Insights · Markets
Detroit real estate investing: what deals look like now.
By Danté M. Shackelford, Founder and Managing Principal of EMx Lending
Updated November 5, 2026
Short answer
Detroit is the cheapest place to start of the markets we lend in, and about three of every four sales in its core investor ZIP codes go to investors. Flips have the widest margin relative to price, small multifamily rentals work, and BRRR works but runs thin once the full post-sale tax bill hits.
These figures cover the investor-heavy neighborhoods in ZIP codes 48219, 48221, 48224, 48227 and 48235: about 3,000 recorded sales over the last year, roughly 74% of them to investors, and about 146 likely flips.
The numbers
| Measure | Typical | Range or note |
|---|---|---|
| Flip purchase price | $65,000 | $40,000 to $85,000 |
| Flip list price after rehab | $175,000 | $129,000 to $220,000 (asking) |
| Flip rehab budget | about $44,000 | Held about 7 months |
| Gross flip spread | about $107,000 | List minus purchase, before rehab and costs |
| Value after a BRRR rehab | about $138,000 | $117,000 to $160,000 |
| 3-bedroom house rent | $1,350 | $1,300 to $1,475 |
| 2-bedroom duplex unit rent | $1,100 to $1,275 | Per unit |
| 2 to 4 unit price | about $95,000 | Investor median; retail buyers pay about $170,000 |
| Property taxes | about $3,800 a year | 3-bedroom after a sale; insurance about $1,450 |
| Inventory | about 4.7 months | ZIP 48219, October 2026 |
Which strategies work in Detroit
| Strategy | Fit today | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Flip | Works | The cheapest entry of our markets with about a $107,000 gross spread. Takes roughly $25,000 cash in at full leverage. Keep rehabs light to moderate right now. |
| Core-Plus duplex | Works | Duplexes trade around $95,000 to $170,000 with unit rents of $1,100 to $1,275. A $145,000 duplex needs about $51,000 cash in. |
| Core rental | Works | About $29,000 of cash per door on a duplex. |
| BRRR | Works, thin | Nets roughly $150 a month after a full Detroit tax bill. Keep your refinance value under about $131,000 at $1,350 rent to clear a 1.25 DSCR. |
The tax bill catches people
In Detroit, property taxes reset after a sale. Budget around $3,800 a year on a typical 3-bedroom, whatever the seller was paying and whatever you paid for it. That one line is the difference between a rental that cash flows and one that doesn't, so underwrite every deal on the post-sale bill.
How we'd buy here now
Detroit reads as a correcting housing market inside a late-cycle economy. Favor Core-Plus rentals and 2 to 4 unit properties, underwrite at today's rent, take about 10% off resale comps on anything you plan to sell, and skip gut rehabs. The full reasoning is in our Q4 2026 market update.
Planning figures as of October 2026, from about 12 months of recorded sales and current rent comps in the ZIP codes listed. Flip "after rehab" prices are asking prices, not closed sales, and deed records run two to three months behind. These are planning norms, not loan terms or appraisals. Every deal is underwritten on its own numbers.
This is general education, not investment, legal or tax advice. Loan terms are general guidelines, depend on credit, experience and the property, are subject to change and are not a commitment to lend. EMx Lending makes business-purpose loans on non-owner-occupied investment property in all states except Vermont, North Carolina, North Dakota, South Dakota, Idaho, California, Arizona and Nevada.
Investing in Detroit?
Send us the deal. We'll tell you how it compares to the market and what we can lend on it.