Detroit has demolished roughly 27,000 abandoned houses and sold another 19,000 formerly vacant homes since Mayor Mike Duggan took office in 2014 and embarked on what became one of the largest residential blight-removal efforts in the country, city officials said this week.
Nearly 12 years ago, Detroit had an estimated 47,000 abandoned, city-owned houses under the Detroit Land Bank Authority. As of this month, that inventory has been reduced to 942 homes, according to a final report released by Duggan ahead of the closeout of Proposal N, a voter-approved bond program that funded the second phase of demolitions.
Of the remaining homes, 240 are slated for demolition within the next six months, while 702 are expected to be sold to buyers willing to renovate them in 2026, city officials said.
“It took 12 years, but Detroit has successfully demolished 27,000 houses and sold another 19,000 formerly abandoned homes to families who wanted to fix them up,” Duggan said.
The effort unfolded in two major phases. From 2014 to 2020, Detroit used $265 million in federal Hardest Hit Fund dollars to demolish 18,701 houses and sell 9,043 others for rehabilitation. That work accelerated under Proposal N, a $250 million bond approved by voters in 2020. It funded 8,277 demolitions and led to 10,037 home sales between 2021 and 2025, exceeding the city’s original targets of 8,000 demolitions and 8,000 renovations.
As a result of the demolitions and renovations, city officials point to rising property values. A University of Michigan study released earlier this year found that Detroit homeowners gained a total $4.6 billion in home equity between 2014 and 2023, with appreciation recorded in every neighborhood.
“Homeowners who stayed in Detroit and never left were the ones who gained the most wealth,” Duggan said. “That has been one of the most satisfying accomplishments of this administration.”
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While the city is nearing the elimination of the Land Bank’s vacant housing stock, the final closeout of Proposal N remains tied to an ongoing environmental cleanup effort linked to contaminated soil used at some demolition sites.
For years, the city has required contractors to backfill demolition sites with clean, uncontaminated soil. When testing revealed unacceptable contaminant levels, officials say the city removed the soil, replaced it, and sought reimbursement from contractors.
That process intensified this year after investigators determined that contaminated soil may have been used at dozens of residential demolition sites.
Earlier this summer, Detroit’s Office of Inspector General reported that demolition contractor Gayanga Co. LLC may have used unapproved backfill sources. Testing ordered by the city found that 33 of 41 Gayanga-handled sites failed to meet state residential standards. Gayanga and its owner, Brian McKinney, were suspended from city work while the investigation continues. City records show the company has completed more than 2,400 demolitions in Detroit, earning nearly $64 million in contracts.
Duggan said the investigation later expanded beyond a single contractor. Soil supplied by Iron Horse of Michigan Inc., which operates a sand and gravel pit in Milford Township, was used to backfill 424 demolition sites in Detroit. City testing found elevated contaminant levels at multiple locations supplied by Iron Horse, prompting the city to suspend the company as an approved backfill source in November and refer the matter to the state.
The city said it is working with environmental consulting firm Mannik & Smith Group to test every site where contaminated soil is suspected. To date, soil has been removed from 58 properties, including sites involving Iron Horse and Gayanga. Police are also investigating whether contractors intentionally used unapproved soil sources and whether fraud charges may be warranted.
The state Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) is overseeing the investigation into Iron Horse’s operations.
Duggan said the city has set aside $15 million in Proposal N closeout funds to address soil remediation, making it unlikely the cleanup will affect Detroit’s finances.
“As we have for the last 12 years, we will test every single site with suspected contaminated backfill, we will immediately remove any soil found unacceptable, and we will pursue reimbursement from the responsible contractor,” Duggan said.