Detroit — Ch. 22 Art. X Right to Counsel in Eviction Proceedings § 22-10-2

The City Council finds that: (1)
Prior to 2020, there were more than 30,000 eviction filings in the 36th District Court on properties located in the City of Detroit, one of the largest dockets in the nation. The 2020 census reports indicates that there are 87,000 rental structures in the City. Of these, the Buildings, Safety Engineering, and Environmental Department estimates that fewer than 20 percent are code compliant;
(2) An estimated 11,000 homes in the City with federally-insured mortgages were bank foreclosed prior to the federal moratoria and are listed for sale in the 2022 U.S. Housing and Urban Department inventory;
(3) There were more than 50,000 properties on the Wayne County Treasurer's 2021 petition for tax foreclosure in 2022, 85 percent to 90 percent of which are located in the City;
(4) There is an estimated economic value lost by the City due to out-migration related to evictions of at least $28.7 million;
(5) It is estimated that the City will experience social safety net cost savings of approximately $18 million by providing legal representation to residents facing eviction. Between 2014 and 2019, it has cost an estimated $34 million in public funds to demolish blighted homes purchased by speculators out of the tax foreclosure auction; and
(6) Providing the right to counsel in any proceeding that threatens the occupancy of the occupant ameliorates the threat of economic impact and to public safety not only for the individual so represented but for the entire City. The City receives an estimated $3,751.00 annually per resident in non-reimbursable federal funding, which it is at risk of losing if a resident is evicted and migrates out of the City. The City receives in federal funding more than three times the cost of providing legal representation for a resident facing eviction.