Fire damages Eminem's boyhood home

Tammy Stables Battaglia | Detroit Free Press

DETROIT -- Fire burned the boyhood home of Detroit-area rapper Eminem on Thursday, sending flames shooting from the boarded-up bungalow pictured on the musician's latest LP, "The Marshall Mathers LP 2."

The Detroit Fire Department responded to the blaze at 19946 Dresden Street near East State Fair, just south of 8 Mile, at 6:20 p.m., Senior Chief Jack Wiley said.

When crews from Engine 60 arrived, fire was coming out a window on the second floor of the two-story bungalow, according to a firefighter at the scene. Firefighters were able to put out the blaze, which damaged portions of the top floor. The fire department did not have any information on a cause.

The home, originally pictured on the cover of Eminem's 2000 release, "The Marshall Mathers LP," was most recently owned by the Michigan Land Bank. The government program that manages vacant properties – including 11,000 in Detroit – was auctioning the property, with minimum bids starting at $1.

According to public records, Deborah Mathers bought the house in 1987 for $19,900, agreeing to pay the couple who owned it $3,000 down and $220 a month. In 1994, the couple issued a deed to Mathers, who on the same day signed the deed over to Ann Investment.

The property changed hands about 10 times before the Wayne County Treasurer's Office foreclosed for non-payment of taxes in 2001. A company listed as EM & UU Properties bought the house for $1 in 2009 before it was abandoned. After the house failed to sell for $500 at a Wayne County Treasurer's Office auction, it was turned over to the Land Bank.

The website Zillow.com lists the worth of the 767-square-foot bungalow on a 40-foot by 120-foot lot at $32,885.

The home was listed as available for sale on the Michigan Land Bank website on Thursday.