What The Region Thinks.

[Jim O'Bryan]

This was sent to me by a friend in St. Louis that read this on the NY Times Website.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/29/opinion/rental-business-picks-up.html?_r=2&scp=1&sq=Life%20as%20a%20landlord&st=cse

I do believe it gives a little insight into what an uphill battle we have.

While all of us as Lakewoodites, know just how wonderful this city is, we have others right here
in the region, telling people things like this from every source out there.

I question, many aspects of this opinion piece, but we all have them.

So what does a city do to build its brand?

.

[Bill Call]

The author had a better article in a better magazine:

http://www.city-journal.org/2012/22_1_landlord.html

I subscribe to City Journal although I don't know why. Most of its articles are available on line.

I have some sympathy for the guy who put in granite counter tops and all the extras in an effort to get a better class of tenant. It's pretty much a waste of time and money.

[Jim O'Bryan]

The author had a better article in a better magazine:

http://www.city-journal.org/2012/22_1_landlord.html

I subscribe to City Journal although I don't know why. Most of its articles are available on line.

I have some sympathy for the guy who put in granite counter tops and all the extras in an effort to get a better class of tenant. It's pretty much a waste of time and money.

Bill

I would love to know where his property is and how he is investing in it and the tenants he
gets, or more to the point with him. Why invest in Lakewood if he feels that way?

I have had tremendous luck with tenants, with proper screening, ie, the old program of
asking around for people that are looking, and providing them with a home, at a price
that also helps "screen the tenants." When I was in the bar business I learned very early
on, if you want to keep trouble out, do not put up a sign that says, "No gang colors in the
bar." Far easier to add a couple dollars to the price of beer.

If you buy a house on let's say Newman, and all of the absentee landlords around you, feel
the way you do, or the way Mr. Stratton does, the entire block suffers. Hard to get quality
dollars and renters in a run down area of the city. Or with landlords scraping buy owning
strictly for bottom line with the code of the absentee landlord. Buy low, invest little, get
what you can, and get out.

This is something, I have found I have in common with Councilman Anderson. Provide high
quality living space, done right, and you get a steady tenant, that appreciates the property.
Even Mr. Stratton understands the value of quality tenants, he just seems to think they
only exist on the East Side where he lives.

As I read his article, it is easy to understand why he is having so much problem. I cannot
believe anyone would rent from this guy, he is a complete ____________! This is the problem
with Lakewood rentals. To paraphrase, "I avoid running into my renters in the hallways
because it will cost me an extra $400, as they will want something."

What landlords need to understand, and I know it is hard. Renters, are humans, just like
them. They like to live in nice places, with nice landlords. Just like they did at one point.
If you make someone feel they are living in a tenement, then they will act like they do.

Landlords, only after the big kill, and bottom line are ruining this city, and absentee
landlords like Bert, need to be run out of the business. Read how he describes his own
property, "I razed a bar once—the Stop-N-Go. The city replaced it with a shopping center. Was I against eminent domain? Not in this case. The Stop-N-Go was a hole, and we got a good price." He himself describes his property as a hole. I imagine the tenant
was also calling it a hole, because of the landlord.

He talks how he did not want to get into the business, but it was the family business. Well
then, so he hates his job, blames his dad for his life, lives on the eastside and believes that
all westsiders are criminals, strippers, or section 8.

This is exactly what we are fighting here in Lakewood with absentee landlords, and what
we are fighting in the regional, and national levels. How does Lakewood attract quality,
when some of our biggest landlords(160+ units) describe us this way at ever turn, while
glorifying himself as the saint, and cool tool...

"A lot of real-estate guys are gamblers like that, but I’m not. I went into real estate because it was the family business. It was an odd fit. Real estate isn’t a field for University of Chicago types, and I was a University of Chicago type. Actually, I went to the University of Michigan, but I visited the University of Chicago a lot when I was in college. I liked how the U of C students laughed at the jokes in all the right places in cult movies like Harold and Maude. The movie itself wasn’t that funny, but the students were."

With 160 rental units, and 25 store fronts, and landlords like this, I see why Lakewood is
having some of the issues we are having. He complains about his terrible luck with tenants while praising his screening company as professional. Well I bet they get paid on
successful placement, and that Bert is constantly on them about finding new people.

Please read this article and the one Bill posted.

So that you understand what we are up against.


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[Bill Call]

I have some sympathy for the guy who put in granite counter tops and all the extras in an effort to get a better class of tenant. It's pretty much a waste of time and money.

I guess I'll have to contradict myself.

I just put in high efficiency furnaces, bathrooms, refinished floors, etc. I didn't get much more rent (if any) but I did get some very good tenants. I think that renting is making a strong come back as a lifestyle choice.

Under certain conditions Lakewood could thrive under that new paradigm.

[Jim O'Bryan]

I guess I'll have to contradict myself.

I just put in high efficiency furnaces, bathrooms, refinished floors, etc. I didn't get much more rent (if any) but I did get some very good tenants. I think that renting is making a strong come back as a lifestyle choice.

Under certain conditions Lakewood could thrive under that new paradigm.

Bill

We have talked of this many times. Lakewood will yet again thrive, even with it being
managed through benign neglect for years.

The housing market was unreal, fake, a bubble that had to burst.

Quality rentals, in a clean safe city, should go like wildfire.

Well until, Stratton starts short cutting his end, to make a couple bucks more. The single
biggest problems with absentee landlords, is they could care what lives in the city, only
that they get their $$$$$$$.

You put in quality, I put in quality, Anderson puts in quality, because we live here. We are
building our community. We live with what we have rented to. Mr. Stratton does not, even
worse, he seems to loath the community with the exception of the $$$$ he can extract
from it, and the lowest possible invest level.

Lakewood is filled with 100 year old structures, that taken care of an inspected are not
just still good, but better made and healthier than homes today. Though not as energy
efficient. Lakewood should have been poised to cash in on the "new" trend towards rentals.
Lakewood should have seen the writing on the wall. When a person walks away from a home,
they have to walk into a rental. Instead of being prepared we are bragging outside of
Lakewood about how many terrible run down units we need to raze. Instead of working
on getting quality multi-units ready for our own "Boom" we spent thousands, on trying
to get people to turn their doubles into singles. Instead of understanding that the best way
for Lakewood to stay where it is an improve, is not in chasing people out, but rebuilding
our population to 60,000+. Nothing would secure Lakewood's business better than 10,000
new residents. But Lakewood took its eye off the prize, for more burgers on the Detroit
Chow Line. One might ask, When did the bedroom community of Lakewood decide it hated
people but loved businesses?

Lakewood is still the best place to live in the area.

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[Scott Meeson]

Looks like the foundation for improvement is being laid:

[Christina McCallum]

Scott,

Where in the City's website did you find that map? I was looking in Housing & Building but couldn't find it...

Thanks!

Christina McCallum

[David Westlake]

Where in the City's website did you find that map? I was looking in Housing & Building but couldn't find it...

Much better PDF located here... Good work by the City!
http://www.onelakewood.com/pdf/2012_HousingSurveyMap_0124.pdf

Can't wait until Ward 4 is released.
Not to seem too negative, but I'm sure it'll have twice as many "reds" as the rest of the city combined.
Real work needs to be done on some singles and doubles there.

[Peter Grossetti]

Christina (et al) - This project is being headed by The Department of Planning and Development, not Division of Housing & Building .. but I have to believe there is communication between the two.

[Jim O'Bryan]

Well, well, well

So I go to one of Mr. Stratten's building, and one of the renters, commented on water damage currently
happening, and they are so upset with "landlord" that they see no reason to even call again.

.

[Christina McCallum]

David,

Thank you for posting the link. I could not remember despite my reading about the evaluations which department if fell under exactly, and I assumed it was housing. I am sure more people than just me will appreciate the link appearing in this thread.

Christina