Earlier this week, Business Insider posted another in the internet's long line of "Hey, doesn't Detroit really suck" articles, in which they list a number of properties going for dirt cheap in the Motor City. Surprise! An economically depressed area with a withering population has damaged properties that are bank-owned that are basically worthless! Vice coined the phrase "ruin porn" last August. But is Detroit the only place where people can gawk at blight? Isn't there something closer to home? more ›

The mayor's plan to require owners of vacant buildings to make them more secure was delayed yesterday after lenders objected to the requirements. The new rules would require a building that is vacant for six months or longer to be secured with steel panels, or have all the doors and windows completely installed, dusk to dawn lighting, and an "active account" with a private security firm. Lenders that are holding the property would also have to pay an increased fee of $250 to place the building on the city's vacancy registry. That fee, currently at $100, would be waived as long as the building is kept up to city code. more ›