(One question, how can this blog post be dated "July 2, 2011" when it's currently July 1, 2011?) While I applaud Mr. Landers for having the honesty--unlike all other folks who typically talk about this idea--to own up to the fact that such a dramatic tax cut would deplete the city of revenue, that only goes so far. He has to identify actual spending cuts he proposes in order to be credible, not just say "oh yeah, and I'm going to find ways to cut $100M in wasteful spending to make up the difference." The Office of the Mayor in Baltimore actualy gets to set the budget under the charter, not the council, so it is incumbent upon all candidates proposing these tax cuts to specifically identify what they're proposing to be cut. The largest expenditures in the budget are for police, fire, education, and DPW, so will he be proposing we accept less safety, worse schools, or worse roads?

Yikes, thanks for catching that date problem, baltimoreGeof -- I must have absent-mindedly changed it before I hit the publish button. (I usually write my posts at home in the evening, so I'm used to doing that and scheduling them to appear the next morning.) I've fixed the date so it doesn't appear that I'm 24 hours ahead of the rest of the East Coast.

Now this is a plan that makes sense!

The tiered system of taxing vacant and blighted properties at rates of 5 and 10 times the regular rate is about the only unique idea I've heard from any of the candidates. It should be headline making, and not just an online article. After all it is the differences between the candidates and their creativity that should be highlighted.

John, reporter Julie Scharper is covering the campaign, so I'm sure my blog post will not be the extent of the coverage. I just wanted something online quickly for this audience, which is always interested in property-tax issues.

Thanks Jamie. With so many candidates talking about lowering property taxes, I do find it noteworthy when someone actually appears to have a a novel idea.

Great to see some actual details from one of the candidates.

Now only is Otis can tell us how he is going to build those 50 schools...

Finally a realistic plan from one of these candidates. Ideas like this are just what Baltimore needs!

Thank you Jamie for the great work and all the research that you do. Although I am not in Baltimore as often as I wish, I do enjoy reading what you and your readers have to say about the property tax issue. It is sad when potential residents actually want to come back to the city but can't because of 'not crime, not the smaller cramped rowhomes or hit or miss 'public schools' but rather the high property tax rates used. Can someone in govt. please also take a look at the HOA/condo fees. They also seem to be a bit ridiculous....just my opinion. If we look at our public systems and do a bit of spring cleaning every few years, and get the bad nuts or the bad apples out of the barrel we may find that the safety, schools and the roads don't need to actually deteriorate. As with each passing year, eagar young, fresh graduates hit the streets looking for jobs every May. Charm City deserves better (in every way).

Finally, more than a soundbite from our list of candidates. I have spent most of my life working in City neighborhoods witnessing increased blight. This plan seems to have some thought behind it. Landers is giving me some hope.

What does he mean by "spending reductions and new or increased revenue measures"? I mean, in detail?

Not to fully rehash a debate that was had on here about a year and a half ago, but,

There are two specific problems that are contributing to Bmore's blight, abandonment, long-term vacancies, whichever term you prefer. Those are:

1. Significant permitting, licensing, and zoning barriers that stand between the condition a property is currently in, and the condition we would like it to move into.
2. The city does a terrible job of selling the properties they do own, so much so that approximately one quarter of all abandoned residential property is already owned by the city government. Once it falls into city ownership, it is extremely difficult to do anything with.

Unless these two problems are fixed, the two-tiered penalty tax system would only serve to accelerate the transfer of abandoned property from private ownership to city ownership.

After really thinking this through and hearing out both sides of the story for about 45 minutes on his radio show, even Dan Rodricks, a man who is proud to say he is distinctly left of center, said this two-tiered penalty system wouldn't make any sense.

Josh,

Before you go putting words in Dan Rodricks' mouth, I suggest that you take a look at my pro-vacant tax Facebook page. You will find Mr. Rodricks among the 210 supporters. Nice try.

Funny, I don't remember Dan Rodricks saying anything of the sort.

As for permitting and licensing barriers...where are these so-called barriers? The only thing I can see standing in the way of redevelopment is the unwillingness of bad property owners to spend the money necessary to rehab their blighted properties.

While the radio interview is down, the discussion from a year and a a half ago is not. http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/business/realestate/blog/2009/12/city_wants_to_tax_uninhabitable_homes_at_higher_rate.html

Advance to minute marker 46 of the radio interview to hear the host Dan Rodricks say to the proponent "and to expect people to improve their properties simply because their tax rates go up, I don't think that's a realistic expectation Matt."

Pardon me for saying BOOYAHH!!!!!!

Last time I checked, Dan Rodricks was fully in favor of the two-tiered penalty system... But then again where he stands on things is not the issue, the issue is something that everyone who lives in Baltimore can understand, the taxes on real estate are just too high.

While I see plans for a 50% reduction immediately as being unrealistic, unachievable and simply pandering for votes, this plan is a more measured approach and will get a lot of attention from the more level-headed voters out there.

I just wish that solid policy like this was consolidated behind a single candidate so Stephanie Rawlings-Blake had a real contender, I see Landers and Rolley splitting a lot of votes in September...

Josh, you cherry-picked a small segment of the interview in order to support your false claim. Of course, manipulation is what you do best- as evidenced by how you constantly tried to shoehorn your pet issue (city pension reform) during the WYPR discussion.

By the way, I noticed that you still have this falsehood posted on your lending company's website:

"Your home is going to appreciate regardless of your mortgage balance or initial down payment."

When was the last time you updated this website?

Prior copy and paste of December 2009's extensive debate of this was incomplete. Hopefully there's not a program chopping it and it will come through this time, as it is worth a re-read:

http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/business/realestate/blog/2009/12/city_wants_to_tax_uninhabitable_homes_at_higher_rate.html

One thing I noticed reading it over, Matt never addresses the core problem of turning privately owned abandoned property into publicly owned abandoned property, or the problem of buying city-owned property. There is also no refutation that Rodrick's words truly were the spirit of his assessment at the time, although the point is rather immaterial beyond proving who has the better memory.

Really nothing further to be said on this unless Matt for the first time ever wants to address the core problems of the idea.

I think this should be front page news. I wish the Baltimore Sun would give this more coverage.

I agree that this should be front page news. The Washington DC model Landers mentions is an excellent one; their population has grown with middle-class home owners in the past few years.

I registered to vote this year, specifically because of the property taxes. I just received my tax notice in the mail yesterday. My property is to be assessed in december so they won't lower my taxes, I have to appeal in December.
I would like to see the reset of the contenders views on the property taxes, I like the idea of charging those properties are run down more taxes. So the city takes on a few more properties, then... hopfully it will motivate the city to fix the system of selling properties and move things along faster.

Has SRBlake said anything about lowing the property taxes? I think to be reelected she has to do something, she can not be mum on the situation any longer.

Jody Landers will be speaking about his tax proposal at the July 20 meeting of the Mid-Atlantic Real Estate Investors Association (MAREIA).

The meeting will be held at the Pikesville Hilton and starts at 6:30 pm.

@pigtown girl

The last thing I saw was Rawlings saying lowering taxes was unrealistic.