City hires consultant to redesign 0% home repair loan program; staff shares decade of data

The Planning and Economic Development committee on Jan. 29 voted to send a $108,000, one-year contract to the Ownership Initiative Consulting LLC to formal consideration, recommending approval to redesign Detroit’s 0% home repair loan program.

Chief Rico Roscoe of the Housing and Revitalization Department told the committee the current program allows borrowers to take up to $25,000 at 0% interest and repay over 10 years. “Over the last decade, we’ve helped 825 households through the 0% interest home repair loan program,” Roscoe said, adding the program has supported about $16,700,000 in borrowing. He provided preliminary demographics: average borrower age 58, average length of ownership 25 years, average credit score 685 and average income $41,000; Roscoe said approximate defaults have been near 2 percent.

Members asked how the redesign will measure outcomes and who will be engaged. Roscoe said the consultant will gather data from HRD and LISC (Local Initiatives Support Corporation), meet with nonprofit partners and residents who used the program, and deliver findings and a recommended RFP before the summer. “We will be working with our nonprofit agencies and partners that have been part of the intake and application process,” Roscoe said.

Councilmembers pressed for clearer evaluation metrics and public transparency. Pro Tem Coleman Young asked whether the city can measure program impact—property-value changes, employment, and neighborhood stabilization—and asked for a publicly accessible dashboard. Roscoe said a full report and program evaluation will close out the LISC contract by the end of the fiscal year and will include more comprehensive demographic and outcome data.

Council Member Gabriela Santiago Romero raised concerns drawn from constituent complaints about contractor performance and inspector conduct under the current program. She urged the redesign to include mechanisms for tracking contractor outcomes and resident satisfaction and asked for options to assess contractors and inspectors based on results. Roscoe acknowledged warranty and complaint issues and said HRD will use the redesign to address those problems.

The committee moved the contracting item to formal session with a recommendation to approve. The item will return for the council’s formal consideration; committee members asked staff to include council offices in the design process and to ensure resident voices and complaint-resolution processes are incorporated.

The committee did not take a final vote on the redesign contract at the Jan. 29 meeting; the item was advanced to formal committee for final action.