BUFFALO, N.Y. — Neighbors on South Huxley Drive in Cheektowaga are excited about a recent transformation in their neighborhood — a vacant, fire-damaged home was renovated, and new owners will soon move in.
"It was an eyesore for about two years," said Michael Griffin, who lives next door at 220 South Huxley. "You don't have to drive by and look at it anymore. It was horrible looking at it every day. It was kind of frustrating."
The Buffalo Erie Niagara Land Improvement Corporation (BENLIC) — Erie County's land bank — is responsible for the renovations. The group deals with issues of vacancy, blight, and abandonment by acquiring properties, mostly through tax foreclosure sales.
Then they get them fixed up.
"What we can do is either use our funding to do a full rehab of the property, or we're able to find somebody that has the ability to fix up their own home. They've got the experience. They've got the money," said BENLIC executive director Jocelyn Gordon.
The 1400-square-foot home at 224 South Huxley Drive is now under contract for $270,000 — $30,000 over listing.
"We take properties that were formerly a blight on a neighborhood, and we reactivate them which is a huge benefit for neighbors but also municipalities when we're returning properties back to the roll," said program manager Marjorie McAllister.
Gordon points out another BENLIC success property located at 29 High Street in Angola. She calls the renovated Victorian home a "sparkling example of BENLIC's Vacant to Value program."
Real estate investor Terry Montroy and his business partner, Mark Mazur, bought the property more than a year ago for less than $30,000. They put more than $100,000 toward improvements.
"This one has been a project. I guess you can tell the shape it was in based on the purchase price," said Montroy.
The 2400-square-foot home, built in 1890, is currently listed for $320,000. Offers are due Monday, May 9.
BENLIC also has a strategic infill program.
"What we like to say is that we like to fill in the missing teeth in neighborhoods," said Gordon.
That's the case with 146 Royal Avenue in Buffalo's Riverside neighborhood. It's been vacant for several years, but work should be complete in the next two to three months.
The land bank is investing about $300,000 into this property, though they expect it to sell for less than $200,000. Not every project is about making a huge profit or breaking even.
"On your initial balance sheet, it might not appear to be a net winner when you renovate a home, but [what's important is] certainly having a family living in a property and paying taxes for 10, 15, or 20 years and ensuring that adjacent property owners have a good neighbor," said Ben Brown, BENLIC program coordinator and sales specialist.
The Erie County land bank is coming up on its 10th anniversary. Since its inception, more than 200 properties have been returned to productive use. They've also built several new homes and work with non-profits like Habitat for Humanity for more redevelopment.
There are plans to build 10 more homes on Buffalo's East Side through a partnership with Evans Bank.
BENLIC has had more than $8.5 million in total sales and has leveraged $3.5 million in private investment.
"We can recycle that right back into our pot to do more work," said Gordon.
For the past eight years, BENLIC has been working with money from the State Attorney General's Office — large settlements and restitution paid by various banks because of the foreclosure crisis between 2007 and 2010.
About $50 million from this year's New York State budget is set aside for 26 land banks across New York, including BENLIC.
Property owners are given one year to renovate a home. A BENLIC building inspector does quarterly visits to ensure work is moving along at a reasonable pace. Liens on the property are lifted once the work is completed.
There's work being done on nearly two dozen properties in Erie County right now. There was a bit of a backlog when foreclosure sales stopped during the pandemic, but the land bank is expected to acquire 60 more properties this summer, so the work will continue.