Quicken, UCHC partner to turn 80 renters into homeowners

A new program could help up to 80 renters across Detroit who could have lost their homes to the Wayne County Tax Foreclosure Auction. The program—a partnership between Quicken Loans, United Community Housing Coalition (UCHC), and the City of Detroit—aims to turn the renters into homeowners.

UCHC has been working to help home occupants who could be impacted by the tax auction to get on a payment plan to avoid foreclosure. Many times, an absent or negligent landlord doesn’t pay taxes, leading to occupied homes in the tax auction. Quicken approached UCHC in May to identify those who had not gotten on a payment plan. 3,300 occupied homes were reached in total, and 2,100 of those homes were able to avoid tax foreclosure, including 984 owner-occupied homes.

Courtesy of Quicken Loans

These 80 renters will need to pay between $2,500 and $5,500 to outright own their home. Funds from these homes will got back to UCHC and future efforts to prevent foreclosure.

According to a press release, the criteria for these renters-turned-homeowners meet these requirements:

• Passed HUD home inspection
• No outstanding arrest warrants on record
• Willing and able to assume the cost ($2,500-$5,500) of purchasing the home

“The occupants of these homes were in a precarious situation because their landlords failed to pay property taxes, putting them at risk of eviction after the foreclosure auction,” said Michele Oberholtzer, UCHC Tax Foreclosure Prevention Project Coordinator. “Empowering these tenants to become homeowners achieves two important goals: residents are able to affordably start building equity in their home and neighborhood, and homes remain occupied.”