Yup, that’s the primary photo for this “Completely restored Victorian Mansion in prime Mid-Town” Detroit, listed at $2.5 million. The really odd thing is that they have a decent exterior photo, but for some reason they buried it down at #49 of 58 photos.
Some of the other photo choices are interesting, as well.
Who wants to spend $2.5 million on a mansion just to have a bunch of people in apartments staring into your party yard all day?
Also, I’m not sure that “a view of Ford Field and Comerica Park” is really on the list of features that mansion-shoppers are looking for.
They do have some sweet stairs though, so there is that.
Ooo. Detroit. I’m sorry. They are debating turning part of the city back into farmland because its being abandoned. It’s an old house with a lot of character in a place where nobody wants to be anymore. Maybe it will sell, but not to anyone who expects to stay there for too long and continue to make the kind of money to afford it.
For what might have been an amazing restoration, I’m not feeling the love. Some individual rooms have a nice feel to them, but others definitely don’t. I’m also not crazy about the assorted decor styles. I know it’s currently a B&B and that the assortment allows guests to choose something to their liking, but it just doesn’t seem fair to the house. Maybe that’s why it feels sort of dead inside – it’s being used rather than loved.
Considering what’s happened to all the other old-timers from the neighborhood (they don’t exist anymore) perhaps there’s not much anyone can do to reinvigorate the place. Satellite views show the now remarkably checkerboard layout of what used to be wall-to-wall residential areas surrounding this site. From what I understand, when the auto industry fell apart there were thousands of people who, after losing their jobs, simply couldn’t finish paying for their homes or continue upkeep so… they just walked away. Eventually, the empty hulls were bulldozed. If the U.S. ever gets back on its feet financially, this area could be ripe for urban homesteading. But at the moment it’s just… empty. All over. Like North Dakota. With parking lots. So this once Grande Dame looks like the last of her species. And that’s always a sad thing to see, no matter how much lipstick you apply.