Free Houses?

[italiandragon]

100 Abandoned Houses - a set on Flickr

:o

 

[yilduz]

100 Abandoned Houses - a set on Flickr

:o

It's really horrible there. Everything is rundown and looks like those pictures. I'm very glad I got out of Michigan.

 

[johname]

Why would someone abandone this one? lol

http://www.flickr.com/photos/kbauman/3352177597/in/set-72157600059407224/

 

[Corey]

in some cases.....services such as gas, electricity, garbage collection and numerous services (Police, Doctors, Hospitals) are also abondoned making living in such an area tough.

Cheers
Corey

 

[Gerrit]

I used to spend 3 years on the emerald isle, aka Ireland, of which 2 in Belfast. Most of Belfast is, since the end of the political unstability, undergoing renovation and a lot of estates, malls, buildings are brand new. However, the one area that needs to be renovated is East Belfast, particularly the part near the old shipyards and near the Glentoran FC soccer stadium. In the streets neighbouring that ground, I believe only 1 house of the entire area is still populated, the others are either empty or squats (and they look very dirty and risky, I wouldn't like to walk at night again in that area -- silly me did it once though and was glad as soon as I entered the populated world again)

The Belgian town of Doel was meant to be wiped off the map for port expansion. In the end protests and mistakes in the government documents mean the town is still there but 80% of people left the town due to the insecure future... Those houses are now all populated by foreign, mainly Eastern European, squatters. They outnumber the few remaining Doel locals.

Opposite of where I work is a squat as well, although it oddly enough has electricity. No windows or proper door though. I think about 10 people live in there, nobody takes action against it.




As unclean and insecure as it may look, the world of squatting somehow fascinates me. Maybe it's because of my musical preferences. One of my favourite bands used to spend a year in a squat when they had no money and were waiting for a proper chance to release a record. In the end they spent a year in a room in a squat with no running water until they finally were offered a record deal and income allowing a normal form of housing. It somehow intriguates me how people deal with the insecurity and discomfort of a squat and nonetheless somehow make the most of it ... I don't think I'll try it myself though, but it does somewhat interest me.

And not all squats are dirty ...

 

[italiandragon]

I used to spend 3 years on the emerald isle, aka Ireland, of which 2 in Belfast. Most of Belfast is, since the end of the political unstability, undergoing renovation and a lot of estates, malls, buildings are brand new. However, the one area that needs to be renovated is East Belfast, particularly the part near the old shipyards and near the Glentoran FC soccer stadium. In the streets neighbouring that ground, I believe only 1 house of the entire area is still populated, the others are either empty or squats (and they look very dirty and risky, I wouldn't like to walk at night again in that area -- silly me did it once though and was glad as soon as I entered the populated world again)

The Belgian town of Doel was meant to be wiped off the map for port expansion. In the end protests and mistakes in the government documents mean the town is still there but 80% of people left the town due to the insecure future... Those houses are now all populated by foreign, mainly Eastern European, squatters. They outnumber the few remaining Doel locals.

Opposite of where I work is a squat as well, although it oddly enough has electricity. No windows or proper door though. I think about 10 people live in there, nobody takes action against it.




As unclean and insecure as it may look, the world of squatting somehow fascinates me. Maybe it's because of my musical preferences. One of my favourite bands used to spend a year in a squat when they had no money and were waiting for a proper chance to release a record. In the end they spent a year in a room in a squat with no running water until they finally were offered a record deal and income allowing a normal form of housing. It somehow intriguates me how people deal with the insecurity and discomfort of a squat and nonetheless somehow make the most of it ... I don't think I'll try it myself though, but it does somewhat interest me.

And not all squats are dirty ...

if you go to either Broome /Port Hedland or Darwin you can see plenty of normal people living in tents, caravan parks or cars because housing is unaffordable in those areas and some do have a job but it`s not enough.

 

[Gerrit]

Are you talking Darwin in Australia ? That's a quite fancy tourist resort so you wouldn't expect many people living in cars or squats there.

In Holland living in a trailer park is a long lasting tradition but nowadays those trailer parks are more like sheltered towns with small houses rather than real caravans. It's like small enclaves within Holland and considered a bit of a subculture.

As said, near my workplace is a squat with about 10 people living in it ; I wonder how they got electricity but even then, with no proper doors and windows I wonder how they protect against the cold and avoid other squatters taking over the place when leaving the squat ... You could just as well come back and find another squatter having taken your place and/or your stuff. Interesting world, the world of squatting ... In Holland there is an organisation renting empty houses for short term and low cost rents to avoid that the houses would be occupied by squatters.

 

[Domainace]

Those pictures of Detroit...
I grew up there, and those houses were once surrounded by other houses in fairly populated (but even then dangerous) neighborhoods - there were none of the empty fields you see in the pictures.
Despite the new rural wasteland look of Detroit, it's still dangerous. The result of 60 years of increasing taxes and tons of US government spending and top-down control - should be a cautionary lesson for the rest of the country.

 

[Janine]

omg.
those are such great houses to be left alone like this

 

[barefoottech]

That can't be right !
I thought USA was the Greatest Country in the world.


IT IS ABOUT TIME, Americans got off their TV couch and kicked the useless bum Politicians out and replaced them with people with REAL BRAINS.

Wake up to yourselves , fellas.

Do youi really need to spend a Mega heap of money in IRAQ, AFGHANISTAN
to supposedly stop terrorism.
When places and circumstances like that shown is a breeding ground for not just social in-justice, but full scale Revolution.

If the Not United states don't start working together and solve this problem then they won't have to go far for a war as it will be an Urban CIVIL war in the streets and fields of USA.

Think that is a little hard to believe.

READ about the conditions that caused the
Following conflicts
Russian Revolution
Chinese Revolution
Spanish Civil War et al.
And not forgetting the
Hundreds of Coups and wars in Africa and South America

 

[italiandragon]

That can't be right !
I thought USA was the Greatest Country in the world.


IT IS ABOUT TIME, Americans got off their TV couch and kicked the useless bum Politicians out and replaced them with people with REAL BRAINS.

Wake up to yourselves , fellas.

Do youi really need to spend a Mega heap of money in IRAQ, AFGHANISTAN
to supposedly stop terrorism.
When places and circumstances like that shown is a breeding ground for not just social in-justice, but full scale Revolution.

If the Not United states don't start working together and solve this problem then they won't have to go far for a war as it will be an Urban CIVIL war in the streets and fields of USA.

Think that is a little hard to believe.

READ about the conditions that caused the
Following conflicts
Russian Revolution
Chinese Revolution
Spanish Civil War et al.
And not forgetting the
Hundreds of Coups and wars in Africa and South America

Sorry...how old are you?

 

[Gerrit]

Just a serious question, but one of the squats in my home town actually has electricity and apparently running water. How can that be? Correct me if I'm wrong but I assumed, since a squat is legally supposed to be abandoned and its inhabitants are supposed to not really be there, that the water and electricity supply would be cut off? Who is paying the bills when the people using the electricity and water are legally not registered as living there??

 

[Corey]

what Country & State are you referring to ^?

Cheers
Corey

 

[Gerrit]

Can be any state I guess. In my native Belgium one town is populated for over 50% by squatters (long story ...), in Spain I have seen squats with electricity functioning well, seen plenty of squats being populated in the UK as well (although there I didn't see any sign of electricity) ... For sure I have seen lit squats in Spain and Belgium, and they seemed to have running water as well.

But I guess location isn't that relevant because the whole setup of a squat means the house should in theory not be populated and those living in it should in theory not be there. Guess all squats in the world have that definition. So if in legal terms the house is abandoned, how can the electricity function and how can the people that use it pay the bills when they are not really supposed to be there? Is it authorities just turning a blind eye to it, or how does that work?

 

[Whogister]

Why would someone abandone this one? lol

Abandoned house in Detroit, Michigan on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

My home town... how embarrassing this place is getting!