About City Property Sales 

City property sales are administered by the City Manager’s Office. Properties sold by the City of Jackson are divided into three categories:

• Existing property sales: A property that holds a standing house, multi-residential complex or commercial building. 
• Vacant side lots: PROGRAM SUSPENDED TO ADJACENT PROPERTY OWNERS. A small lot that used to contain a structure, but is not big enough to accommodate a new build. These lots are often sold to adjacent neighbors who adopt them into their properties for added space. 
• Buildable lots: A vacant lot or combination of lots that is big enough for the new construction of a single-family home or multi-residential complex. 

A further breakdown of these three categories are included on this page.

Existing Property Sales

The City of Jackson works with local realtors to sell properties on the open market. Properties that have an existing structure on them, such as a house, multi-residential complex or commercial building, will be displayed on this page. These properties are often acquired by the City through property tax foreclosure. Most of the properties are sold in an "as is" condition, but some are given extensive renovations by the City before they are available for sale. Property listings are removed after an offer has been accepted by the City Council.  

• NO PROPERTIES LISTED 

Please review the Example List of Improvements for Rehabs (PDF) to understand the work that may be required for obtaining City-owned property. If you have any questions about the property, please work with the realtor on the listing.

Vacant Side Lots 

This program is suspended until further notice. Vacant side lot sales to adjacent property owners are not currently taking place. Check this web page for future updates. Please do not visit or call the City Manager's Office inquiring about these sales.

Here are the qualifications for buying a vacant City-owned side lot:

• The request to purchase is submitted by City of Jackson residential property owner(s). These lots are not sold to renters or those with a land contract. 
• The vacant property is immediately adjacent to the property of the requestor.
• No blight on the property of the requestor. 
• The requestor does not have outstanding bills/fees/citations/taxes owed to the City. To see if there are any outstanding bills/fees/citations/taxes with the City, search your name in the City of Jackson BS&A online platform. 
• The property does not lie in a strategic development area, such as within the MLK Corridor Improvement Authority. 
• The property wasn’t taken from the requestor through foreclosure.
• Lots must be combined when the sale is approved. No reselling of the acquired lot is allowed. 
• Commercial and residential lots cannot be combined. 
• If the lot is being purchased by a business, non-profit or church, the sale must be approved by the Jackson City Council. 
• If there are multiple offers on the property, the City will go with the highest bidder who is deemed eligible to purchase the lot. 
• Must be able to pay with cash, cashier's check or money order. 

If you are interested in submitting an offer, please include your offer purchase price with your request. A minimum offer of $300 is required, the City may counter with a higher dollar amount.  The request will have to come from the property owner. To submit a request please complete the Request to Purchase City Property Form (FILLABLE PDF) with the property owner’s name address, phone number, offer price, last four digits of social security number, desired use of the property and signature.

Use the information listed in the "Contact Us" section of this page for questions or to start the purchasing process. 

Buildable Lots

City officials are ready to work with residents and developers who would like to build within the City of Jackson. A buildable lot is classified as a vacant lot or combination of lots that is large enough to accommodate the new construction of a single-family home or multi-residential complex.

Here are key details about buildable lots in Jackson: 

• The City will sell these lots for as low as $362.50. 
  • Qualifications are available on this page in the "Vacant Side Lot" section. They are the same terms and conditions, with the exception of having to own an adjacent lot. 
  • The property does not lie in a strategic development area. 
  • Bidding is available through the City website. 
• A Standard Development Agreement is required. 
  • Prepared at no additional cost to the developer. 
  • All lots are subject to a reverter clause: 
    • Site plan approval within 12 months of property purchase. 
    • Construction must be complete within 12 months of property purchase. 
    • Certificate of Occupancy within 12 months of the property purchase. 
• Incentives include: 
  • Water/sewer connection discount of up to 100%.  
  • Priority site plan review. 
  • Priority property development meetings with City officials. 

Please reference the Buildable Lot FAQs for more information about the program. Use the information listed in the "Contact Us" section of this page for questions or to start the purchasing process. 

Identifying a Vacant Lot

To identify a City-owned lot that could be purchased as either a vacant side lot or buildable lot, visit the Jackson County, MI Tax Parcel Viewer. Search an address in this online tool and find out if it's a City-owned property. Owner information will be provided with the parcel information. If you would like to build on this lot and it appears to be too small, look at nearby parcels to see if they can be combined. 

Documents are available on this page that list and map vacant City-owned parcels as of July 2022

• Map of vacant City-owned parcels (PDF) 
• List of vacant City-owned residential parcels (PDF)

Not all vacant lots are owned by the City of Jackson. Even though there is no longer a structure on a lot, it could still be privately owned. Some lots have signage that indicate they are owned by the City, but this practice has fallen out of use by the City. 

The photo example provided is of a vacant property at 1046 Greenwood Avenue that’s owned by the City. 

Properties Held by John George Home or Homes for Hardest Hit Program

The City is taking requests for properties that are held by our Blight Reduction Partner John George Home. These properties are a part of a grant program administrated by the MSHDA (Michigan State Housing Development Authority). When approved the State applies the cost of the demolition as a lien against the property. 

The length of the lien is generally 5 years, during the time of the lien the City of Jackson will be unable to sell the property. Once the length of the lien has run out, the State of Michigan will submit a letter to John George Home and the lien will be released. At that time the City can begin processing sales requests. 

We encourage anyone interested in submitting a request to purchase a John George Home held property to submit your request to the 14th floor of City Hall with the same information that is requested for City owned vacant lots. The City will review the request for approval once the lien is released on that property.