On July 23, Toledo Free Press reported online that AOL Real Estate ranked Toledo the “10th Emptiest City” in the United States. The list cited rental and homeowner property vacancy rates. Toledo’s 11.5 percent rental vacancy rate and 3.8 percent homeowner vacancy rate landed the city behind Orlando, No. 1 on the list, followed by Dayton, Memphis, Tenn., Detroit, Richmond, Va., Las Vegas, Atlanta, Tampa, Fla. and Houston.

That vacancy rates stands despite tearing down houses at a rate of about 300 a year.

So, is the Glass City half empty or half full?

In 1970, this area was home to about 383,800. The 2010 census recorded 287,208 residents.

What went wrong? The combination of over-reliance on the auto industry, underdevelopment of the waterfront and a business community that ceded leadership to media politicians has proven disastrous.

Toledo Free Press reporter Caitlin McGlade quoted Anna Mills, the president of the Toledo Real Estate Investment Association, as saying the market is changing from homeowners to renters.

“I find that the people I used to be selling houses to are now renting from me,” Mills said.

People are more likely to rent properties to avoid being tied down to a given place, so they are free to take off to wherever the jobs are.

Mills also credited Toledo’s shrinking population to capital gain taxes — she said she hasn’t sold any of her rentals because of the taxes she’d have to pay — and local taxes.

“And people wonder why we’re losing people and then we’ve got seven levies on the property tax?” Mills said.

For Realtors and a market that depend on people with money to spend, it is increasingly difficult to express optimism. I described the situation to a friend as a “buyer’s market,” and he responded, “Only if you’re buying a wrecking ball or a moving van.”

Toledo’s inclusion on this list must serve as a wake-up call to our community. If we choose to sleepwalk through this critical challenge, we stand to lose everything. Only by steadfastly maintaining that there is still potential to fill that glass — and acting on that potential by pushing our business leaders to take back the reins of investment and development — can we ever hope to move down and off lists such as these.

Thomas F. Pounds is president and publisher of Toledo Free Press and Toledo Free Press Star. Contact him at tpounds@toledofreepress.com.

Tags: Anna Mills, AOl Real Estate, Publisher's Statement, Toledo Real Estate Investment Association, Tom Pounds

This entry was posted on Friday, July 27th, 2012 at 12:00 am and is filed under Opinion, Publisher's Statement.
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AOL Real Estate has just ranked Toledo the 10th emptiest city in the United States.

The team of reporters and editors, which posts real estate advice and information, cited rental and homeowner property vacancy rates for the list of the country’s 10 emptiest cities. Toledo’s 11.5 percent rental vacancy rate and 3.8 percent homeowner vacancy rate landed the city behind Tampa, Fla. and Houston on the list.

Orlando, Fla. is the emptiest city in the country, according to the report, with 18.8 percent of its rental properties and 2.2 percent of its homeowner properties lying vacant. Dayton, Ohio ranked second, followed by Memphis, Tenn., Detroit, Richmond, Va., Las Vegas and Atlanta.

An abandoned home in South Toledo

The City of Toledo tears down about 300 to 400 properties a year, an answer to the effects of a population that has been shrinking since the 1970s. The city enjoyed population growth from 1940 until 1970, reaching about 383,800. By 1980, the population sunk to 354,635. The trend continued; 287,208 residents were recorded in the 2010 census. Just 10 years prior, the census had recorded 313,619.

Anna Mills, the president of the Toledo Real Estate Investment Association, said the market is changing from homeowners to renters.

“I find that the people I used to be selling houses to are now renting from me,” Mills said.

This is a testament to the ailing job market, Mills said. People are more likely to rent properties to avoid being tied down to a given place, so they are free to take off to wherever the jobs are.

She mentioned the Jeep plant revival and the new Hollywood Casino Toledo as hopeful venues to spark job growth. But for the most part, she said, the jobs are not here.

“We’re in the ‘crossroads of America’, they’re saying. We’re on the water, on the lake on the river and we have all this and there’s no development,” Mills said. “There’s no amusement type things along the lake and it’s amazing how we’ve not done much with our assets.”

She also chalked up Toledo’s shrinking population to capital gain taxes — she hasn’t sold any of her rentals because of the taxes she’d have to pay — and local taxes. The November ballot will be stacked with levies.

“And people wonder why we’re losing people and then we’ve got seven levies on the property tax?”

Tags: Anna Mills, AOl Real Estate, Toledo Real Estate Investment Association

This entry was posted on Monday, July 23rd, 2012 at 11:44 am and is filed under Community, Real Estate.
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