Cleveland Heights to Sell More Renovated Homes

After , Cleveland Heights will sell two more homes renovated with money from a federal program that helps cities address the foreclosure crisis.

The city received the , which grants money to local governments to buy abandoned, vacant and foreclosed homes, repair them and turn them around for sale. The money can also be used to tear down houses that cannot be saved.

At Monday’s meeting, council approved the sale of a home at 3994 Delmore Road for $84,900 and $5,000 of down-payment assistance to the buyer. Another house on 1062 Allston Road was also approved and will sell for $130,000. The buyer will receive $11,500 in down-payment assistance.

At the April 20 meeting, City Council approved the sale of a property on 3199 Sycamore Road for $88,500, and $5,000 of down-payment assistance to the buyer.

The money from the sales will go back into the fund to continue the process of rehabbing and demolishing dilapidated homes.

Council Member Dennis Wilcox said that this makes five homes that will be sold through the program, and 12 renovated, 11 demolished and three to be demolished.

“If you’ve been listening to the sale prices and the comments on just these three properties that have been sold, and knowing as most of us do what is happening and what has happened to our housing market, you can see that this is a phenomenal achievement,” said Kenneth Montlack, council member.

Another city-owned property on 3132-3134 East Derbyshire Road was approved to sell for $129,900. The two-family home was renovated with Community Development Block Grant money as part of the East Derbyshire Neighborhood Improvement Program, which was established in 2007 to give incentives to landlords to better maintain their renter-occupied properties and encourage homeowners to live in at least one unit of the buildings.

About $700,000 was put into the program to target the block between Lee and Cottage Grove roads, which was mostly two-family homes with several absentee landlords and investors, Wilcox said.

The homes were meant to be half owner-occupied, half renter-occupied, but in many cases the landlord was not present and the homes were not maintained, he said. They had tenants who were “engaging in antisocial and/or unlawful behavior,” according to the ordinance that passed.

The money was used to improve landscaping and give matching grants to help people renovate the properties.

For questions about the homes on the market, call City Manager Robert Downey's office at 216-291-3737. 

Highlights from the :

Cleveland Heights will acquire all rights to and maintain its ownership of the former Ohio Savings Bank property at the intersection of Tullamore and Lee roads for $60,000.

will trade in 11 used Crown Victoria police cars and receive a $23,100 credit to purchase nine new Crown Victorias from Wild Bill’s Used Cars and Statewide Ford Lincoln Mercury.