Notice how the article rates Flint absolute worse for Maintenance Affordability. Then mostly ignores that problem. And that Detroit is both #2 for Housing Affordability and second-worse for maintenance.
Obvious question: Is their affordability metric badly skewed by cheap-looking fixer-uppers - which churn through owner after owner, each re-discovering that they can't actually afford the ongoing costs of living in their "cheap" house?
Maintenance affordability largely depends on if you're paying someone to do the work vs doing it yourself. Until you own a fixer-upper yourself, you don't really realize how bad the regulatory capture on home repairs has become.
True. OTOH, the great majority of potential modern-day homeowners lack the necessary strength, dexterity, aptitudes, attitudes, skills, tools, time, timeframe, etc. to DIY a real fixer-upper.