City needs to address vacant properties
We can’t agree more with the Sept. 5 editorial “A Broken System.” Cityowned properties, all 20,000 plus of them, do more than add to blight. And, yes, as an association of real estate professionals, we can confirm also that the longer a vacant house sits empty, the lower the value, and the condition of the building suffers.
If these properties were fairly and openly marketed, if the city would dispose of them in a more expeditious manner, it would also benefit the city in many ways. Not only would it help cure citycaused blight.
The properties would create substantial tax revenue, easing that burden on city residents. Their disposition could also be used to address the affordable housing issue by simply placing restrictions in the deed when the property is transferred.
The city attempted to address this issue by raising real estate transfer taxes on Pittsburgh consumers, when they already controlled a cure. And as we predicted, the city real estate market has suffered.
The higher transfer tax took effect in February 2018 and the city saw a decrease of residential sales compared to 2017. This year, there has been a drop in the midst of an extremely strong real estate market.
Pittsburgh, with all of the progress over the last few years, has in its hands the ability to positively affect blight, affordable housing and the city taxpayer. Let’s hope that they make the effort to fix this broken system. JOHN PETRACK Executive Vice President Realtors Association of Metropolitan Pittsburgh Brookline