The Monkey Shack

This 3 BDRM, 1 BA 1000 sq ft. home with wood floors located on a quaint, tree-lined street in Detroit can be yours for just $899!

If you needed a sign of just how bad the real estate market has gotten around the country (I don't...my neighbor has had their home listed for 18 months), then take a look at what is happening in some of the markets around the country that have been hit hardest by foreclosures.

According to Realtor.com, there are 18 listings in Flint, Mich., for under $3,000. There are 22 in Indianapolis, 46 in Cleveland and 709 in Detroit. In a CNN article, Heather Fernandez, a spokeswoman for the real estate Web site Trulia.com, says that "Foreclosures have turned banks into property management companies, and it's often cheaper for them to give these homes away rather than try to get market value for them."

Some homes can be purchased for as little as $500. In Detroit, one realtor lists a three-bedroom, one-bath bungalow of about 1,000 square feet for just $500. Even with renovations of $15,000 or $20,000, that's still a huge bargain considering that the home last sold for $72,000 in late 2007, according to Zillow.com.

Many lenders have gotten to the point where any chance of making even breaking even on thse homes in unrealistic, and are unloading propoerty just to get it off their books to avoid paying for maintenance and property taxes. Recessions truly are nothing more than garage sales for the rich!

"I'm rich, sucka!" - Al "Skeletor" Davis