Northern Michigan real estate booms as builders struggle to meet demand
Zholdas Orisbayev
Lansing Michigan builders are prioritizing the construction of higher value homes to gain more profit, a market driven in part by the pandemic.
But the state lacks housing for moderate-income buyers, such as the workers who build the high-end homes, experts say.
“Some homebuilders in resort areas of Michigan, such as Emmet, Charlevoix, Cheboygan, Otsego and Grand Traverse (counties), are booked for two years ahead and they are not talking with new clients to create projects,” said Janet Chambers, the executive officer of the Home Builders Association of Northern Michigan.
Homeless service providers across metro Detroit are facing a trio of challenges, as the temperature drops and COVID-19 cases surge.
They normally see increased demand during winter and this year is no different. At the same time, pandemic safety restrictions have forced shelters to cut back on the number of people they can accommodate. On top of this, state and federal safeguards against evictions are expected to end in December. Without further intervention, housing experts expect an eviction crisis that could send people into homelessness, taxing an already overwhelmed system of providers. Now during the pandemic, anybody could be two paychecks away from being homeless, said April Fidler, executive director of the Macomb County Rotating Emergency Shelter.