In Cleveland a billboard stating, “Yes! I buy crack houses” and “Your house is trash? I’ll pay cash” is appearing around the city, and some neighbors are offended.
“Why he picked, ‘Yes, I buy crack houses,’ We don’t know. But it’s in poor taste,” a neighbor said.
Businessman John Williams put up the billboards, as he is investing in these homes to improve neighborhoods.
“What we do is buy homes, generally that are dilapidated, abandoned, they are not occupied. No one is living in them,” Williams said. “What we do is we buy these properties; we fix up these homes and they’re affordable housing.”
Cleveland City Council President Blaine Griffin disagrees, saying the billboards are not a good way to do business.
“Maybe it should be with some people that are reputable, but not with somebody like this coming to clearly make a mockery of our neighborhood,” Griffin said.
Williams, however says that stating the truth is just as much a service to the community.
“When you mention crack houses or abandoned houses it gets attention. It brings attention to the issue, and it also brings in leads, which we could acquire these properties that are just sitting there. It’s a big win for everyone,” Williams said. “Some people may say using that specific word is not good, but the properties do exist. We all see them. We all either chose to accept that it is that, or ignore it. It looks like it’s been a problem that’s been ignored for decades.”
Well, one way or another if you’ve got a crack house you might get a good price.