Submitted by Business-Vehicle4558 t3_1275ss7 in baltimore
Hi everyone, I will be attending JHU this Fall (at the medical campus) and was hoping to get any advice on purchasing a home in Baltimore.
The distance isn’t a big factor to me, I don’t mind driving/walking/taking the shuttle. Im more focused on which areas would be safer and which to avoid.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated, thank you in advance!
Thank you for your input, I am considering this but want to be prepared in advance to know where to look for and be pre qualified to have a smoother transition when we find a place we like.
In fairness, and this is before the interest rate jump, I was totally in the same camp. But rentals here are expensive and it was almost the same price to buy as to rent.
Livebaltimore.com
Thank you!
Close to Patterson Park would be good.
Thank you!
Not nearly enough info here. What kind of place are you looking for? What do you enjoy doing? What kind of things are important to you in a neighborhood? Are you living alone or with a family of 12?
There are links on the sidebar that have generic info on Baltimore and its neighborhoods but if you want better help from us you've got to give us a little more than this.
I will be alone with my dog for the first year while my partner is finishing up their studies elsewhere and joining me later.
Most important thing I’m looking for is accessibility to large parks/hiking trails and safety. I do plan on bringing my car so areas with lower car break in rates would be ideal and don’t mind driving 20-30 minutes to the JHU medical campus. Thanks in advance!
Canton is probably a good spot for you. Property prices track heavily with public safety
Thanks, yea I have been looking into Canton a lot, walked around there too and the area was beautiful
You could look in the Coldstream-Homestead-Montebello area or Waverly/Charles Village if you're not concerned about distance. They're very nice neighborhoods, affordable, and between two colleges (CHM is near Morgan state and Waverly is near JHU Homewood). There's also lake montebello nearby. You could most likely find a nice house for a reasonable price. My girlfriend lives in CHM, and it's honestly a charming neighborhood. Her house was only like $150k and was newly renovated
And in terms of places to avoid, you can clearly see those areas when going through the city. However, if you mind your manners and keep your nose out of others affairs, you could get by in the most blighted areas (like Sandtown-Winchester). Crime definitely is an issue in the city overall, but unless you have a habit of making enemies or hanging around troublemakers in the middle of the night, your chances of being the victim of serious crime are greatly reduced. Not saying it won't happen, since crime can happen to anyone anywhere; but if you're aware of where you are, you'll have no problem anywhere.
What do you enjoy/want to be near?
I guess areas accessible to large/safe parks would be the main thing. I like to hike a lot but that would require me to drive out of Baltimore. I don’t drink or smoke so don’t need to be in the lively city area. I do plan to bring my car so ideally in a place where there are lower rates of car break in too. Thanks!
JHU has a shuttle that runs between all of its campuses, including the office building in Hampden. Your options are pretty broad.
Hey! Will this be your first home? Have you considered how much you can afford? I’m a local real estate agent who can help! I’ll send you a message.
Price range will have a large influence here.
In the $200k range I'd look in Patterson Park Neighborhood, probably in the blocks between Fairmount and Fayette (definitely stay South of Fayette). In the $400k range I'd look at Canton.
I can’t say too much on where to live, but I can give transportation advice. I would recommend using the shuttles or driving yourself rather than walking. Especially depending on the time of day or night. I don’t want to generalize or be a fear monger, but you can encounter people looking to rough you up.
Not to be too negative, but you do realize that the company which you are to work for is the cause for the decay in the area where it stands? Does it not seem curious that Hopkins Medical system occupies more land than many small cities? Yet the area immediately around the complex is in decay. This is because the Medical center's actions and in-actions do not encourage developers from investing in the same immediate area. Why, because in a year or two the Medical center, will consume that same land, in their ever increasing campus footprint. For 70+ years they have clear-cut huge swaths of East Baltimore, removing, for ever, thousands of taxable properties. Its like a black hole.
You must be a riot at cocktail parties.
> the company which you are to work for
OP is a student.
Thank you for your input, considering this, then are there areas within 30 minute drive from the hospital that your see are safe from the property consumption?
hymie0 t1_jee4ysi wrote
I can't imagine moving to a new city and deciding to immediately purchase a house. Rent for a year and get to know the area and neighborhoods before committing to a huge purchase.