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Wayne County Tax Auction

New mural highlights Detroit’s foreclosure crisis

by Robin Runyan Oct 18, 2016, 1:57p

The mural, painted by Ellen Rutt, Ouizi, and Jonny Alexander, is on a vacant house that went through foreclosure. The Tricycle Collective raises funds to help families stay in their homes.

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Crowdfunding Campaign to Aid Foreclosed Detroiters Nears $100K Goal

by Rebecca Golden Oct 21, 2015, 5:01p

A Go Fund Me campaign by Keep Our Homes Detroit has raised $99,069 of its $100K goal. The group aims to help Detroiters who've had homes foreclosed on keep their residences. The group is bidding on houses listed in Wayne County's annual tax...

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Evictions Loom as Tax Auction Heads into Final Days

by Rebecca Golden Oct 9, 2015, 5:26p

When we report on the Wayne County tax auction, the largest of its kind in the nation, there are two competing narratives: the vacant, long-abandoned property bought for a song and revitalized, and the family home taken by distant investors...

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Score Big at the Wayne County Tax Auction? Curbed Wants to Hear from You

by Rebecca Golden Oct 6, 2015, 5:52p

Attention: Did you buy anything in the Wayne County tax auction? Know anyone who did? Curbed Detroit wants to hear all about it. Past auction scores have included the Jam Handy building, not to mention the infamous so-called "blight bundle." We'd...

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Just a Day Left to Get in on the Wayne County Tax Auction

by Rebecca Golden Sep 9, 2015, 3:38p

Wayne County's tax auction, the largest of its kind in the US, ends registration tomorrow at 5 pm. September 10 is the cutoff for anyone interested in bidding on any of the thousands of homes under the direction of Raymond J. Wojtowicz. We've...

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Curbed Exclusive Photographs of Woods Cathedral Renovation

by Rebecca Golden Sep 3, 2015, 12:25p

Paul Johnson, owner of New York City's Johnson Trading Gallery, purchased Woods Cathedral at auction last year for $6700. As we reported Monday, Mr. Johnson has been renovating Woods since this winter, with plans to make the building into artists'...

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County Tax Auction Offers a Few Gems

by Rebecca Golden Sep 1, 2015, 1:03p

Some properties famously sold by Wayne County in its annual tax auction include the Jam Handy building and Woods Cathedral. This year's auction includes homes, vacant lots and commercial property all over metro Detroit, moving south to Downriver....

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Tax Auction Kicks Off Again On Thursday With 18,201 Properties

by Sarah Cox Oct 7, 2014, 9:18a

The list of properties available in the second round of the Wayne County tax auction was just released today, but bidding starts as soon as Thursday. According to the Treasurer's website there are 18,201 properties in this round. Wayne County...

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Four Tax Auction Properties' Combined Sales Top $1 Million

by Curbed Sep 19, 2014, 4:54p

This post was authored by Serena Maria Daniels 457 E. Kirby St. [All photos via Why Don't We Own This] Updates on the Wayne County Tax Auction have been trickling in this week as closing ended on Wednesday. It...

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University Motel Owes $83,184 In Taxes, But Won't Be Auctioned

by Sarah Cox Sep 5, 2014, 8:50a

[Photos by Michelle and Chris Gerard] New Center's University Hotel is architecturally striking and deeply in debt. The building was bought for $100,000 in 1987. According to WDWOT, it has been behind on taxes since 2006 and now owes a total of...

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The Hults to Packard: "You're Not Getting Away, Here's $100K"

by Sarah Cox Nov 7, 2013, 10:49a

The Hults, a "developer" type from Chicago, has been trying to buy the Packard Plant for months now, and just threw another $100K at the problem. That means he's officially paid $200K towards the purchase price of $2M, which was his bid in the...

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Hults Given Another Extension for Packard Plant Deal

by Sarah Cox Nov 5, 2013, 5:37p

Excuse us. We were under the impression that you had to present money to buy real estate. But when it comes to bargaining with Wayne County to get the foreclosed Packard Plant off of that entity's hands, missed deadlines coupled with promises seem...

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The Hults Remains Terrible at Paying For Packard Plant

by Sarah Cox Nov 5, 2013, 12:41p

After obtaining an extension for putting down the full amount needed to buy the Packard Plant, the Hults failed to turn in a deposit of $300,000 yesterday which was needed to buy him the extra week. Will Wayne County finally stop playing games...

Tax Auction is Crazy Now, Was a Bigger Shitshow Pre-Online Era

by Sarah Cox Sep 5, 2013, 6:20p

Today is the first day of bidding in the first round of the 2013 Wayne County Tax Auction, an online sale of properties in foreclosure for failure to pay 3 years worth of property taxes. Things won't get too interesting until the bidding rounds...

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Auction Registration Has Begun: What To Know About Round 1

by Sarah Cox Aug 22, 2013, 5:15p

Yesterday was the first day that would-be buyers could register for the Wayne County tax auction, which puts tax foreclosed properties up for public sale. Registration will close on September 13. Will the property you want actually be in the...

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Some Sold Tax Auction Properties Already Re-Listed on Ebay

by Curbed Oct 31, 2012, 2:39p

This post was authored by Amy Swift 3046 Columbus St With the auction ending last Friday, we've been going through a bit of withdrawal. Luckily, for those addicted to the insanity that is the Wayne County tax...

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Brush Park Ruin Generates 87 bids, Nearly 25K at Auction

by Curbed Oct 23, 2012, 1:03p

Ever since we first noticed a chunk of Patterson Terrace on the auction list back in August, we've held out hope that someone would step up and rescue Detroit's most charming ruin. Bidding on those three parcels opened Sunday, stirring up an...

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After 44 Bids, Building Went for $253,800 In The Tax Auction

by Sarah Cox Oct 22, 2012, 2:46p

So far today, this is the most expensive thing to sell in the Wayne County auction of taxed foreclosed properties that began last Friday. (It concludes this Friday). At a price of $253,800, it is still a hefty discount from the asking price in...

This House Has 44 Bids in An Online Auction For Forclosures

by Sarah Cox Oct 22, 2012, 9:59a

Last Friday, Wayne County began its second round of auctioning off foreclosed properties. To end up in the auction, a property has to be three years behind on taxes. In the first round (September) the starting bidding prices are the total of taxes...

What is Up At Pony Ride, A Previous Tax Foreclosure Purchase?

by Sarah Cox Oct 18, 2012, 1:59p

Photos by Michelle and Chris Gerard. With the Wayne County Auction of tax foreclosed properties starting up again tomorrow, it seemed like the right time to check in on one of the more famous foreclosed property purchases. Slows BBQ front man Phil...

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Our Top Picks For Commercial Properties in The Tax Auction

by Curbed Oct 17, 2012, 5:24p

This post was authored by Paul Beshouri. 10201 Joseph Campau. It's just about time for the Wayne County Tax Foreclosure Auction: Round Two. And just like shots of tequila, it's the second round that really gets...

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134 Tax-Foreclosed Properties Within A Quarter Mile of Eminem's Former Home Listed For Auction: Bids Start at $500

by Sarah Cox Oct 8, 2012, 2:57p

Over the weekend, our friends at Why Don't We Own This? (the site that maps the properties in the foreclosure auction) had some fun with celebrity maps. Sorta. This being Detroit, we're light on real celebrities, but who doesn't love the ones that...

A Roundup of Steals: The First Round of the Fall Tax Auction

by Curbed Sep 20, 2012, 11:48a

This post was authored by Amy Swift. The first round of the Wayne County Tax Auction ends later today, but auctions on individual buildings have been closing on a rolling basis all week. According to the Why Don't...

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Auction Obsession

by Sarah Cox Sep 19, 2012, 10:03a

Have you checked the foreclosure auction leaderboard yet today? As of this post, round one of Wayne County's attempt to dump tax foreclosed properties has sold 141 properties to 53 bidders for a total of $2,390,941. Yesterday's leader of the...

Wayne County Property Auction Called A "Mistake" in Freep

by Sarah Cox Sep 17, 2012, 3:29p

Free Press reporter John Gallagher has penned an article in which the Wayne County auction of foreclosed properties is called "a mistake." The argument comes from planners that work for the Detroit Works Project, Mayor Bing's city planning...

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Five Properties To Watch In The Wayne County Tax Auction

by Sarah Cox Sep 5, 2012, 5:09p

This post was authored by Paul Beshouri. Batten down your hatches, everyone: We're less than two weeks away from the start of 2012 Wayne County tax sale, or what might amount to be largest reshuffling of property...

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County is Selling Foreclosures to the Public (Again) Tomorrow

by Sarah Cox Jun 21, 2012, 9:14a

For the last two years, in the fall, Wayne County (home to Detroit) has auctioned off foreclosed properties (buildings and vacant lots) in an online bidding system. Starting tomorrow, the online foreclosure sale is back but the bidding is closed!...

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Scoring A Building At Auction Once Owned By A Filmmaker

by Sarah Cox Mar 1, 2012, 4:06p

Ever heard of Henry Jamison "Jam" Handy? The pro breaststroke swimmer won a bronze in the 1904 Olympics and got into film in his later career; he was hired by General Motors for short training films. During WW II, he is estimated to have produced...

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New Building Owner Will Crowd-Source Development Ideas

by Sarah Cox Jan 18, 2012, 3:33p

Andrew Didorosi, the owner of the small-business incubator Paper Street in Ferndale, scored a building on Michigan Ave. in the last tax auction for $15,600. He had been interested in the City Cab building as well, but was outbid in the end. And so...

Bidding Insanity: Buying Auction Properties In Bulk

by Sarah Cox Oct 27, 2011, 12:54p

Ever been at the Dollar Store and thought, what the hell, give me that WHOLE SHELF! Such is the mentality that might apply to this round of the Wayne County Tax Auction's High Roller List. Right now, on this last day for bidding, the w...

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Sleuthing And Speculating: City Cab Building Sells!

by Sarah Cox Oct 26, 2011, 2:11p

As it is Wayne County foreclosure auction week here in Detroit, some old buildings are getting new owners but so far not much is known about who they are. Our reporter, Jon Zemke, the man with endless affection for a Detroit fixer-upper, looked...

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Four $500 Houses Bought This Week

by Sarah Cox Oct 25, 2011, 3:24p

Here we are mid-week in the second round of the Wayne County foreclosure auction where, unlike round one, buyers don't pay back taxes. It's also known as the round of the $500 minimum bid, a price at which plenty has already sold! So what does a...

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