Whether it is the chance to be a first-time homeowner, or an opportunity to break into the real estate industry, for thousands of people in Detroit, the city's land bank program, which sells distressed properties, is offering a new lease on life.



Damon Dickerson, who bought a house from the land bank this year, is thrilled for the opportunity to see the home he and his wife have always wanted come to life. “We’re only midway through construction,” he says, “but I can already see our design plans, our vision, in place. That’s really exciting.” Detroit native Melvin Sanford has been trying to get his property management startup, SC&W, off the ground for years. He credits the land bank for providing him with the entry point he has always needed, “[The land bank] is a great opportunity for someone’s who trying to launch a startup. The city of Detroit is doing great work with this.”



Above, Clement Wright, 62, bought this house from the land bank for $18,700. A Detroit native, Wright owns or leases 11 homes in the area, and is about 95-percent done with the renovations—the majority of which he completed himself over the past year. “I wouldn’t change a thing about the renovations,” he says. “It took me year because it’s about getting it perfect.”

Mark Peterson/Redux Pictures for Politico Magazine