The Detroit Homestead: Entire Flat

Entire home in Detroit, Michigan

  1. 12 guests
  2. 3 bedrooms
  3. 6 beds
  4. 1 bath
Rated 4.73 out of 5 stars.90 reviews
Hosted by Alyssa
  1. 14 years hosting
Spacious, first floor flat for up to 12 guests at The Detroit Homestead, a working urban farmstead and bicycle shop near Detroit's New Center.

The space
Welcome to The Detroit Homestead, a working urban farm and guest home located in the heart of Detroit! In September of 2012, we purchased and began renovating this circa-1916 brick duplex because of its convenient location in a friendly neighborhood and historic features. Now, we are happy to be a home away from home to travelers from around the world!

When you rent THE ENTIRE GUEST FLAT at The Detroit Homestead, you rent:
~THE SEA ROOM: KING-sized PRIVATE bedroom with closet, ceiling fan, dresser and double window overlooking our urban farm;
~THE BIRD ROOM: QUEEN-sized PRIVATE bedroom with closet, ceiling fan, and double window overlooking our urban farm;
~THE BUNK ROOM: a purpose-built room with FOUR TWIN-sized BUNK BEDS, each with individual light, work space, and privacy curtain AND a single-person HAMMOCK!
~Queen sized air mattress/cot as needed (for larger parties)
~ENTIRE first-floor guest flat, including a dedicated KITCHEN and pantry for guests, dedicated guest BATHROOM with enclosed clawfoot tub/shower and bidet, (free!) LAUNDRY, and spacious DINING AND LIVING ROOMS with hand built and restored furniture! We have a spacious yard for pets to run around, a brick-lined FIRE PIT, and a ROPE SWING if you're feeling playful! We even have BICYCLES available for you to rent during your visit to Detroit (maintained and repaired by us, in our basement bike shop)! And if you need to print a boarding pass, we've got you covered there, too!

In addition to the indoor portions of The Homestead, our urban farm is a critical part of our efforts here in Detroit. Although still small (though expanding!), the farm already gives us more fresh organically grown produce than we can use! We don’t believe in wasting what we have, so anything we can’t use or preserve goes to neighbors, friends, and GUESTS! If you stay with us during the spring, summer, and fall months, feel free to take a stroll through the garden with us and grab some fresh produce! We may even invite you to help us do some canning!

The cost of your rental directly funds operation of and further improvements to The Homestead…by us! And since we occupy the upstairs flat at The Homestead, keeping the house clean, safe, well organized, and well maintained is our highest priority, while still respecting the privacy and plans of guests!

Future projects towards which your rental will be contributed are: continued development of adjacent lots into farmland to provide vegetables, fruits, eggs, honey, and cheese for house and local residents, continued improvement to our bicycle repair and rental shop in the basement by your hosts (also trained bicycle mechanics), and collaboration with other groups and individuals making a positive impact on our city…one quiet, unassuming residential block at a time.

Be an active part of the transformation of Detroit by helping us to improve our property, our neighborhood, and our city!

Can't wait to see you here at The Homestead!
Alyssa & Matt

Guest access
INCLUDED IN EVERY BOOKING
-Shared (only if there are other guests) bathroom with vanity mirror, bidet, clawfoot tub, and 7'-tall shower
-Shared (only if there are other guests) kitchen with pantry, gas stove, full fridge/freezer, microwave, coffee grinder and maker, rice maker, mixer, and a multitude of spices and other cooking supplies (just ask if you don't see something that you need!)
-Keys upon arrival
-Clean linens and towels
-Wireless internet
-Washer and dryer in basement
-Fire pit with seating and rope swing outside
-Additional information, advice, and tips regarding your stay at any time!

Other things to note
SAFETY:
We understand that Detroit may have a gritty reputation and that its exterior may seem off putting to some. However, living in Detroit is not markedly more dangerous than other cities and safety can be assured by employing common sense, basic street smarts, and situational awareness. In order to minimize risks, we encourage guests to remove valuable items from vehicles, curb their tires when parking in the city, store bicycles indoors, and lock up when departing The Homestead.

Where you’ll sleep

Bedroom 1
1 queen bed
Bedroom 2
1 king bed
Bedroom 3
4 single beds, 1 hammock

What this place offers

Kitchen
Wifi
Free parking on premises
Pets allowed
Washer

Select check-in date

Add your travel dates for exact pricing

4.73 out of 5 stars from 90 reviews

Overall rating

  1. 5 stars, 81% of reviews
  2. 4 stars, 15% of reviews
  3. 3 stars, 2% of reviews
  4. 2 stars, 1% of reviews
  5. 1 stars, 1% of reviews

Rated 4.8 out of 5 stars for cleanliness

Rated 4.8 out of 5 stars for accuracy

Rated 5.0 out of 5 stars for check-in

Rated 4.9 out of 5 stars for communication

Rated 4.4 out of 5 stars for location

Rated 4.8 out of 5 stars for value

Guest reviews mention

Where you’ll be

Detroit, Michigan, United States
Exact location will be provided after booking.

Neighborhood highlights

OUR NEIGHBORHOOD:
The Virginia Park neighborhood is located smack in the center of Detroit within about a 10-15 minute drive (or 30 minute bike ride) of most of the city. We're a friendly, family neighborhood with deep historic roots and a rapidly changing landscape that includes many long-time residents and new faces both, a good view of both Detroit's history as well as its future.

Our neighborhood has a spacious residential character, and though still just a short car/bike ride away, you won't find the kind of dense city nightlife where there are bars or venues within walking distance here. What you will find is a quiet place to rest and catch your breath from the busier parts of the city, a community of friendly kids and neighbors, and some unparalleled porch sitting with the fireflies on display over the garden the tune of crickets in the air (at least in the summer).

Practically speaking, The Detroit Homestead is located just a block away from a community center, several stores (including grocery and pharmacy), and small branch police station, but not within walking distance of many other businesses currently. Detroit is a little too large for walking to be a practical method of transportation between neighborhoods, so we recommend wheels of some sort or another to get around efficiently.

Approximate travel time for several neighborhoods is given for driving/biking below.
~New Center (Fisher Building, shops, restaurants, hospital, professional offices): 5/5 minutes
~Midtown (Wayne State University, DIA and other museums, shopping, library, bars and restaurants): 10/20 minutes
~Hamtramck (Polish/Mediterannean food, shopping, loads of dive bars and local music): 10/20 minutes
~Eastern Market (food, bars, farmer's market, art galleries, print shops, distilleries): 15/20 minutes
~Corktown (currently the densest, hippest part of town with a lot of old and new bars, restaurants, venues, and shopping): 15/25 minutes
~Southwest/Mexicantown (food, street/public art, small shops): 15/25 minutes
~Downtown (Sports stadiums, COBO center, tons of amazing architecture, food, bars, venues, shopping): 15/20 minutes
~Belle Isle (State park on an island between Detroit and Canada, beach, conservatory, aquarium, nature): 20/40 minutes
~Dearborn (Middle Eastern food, businesses, shopping, Henry Ford Museum): 25/45 minutes

Meet your host

Host
356 reviews
4.82 out of 5 average rating
14 years of hosting
My work: The Detroit Homestead; Frontier Industry, LLC
Speaks English
A few years ago, my partner, Matt, and I discovered Detroit on a somewhat aimless weekend trip. Although curiosity about the city's ruins and reputation inspired the initial visit, over two years of repeated trips, we began to understand that Detroit is much more than these two things. The people impressed us at every turn with their hospitality, warmth, creativity, and perseverance, while the place inspired us with its open spaces and opportunity for reclamation and restoration, not to mention the affordability of beautiful historic homes. Realizing that my years of living a professional, office-bound existence had been stable but deeply unfulfilling, that we had exhausted our options in our then-home of Pittsburgh, and that there seemed to be something that kept drawing us back here, we made the decision to relocate on a particularly beautiful evening in July around a bonfire with friends in Southwest Detroit. Two weeks later, we arrived with all of our worldly goods in a truck as new Detroit residents. Shortly after moving, we were fortunate enough to find and purchase The Detroit Homestead. Rough at first, we saw the potential in this unassuming brick duplex. Six weeks of frantic cleaning, repairing, and renovating later, we welcomed our first guests and entered into our new life as self employed innkeepers. Since opening in November of 2012, we have had the privilege of hosting guests from around the world, sharing stories and experiences, learning more about what brings people here and their own perspectives on Detroit. We are honored to be ambassadors for the city that has captured our hearts and to help visitors explore the city and appreciate it for the unparalleled positives that are too often overlooked - the vibrant art and music communities, the wonderful food, the explosion of urban gardening, and the overwhelming kindness and spirit of Detroiters. We are constantly at work making improvements to The Homestead and the land surrounding it, envisioning it as an integrated and self-sustaining community garden/farm, inn, bike shop, creative space, and a hub for visitors and residents alike in our neighborhood and rentals from Airbnb go directly towards that goal. Even after four years, we continue to look forward to expanding and refining of our small urban neighborhood farm here at The Homestead, growing as artists and homesteaders personally, and collaborating with other individuals and groups also at work re-imagining Detroit's future. Living and creating a small business here has challenged us, inspired us, and gone beyond our expectations. Detroit is changing inevitably, and we feel lucky to be a part of the process, to help renew our block with the help of our community and support of visitors. We look forward to showing you why we love it here! Alyssa & Matt The Detroit Homestead
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Things to know

Cancellation policy
House rules
Check-in: 8:00 AM - 2:00 AM
12 guests maximum
Pets allowed
Safety & property
Carbon monoxide alarm
Smoke alarm
Must climb stairs