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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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Detroit's blight tied to unpaid water bills
The Detroit News · 6 days ago
Detroit— City water officials may change billing practices that some critics contend exacerbate Detroit’s cycle of abandonment, foreclosure and blight. Since 2007, Detroit has attached delinquent water bills to property… |
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Fri Sep 19, 2014 6:19 am |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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Many landlords protested after Flint raised the home rental water deposits from $100 to $350. Flint also added a $75 water turn-on fee.
Terry Hanson, Executive Director of the Genesee County Landlords Association, called it a hardship on residents with fixed income. Hanson stated the "city should be more aggressive in collecting overdue water payments, rather than allowing bills to become more delinquent over time."
Hanson's prediction that the increases in water rates and deposits will cause more homes to become vacant and have more people leave have been accurate.
*Water rates in Flint have increased over 110 % between 2011 and 2013 with a 6.5% increase in mid 2013.
* Kurtz in February 2013- $2.8 million owed on 5,000 water affidavits
"increasing the water affidavits will put collection from renters more in line with collection from property owners."
* When delinquent tax bills are sent to the county, the balance of the property owners bill is also placed as a lien on the property tax roll.. There is no way to collect on a water affidavit that is not in the property owners name.
* While Kurtz believed the increase was in line with other communities, this was disputed by Hanson.
* In 2013 The city "readiness to serve" charge (a service charge) before any base water usage fees was $54. This charge exceeded the cost of water and possibly violated state law. This was a basis of local and a federal court cases filed by Flint Council President Scott Kincaid. |
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Fri Sep 19, 2014 6:57 am |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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*Flint water-sewer bills the highest in the county.
$35 month higher than next highest (Montrose)
$90 month higher than lowest (Genesee Township followed by Beecher)
* Scott Kincaid
"They're raising these rates at such a high rate that we're losing property taxes, income taxes, and we're losing students at Flint community Schools. They don't realize the long term effects that is going to have." |
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Fri Sep 19, 2014 7:06 am |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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Finance Director Jerry Ambrose
"Reducing rates by eliminating expenditures for critically needed upgrades and repairs is a disservice to current and future users of the system. In winter 2013 lint had 250 water main break and Genesee County had 7.
Flint administrations continue to use resources, such as federal block grants, to carry on their agenda of encouraging downtown growth, enticing higher income residents to move to the city, and promote their Master plan goals. This funding and other grants could be used to improve the infrastructure. Instead the burden of the improvements are placed n the backs of those least able to pay, the residents.
(see the Bllomberg article) |
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Fri Sep 19, 2014 7:17 am |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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Detroit's blight tied to unpaid water bills
The Detroit News · 6 days ago
Detroit— City water officials may change billing practices that some critics contend exacerbate Detroit’s cycle of abandonment, foreclosure and blight. Since 2007, Detroit has attached delinquent water bills to property…September 12, 2014 at 7:56 am
Detroit's blight tied to unpaid water bills
Joel Kurth
The Detroit News
8
Comments
Detroit— City water officials may change billing practices that some critics contend exacerbate Detroit’s cycle of abandonment, foreclosure and blight.
Since 2007, Detroit has attached delinquent water bills to property taxes. The program was initially a success, but the collection rate on those bills since then has shrunk from 90 percent to 24 percent, said Darryl Latimer, deputy director of the city Water and Sewerage Department.
Now, city officials may change course. By early next year, the department plans to send bills to homeowners or tenants rather than addresses. The city also is having “internal conversations” about the wisdom of attaching bills to taxes, said Latimer.
The city could end the practice for abandoned homes and limit it to other ones in favor of collection agents or other traditional methods, he said.
“Once the economic downturn hit and foreclosures started, we started seeing a drop in collections and more people just walking away from homes, mortgages, taxes as well as water bills,” Latimer said.
The policy change coincided with a surge in tax foreclosures, from 4,400 in 2008 to 23,000, Wayne County records show. Attaching water bills to taxes isn’t solely to blame for that increase but it’s made a bad situation worse, said Ted Phillips, executive director of the United Community Housing Coalition.
“It’s obviously a huge contributing factor in foreclosures,” said Phillips, whose nonprofit helps renters and first-time home buyers. “We’re seeing homes sell for far less than the total amount owed. It’s a waste all the way around.”
Homes go to foreclosure after three years of unpaid taxes. During online auctions that began Wednesday, bidders must pay all debts, including interest, fees and water bills. If a property doesn’t sell, it falls to an October auction during which debts are erased and bids start at $500.
None of the 11,600 homes now up for auction went into foreclosure because of water bills alone. But water comprises 16 percent of their total debt, a total of $21.5 million. Water is at least 25 percent of the debt on 1,575 of the homes, an analysis of county records shows.
Phillips said the extra bills drive up prices at auction, making it harder to attract bidders. That means more fall to October auctions that are frequented by speculators and landlords, he added.
Latimer said the department has been working with auction buyers to lower water bills on foreclosed homes. He doesn’t believe the policy has caused more houses to be abandoned.
“When they go into foreclosure, they are already at the point where they’ve stopped paying the taxes and are walking away,” he said.
Janice Beecher, director of the Institute of Public Utilities at Michigan State University, said attaching delinquent bills to taxes is a common practice among municipal systems nationwide.
“Under normal conditions, most people think (it works) pretty good,” she said.
jkurth@detroitnews.com
(313) 222-2513
From The Detroit News: http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20140912/METRO01/309120061#ixzz3DlOIF9if |
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Fri Sep 19, 2014 7:22 am |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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The Hidden cost of Flint River Water
I have been talking to many who say they are unable to drink the Flint water and who also don't give this water to their pets.
Our family buys 5 cases of Aquafina a month and 30 gallon bottle of water for the dogs. This is on top of a $109 plus water bill every month. |
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Sun Oct 19, 2014 9:36 am |
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