Meanwhile, unused homes outnumber the homeless 6-1 [1], and in Detroit, they bulldoze unused homes because it is more profitable to destroy and rebuild homes that are palatable for 'civilized' people than to let people live in them.[2]
Yes Detroit has demolished thousands of buildings over the last decade. Other than that your entire take on the situation is a simplification of a much larger problem which will not be solved by just applying the idea of "let people live in them".
An "unused" home does not simply sit in pristine condition waiting for the next person to come live in it. The abandoned homes in Detroit slated for demolition were built during a period which used lead paint and asbestos, abatement programs are expensive. As the homes sat unused they fell victim to scrappers who pull the copper pipe and wire from the wall, strip all of the architectual details, rip the aluminum siding from the outside, or knock down the brick facade, before the house eventually falls victim to an arsonist who may be doing their neighbors a favor. Most of the homes lie in isolated neighborhoods where burnt out buildings outnumber humans. When the homes are bulldozed they're not rebuilt, rather whole neighborhoods are set to be depopulated so city services can be better concentrated. This isn't a simple "profit" play, it is a coordinated downsizing to deal with reality
It is not simply a matter of providing homes. Most of the street people in San Francisco have serious mental illness and drug addiction problems. They cannot take care of themselves. Giving those people a home will not solve their problems.
Except it's really hard to provide treatment for those illnesses if you can't find them regularly, so giving them a home, first, and then bringing services to that home is the only policy that makes sense. Seems to be working in Utah.
Yeah, I know, I just want to make sure that our homeless problem is not linked to a scarcity of resources. I am very familiar with the links between mental illness and homelessness as well as lgbtq+ youth and homelessness.
An "unused" home does not simply sit in pristine condition waiting for the next person to come live in it. The abandoned homes in Detroit slated for demolition were built during a period which used lead paint and asbestos, abatement programs are expensive. As the homes sat unused they fell victim to scrappers who pull the copper pipe and wire from the wall, strip all of the architectual details, rip the aluminum siding from the outside, or knock down the brick facade, before the house eventually falls victim to an arsonist who may be doing their neighbors a favor. Most of the homes lie in isolated neighborhoods where burnt out buildings outnumber humans. When the homes are bulldozed they're not rebuilt, rather whole neighborhoods are set to be depopulated so city services can be better concentrated. This isn't a simple "profit" play, it is a coordinated downsizing to deal with reality