Not Enough Houses Downtown

A report states that there will not be enough housing supply to meet the projected demand in the heart of downtown Baltimore. Read the Baltimore Examiner story here. What does this mean for property owners and investors downtown? Higher appreciation, higher rent prices, and higher quality tenants. With the rise in gas prices more people are looking to move closer to their jobs in the city. With Johns Hopkins and other institutions expanding downtown the demand for quality housing is going to go through the roof.

If you own property in this area just hold on to it and enjoy the trips to the bank. If not NOW is the time to snatch up all the houses you can. I know getting financing is tough, but explore all the options. You may want to sit back and let the prices fall even lower, and they might some. If you wait too long you may miss the boat. The investor is in a great position right now. Make that position even better by increasing your holdings. The demand is growing.

No Property Tax Decution this Year

If you were looking forward to the 2 cent rate reduction in the calculation of your property taxes you can forget about it this year. Mayor Dixon has removed that from the proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year. As much as we need to reduce our high property taxes I applaud the Mayor for being fiscally responsible. We don't want any reduction in city services. Once people start buying houses again they can start reducing it again. The reduction means very little relief for most people anyways. We welcome your comments.

Rent Prices Up!

CNN reports that rent amounts are up in most areas. As foreclosures increase more people need to rent. Some people say that the evil landlords are taking advantage of people. I say it's supply and demand. More people need to rent and the price goes up. This is why we're paying $3.30 for a gallon of gas supposedly.

Bottom line it is a great time to be an owner of a rental property. Having trouble selling your house but still need to move? Rent it. You can count the majority of the rent as income for purposes of qualifying for the new mortgage. This will virtually wipe out your obligation and allow you to qualify. Then when the market picks back up in 2010 or later then you can sell or keep letting the tenants pay your mortgage. Contact us to find out how much rent you can get.

Tax Lien Sale Coming May 12

The annual sale of Tax Certificates is coming up May 12, 2008. Yes it is sad that someone could lose their house over a $400 water bill, but this is how Baltimore City guarantees they get their money. You have to pay your bills.

What this situation creates though is a unique opportunity for investors. For a small investment you get either your money back with interest and fees guaranteed, or you get a house. This is a win win for the investor. This year will be even more interesting with people struggling with the sub-prime meltdown. There is a chance you can beat the bank to the foreclosure table. More people are just walking away from their houses when they find themselves upside down. Maryland just passed legislation that will complicate things. They lengthened the minimum amount of time that you can foreclose on a house. This means you'll have to wait a little longer for your money or your house. It also means less people may want to go through the process so less competition.

So check out BidBaltimore.com to see the process. You must get your ducks in a row first. You also have to do your homework. Concentrate on houses in neighborhoods you know. Look for houses that have been recently bought in the past 3 years or so. Also look for owner's addresses that are out of the area. They are less likely to repay. An informational seminar is provided by Investor's United. Check out the details here. Happy bidding.

Evictions down 25% in Baltimore City

The City reports that evictions are down after the new law took effect. They claim that the new requirements to notify the tenants have helped to reduce this number. I hope this is the reason why and give the city credit for getting something right. I just can't believe someone didn't know before that they were going to get evicted. If you don't pay your rent your get evicted. Read the full story.

Get Ready for Higher Property Taxes

Maryland is reassessing houses across the state and their assessments and resulting tax bills are going way up. One of my houses doubled in assessed value. They enacted a new law which requires owners to reapply for the Homestead exemption which caps the amount of increase for owner occu0pied homes. The purpose of this is to weed out those investors who are receiving the cap for their rental properties.

The State is facing a huge budget shortfall now that the real estate transfer taxes have returned to a somewhat normal rate, and are seeking funds from many new sources. So why not stick it to real estate investors who are providing quality housing? Maryland and especially Baltimore City already have high tax bills with the "Behind the times" assessments. Now they are getting to reality and also going to remove the Homestead cap which means tax bills will go through the roof.

So how can Baltimore City help us out? A proposed bill would charge fines and impose potential criminal penalties to owners who falsely claim the credit for rental properties. This bill would also allow the City to place a lien on your house if you don't pay the fines right away. Read the Full Story

• We don't support or recommend anyone to falsify the application for the Maryland Homestead Tax Credit, but we understand why one would consider it. They will catch up with you.
• Why does Baltimore need to spend time on this when Maryland has already taken care of this?
• Who is going to end up paying the higher tax bills? THE TENANTS!

All the State and City can see are dollar signs. They don't think about the implications. The higher tax bills will just be passed along to the tenants in the form of higher rents. This will make housing even less affordable in Maryland. Most owners I work with are just squeaking by now. Higher taxes = higher rents. By the time they get done the Governor and City Council will be looking around wondering where everyone went when the state is empty.

8 Maryland Landlords fined by MDE for Lead Paint Violations

8 Baltimore Maryland Metro area landlords were fined a total of $240,000 for led paint violations. Read the Story here
Just a sign the the Maryland Department of the Environment is stepping up its' enforcement of people who violate the lead paint laws of Maryland. What would a fine of $65,000 do to your bottom line? You can't afford to play around let a professional handle these headaches for you and avoid costly mistakes.