Dearborn Says it’s Selling Florida Apartment Building
Faced with mounting financial challenges that could put more popular municipal services at risk, the city of Dearborn today announced it is actively seeking buyers for its Florida apartment building for retirees.
Dearborn is seeking buyers for its apartment building in Clearwater, Florida.
A city press release did not list how much money the building might fetch but as most homeowners in Dearborn know, this is a challenging time to be trying to fetch a good return for real estate. The release only stated that the city had completed its appraisal work on the property.
In 2007, the 50-year-old Florida property was valued at between $8 million and $8.3 million, according to one informal appraisal. Another appraisal in March 2008 put the value of property at about $5.6 million.
In March of this year, the Dearborn Press & Guide reported that the Dearborn Towers property value had dropped to $2.8 million, according to the most recent appraisal. The value could climb to $5.8 million if rents in the building were raised to levels of surrounding buildings, the paper reported then. (for earlier post, click here)
The apartment building is located near Clearwater Beach, which Dearborn says has consistently been named one of the best beaches in the country. The property sits on a 2-acre waterfront site on Clearwater Bay, and is near the Gulf of Mexico and downtown Clearwater. It has a private fishing dock, marina and pool.
The opportunity for Dearborn retirees to affordably live in Florida for some or part of the year made Dearborn Towers immensely popular in the 1960s through the 1990s, and added to Dearborn’s reputation of providing one-of-a-kind services for its residents.
As times changed, so did Dearborn residents’ ideas about retirement, and the traditionally long waiting list to rent an apartment in Dearborn Towers disappeared.
And, now, even though the apartment building is essentially self-supporting, the city of Dearborn in its press release says its resources need to be prioritized in a different way.
Residents of Dearborn Towers have leases that can be terminated with 30 days notice. Residents who may need accommodations following a sale are invited back to live in available units in the City’s five senior apartments in Dearborn.
Constructed in 1960, the apartment building has 40, one-bedroom and 48 two-bedroom units, with scenic views, screened terraces, electric kitchens and individually controlled air-conditioning.
Buyers interested in Dearborn Towers should call the City of Dearborn’s Legal Department at 313-943-2035.
May 21st, 2010 at 8:55 pm
“The opportunity for Dearborn retirees to affordably live in Florida for some or part of the year…..”
Huh? What a deal! You can live there for some of the year OR part of the year!
May 22nd, 2010 at 1:23 pm
Its about time — Camp Dearborn is next, right Big Jack?
May 23rd, 2010 at 10:18 am
Yeah, camp dearborn is nothing but trash now, durty diapers in the lake, drinking, fighting….needs to get off our budget.
May 23rd, 2010 at 11:58 am
it’s ridiculous for dearborn to own this…. should have been back when it was worth something- what a shame… day late and a dollar short(several million)…
May 23rd, 2010 at 2:52 pm
Why would anyone sell a prime piece of property in the worst economy ever? It really doesn’t make sense. So much money has been wasted on things like trying to get the airport to change flight patterns, law suits, and advisers telling us what we already know, that now one of the nicer reasons for living in Dearborn has to go by the wayside.
I guess that “a day late and a dollar short” has become Dearborn’s official motto.
May 23rd, 2010 at 9:21 pm
Thisbitteroldman,
I think you haven’t been to the same Camp Dearborn I’ve been to. It is not dirty, and as far as the budget, it is making money. CD is a treasure that no other city has. Sorry, so many people are not wise enough to appreciate it. It has a lot to offer the residents.
May 24th, 2010 at 1:14 pm
The Florida property needs to be sold. Although in retrospect, it would’ve been alot smarter to have sold it before a recession/real estate crash. As for Camp Dearborn, I’m sure its nice. I haven’t been there since I was a kid (45 now). I bet less than 5% of the City’s population even uses it.
May 25th, 2010 at 8:12 am
Unfortunately, I think Dearborn needs to sell both the Florida Towers, and Camp Dearborn. Let’s get the budget fixed, and start improving on D-e-a-r-b-o-r-n. Not Milford, not Florida. We need to save the pools, teachers, police, libraries, clean parks, any city services etc. Things that directly affect our local property value.
May 26th, 2010 at 10:45 am
Hopeful you are so correct, however, the big boy will only probably squander the money, on some more of his hair-brain ideas.
May 29th, 2010 at 6:08 am
The BIG O got permission to sell this property years ago. The real estate market has been declining for YEARS yet he waits until NOW to sell it. Why would you want this man to lead our City? This isn’t just one mistake. The same thing happen with the Montgomery Wards building. He purchased it at a really high price and sold for a really low price. No wonder this City is a mess. I hope you people wake up in 3 years and get him and the rest of the Council out of there while we still have a City left.
June 3rd, 2010 at 6:06 am
Dearborn is projecting a $20 million budget deficit this fiscal year, many want to save the pools including me, library hours are being cut and want to save our libraries including me, our downtowns are struggling, people are losing their homes, lenders are not taking care of their properties, property taxes has declined significantly on those left, Ford has let 70,000 white collar workers in Dearborn go the last few years, therefore our residential and business tax base has shrunk significantly the past few years.
Dearborn most likely has the most infrastructure of recreational and cultural activities to maintain, with much of it being built in the 50’s and 60’s, most want it all to stay but not pay more for it and this all costs a huge amount of money to maintain. In our heyday Ford paid 80% of the property taxes, now they pay 20%, residences pay 40% and other businesses pay 40%.
Unlike years or decades ago, very few residents take advantage of Dearborn Towers, etc. These are not all, but many of the reasons why the city is offering the Towers for sale. I’d much rather see it sold than see services and amenities we love and use regularly be eliminated. Wouldn’t you??? No offense intended Wanting.
June 3rd, 2010 at 8:35 pm
Many of the people who are walking away from their houses aren’t doing so because they can’t afford the payments anymore. They’re doing it, and getting away with it, because their house is no longer a good investment.
These people need to be held accountable for what they are doing to the city and the economy. The banks need to sue them if necessary and they need to be prosecuted if they have the money to pay and are hiding income or declaring bankruptcy fraudulently while the rest of us are bailing out their banks and absorbing their losses.