Construction on the Block

Ronnie Bolton is an experienced single family residential developer in Detroit and he is currently working on a property in Morningside at 4890 Bedford Street. We got a chance to speak with him about his process and all that goes into a renovation like this.

Ronnie started flipping houses in 2020 when he saw a few on his block up for sale by the Detroit Land Bank Authority. He was curious how the process worked and at the time described himself as a “handy guy” and thought “Hey, I could do this”. He also had a great support system around him and many of his family members had experience with construction. The first three to four houses he completed were only $1,000 to purchase and were a great entry point to development. From there he continued to learn as he went until he had a well refined process. With around 20 properties under his belt he has expanded in the Morningside neighborhood with the 4890 Beford property.

He was excited to finally see the property on Bedford pop up on the Land Bank auction. Having grown up in Morningside around the Nottingham and South Hampton area, he knew he wanted to give back to the community. He always loved the area and knew there were properties that could be improved. He won the house in the auction and work commenced.

All in all, Ronnie has about 4 to 5 teams of people who he works with on his properties. Teams for framing, plumbing, electrical, roofing, fencing and more. He says most of his work revolves around management of these teams – to him it is almost like “orchestrating a great piece of music”. Knowing the process and order of operations is key to getting a project done well and on time. But it isn’t always easy.

Some of the greatest challenges Ronnie faces in this work is maintaining the mental fortitude to keep up with the process. There are many obstacles such as people trying to break into the property and steal things. Funding can also be challenge when you are working project to project and things go wrong. The driving force that keeps him going is seeing his vision realized and how it “pumps life into the community”. He said there is no better feeling than seeing a family in a home he has renovated that was once abandoned. A challenge he often faces is people not seeing the potential in the properties, but he always loves proving them wrong.

He explained a bit about what the process with the Land Bank Authority is like. Often we hear frustrations about the process or the community expresses concerns that work isn’t happening fast enough or isn’t being done well.

Ronnie seems to be on top of the process and executing the work well. He expressed nothing but positive experiences with the Land Bank, stating that they make it very easy to purchase properties as well as view potential property. He explained that the Land Bank allows each property owner six to nine months to complete the work they have promised. If there is a delay, he said they have always allowed extensions if they see progress is happening and communication remains open. He says that both he and the Land Bank want to see communities improved through this process and has always been able to work well with them.

Like the Land Bank, working with the City to pull permits has also been smooth for Ronnie. There was a learning curve at first, but now that he knows the process he can get his permits easily between one week to a month depending on the type of permit needed. BSEED has always been available when he has questions.

The plan for 4890 Bedford is that, once complete, it will be rented, but Ronnie says he would be willing to sell if the right person and price were there. When asked if he wants to do more work in Morningside, he gave a resounding yes. He bid on more properties located on Yorkshire, Bedford, and Audubon but has yet to win one, - he plans to keep looking. I was inspired by Ronnie’s positivity and work ethic. He is a true example that working hard and dedicating yourself to your commitment can have great returns both for him and the community. We hope that he continues to be a good example of what good development in the neighborhood can be.