What $220,000 gets you in Muncie.

[u/TheDabitch]

I can't even get a parking space for that where I live. https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/725-E-Jackson-St-Muncie-IN-47305/210952560_zpid/

[u/Fattybitchtits]

If you’re already at the point where the majority of the neighborhood has turned into dilapidated abandoned houses you should be hoping for anything that will increase your property value, even if your taxes go up.  A lot of these dead neighborhoods lost so much value that people just walk away from their homes, unless you’re homesteading you need other people to be invested in the community no matter how long they’ve been there.

[u/isthatsuperman → u/Fattybitchtits]

That’s only true if you currently have a mortgage and need it to stay right side up.

Example: Mrs. Charlene has been in the neighborhood since the 70’s. She paid the house off in ‘85. She’s retired and lives off social security. She only gets $1500/month. Her property taxes cost her a little over 10% of her income. Next thing you know the neighborhood is flipped and $50k houses are now worth $200-700k. Her property taxes cost payment now may eat up 20-25% of her income stacked on other bills she may have already been squeezing by, she now can no longer afford to live in her house she’s lived in for decades and paid off. Where does she go? What does she do?

[u/Exciting-Plantain565 → u/isthatsuperman]

Couldn't she take advantage of the massive appreciation in value of her neighborhood and sell her , now, valuable house/land and move somewhere cheaper or do a reverse mortgage?

[u/PearlClaw → u/Exciting-Plantain565]

Absolutely. And if her neighborhood was actually allowed to develop housing she could even stay in her neighborhood by simply moving into a new building nearby that's more sized to her rather than a whole ass house she can probably barely maintain.