Best Place to Buy

Cleveland’s inner ring suburb of Shaker Heights shows up with five other cities as the places to buy a home in this CNNMoney.com pictorial. The story says that the metro areas of Atlanta, Boston, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Detroit and Houston are places where prices will rise the most or fall the least in the relative future.

Educating Tomorrow's Workforce: Students Visit PURE

On February 15, the St. Clair- Superior Development Corporation sponsored a business shadowing day with youth from the neighborhood. 10 youth from Peace in the Hood and Girl Power visited three Cleveland businesses to learn about different aspects of the real estate business. Progressive Urban Real Estate hosted students and educated them about careers in real estate, marketing and new construction. Staff members presented their job descriptions to the students and discussed how they got to their current position at Progressive Urban Real Estate.

After the presentation, students were given a tour of Clinton Court, a new construction townhome development near the Progressive Urban Ohio City office. This hands on experience sparked more questions about the building and development process.

To date, the St. Clair- Superior Development Corporation has involved over 35 kids in their Business Shadowing Day project. These students have had the chance to spend time with professionals in a variety of industries and ask questions about what it takes to be successful and employable. St. Clair- Superior is also putting together a jobs program for summer 2008 where they are hoping to train 20 youth and secure jobs for them in area businesses. This is an excellent step towards educating neighborhood youth about career option and also in creating a strong workforce to improve the local economy.

If you are a member of the business community and would like to host youth for Business Shadowing Day or are interested in the summer job program, please contact Cory Riordan at St. Clair- Superior Development Corporation.

Staving Off Foreclosure: Taking it to the Streets

As evident in the newspaper headlines – and maybe on your street – foreclosed homes seem to be everywhere these days. Circumstances for these foreclosures vary greatly, but many times it is due to the type of loan. For certain types of loans with adjustable rates, the homebuyer may find that they can not afford the payment when the rate adjusts (to a higher rate). One solution is to sell the home, but with today’s sluggish market the homeowner may not be able to sell their home quickly enough to escape foreclosure. This New York Times article describes one group in Baltimore’s Belair-Edison neighborhood that has taken to the streets, literally, to help prevent foreclosures. This group has been able to help homeowners retain their homes by renegotiating the terms of the mortgage with their lenders.

In Northeast Ohio, Neighborhood Housing Services of Greater Cleveland and many other organizations have set up programs to help those who may be having trouble making their house payments. Please click here to access their web site, and pass this information along to anyone that you know or suspect needs help.

$5,000: Grant Money Available

Grant money is available through various lenders from the Federal Home Loan Bank. These funds, which are distributed annually, can be used to assist buyers with down payment and/or closing costs on the purchase of their home. The income limits are $48,160 maximum for a 1-2 person household, and $55,384 for a 3+ person household. This is a great opportunity for homebuyers, and available for a limited time.

Contact Jim Finucan at First Place Bank for more information.

Ohio Rises

This article on Ohio.com cites a study that ranks Ohio as the 2nd second largest medical device producer in the Midwest. It also says that Ohio surpasses well regarded research centers such as North Carolina and Georgia. Ohio’s economy has been transitioning for many years now, and it has not been easy. It is encouraging to see that the state is making headway into growing industries and that maybe one day we will be able to rid ourselves of the rustbelt moniker.

Read the article here: http://www.ohio.com/news/top_stories/16588626.html

The Next Slum?

This article on The Atlantic.com suggests that some of the problems we are seeing in American suburbs may have come to light with the current foreclosure crisis, but may be rooted in changing demographics and attitudes towards how we live. An oversupply of large lot single family homes, increase in childless households, rising gasoline and natural gas prices, downsizing baby boomers and the increased desire to be able to walk to retail and entertainment is leading to a weakened suburban home market. The article is careful to suggest that all suburbs are not created equal and that the problems will not affect everyone across the board. Suburbs with town centers or thriving retail districts and public transit may benefit from this trend and also those with lifestyle centers that combine retail, office and residential. Central cities are also benefiting from the trend as evidenced by the increase of residential development in our urban centers across the country.

Read the article here.

Rest Belt No More? Focus on Midtown

Maybe the title given to our region, and specifically Ohio, doesn’t fit anymore. Ohio has won the Governor’s Cup Award presented by Site Selection Magazine for the second year in a row. What does this mean? The Governors Cup is awarded to the state with the most new and expanded corporate facilities. The facilities include manufacturing, offices, headquarters, distribution centers, research and development and mixed use. This is no small accomplishment when you look at our competitors in California, Texas, Florida who are bigger than Ohio and other southern states such as North Carolina and Georgia which are supposed to be so business friendly. Way to go Ohio!

Read the story: http://www.siteselection.com/


The Midtown neighborhood is one local area where business innovation is clearly evident. In partnership with the Manufacturing Advocacy and Growth Network (MAGNET), Midtown Cleveland Inc. was recently awarded a $20,000 grant by the Cuyahoga County Dept. of Development to develop a business plan for the Midtown Innovation Zone. Midtown is just one of three locations given this designation.

According to Midtown Cleveland, development totaled more than $23 million in 2007 in this neighborhood. Some of these developments include an expanded Asia Plaza at 2999 Payne Ave., the Baker Electric Building at 7100 Euclid Ave. (now a hub for tech and medical firms), and the Victory Building at 7012 Euclid Ave. (slated to become loft apartments).

More information available at www.midtowncleveland.org.