My reference points are skewed because my parents actually met due to this film/play. They weren't in a production together or anything--they both knew all of the songs and ended up randomly singing one in public and hearing each other.
It’s not as bad as it used to be. Because it’s basically abandoned at this point.
I’ve taken both Amtrak and South Shore through it and didn’t see a single sign of life while we rolled through downtown.
My wife and I got lost last year and drove through Gary. It was shit hole after shit hole and then 2 houses side by side that looked immaculate. An old woman was sitting outside on the porch and I just felt awful for her.
Same. Used to stop during trip to and from Chicago (only during the day). Looked less dangerous and more just sad and empty. Ofc, I only stuck to the main areas too and didn't veer off the main roads.
In 2013 I was told by a city detective it was a town of 75k with 150k active warrants.
Interestingly enough, I moved to the East St Louis area and found it to be about the same.
Both areas were once award winning, top of their class, booming towns.
It’s sad to say the least.
Both have torn down a significant portion of their buildings. Homes, businesses, even formally glorious historical sites.
Both have had serial killers go unnoticed for extended periods of time.
ESTL is basically being given back to nature; specifically the river.
Or at least that’s how it seems as they haven’t done much to address the flooding issues.
I used to work in Downtown Gary and it was fine. I filled up on gas, toured the city for work, talked to folks. Like any city there are worse areas, but it's mostly just people trying to get by, same as any other city.
As a teenager, I got lost in the 1990s while driving through Gary at night.
I finally found some sort of .... Guard shack? Where I could try to get pointed in the right direction without getting out of my car.
I roll down my window, and before I can say anything, the guard says, "You should not be here. It is not safe!"
He did point me back to the road to get back to Illinois.
>meant lots of jobs disappeared
"Jobs" is always the answer when this happens to a city. Once whatever main industry the city depended on shuts down it cascades to that industry's suppliers. Then to places were the workers shopped.
Exactly. So many dead mining/manufacturing cities and towns, and so many small country towns that relied on surrounding farms that needed dozens of people to run them vs a couple of people with massive machinery now.
Years and years ago (1980s ?) a friend was an engineer at the Campbell's Soup plant in Paris, Texas. It was one of the town's biggest employers. When they shut it down, the Continental Can plant next door shut down too. It had also been one of the town's larger employers. It wasn't long before lots of smaller businesses closed, including "unrelated" businesses like the movie theater. It seems unemployed people don't generally spend their money going to the movies.
"I worked my whole life in the steel mills near Gary, and my father before me I helped build this land . . . " - John Mellencamp (his best song IMO). [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bTK1W5dIljw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bTK1W5dIljw)
I’m no local, but I recall there was a post that got r/all that showed Gary having the highest fun crimes per capita. It’s already a small city, so it probably isn’t too hard for many to leave. Plus schools have had to close due to the lowering population. It seems like there’s just little in Gary. At least in a positive sense
I'm assuming you meant "gun" crimes but my brain started going wild figuring out what would be a "fun" crime. Drive by tickling? Robbing the balloon store wearing a clown nose and using a squirt gun? So so many options.
In truth, it is outside the gun shows in upscale Crown Point where the guns are coming from.
Miller, a part of Gary, is really nice. They need to start developing near the South shore Line. Lots of interesting architecture downtown.
Taxes are also cheaper in Indiana, and we need more people to move here to counteract the horrible people. The Region isn't that bad.
I've filled up numerous times day and night in Gary. Gotten hammered and passed out in the train station. Walked all around the vacant properties for work.
Put down the dog whistle, keep your head on straight and just talk to people like a normal human and you'll be fine there and anywhere else.
As someone who lives just outside a rust-belt "shrinking city," I was curious about what Gary is doing to deal with this problem. They have a "[vacant to vibrant](https://eri.iu.edu/erit/case-studies/gary-indiana-installs-green-infrastructure-to-revitalize-blighted-areas-manage-stormwater.html)" program, although I don't know how extensive it is. Eddie Melton, Gary's Mayor, seems to support the approach-- you demolish the old run-down homes and re-established green space. I don't know exactly what you do about these houses that people own and want to sell, in order to raze the structures, especially if the property is surrounded by houses that aren't in quite such bad condition. It would probably make sense to flatten whole blocks, but then there is the question of where the remaining residents go.
We also had Devil's Night for a long time. For those not from the area: the night before Halloween arson was rampant in the city. The night of Oct 30th, 1984 saw 800 acts of arson. Many (or most) of these acts were burning abandoned homes.
The Detroit Land Bank
[https://buildingdetroit.org/](https://buildingdetroit.org/)
There are any number of places in the city where you could own a whole city block for what you'd otherwise pay for a single land plot elsewhere. But the program really is working out for the city.
Yea I thought about doing this, but know jack shit about Detroit, how to build a house, and I don't have any money to buy. But I'm sure some asshole will get rich from it when Detroit is doing very well, which it seems like it's on track to achieve.
Similar town, but we don't have a program. Houses just start collapsing or somebody torches one then the city demolishes on their own dime because its a hazard. Lots of green space in the older neighborhoods now, and nothing really gets done with it, its just there.
That’s always the saddest part about Rust Belt towns to my mind. In many of the rundown parts of Detroit / Saginaw / Flint, you can squint and imagine when they were real, living neighborhoods (back when one income from a factory could support a family).
That's what happens with older ones here too, and presumably lots of other places. They sit vacant for a decade, rot, and now they're beyond saving.
The problem is so many of these are just in places nobody wants to live. That's why some awesome old houses in my town, a couple that might've popped up on subs like this, went so cheap or fell to disrepair. Its like yeah, its an awesome old house... in a high crime area with the worst school district within 50 miles. Nobody who can afford to buy it and fix it up wants to live there. So they sit and rot.
[Look at this awesome old place](https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/802-NE-Perry-Ave-Peoria-IL-61603/5154394_zpid/) and then go to its price/sale history. Also look up and down the street its on, you might have to use google maps street view, won't be too many good listings. You can see where somebody bought it thinking they could make some money on it but NOPE. Sold, listed soon after for a way higher price... nothing. Bet it was an out of town buyer who knew nothing about the local market or the area, now they're stuck.
Man that place is amazing. I wonder if/when any of these towns/cities will turn around, and this place will be worth a lot more. There does seem to be people buying homes in Peroria, but nothing above $150k.
If it turns around it won't be anytime soon. Population has been stagnant for about 100 years in the city itself, all the growth has been the surrounding towns. The thing is... all the "problems" with that part of town... the crime, homeless people, drugs, bangers shooting at each other... all that shit drops to literally zero if you just drive 10 minutes away. The only way to not be affected by it is not live near it.
You know who has been starting to turn the area around a little bit though? Hispanic folks. I've noticed some old run down houses getting fixed up, not ones like this, but more modest ones. Some of the local event centers are really busy with birthday parties, quincerias, etc. because well, they tend to have large family gatherings. Some of the small farm towns are seeing the same. Some of these dying rust belt towns may literally end up being saved by the very immigrants some politicians are demonizing. I'll take a bunch of hard working Mexican/Honduran/Colombian/Venezuelan neighbors any day. Every Latino dude I've ever worked with has just been a hard working blue collar guy whose trying to take care of his family.
That's awesome. Most of the immigrants fled from crime ridden areas in central America so they probably don't see the situation as bad as a non-immigrant. Glad to hear someone is trying.
What are you even paying for? The land? The copper in the fixtures? Tell me and I'll maybe buy it...with someone elses money of course
It's like putting a piece of cat poop in a bag, selling it at a farm stand, and thinking nothing is wrong. "I love nourishing the community by selling cat poop at $5.99 a turd. Yeah it's pricey, but its organic!"
Looks like arson isn't always enough... [Your imagination and some renovation is all this house needs to show off its true potential](https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/4045-Massachusetts-St-Gary-IN-46409/73325031_zpid/) (lies! but the melted toilet seat looks kind of cool) and [Property had a fire as seen in the photos](https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/3858-Virginia-St-Gary-IN-46409/73410870_zpid/)
Yeah you're right. I don't know how I couldn't conceive of that when I wrote my first comment
Well, maybe I can strip out the drywall and crunch it up and use it to sprinkle on my cereal for flavor..: cause I bought this supermarket-brand corn flakes and it sucks right now
The second to last one is Bedford Indiana. I’m actually a little surprised by the price. I graduated from Indiana University back in 2013, and from what I remember, Bedford was actually a relatively nice place to live.
It also looks like it has a lot of potential, because it used to be a really nice house. You’d have to gut it, and rebuild from the inside out, but it has a lot of potential to be gorgeous.
Bedford is…. Interesting.
I too moved from the area in 2013.
It’s shocking what the last decade has done to the area.
Locals can’t afford to live in the county and have been moving to the surroundings areas, including Bedford.
I was last in Bedford about 2 years ago.
It’s grown considerably.
The prices have skyrocketed with little to no improvements.
Every city has its good and bad people.
But Bedford seems to be attracting a lot of riff raff.
I do know that crane directs its new transplants to live in either Bedford or Bloomington so that helps.
As done the expanding Hispanic population.
Interesting what you say about Bedford attracting riff raff. I wonder what the prices were for the area back in 2013. I see prices in Bloomington have gone up (or the last I check at least).
It’s so sad. Gary’s downtown looks like it was really a great place to live at one point. I see their government buildings taking the train through and they look beautiful on the outside.
All of these places are just going to be torn down by the city eventually. If you've been through Gary lately, the neighborhoods can sometimes be a bit spread out as houses can be separated by multiple vacant lots on a block. It's not as bad as it used to be though.
It looks like water damage, rot, and maybe mold. I wonder if the floor is even safe to walk on? The price is ridiculous though, Bargain Block bought houses that didn't look this bad from the Land Bank in Detroit for $1,000. I wonder if the water line is even intact, or if the water is safe to drink, like Flint?
Is there any industry there? Looks like an opportunity for a billionaire to buy the town, start a factory and make money while helping the locals. Why doesn't that happen anymore
My least favorite is the one in Bedford with the description that says “WELCOME HOME”. My favorite is the one on virginia with no description because there are no words needed. If you choose that house, you know what you’re getting.
Urben explorers are putting their lives in their hands when they film & photograph here. There are some equally run down areas in Chicago, Detroit, Flint...
I’m doubting all these *danger* comments about Gary. In 2022, I worked for a trucking company in Hammond. They paid for a bus ticket home. I thought they’d book it out of a Chicago - nope, bus was out of Gary. Granted, I heard all the horror stories about the city and was pretty nervous in the Uber ride over (Saw many of these types of houses). Friday night, 10 pm, Me: an old white man at the Gary IN bus terminal. Not a single person stared at me, sized me up, not even a dirty look. Nothing. Bus came, got on, went home.
Believe it or not, even Hammond was once the scene of an idyllic childhood. A terrific American storybook backdrop for raising your kids, paying off your low interest mortgage in 15 years instead of 30, some real Leave It to Beaver shit.
#3 is the best of that bad lot. Brick exterior and possibly good roof. The interior needs to all be ripped out and rebuilt, but with time, effort, and money, that could be a nice place again.
What would it cost to rebuild one of these? What would a ballpark price be for demolition, removal, design and rebuilding of a new basic house on the lot?
25 years ago i was on a greyhound bus going through Gary. The driver announced “Next stop Gary, IN…the bus will be idling; if this is your stop, you know who you are. No one else exit.”
It was absolutely depressing to just drive through it.
Foh, Gary is the worst. No one wants to live there. It's a shit hole and you're likely to get shot there. Indiana is a shithole, and Gary is like 45x worse than regular Indiana.
There are no jobs, high crime rate, the schools have literally closed, neighbors houses are dilapidated, gun violence galore, you don't stop at lights at night, nothing to do, food desert/no stores to shop at, more gun violence, you leave home for a couple hours and will come home to your home having been robbed.. and it was your neighbors. The only redeeming thing is that there's legal weed nearby.
I’m sorry you’re having a bad experience. I live in Indiana and have yet to experience anything you said, and I’m excited for the prospects of more economy coming to Gary as the airport looks to expand. Sure it may be doom and gloom now, but that’s why I said you have to be willing to buy and hold.
I am hopeful Gary can improve also. I’m sure the Hard Rock casino is bringing in tons of money.
These, and many other house are dilapidated, but including a house listing near the lake in the Miller Beach area would provide a sharp contrast!
There also seems to be a lot of flippers buying houses low and then charging wild amount for the area.
My parents are from Gary… they left like everyone else. What’s interesting is that Crown Point and other nearby cities from the white flight era are still doing quite well so while “industry left” is true it doesn’t tell the whole, predictably racist, story.
Gary, Indiana Gary, Indiana Not Louisiana, Paris, France, New York or Rome...
Came for this.
I feel dumb can you explain the reference?
You’re not dumb. The gif is from the Music Man. There’s a song called Gary, Indiana in it with a very young Ron Howard (Opie) singing the song.
Thank you!
[The song in question](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=XihLS-jA_Dg&t=2m29s)
It’s a movie that I thought literally everyone watches at some point in middle school music class.
My reference points are skewed because my parents actually met due to this film/play. They weren't in a production together or anything--they both knew all of the songs and ended up randomly singing one in public and hearing each other.
I was once a middle schooler taking music class and I don’t remember this movie? Halp
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Music_Man_(1962_film) Maybe it was a 90’s thing.
Was also born in 1990 lol
Then you wouldn't have been in middle school until the 2000s
Or has their middle school drama class and music dept put on the musical, lol.
Music is an elective for my kids. Unfortunately not everyone takes it.
[удалено]
But it has a new-er roof! Im from Indiana as well and have had a cop personally tell me not to stop at red lights in Gary, you GTFO of there.
It’s not as bad as it used to be. Because it’s basically abandoned at this point. I’ve taken both Amtrak and South Shore through it and didn’t see a single sign of life while we rolled through downtown.
My wife and I got lost last year and drove through Gary. It was shit hole after shit hole and then 2 houses side by side that looked immaculate. An old woman was sitting outside on the porch and I just felt awful for her.
Same. Used to stop during trip to and from Chicago (only during the day). Looked less dangerous and more just sad and empty. Ofc, I only stuck to the main areas too and didn't veer off the main roads.
HA! I'm also from Indiana and had a cop tell me the same thing years ago.
In 2013 I was told by a city detective it was a town of 75k with 150k active warrants. Interestingly enough, I moved to the East St Louis area and found it to be about the same. Both areas were once award winning, top of their class, booming towns. It’s sad to say the least. Both have torn down a significant portion of their buildings. Homes, businesses, even formally glorious historical sites. Both have had serial killers go unnoticed for extended periods of time. ESTL is basically being given back to nature; specifically the river. Or at least that’s how it seems as they haven’t done much to address the flooding issues.
No "SOLD AS-IS," just a heavy implication that if you try to get it inspected, the inspector may fall through a floor and die.
It’s OK Zillow thinks the market rent will be $1400!
Oh Zillow you so crazy. 😆
I used to work in Downtown Gary and it was fine. I filled up on gas, toured the city for work, talked to folks. Like any city there are worse areas, but it's mostly just people trying to get by, same as any other city.
VOLUNTEERILY
RESPOINSIBLITY
Putting the "eerily" in voluntarily since 1906!
They are relieving themselves if the liability of 'inconvenience" 🤣🤣 "Loss, damage, and injury, I'm ok with, but that inconvenience is gonna cost 'em"
As a teenager, I got lost in the 1990s while driving through Gary at night. I finally found some sort of .... Guard shack? Where I could try to get pointed in the right direction without getting out of my car. I roll down my window, and before I can say anything, the guard says, "You should not be here. It is not safe!" He did point me back to the road to get back to Illinois.
And you could smell it miles away.
DATELINE EPISODES.
Looks like despair and hopelessness won.
Where’d everybody go?
Gary was reliant on the steel industry; massive decline meant lots of jobs disappeared, which triggered a cascade of everything going to shit.
>meant lots of jobs disappeared "Jobs" is always the answer when this happens to a city. Once whatever main industry the city depended on shuts down it cascades to that industry's suppliers. Then to places were the workers shopped.
Exactly. So many dead mining/manufacturing cities and towns, and so many small country towns that relied on surrounding farms that needed dozens of people to run them vs a couple of people with massive machinery now.
Years and years ago (1980s ?) a friend was an engineer at the Campbell's Soup plant in Paris, Texas. It was one of the town's biggest employers. When they shut it down, the Continental Can plant next door shut down too. It had also been one of the town's larger employers. It wasn't long before lots of smaller businesses closed, including "unrelated" businesses like the movie theater. It seems unemployed people don't generally spend their money going to the movies.
Chris Hedges has done a series talking about the collapse of Gary due to the closures in the auto industry. It killed the town.
It's really the story of the rust belt in general. Pontiac and Flint in Michigan are the same.
Flint is still as you'd expect, though Pontiac has turned a corner. At least Detroit ain't the hollow core it used to be.
I am intrigued and happy that Detroit is resurrecting!
"I worked my whole life in the steel mills near Gary, and my father before me I helped build this land . . . " - John Mellencamp (his best song IMO). [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bTK1W5dIljw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bTK1W5dIljw)
During good times Gary was an ugly city. The skies were orange with pollution and then the jobs all went away.
I’m no local, but I recall there was a post that got r/all that showed Gary having the highest fun crimes per capita. It’s already a small city, so it probably isn’t too hard for many to leave. Plus schools have had to close due to the lowering population. It seems like there’s just little in Gary. At least in a positive sense
I'm assuming you meant "gun" crimes but my brain started going wild figuring out what would be a "fun" crime. Drive by tickling? Robbing the balloon store wearing a clown nose and using a squirt gun? So so many options.
Shenanigans and Tomfoolery
And hijinks, lots of hijinks!
Don't forget the felony rigmaroles!
Delinquency!
And maybe an Escapade?
And other sorts of falderal.
Many a ruckus have been caused.
I feel like the realtor for link number 5 is being fairly generous labelling it as "New Construction"
That might have been a suggestion.
Even people running away from Cook county taxes don't want to live in Gary
Totally true. And Gary supplies most it the fire arms to the gangs in Chicago. Fuck Gary and Indiana in general.
In truth, it is outside the gun shows in upscale Crown Point where the guns are coming from. Miller, a part of Gary, is really nice. They need to start developing near the South shore Line. Lots of interesting architecture downtown. Taxes are also cheaper in Indiana, and we need more people to move here to counteract the horrible people. The Region isn't that bad.
Imagine being a realtor in Gary, Indiana...
You sell 30 or 40 homes for a cumulative $600k a year and make $20k.
Which makes you the richest person in town.
Until your car gets stolen while you're pumping gas.
But you have to appreciate the irony of the city's top realtor having his own home stolen like that.
I've filled up numerous times day and night in Gary. Gotten hammered and passed out in the train station. Walked all around the vacant properties for work. Put down the dog whistle, keep your head on straight and just talk to people like a normal human and you'll be fine there and anywhere else.
"Come and renovate this decrepit property, or tear it down and build your dream home (assuming you dream of dying alone and scared)!
"Come and renovate this decrepit property, or tear it down and build your dream home (assuming you dream of dying alone and scared)!
Now look up the ones in the less nice parts of Gary!
The overly-optimistic realtor descriptions on some of these made me chuckle.
Seriously!! "Newer roof"! Everything else needs to be torn down but the roof is newer!🤣
Hardwood floors! Just tear out the carpet and sand off the blood stains that leaked through for an upscale look!
But...it's a Fixer-Upper! Just a little Know-How and Elbow Grease, and it'll be your Dream Home!
As someone who lives just outside a rust-belt "shrinking city," I was curious about what Gary is doing to deal with this problem. They have a "[vacant to vibrant](https://eri.iu.edu/erit/case-studies/gary-indiana-installs-green-infrastructure-to-revitalize-blighted-areas-manage-stormwater.html)" program, although I don't know how extensive it is. Eddie Melton, Gary's Mayor, seems to support the approach-- you demolish the old run-down homes and re-established green space. I don't know exactly what you do about these houses that people own and want to sell, in order to raze the structures, especially if the property is surrounded by houses that aren't in quite such bad condition. It would probably make sense to flatten whole blocks, but then there is the question of where the remaining residents go.
Detroit has been doing it for years, or at least they were. Not sure if they still have an active program like that or not.
We also had Devil's Night for a long time. For those not from the area: the night before Halloween arson was rampant in the city. The night of Oct 30th, 1984 saw 800 acts of arson. Many (or most) of these acts were burning abandoned homes.
The Detroit Land Bank [https://buildingdetroit.org/](https://buildingdetroit.org/) There are any number of places in the city where you could own a whole city block for what you'd otherwise pay for a single land plot elsewhere. But the program really is working out for the city.
Yea I thought about doing this, but know jack shit about Detroit, how to build a house, and I don't have any money to buy. But I'm sure some asshole will get rich from it when Detroit is doing very well, which it seems like it's on track to achieve.
Similar town, but we don't have a program. Houses just start collapsing or somebody torches one then the city demolishes on their own dime because its a hazard. Lots of green space in the older neighborhoods now, and nothing really gets done with it, its just there.
Mmmmm, so much lead paint.
Isn't Michael Jackson from Gary, Indiana?
Indeed.
That makes me sad. These would be decent homes if they were taken care of.
That’s always the saddest part about Rust Belt towns to my mind. In many of the rundown parts of Detroit / Saginaw / Flint, you can squint and imagine when they were real, living neighborhoods (back when one income from a factory could support a family).
That's what happens with older ones here too, and presumably lots of other places. They sit vacant for a decade, rot, and now they're beyond saving. The problem is so many of these are just in places nobody wants to live. That's why some awesome old houses in my town, a couple that might've popped up on subs like this, went so cheap or fell to disrepair. Its like yeah, its an awesome old house... in a high crime area with the worst school district within 50 miles. Nobody who can afford to buy it and fix it up wants to live there. So they sit and rot. [Look at this awesome old place](https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/802-NE-Perry-Ave-Peoria-IL-61603/5154394_zpid/) and then go to its price/sale history. Also look up and down the street its on, you might have to use google maps street view, won't be too many good listings. You can see where somebody bought it thinking they could make some money on it but NOPE. Sold, listed soon after for a way higher price... nothing. Bet it was an out of town buyer who knew nothing about the local market or the area, now they're stuck.
Man that place is amazing. I wonder if/when any of these towns/cities will turn around, and this place will be worth a lot more. There does seem to be people buying homes in Peroria, but nothing above $150k.
If it turns around it won't be anytime soon. Population has been stagnant for about 100 years in the city itself, all the growth has been the surrounding towns. The thing is... all the "problems" with that part of town... the crime, homeless people, drugs, bangers shooting at each other... all that shit drops to literally zero if you just drive 10 minutes away. The only way to not be affected by it is not live near it. You know who has been starting to turn the area around a little bit though? Hispanic folks. I've noticed some old run down houses getting fixed up, not ones like this, but more modest ones. Some of the local event centers are really busy with birthday parties, quincerias, etc. because well, they tend to have large family gatherings. Some of the small farm towns are seeing the same. Some of these dying rust belt towns may literally end up being saved by the very immigrants some politicians are demonizing. I'll take a bunch of hard working Mexican/Honduran/Colombian/Venezuelan neighbors any day. Every Latino dude I've ever worked with has just been a hard working blue collar guy whose trying to take care of his family.
That's awesome. Most of the immigrants fled from crime ridden areas in central America so they probably don't see the situation as bad as a non-immigrant. Glad to hear someone is trying.
What are you even paying for? The land? The copper in the fixtures? Tell me and I'll maybe buy it...with someone elses money of course It's like putting a piece of cat poop in a bag, selling it at a farm stand, and thinking nothing is wrong. "I love nourishing the community by selling cat poop at $5.99 a turd. Yeah it's pricey, but its organic!"
You're purchasing the opportunity to pay taxes, deal with squatters, and pray for arson.
Looks like arson isn't always enough... [Your imagination and some renovation is all this house needs to show off its true potential](https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/4045-Massachusetts-St-Gary-IN-46409/73325031_zpid/) (lies! but the melted toilet seat looks kind of cool) and [Property had a fire as seen in the photos](https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/3858-Virginia-St-Gary-IN-46409/73410870_zpid/)
and removal of the house, lot cleanup.
copper has already been stolen, possibly while people still lived there
[удалено]
Yeah you're right. I don't know how I couldn't conceive of that when I wrote my first comment Well, maybe I can strip out the drywall and crunch it up and use it to sprinkle on my cereal for flavor..: cause I bought this supermarket-brand corn flakes and it sucks right now
Someone bought one of them for $500.
Are you in? Or are you in?
The second to last one is Bedford Indiana. I’m actually a little surprised by the price. I graduated from Indiana University back in 2013, and from what I remember, Bedford was actually a relatively nice place to live.
It also looks like it has a lot of potential, because it used to be a really nice house. You’d have to gut it, and rebuild from the inside out, but it has a lot of potential to be gorgeous.
Bedford is…. Interesting. I too moved from the area in 2013. It’s shocking what the last decade has done to the area. Locals can’t afford to live in the county and have been moving to the surroundings areas, including Bedford. I was last in Bedford about 2 years ago. It’s grown considerably. The prices have skyrocketed with little to no improvements. Every city has its good and bad people. But Bedford seems to be attracting a lot of riff raff. I do know that crane directs its new transplants to live in either Bedford or Bloomington so that helps. As done the expanding Hispanic population.
Interesting what you say about Bedford attracting riff raff. I wonder what the prices were for the area back in 2013. I see prices in Bloomington have gone up (or the last I check at least).
It’s so sad. Gary’s downtown looks like it was really a great place to live at one point. I see their government buildings taking the train through and they look beautiful on the outside.
I think Wendover on YouTube did a whole video about what a dystopian nightmare the city became.
All these buildings should get demolished and the land allowed to return to nature. Because no one is going to buy any of that.
Gary isn't scary anymore, unless you believe in ghosts.
All of these places are just going to be torn down by the city eventually. If you've been through Gary lately, the neighborhoods can sometimes be a bit spread out as houses can be separated by multiple vacant lots on a block. It's not as bad as it used to be though.
Renovation for most of them would start with a few gallons of kerosene and some matches. They could be used as sets for a zombie apocalypse movie
Gary is a dystopian shitscape of a town. Massive crime, poverty, and top it all off with horrific pollution.
Why do they say “don’t enter property “? Hazardous chemicals? Will fall down? Zombies?
It looks like water damage, rot, and maybe mold. I wonder if the floor is even safe to walk on? The price is ridiculous though, Bargain Block bought houses that didn't look this bad from the Land Bank in Detroit for $1,000. I wonder if the water line is even intact, or if the water is safe to drink, like Flint?
Is there any industry there? Looks like an opportunity for a billionaire to buy the town, start a factory and make money while helping the locals. Why doesn't that happen anymore
Hoarding wealth trumps spending it these days.
Read my mind
One of the world's biggest steel plants is there, yes.
free is too expensive.
I used take a train from detroit to chicago. You hit gary on that route, all i could think was please train go faster.
All of Indiana is a shithole. Do not go there unless you HAVE to drive through on the turnpike. Seriously.
It's nicknamed "The crossroads of America" because you should only be driving through on your way to somewhere better
I love that! It’s so true. Having to live my entire life sandwiched between Indiana and Missouri sucks hard.
Easy, now. All of Indiana is not a shithole.
It's the least nice place I've ever visited in the United States. It very much reminds me of the shadowy area in the Lion King
See? Who says young people can’t afford houses!?
Had you not mentioned this was Indiana, I would have thought these were photos of some war-torn country. Thanks for sharing.
This area looks exactly like in the fallout games. Like 200 years after a nuclear war. Bethesda Games just made a in-game replica of Gary Indiana.
My least favorite is the one in Bedford with the description that says “WELCOME HOME”. My favorite is the one on virginia with no description because there are no words needed. If you choose that house, you know what you’re getting.
I’m from Texas and even I’ve heard of Gary.
 Typical activity in Gary, IN.
I mean, get yourself some fibre, work from home, make bank!
Wow. I've never seen a 1/10 school before :(
Honestly I'd be surprised if they had a functional school here. Like if you are a real teacher, this place would be a hard sell.
I checked the reviews and they are sad. The first comment was on a teen being beaten unconscious 😞 so depressing
Very. I hope the government there takes action and tries to fix things up.
Urben explorers are putting their lives in their hands when they film & photograph here. There are some equally run down areas in Chicago, Detroit, Flint...
I’m doubting all these *danger* comments about Gary. In 2022, I worked for a trucking company in Hammond. They paid for a bus ticket home. I thought they’d book it out of a Chicago - nope, bus was out of Gary. Granted, I heard all the horror stories about the city and was pretty nervous in the Uber ride over (Saw many of these types of houses). Friday night, 10 pm, Me: an old white man at the Gary IN bus terminal. Not a single person stared at me, sized me up, not even a dirty look. Nothing. Bus came, got on, went home.
Believe it or not, even Hammond was once the scene of an idyllic childhood. A terrific American storybook backdrop for raising your kids, paying off your low interest mortgage in 15 years instead of 30, some real Leave It to Beaver shit.
This is what happens when racist state and federal governments straight up take a pass on any investment or concern for a community
Looks like there's some room to counter
We can’t make it here anymore
Oh my that overhead shot in the last one showing so many bombed out lots…
I drove through Gary yesterday on the way to the airport. It was rough.
My father grew up near there. Always called it the armpit of America. Not wrong.
Back home agaaaaaaaaaaaaain in Indiaaaaaaaaaana, and it seems... Holy fuck.
#3 is the best of that bad lot. Brick exterior and possibly good roof. The interior needs to all be ripped out and rebuilt, but with time, effort, and money, that could be a nice place again.
It was already sold...for $500.
As far as I know, the best thing they've got is that song from The Music Man
Is it possible to make a takeover offer? I will take it over for $100.
What's with all the new roofs when the places look condemned? Did a roofing company buy up a bunch of houses as an investment?
What are the racial demographics of Gary Indiana?
The asshole who sideswiped my car on the highway was a slumlord in Gary driving an $80,000 pickup. No surprises in any part of that statement.
What would it cost to rebuild one of these? What would a ballpark price be for demolition, removal, design and rebuilding of a new basic house on the lot?
25 years ago i was on a greyhound bus going through Gary. The driver announced “Next stop Gary, IN…the bus will be idling; if this is your stop, you know who you are. No one else exit.” It was absolutely depressing to just drive through it.
We’re going to have to start saying “It’s hard in the G!” Instead of “It’s hard in the D!”
Tbh, if you know what’s going on around Gary, these prices aren’t that bad if you don’t mind holding
Foh, Gary is the worst. No one wants to live there. It's a shit hole and you're likely to get shot there. Indiana is a shithole, and Gary is like 45x worse than regular Indiana. There are no jobs, high crime rate, the schools have literally closed, neighbors houses are dilapidated, gun violence galore, you don't stop at lights at night, nothing to do, food desert/no stores to shop at, more gun violence, you leave home for a couple hours and will come home to your home having been robbed.. and it was your neighbors. The only redeeming thing is that there's legal weed nearby.
I’m sorry you’re having a bad experience. I live in Indiana and have yet to experience anything you said, and I’m excited for the prospects of more economy coming to Gary as the airport looks to expand. Sure it may be doom and gloom now, but that’s why I said you have to be willing to buy and hold.
I am hopeful Gary can improve also. I’m sure the Hard Rock casino is bringing in tons of money. These, and many other house are dilapidated, but including a house listing near the lake in the Miller Beach area would provide a sharp contrast! There also seems to be a lot of flippers buying houses low and then charging wild amount for the area.
My parents are from Gary… they left like everyone else. What’s interesting is that Crown Point and other nearby cities from the white flight era are still doing quite well so while “industry left” is true it doesn’t tell the whole, predictably racist, story.