Michael and Cynthia Gray.
Michael Gray
In 2009, Michael Gray, a native Detroiter, bought an abandoned home from his nephew for just $1,500. He moved in as soon as he bought it. Prior to purchasing the home, Gray told Business Insider that he was homeless and living in his niece’s basement.In 2010, he began a nearly 10-year renovation process and transformed the home room by room.In an interview with Business Insider, Gray explained how he turned the home into a livable space for both him and his wife.Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.Michael Gray is a native Detroiter.At 67 years old, he spends his weekdays working as a machinist in Bowling Green, Ohio and his weekends at his home in Detroit with his wife Cynthia. The story of their four-bedroom home dates back to November 2009, when Gray bought it from his nephew, who is a real-estate broker, for just $1,500.Prior to purchasing the home, Gray was living in his niece’s basement. He told Business Insider that he was homeless and that despite having a college degree, he was unable to find work in Detroit. Gray told Business Insider that after getting hit by a car in 2008, he used some of the settlement money to buy the property. He moved in the day he bought it with nothing but an air mattress to sleep on. At the time, the home was in bad shape. According to Gray, it was infested with mites, spiders, and mice — not even the toilet worked. Now, nearly a decade later, the home is unrecognizable. He chronicled the home’s transformation in photographs and compiled the photos in two hard-copy albums, which he mailed to Business Insider. In a phone interview with Business Insider, he explained the work that went into renovating his home.Keep reading for a look at the transformation.Do you have a similar home-renovation story? If you want to share your story, email this reporter at lbrandt@businessinsider.com.
Michael Gray’s house is located in Detroit, Michigan right outside of the University District. It’s around one mile from the University of Detroit.
Google Maps
Detroit was once home to the booming auto industry. In the 1950s, the auto industry started declining and companies started moving out of the city. By the 1960s, people were leaving Detroit in droves.In 2013, the city filed for Chapter 9 bankruptcy protection. Now, more than five years later, more and more people are investing in the city.Just consider entrepreneur Dan Gilbert, the billionaire founder of Quicken Loans. As Business Insider previously reported, after Gilbert moved his company to downtown Detroit in 2010, he started the real-estate firm Bedrock. Not only is Quicken Loans now one of Detroit’s largest employers and taxpayers, but as of 2018, Bedrock had invested or allocated $5.6 billion in roughly 100 properties in downtown Detroit and nearby neighborhoods.
Gray documented the entire renovation process in two large photo albums, which he mailed to Business Insider.
Michael Gray
He bought the house in 2009 for $1,500 from his nephew, Sylvester, who is a broker for Global Property Investment Group, a commercial real-estate agency.
Michael Gray
Sylvester told Business Insider that his office buys real estate, sells real estate, renovates properties, and rents properties.
The kitchen before renovations began.
Michael Gray
Global Property Investment Group acquires properties from a variety of different sources including asset managers, the Detroit Land Bank Authority, and the Wayne County Tax Auction, according to Sylvester. When properties don’t fit into the company’s business model, they are sold to independent purchasers, which is how Gray came across the house.
The bathroom before renovations began.
Michael Gray
Gray told Business Insider that he’s been living in the house since the day he bought it and that he started renovating it in April 2010.
Wires hanging from the wall before renovations began.
Michael Gray
“In Detroit, if you’re not there or you don’t have someone there, someone will come in and take your stuff. It’s gone in a matter of 15 minutes, gone,” he explained to Business Insider.
When he first moved in, the house was infested with mites, spiders, and mice.
The old crawl space behind the master bedroom.
Michael Gray
