areas where you would want to keep your kids close at hand or send them off to play at friend's houses outside the City. You will gasp at what you can get for your money though.
You can find some magnificent old farmhouses in outlying areas with great schools (Northville, Plymouth, Salem). If you are working in Ann Arbor, look at Chelsea and Tecumseh and in Ann Arbor itself if you are wealthy.
Be careful in choosing your mansion to restore. We bought an 1836 house for $1, moved it to a different lot and restored it. we spent well over $800,000 and it was just appraised for $480,000! This is a bad appraisal, but it will probably appraise around $600,000 to $700,000 on a valid appraisal. The real estate market here is terrible, but the costs of construction work, especially labor are higher than they were in California. You are better off buying someone else's restoration project if they did it right and let them take the loss.
By the way we choose Grosse Ile. An island community with lots of wonderful old houses and great schools. It is mostly white here though, but the three or four black kids in the high school seem to be treated pretty respectfully. The two black kids that I know are reasonably popular and extremely popular in the high school. I am sure that they get flack occasionally, but there is no place without at least a few bigoted idiots. This is not an urban area. No night life here at all except for foxes and owls. But it is only 20 miles from downtown. If you want to consider a place that is hard to get to, but quiet and pleasant as a result, come out and look here too.
I would also suggest Bloomfield Hills, West Bloomfield Hills, Farmington, Southfield? I don't know much about diversity in those cities though, but I do know a lot of African-Americans have moved to Southfield. But, if you have a family or plan on having a family try Ann Arbor, MI. It's very diverse and has a wide variety of homes available. Try researching on the net and start here: A2gov.org. And of course Ann Arbor is full of Docs (University of Michigan). I was born and raised in Ann Arbor and have teenage children so I know first hand it's a great city to raise a family in. The school system is also great especially if you live on the West side of Ann Arbor, parents have a lot of say so here. The summer in A2 is also great when the students leave.
Because I am also a fan of large metro areas I moved to downtown Detroit in 2003. I have to say that as an adult my experience was great I mean, we were walking distance from Hart Plaza, Ren Cen, Campius Martius, etc. So I really enjoyed the entertainment and there was always something 'happening'. Now, on the other hand as far as my children went, the schools were not so great and It was very hard to get involved as a parent.
To make a long story short my 'livin in the D' with my people dream was shattered in 3 yrs., I still love Detroit and still have much love for the people of Detroit, it's a city with great potential. And as far as restoring mansions I would suggest Indian Village or Boston Edison District. But now is not the time to try to raise a family there. Also, it's difficult to get involved with solutions to problems in the D i.e volunteering because most programs are like barely scratching the surface (very disappointing). After living in Detroit I just felt sad most days about there being no jobs, good education, etc. for the 'real' residents of Detroit and hardly anyone from the 'outside' wants to help. If you have a heart it becomes hard to stomach.
If you were to move to Ann Arbor (A2) Detroit is about 35 to 45 min. drive. It would be a tough commute if you were to live in A2 and work in the D because traffic is heavy going into the D in the morning (7-8:30) and after work going into Ann Arbor (3:30-6:00). But, it is doable depending on your timing. So, if you haven't already made a decision, I would suggest on your next visit to Michigan come to Ann Arbor and check it out also vist the schools they will gladly welcome you. And yes, it's ok for African-American families, I am living proof.
Note: If you are single and plan to be for awhile I would stay in the D, trust me you will like it If you were to choose A2, Bloomfield Hills, etc., I would live there but 'party' in the D
Last edited by njoi36; 02-27-2008 at 09:14 AM..
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