Saturday Extra: All things real estate and businesses wait on pay, leave issues

We had a lot of housing and residential real estate news this week. On Thursday, the city of Detroit said it is pledging $203 million to a series of housing programs intended to bring stability to residents across a spectrum of needs. The money is intended to be spent this year on programs that will create new rental housing, help renters become homeowners, improve the quality of existing rental units and help connect residents with housing-related services.

“The comprehensive nature of it is incredibly important,” said Julie Schneider, the director of Detroit’s Housing and Revitalization Department. “We want to do whatever we can as a city to make housing more stable.”

That news came a day after Crain’s reported that the median sales price for a home in the city of Detroit topped a record $100,000 in June. “It’s a very big deal,” said Karen Kage, the CEO of multiple listing service Realcomp, whose data goes back to 1994.

Finally, new data this week showed demand for mortgages has dropped lower than at any time during the Great Recession more than a decade ago, while a severe housing shortage in Michigan and beyond continues to choke the availability of existing homes, driving up prices.

That’s a lot to chew on.

In other news:

$57 billion state budget: Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Wednesday signed the general budget for the next year, covering everything from roads and economic development to health and public safety. Crain’s reporter Dave Eggert highlights who gets what.

Ford job cuts: Ford Motor Co. is reportedly preparing to cut as many as 8,000 jobs in the coming weeks as the Dearborn-based automaker tries to boost profits to fund its push into the electric-vehicle market.

Auto show afterglow: In another sign of things getting back to normal, organizers announced this week that The Children’s Center of Detroit AutoGlow, the longest-running Detroit auto show Charity Preview afterglow, is returning this year after a two-year break.