Refurbing Houses in Minneapolit

I've been looking into refurbing some foreclosed properties in Minneapolis. The city has a shortage of good, affordable housing but not a shortage houses. There are a large number of foreclosed properties that are quite inexpensive but need some TLC and they need the city to recognize that the current housing market isn't the same as years past. The TLC comes in the form of investment, which generally requires upgrades to roofs, windows, and furnaces. Even after this investment, there's financial gains that can be made from either resale of the homes or if investors want to rent the properties until market prices firm up.

Minneapolis has a couple of things working against it in getting properties back in use. The first one is the Truth in Lending process. This process is good in that it protects buyers from getting into a home that has some obvious structural flaws or code violations. This is accomplished by having inspections that detail the work that's required to get the house up to snuff. Those are all good. The problem is that it's supposed to be the seller can't sell the house that doesn't meet code. Now, take a look at a foreclose house that has a bank as an owner. They aren't going to make repairs and clearly state that the house is being sold "as-is". To get around this item, the city has a clause that states that the new owner recognizes the deficiencies in the property and will take to financial responsibility to do so. That's OK too except for they require that these repairs must be made within 90 days, after which the property must pass inspection. It also states what repairs must be made under permit, even though some of those home features may not be used. An example of this is the connection for hooking up a gas dryer in the basement is not up to code. It also applies new rules to existing structures. For instance, the house that I'm looking at has a certain size bedroom window and that window no longer meets the requirement of opening with >5 square feet of room to crawl out. I see the reason for requirement, but this is a 1920's house that had small windows and stucco exterior. Maybe a different style of window that opens fully can meet the requirement, but it would be prohibitively expensive to widen a stucco'd opening. In general, I'm not looking for a free pass to turn a quick buck, nor am I looking to become a deadbeat landlord. I'm just looking for a way to wisely invest in the real estate market.

I'd mentioned two drawbacks to refurbing foreclosed houses in Minneapolis. The other one is the tax assessment. I'm sorry, a house that I'm buying for $40K should not be taxed at $164K. That's rediculous. Until that house actually can be shown to sell for more money, it should be taxed at no more than 25% over the sale price. As it is, the house is deadbeat. It's vacant and a scourge on the neighborhood until it gets lived in. The city should recognize this and become an active participant in a Rational Nation.

So, if cities (like Minneapolis) are looking for regular people to come in and help with the housing crisis, they should figure out how to make only the necessary red tape and set taxes based on going forward, not looking back.