Relocation to Baltimore Area

Submitted by tinjinkin t3_ykrohh in baltimore

Hello everyone, I am moving to Maryland for a job in the BWI business district and have been looking at living in Baltimore. I know there are a lot of threads like these but I did have some questions I have not seen elsewhere.

  1. The neighborhoods I am look at right now are Midtown Edmondson area next to the West Baltimore Marc station and Midtown Belvedere near the MARC penn station. What are these neighborhoods like and is there anything in particular I should know about them?

  2. What is the commute like from Baltimore to the BWI area? I know there is MARC but I am trying to decide if I want to use public transport or drive, but no idea which one would be better for a commute?

  3. Are there any neighborhoods you suggest to avoid or even better neighborhoods you suggest? I have never lived in the city before so I am excited to find things to do and hang out with new communities.

Also I know it is not in Baltimore but I am also looking at living at Odenton (particularly the village apartment complex) and the Arundel Avalon building at BWI, if anyone knows anything about those. In either case any information would be appreciated, thank you very much!

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bmorehalfazn t1_iuvicl0 wrote

Okay, so good that you asked first. If you’re not used to Baltimore and have never been around here, Midtown Edmonson is still developing afaik, and I’m not sure it’s going to be a comfortable spot for someone new to Baltimore. Midtown Belvedere or Station North/Barclay would be a better fit for a noob.

I, personally, wouldn’t consider Odenton on account of it being a burb, but that’s just me. Mt. Vernon and City Center are walkable to the train station too.

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DfcukinLite t1_iuvtdu7 wrote

You can live on the light rail line. The light rail goes to BWI business park

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Kindly_Translator644 t1_iuuw2ok wrote

We recently moved out of the village at Odenton station. I 10/10 recommended it. Quick walk to the MARC. Super safe area. My building was very quite . Recently bought a home is the only reason we moved. If we could have afforded Odenton we would have stayed there!

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tinjinkin OP t1_iuv8igi wrote

I see, that is great to hear! Thank you for replying!

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KindFlamingoo t1_iv4gpym wrote

How competitive is the housing market there?

What would you have done differently in your home buying quest?

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Kindly_Translator644 t1_ivn8od9 wrote

It took us over 5 months to find a home and close(closed oct 11). For us it was incredibly competitive. The major reason for the move was our rent was going up to 2200 so we decided to look into buying.

We put 15 offers in before finally closing. Offers in columbia, Odenton, glen Bernie, ferndale, Severn, and severna park. We had to change where we were looking it was so competitive. We offered 20k over, no inspections, and 10K in gap coverage on a CONDO and someone still beat our offer…

I wish we would’ve started sooner so we didn’t feel as rushed to move before our lease was up. We didn’t know it was something we could afford being in our early 20’s. I LOVE our home, but it’s not in the area we wanted because we were basically priced out. We would’ve loved to stay in Odenton or columbia but to get a nice home it’s going to run you 450-600 for a 3 bed 2 ba home.

We are not from Maryland so it took a long time to learn the areas that we were “willing” to live in. The market has shifted a bit. We got our seller to pay all of our closing costs and things will sit on the market a little longer (1-2 weeks instead of gone in days)

Overall a very very time consuming and stressful endeavor. Our realtor and inspector were amazing!

My advice is be open to new areas. We ended up finding a beautiful row home in the Patterson park area. The neighborhood is amazing but driving to work is a pain now. We never thought we would live in a city and we were very nervous given Baltimore’s reputation. Be very patient in the process. If you have the time, take a year if you don’t find something you absolutely love! Be ready to spend money lol. Be prepared to be disappointed because unless you have Aton of cash on hand you might get outbid on your dream home. Happy to answer any other questions!

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KindFlamingoo t1_ivql2un wrote

Thank you, that was helpful.

I declined an interview with the city of Baltimore due mostly to...it being Baltimore. And the money being offered was low for east Coast standards. (So I was told). I've personally never been to Baltimore but the interest rates now make me nervous to sell my current home.

Appreciate your response.

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baltosteve t1_iuv8r7m wrote

I work by BWI and when rented in Otterbein it was a ten minute commute. Locust Point, Federal Hill are a quick shot to the airport area as well.

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tinjinkin OP t1_iuvcuit wrote

Oh that is not a bad commute at all! I will check those other places out too, thank you!

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YorickTheCat t1_iuvsp9v wrote

Based on personal experience and knowledge of the area, I would not recommend the area around the West Baltimore MARC station (the station itself is fine for commuting). If you're thinking about driving, Fed Hill, SoBo, Locust Point, Riverside, Ridgely's Delight, east end of Hollins, Pigtown all make for the easiest hops out of town heading towards BWI. I live in Pigtown.

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Bitchi3atppl t1_iuvlpn3 wrote

The Marc is great.

Except- when there is a storm or if it’s raining trains are usually delayed for an insane amount of time.

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rhjk14 t1_iuw3ejp wrote

There is no reason to live anywhere other than federal hill/locust point/otterbein (maybe, not really a neighborhood with availability like the others). These all have the easier access to 95. There’s is legit no reason to live uptown or in fells or canton because why would you complicate having to drive through the city or the tunnel to get down south? This is only for the city, not sure about anything outside the city area. Run your commute in google maps and see. Also don’t bother taking the Marc to Bwi, just drive. Marc to Bwi is really only useful if you’re going on a trip and you already live close to the station, not for a reliable commute to the business area. Light rail is essentially useless here. Way better to just drive 15 mins than depend on baltimore public transit

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[deleted] t1_iuuwo17 wrote

[deleted]

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tinjinkin OP t1_iuv8vvs wrote

Thank you for such a detailed reply! Is the MARC too unreliable for a daily commute or did you mean something else? That is a good point I might check out the suburbs first and get to know the city from there. Thank you again!

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sit_down_man t1_iuvsi5i wrote

I’d disregard that above comment just a bit. The sentiment is sorta fine, but the idea that someone moving to Baltimore would be unable to move directly to the city without having lived in the suburbs for a year first is honestly pretty silly.

Pretty much any of the neighborhoods commonly listed in these “moving to Baltimore” posts would be fine, and you can just see which are closer to the MARC or even Light Rail to get you to BWI business district.

Popular neighborhoods are: fed hill, locust point, pigtown, Hollins market, Bolton hill, reservoir hill, midtown-Belvedere, mount Vernon, station north, fell’s point, canton, highlandtown, Paterson place, Charles village, Remington, hampden, Roland park, Ednor gardens-lakeside, waverly, etc.

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bmorehalfazn t1_iuvijzq wrote

The Marc is plenty reliable for a daily commute and many do it. I did it for 4 years to DC and my fiancée for 2 years until Covid necessitated a change to remote work.

I think by “a bad substitute for a 15 minute drive” they mean that if you’re that close, then the Marc seems to make less sense on account of being held captive by schedules, getting to the station, and everything in between.

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YorickTheCat t1_iuvt28i wrote

I second this. MARC is the way if you're going any distance. I loved my train commute.

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jessiewicz t1_iuvqoq4 wrote

OP you can go with more neighborhoods than what this person listed. I would avoid midtown Edmondson though.

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theyeoftheiris t1_iuwok8q wrote

I think this comment depends on if you want to buy or not. If you're just renting, you can up and leave a neighborhood you don't like at the end of the lease.

If you want to buy, then I agree with this comment.

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