City to put on expo about rehabbing vacant homes
Baltimore officials want vacant homes renovated and lived in again, because that fixes a host of problems in one fell swoop. So they're hoping you go this weekend to a city-organized event about -- what else? -- rehabbing vacant homes.
More than 200 people have already registered for the free expo, scheduled for 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, the city's housing department says.
Julie Day, deputy commissioner of land resources at at the agency, known as Baltimore Housing, said the event will offer seminars on choosing a contractor, rehab financing options, understanding the permitting process and the like. The information is aimed at people hoping to redevelop vacants for a living, prospective home buyers looking for a place to fix up and live in, and housing counselors who want to help walk buyers through the process.
Teresa Stephens, director of marketing and community outreach for land resources at Baltimore Housing, said a vacant property "can offer a home buyer a really good opportunity."
"Often it does take a little vision and rose-colored glasses to see it," she added.
Expo participants will get a list of city-owned vacants that were purchased, rehabbed and are now for sale. Ten will be open for viewing Saturday afternoon, Day said.
The expo is an outgrowth of the city's Vacants to Value program. That's an effort to turn the tide on Baltimore's long problem of abandonment by picking up the pace on sales of city-owned homes, more aggressively going after vacancy in otherwise healthy areas through code enforcement and taking other steps -- such as tear-downs -- when called for.
Sales are up -- they're on pace to double last year's figure, Day says. But part of the challenge facing the city is that even a doubling of sales is just a small dent in the total. (And WBAL-TV reported last month that a number of sales the city is claiming as Vacants to Value successes were already in the works before the program existed.)
If you'd like to attend the Saturday expo, you can find out here how to register. Day expects it won't be the city's last offering on the subject.
"The interest is really enthusiastic and growing, so I do see that we will be doing either similar workshops or a similar format with different content," she said.
Categories: Renovation/rehab, Vacancies
Sign up for the At Home newsletter 
Comments
Great idea, but I also wish they'd work on existing neighborhoods as well. I live in Mount Vernon and am appalled at the increasing amount of gang graffiti in the park and along the streets. The park looks terrible (grass overgrown and brown and weedy) and the Christmas ornaments are still up on the Washington Monument.
Posted by: Laurie | June 14, 2011 8:26 AM
How about doing something meaningful and giving some economic incentive to reinvest in the city? Something like given new home buyers a 5 year exemption on property taxes with a requirement to stay in that home for some period afterwards? That way, these vacant homes are bought, rehabbed, lived in, and cared for and the buyer has some incentive and ability to put money into the home. It is a similar program that helped Philadelphia transform itself (although in different economic times, to be sure). The point is that Baltimore will not get rid of empty houses by asking people to come buy empty houses. There has to be incentive, otherwise, they will stay in the county.
Posted by: Jeff | June 14, 2011 2:31 PM
Jeff, the city has tax credits that are sort of like that. Here's information about the Vacant Dwelling Property Tax Credit: http://www.baltimorecity.gov/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=puKfzL-_l8E%3d&tabid=320
That requires the rehab to be done by the owner, but someone buying a just-rehabbed vacant property from an investor could be eligible for the new-construction tax credit.
The credits last for five years, with no property taxes the first year, 20 percent of the tax bill paid the next, etc.
Posted by: Jamie Smith Hopkins | June 14, 2011 2:57 PM
I've even stopped pulling the weeds outside my doorstep. What's the point when you're neighbors are crystal meth addicts? It won't make the street any prettier.
Posted by: V | June 14, 2011 8:31 PM
V, do you have reason to believe your neighbors are MAKING meth in their house? That's definitely something you'd want to call the police about. Meth labs are dangerous.
Posted by: Jamie Smith Hopkins | June 15, 2011 7:15 AM
The tax credits are great, but when you have hundreds (if not thousands) of property owners claiming residency when they actually live elsewhere...where's the incentive for people to actually live here?
Posted by: Baltimore Slumlord Watch | June 16, 2011 10:32 PM