Baltimore Real Estate News    Updated Daily

Slots might be blocked by zoning
November 21, 2007
Local government officials could block the legalization of slot machine gambling in their communities even if voters in 2008 approve a ballot initiative passed this week in the General Assembly, a lawyer with the Maryland attorney general's office said yesterday.
A little-noticed provision in the referendum legislation that orders state slots operators to comply with local zoning regulations essentially allows local authorities to exercise final say, said Kathryn M. Rowe, an assistant state attorney general who deals with bills passed by the legislature.
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Single-family housing starts fall 7.3%
November 21, 2007
Construction of single-family homes in October skidded to the lowest level in 16 years although the slide was cushioned somewhat by a rebound in apartment building.
The Commerce Department reported yesterday that total housing construction rose 3 percent in October to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.229 million units. But all the strength occurred in a hefty rebound in apartment construction, which is extremely volatile.
The bigger single-family sector fell 7.3 percent to an annual rate of 884,000 units, the slowest pace since October 1991, when housing was going through another steep downturn. In another worrisome sign, applications for building permits fell a fifth straight month.
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Mortgage crisis worsens
November 21, 2007
The mortgage crisis intensified yesterday as Freddie Mac, the nation's No. 2 buyer and guarantor of home loans, posted its largest quarterly loss ever and warned that it may need to curtail its business unless it can raise fresh capital.
Freddie Mac lost $2 billion in the third quarter, much more than Wall Street was expecting, primarily because it needed to set aside $1.2 billion to account for bad home loans. Freddie Mac also said it might slice in half its quarterly dividend of 50 cents per share, its first dividend cut since becoming a public company in 1989.
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Construction of new homes rebounds
November 20, 2007
Construction of new homes and apartments rebounded in October by the largest amount in eight months but the unexpected increase was not viewed as a signal of a housing turnaround.
The Commerce Department reported today that housing construction rose by 3 percent in October, the first increase after three months of declines and the biggest advance since a 6 percent rise last February.
However, all of the strength came in the volatile apartment sector, which jumped by 44.4 percent. Construction of single-family homes fell for a seventh straight month, declining by 7.3 percent in October compared to September.
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Market data for 3rd quarter of 2007
November 19, 2007
Market data for each zip code in Baltimore City and County is now available. To see the activity in Baltimore City (number of homes sold, average price, and specific data by zip code), click here. To see the activity in Baltimore County, click here.
Information provided courtesy of Metropolitan Regional Information Systems, Inc.

To spur sales, developers tout political correctness
November 19, 2007
People wracked with guilt about owning a second home might be an odd market for second-home developers. But that's the target audience for a handful of communities designed to make people feel better about owning a getaway.
Among the "guilt offsets" builders are touting: Ski resorts in Lake Tahoe and Massachusetts powered by wind, and a Georgia golf community where most land is set aside as a nature preserve. The Red Mountain ski resort in British Columbia, Canada, stresses that many staffers own homes nearby and don't have to commute from afar because they're priced out of the market.
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Despite falling prices, most owners have equity
November 18, 2007
With the daily din of bad news about the state of the housing market, it's easy to lose sight of some larger economic realities: Despite declining prices in many markets, homeowners still control near-record equity holdings, just under $11 trillion.
In its latest quarterly "flow of funds" statistical report, the Federal Reserve calculated that American homeowners' equity accounts totaled $10.9 trillion by mid-2007. That was the net difference between total home mortgage debt ($10.1 trillion) and the total market value of home real estate (about $21 trillion).
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Developer surfaces with arena bid
November 16, 2007
The developers of a Butchers Hill townhouse project have thrown their name into the pool of groups hoping to build Baltimore City's new sports arena, despite not owning any of the property on which they propose to build.
The group, calling itself Apollo LLC, includes Pinnacle, Garfield Traub Development LLC, and AEG, a noted sports and entertainment firm that owns entertainment facilities including one adjacent to the Los Angeles Staples Center. It is one of seven developers that submitted expressions of interest to the Baltimore Development Corp. by its Oct. 30 deadline. The proposals will be considered by an advisory panel, the members of which have not yet been disclosed.
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Carroll against site for center
November 15, 2007
Carroll County officials are recommending abandoning a 40-acre site on McKinstry's Mill Road in Linwood for a new fire training center after percolation tests found multiple sinkholes on the property.
Linwood residents were told of the results and shown a alternate site for the project during a meeting Tuesday night with county and fire officials and Commissioner Julia Walsh Gouge.
After receiving a geologist's report on the percolation tests, Tom Rio, county bureau chief of building construction, said, "I am recommending we abandon the site because we can't get a perc test. We're not going any further with testing."
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Columbia condo tower faces risks
November 14, 2007
A controversial proposed 23-story condominium tower at the heart of redevelopment planned for downtown Columbia may be in jeopardy as its developer struggles in a challenging condo-building market.
Florida-based WCI Communities Inc. insists that the project is solid despite financial problems that caused it last week to announce 575 job cuts -- about a quarter of its work force. "We're going to move ahead and are moving ahead with the project," said James P. Dietz, WCI's executive vice president and chief financial officer.
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Sun seekers
November 11, 2007
"I never thought I'd be a greenie," said retired Army Maj. Harold Bower.
But this year, he shelled out about $31,000 -- before government incentives -- for two solar energy systems at his all-electric four-bedroom home in Severn. One provides all the hot water. The other, about 30 percent of the household electricity.
He thinks of himself more as an investor in technology that allows him to gloat now about having electric bills no larger than those he had before the Baltimore Gas and Electric Co. rate increase. The savings allow him to better plan his financial future for retirement.
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Green initiatives fly some red flags
November 11, 2007
You can see major movies that are "carbon neutral," buy any flavor of organic yogurt and even watch as Bob Costas recaps Sunday football by candlelight for NBC.
With climate change increasingly at the top of people's minds - it was identified as a major concern for students at a recent round table of university and college presidents - big business is responding.
In some cases, the effort is real; in others, it's what Garvin Jabusch, a former portfolio manager for the Sierra Club Stock Fund, calls "green washing."
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30-year rate falls for third week
November 9, 2007
Rates on 30-year mortgages fell for the third straight week, dropping to the lowest level in five months.
Freddie Mac, the mortgage company, reported yesterday that 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages dipped to 6.24 percent this week, down from 6.26 percent last week.
It was the third weekly decline after rates hit 6.40 percent. Analysts attributed the decreases to mounting evidence that the economy is starting to slow.
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City board clears Superblock deals
November 8, 2007
Baltimore's long-stalled superblock project has cleared two of the last remaining hurdles, a move that city officials say should allow redevelopment of a blighted swath of downtown's west side to begin next year.
The Board of Estimates approved deals for several properties considered crucial to the project after years of opposition from their owners.
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Silo's developer biding his time
November 7, 2007
For a man with about $175 million riding on an unconventional condominium project set to open in the spring, Patrick Turner seems remarkably unworried.
Never mind that the real estate market is in the dumps. Never mind that no one has ever put condos in a converted grain elevator or really knows how many people want to live in one.
And never mind that not one unit at Silo Point has sold.
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Building hope in Brooklyn
November 7, 2007
Suddenly, the little porticos are everywhere in Brooklyn - signs of life at homes that were once vacant, and symbols of hope in a neighborhood where drugs were once sold fearlessly in the daylight.
They are the signatures of Arundel Habitat for Humanity, which is concentrating its efforts on five blighted blocks in the South Baltimore community. Reasoning that a home is only as good as the neighborhood it's in, the group is buying and rehabbing homes at a rapid rate to turn around a neighborhood on the brink.
During the past two years, Habitat has gutted and rebuilt a dozen World War II-era homes on those five blocks. Another four homes are now being rehabilitated. And today, the Baltimore Board of Estimates is expected to approve the sale of 16 more vacant homes in the area to Arundel Habitat. The group is closing on two others this week as well, bought on the open market.
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Nearly 80 West side apartments are planned
November 6, 2007
Baltimore officials have chosen developers to embark on $27.1 million in projects to rebuild most of two blocks of North Howard Street and expand the city's west side revitalization.
Redevelopment of mostly vacant properties, including the former Mayfair Theater, will bring 79 market rate apartments, street-level shops and on-site parking to the 400 and 500 blocks of N. Howard and to the 300 block of W. Franklin streets, the Baltimore Development Corp. said yesterday.
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New movie theater in downtown Harbor East area
November 5, 2007
The marquee won't be completed for another week or so. There's a temporary surface on the bar in the lobby. Wood trim needs to be swapped out in certain places.
But even without the final adjustments, it's clear that the new Landmark Theatres cineplex has the potential to be a powerful addition to the mini-city that is taking shape in the Harbor East renewal area between the Inner Harbor and Fells Point.
It can't be compared with the cavernous downtown movie palaces that drew patrons decades ago. This is not your granddad's movie house, or even your dad's.
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   Another article on the new theater

30-year mortgages fall to 5-month low as economy slows
November 2, 2007
Rates on 30-year mortgages fell to the lowest level in five months as evidence mounted that the economy is slowing down.
Freddie Mac, the mortgage company, reported yesterday that 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages averaged 6.26 percent in its weekly survey ending yesterday. That was down from 6.33 percent for the week ending Oct. 25.
It was the lowest level since 30-year mortgages were at 6.21 percent the week ending May 17.
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Lending-reform plans outlined
October 25, 2007
Maryland's secretary of labor, licensing and regulation outlined yesterday to state legislative committees in Annapolis proposals aimed at ending unscrupulous lending practices and giving troubled homeowners more time to get their finances in order before foreclosure actions are filed.
Rising loan defaults on subprime mortgages, those extended to borrowers with weak credit histories, have shaken housing and credit markets nationwide.
In Maryland, there were 7,000 foreclosures from July to September, compared with about 950 in the corresponding period last year, according to data analyzed by the Department of Housing and Community Development.
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Extended-stay hotel, Element, set for BWI
October 24, 2007
The Baltimore area will get its first Element hotel, a new extended-stay brand created by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. The new hotel will open in 2009 at Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, a hub of new hotel construction. Starwood Hotels said yesterday that it has reached an agreement with the Buccini/Pollin Group Inc. to build the $25 million, 123-room hotel.
An Element hotel is also planned for Harbor Point, a $450 million project slated for development adjacent to Fells Point.
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Remaking Port Covington
October 23, 2007
The owners of a waterfront shopping center in South Baltimore's Port Covington hope to transform the 59 acres on the Middle Branch into a $2 billion community that could include homes, offices, shops and a hotel.
Owners Finmarc Management and Kodiak Properties LLC are looking for a partner or buyer to redevelop what is now a "big box" center with a Wal-Mart and Sam's Club, a Finmarc principal said yesterday.
Marc Solomon of Finmarc said he envisions redeveloping at least the shopping center property and possibly working with adjacent property owners to create an even larger 140-acre development. Finmarc and Kodiak will consider either selling the site to a mixed-use developer or launching a redevelopment as part of a joint venture.
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Study shows timely payments on new mortgages rise
October 22, 2007
In a glimmer of good news for the U.S. home-mortgage market, more people are managing to keep up with payments on loans made in recent months, according to new data from First American LoanPerformance, a San Francisco research firm.
The trend reflects more-conservative lending policies adopted by mortgage companies this year in the wake of a surge in defaults and foreclosures, said Mark Carrington, director, analytical sales and support, at First American LoanPerformance.
Even so, defaults continue to rise in proportion to the overall number of home loans outstanding nationwide, most of which were made between 2003 and 2006, when lending standards were growing more lax. That means foreclosures are likely to keep rising, adding to a glut of homes already on the market and weighing on prices.
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Something new under Utz sign
October 22, 2007
It's known to many as the "Utz building" because of the large rooftop sign advertising a certain brand of potato chips. Its original name is Old Town National Bank, after the original occupant.
Soon, the seven-level building at 221-233 N. Gay St. will be reborn as Baltimore's newest hotel, one of three planned for the eastern edge of downtown.
Local businessman Nicholas Piscatelli heads a group that plans to begin converting the 1924 building to a 70-room, $8 million hotel before winter and open it by late next year.
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Setting the stage: In a buyer's market, smart home sellers know the right scenery can make all the difference
October 21, 2007
When Mark Dickson considered relocating from Washington, D.C., to Baltimore, the trial attorney toured a slew of city neighborhoods and homes. Despite a market full of choices, very few grabbed his attention.
"I looked at properties in Canton, Union Square, Roland Park and Reservoir Hill," said Dickson, 48, a Chicago native and longtime district resident. "Some of them had been beautifully renovated. ... But I not only wanted a place where someone had taken great pride in their work, I wanted my dollar to go as far as it could."
Dickson finally found his desired aesthetic, at a suitable price, when his Realtor showed him a three-story, three-bedroom rowhouse in Patterson Park. The $575,000 property had been fully renovated, then carefully "staged," complete with chic furnishings, lighting and accessories.
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Investors snatching up deals in softened market
October 21, 2007
Call them grave dancers, vulture funds, turnaround specialists or the more euphemistic "opportunity investors." However you identify them, the deal is the same: When hyperactive real estate markets lose their sizzle, or property owners no longer can afford to hang on to their houses, well-capitalized investors smell blood - and move in.
That's happening in most of the "bubble" areas that saw heavy speculative activity and razzle-dazzle financing from 2001 through 2005. But it's also happening across the country in less-volatile markets where unaffordable mortgages and economic distress are producing record numbers of panic sales to investors at fractions of former values.
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California brokerage offers airline miles for jumbo mortgage buyers
October 17, 2007
In Southern California, a jumbo mortgage can now land you on a jumbo jet.
In a bid to draw high-end buyers to the region’s floundering housing market, Beverly Hills-based real estate brokerage, Incentive Real Estate Inc, said on Wednesday homes buyers can earn 250,000 airline miles on the purchase of a newly constructed house valued at more than $500,000.
That is enough miles for 10 free round-trip coach tickets within the United States to see how other depressed real estate markets are faring. Or two round-trips to Asia to get away from Southern California’s bleak real estate news.
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ResCap to trim work force by 25 percent
October 17, 2007
GMAC Financial Services said on Wednesday it would cut about 3,000 jobs, or 25 percent of the work force at its Residential Capital LLC mortgage operation.
It blamed the cuts on "sharp downturns in the U.S. residential real estate markets and the global dislocation of the mortgage finance and credit markets."
ResCap employs about 12,000 people after cutting 2,000 jobs earlier this year.
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Paulson pushes for aid
October 17, 2007
After months of downplaying the nation's mortgage mess, Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr. conceded yesterday that it represents "the most significant current risk to our economy" and called for Congress and private mortgage companies to move more quickly to help.
"We must recognize the very real harm to families affected by the housing downturn," Paulson said in a speech at Georgetown University Law Center.
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It's a buyer's market. So, when are you going to buy?
October 16, 2007
A buyer's market is technically defined as: "A market condition characterized by an abundance of goods available for sale."
The in-depth definition is: "When a buyer's market exists in commodities, the buyer is able to be selective in purchasing contracts, as there are many individuals wishing to sell. Furthermore, these buyers will generally be able to purchase contracts at lower prices than those that were previously prevalent."
The simple version is: when no one else wants a product of value -- buy it, because the price will be lower whereby you'll be able to maximize your investment for future gain. In essence -- buy low, sell high.
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Gaithersburg loan unit lays off 160 workers
October 16, 2007
Aurora Loan Services LLC, the mortgage-lending subsidiary of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., has laid off 160 employees in Gaithersburg as the parent company moves to scale back its home-loan business in response to turmoil in the industry and in the secondary market where investors trade mortgage debt.
The layoffs were disclosed in a notice filed with the state Labor, Licensing and Regulation Department. Aurora originates both prime and subprime mortgages. A Lehman spokesman said yesterday that the company closed a regional operating center in Gaithersburg last month.
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Westport, Harbor Point developers seeking city tax breaks
October 16, 2007
Baltimore City's economic development agency is considering tax breaks to offset the cost of development at Westport and Harbor Point, two of the city's largest planned real estate projects.
The Baltimore Development Corp. has declined to release any information in advance of the Wednesday meeting about the financing requests, but the proposals could generate some controversy following the city's decision earlier this year to give $33 million in tax breaks to one of the developers to build a new office tower for Legg Mason Inc. at Harbor East.
H&S Properties Development Corp. and Struever Bros. Eccles & Rouse, which are building the new Legg Mason tower, plan to spend $720 million on their 27-acre Harbor Point project, slated to include two residential buildings and a 262,000-square-foot office building in the first phase of construction. Turner Development Group plans to spend $1.4 billion on its 54-acre Westport project, to include a 65-story office building, 300,000 square feet of retail space and a 500-room hotel.
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Rising out of the ashes
October 15, 2007
n the 1800s, the area now known as Clipper Mill was one of Baltimore's busiest work sites, an iron foundry and machine shop that produced steam engines, locomotive parts, even cannon balls. In the 1860s, its furnaces melted pig iron to cast 36 columns for the U.S. Capitol.
Today, 12 years after an eight-alarm fire nearly destroyed a key building there, the Woodberry property has been reborn as one of Baltimore's trendiest communities, with condominiums, apartments, offices, artisans' studios and a "green" restaurant.
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The green house effect
October 14, 2007
What you don't see are the trimmings from jeans in the walls of this rowhouse facing Baltimore's Riverside Park. What you do see are bits of glass in the surface of the kitchen island.
It's all green, in the environmental sense, from the cotton insulation to the recycled glass and concrete counter.
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Mt. Vernon voted one of the best places to retire
October 9, 2007
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Home-heating bills predicted to rise 10.5%, due mainly to oil
October 9, 2007
Heating bills will rise sharply this winter for U.S. homeowners using heating oil, while those depending on natural gas should see more stable costs compared with a year ago, a consumer group said yesterday.
Average spending on home heating this winter is forecast to rise 10.5 percent, on average, driven by big increases in heating oil prices, according to the National Energy Assistance Directors' Association, which represents state-run low-income energy assistance programs.
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Bank of America looks at $1B in mortgage write-down
October 8, 2007
Bank of America Corp. may be the next big U.S. bank to suffer consequences from the subprime mortgage crisis. According to analysts at Sanford Bernstein, Charlotte, N.C.-based BofA is looking at a $1 billion write-down of mortgage securities and leveraged loans when it reports its third-quarter earnings next week.
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Phantom tax relief and capital gains changes
October 7, 2007
In a tax-Peter-to-pay-Paul move, the House Ways and Means Committee voted to permanently remove the so-called "phantom income" tax penalty that haunts financially distressed homeowners whose debt is partially forgiven by a lender after a foreclosure or a "short sale" to avoid foreclosure.
The committee also voted to extend the deductibility of mortgage insurance premiums through 2014 - an important benefit for many borrowers who pay either private mortgage insurance or Federal Housing Administration premiums on their loans.
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Baltimore building boom paces regional strengths
October 5, 2007
The region’s real estate market turned in a mixed performance in the third quarter as net absorption rates were slightly below average in Maryland’s Washington, D.C., suburbs and nearly flatlined in Baltimore, a new report shows.
But the Baltimore market, especially, continues to win attention from investors who are attracted by favorable growth prospects, according to Delta Associates and Transwestern, both in Alexandria, Va.
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Luxury homebuilders adapt to slump
October 5, 2007
Maryland luxury homebuilders are adjusting to the housing slump by marketing less expensive models that still offer the upscale cachet that affluent buyers seek.
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30-year mortgage rate declines to 6.37%, first drop in 2 weeks
October 5, 2007
After two consecutive increases, the average rate on 30-year mortgages fell the week that ended yesterday, providing a break for potential homebuyers and the beleaguered housing industry.
Freddie Mac, the mortgage company, reported yesterday that 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages averaged 6.37 percent in its weekly national survey.
That was down from 6.42 percent for the week that ended Sept. 27.
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Development professionals visit derelict, vacant sites
October 5, 2007
It certainly wasn't the Ride the Ducks tour.
Instead of the Inner Harbor or Camden Yards or any of Charm City's usual sights, a caravan of buses bearing more than 200 developers, real estate brokers, architects and planners rode past derelict and hard-at-work factories, boarded-up houses and huge swaths of vacant land. They surveyed parking lots with potential. They saw gleaming new offices and medical centers and apartments in buildings converted from something else.
Most of all, they were on the lookout for opportunities. The city-sponsored real estate tour, an annual event to spark interest in investing, shied away from the better-known areas downtown, focusing instead on redevelopment that is spreading east, west and south and transforming old industrial areas.
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Pending sales dip should have been expected
October 3, 2007
Once again, the financial press is all over a negative housing report that doesn't reflect current conditions. Not only is real estate local, not national, but things can change quickly enough that no matter what the news reports, it's already out of date. And besides, does anyone expect a whistle to blow calling the real estate bottom?
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Architects return to bring charm to Charles North
October 1, 2007
The last time they worked in Baltimore, the architects of BTA+ were crafting one of the city's most high-profile projects - the Harborplace shopping pavilions that helped rejuvenate the Inner Harbor.
Now they've been selected to recommend ways to revitalize another part of town - the 100-acre Charles North urban renewal area between Penn Station and Charles Village.
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Mortgage market healthy despite subprime crisis
September 30, 2007
The term "mortgage meltdown" has become so commonplace - on TV, in headlines and even during casual conversations - that you might assume that this is a tough time to get a mortgage.
But the reality is starkly different: Mortgage money is plentiful, the majority of mortgage products remain relatively unaffected by troubles in the subprime segment, and interest rates for 30-year fixed-rate loans remain in the low 6 percent range for people with reasonably good - not necessarily perfect - credit backgrounds. Even interest rates on jumbo loans - those over $417,000 - have fallen after spiking this summer.
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Construction spending posts small increase
September 28, 2007
Construction spending posted a bigger-than-expected 0.2 percent gain in August as strength in non-residential construction offset a continued plunge in home building.
The Commerce Department said Friday that the August increase pushed total construction spending to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1.166 trillion.
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New-home sales fall
September 28, 2007
New-homes sales tumbled in August to the lowest level in seven years, a stark sign that the credit crunch is aggravating an already painful housing slump.
Sales of new homes dropped 8.3 percent in August from July, the Commerce Department reported yesterday, driving down sales to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 795,000. That was the lowest level since June 2000.
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Refinance decision keyed to savings
September 28, 2007
Mortgage rates are dropping, right? Time to start the process of refinancing your mortgage.
That's what many Americans assumed after it was announced that the Federal Reserve had lowered its federal funds rate by half a percentage point, to 4.75 percent. So, around the country, thousands of people either picked up the phone to call their lender or went rate shopping online.
But it may be that not everyone will get a chance to take advantage of the new, lower interest rates. Sometimes mortgage rates move in opposition to the federal funds rate. If the federal funds rate goes down, mortgage rates may rise.
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Rates on 15-year, 30-year mortgages rise; ARMS decline
September 28, 2007
Rates on 30-year mortgages rose for a second straight week, a sharp rebound after hitting a four-month low.
Freddie Mac, the mortgage company, reported yesterday that 30-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 6.42 percent this week, up from 6.34 percent last week.
Two weeks ago, the nationwide average for 30-year mortgages had dipped to 6.31 percent, the lowest level since May 17. That decline reflected a flight to safety after the turbulence in credit markets, which had increased demand for Treasury securities. Those securities heavily influence mortgage rates.
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Debt-rating firms accused of conflicts of interest
September 27, 2007
Executives from major credit-rating agencies were accused by senators yesterday of being hampered by conflicts of interest that may have contributed to the mortgage market turmoil rattling investors worldwide.
The biggest rating agencies -Standard & Poor's, Moody's Investors Service and Fitch Ratings - are under fire from critics who say they failed to give investors adequate warning of the risks associated with mortgage-backed securities.
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Audit finds housing program lapses
September 27, 2007
Poor file maintenance, improperly recorded data could cost the city federal funding.
Highlighting a series of lapses in a federal program administered through the housing department, a long-awaited city audit released yesterday documented problems with missing and incomplete files, improperly recorded information and a failure to meet a federal requirement that could result in a revenue loss of nearly $2 million.
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Sales of existing homes fall 4.3%
September 25, 2007
Sales of existing homes, depressed by turmoil in credit markets, fell for a sixth straight month in August, pushing activity to the lowest point in five years.
The National Association of Realtors said that sales of existing single-family homes dropped by 4.3 percent in August, compared with July. Sales at a seasonally adjusted annual rate dropped to 5.5 million units, the slowest pace since August 2002.
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Real Estate Forecast: Getting Back on Track
September 24, 2007
The summer has been tough – historically high temperatures in many parts of the country, Midwest floods, and almost everywhere major airline flight delays. Housing didn’t have such a great summer either, with home sales and price appreciation still waiting to recover. The subprime mortgage mess didn’t help either. So everyone wants to know: now that the summer is over, when can we expect the housing sector to get back to normal? There’s actually a sequence of events we should look for that need to happen before housing is back on track, and as each of these occurs, the closer the housing recovery will be. Let’s take a look at them.
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The mortgage handoff
September 23, 2007
John Woodard says the notice from his new mortgage company looked like typical junk mail. But it wasn't. It was a letter telling him that his recently refinanced loan had been sold to another lender.
By the time the Rosedale homeowner realized he had been paying the wrong lender, he owed thousands of dollars in late fees and he soon racked up more in lawyer bills from fending off foreclosure.
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Higher appraisals may be result of shifting market
September 23, 2007
What's going on with appraisals in some parts of the country? Mortgage lenders -- and appraisers themselves -- say they're increasingly coming in with valuations higher than the contract prices agreed to by sellers and buyers. The differences can range into the thousands of dollars.
Are some sellers giving in to lowball offers, fearful that they can do no better in the wake of the subprime mortgage implosion and home sale bust? Or are appraisers simply lagging behind downward market adjustments?
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Bush would lift 'jumbo' loan cap
September 21, 2007
The American dream of owning a home has turned into a nightmare -- not only for homeowners, but also for politicians and regulators under pressure to ease the credit crunch.
President Bush, at a news conference Thursday, was confronted by questions about whether the country was headed toward recession. Bush acknowledged "some unsettling times" in the troubled housing and credit markets, but said he believed the economy was still on solid ground.
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Fannie, Freddie debt lid eased
September 20, 2007
The Bush administration reversed policy yesterday, allowing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two largest sources of money for U.S. home loans, to expand their investments in an effort to alleviate strain in the mortgage market.
Democratic lawmakers have been clamoring for such a change for weeks, though the federal regulators' action - which allows Fannie and Freddie to take on about 2 percent more debt - did not go as far as they, or the companies, had hoped.
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Property taxes delayed in dispute to be paid
September 20, 2007
Mortgage financier Freddie Mac said yesterday that it settled a dispute with bankrupt loan servicer American Home Mortgage Corp., clearing the way to pay $2.4 million in delayed property taxes on behalf of thousands of homeowners.
Last week Freddie Mac warned in a lawsuit that the homeowners faced an "imminent risk" of losing their homes unless it was able to recover files for 4,547 loans - worth about $796.8 million - from American Home Mortgage, which filed for bankruptcy Aug. 6.
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Interest Rates Cut
September 19, 2007
The Federal Reserve delivered a surprisingly large half-point cut to its benchmark interest rate yesterday, sending stocks soaring even as the Fed signaled that recent financial turbulence menaces the broader economy and that recession is now a greater threat than resurgent inflation.
The rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee announced it was lowering the benchmark federal funds rate to 4.75 percent from 5.25 percent, the first such cut since June 2003.
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Wondering how the Fed rate cut will affect you? Click here to find out.

House Votes Mortgage Help
September 19, 2007
The House approved a plan yesterday to expand federal backing of mortgages in hopes of helping tens of thousands of struggling homeowners avoid foreclosure.
Despite some White House objections, the Bush administration and House Democrats took conciliatory stances that may allow them to resolve their differences.
The bill passed the House 348-72. Republicans mostly were swept along in the vote for the bill, whose overall thrust they endorsed in the face of the mortgage crisis.
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E-Trade expects profit fall as it exits mortgage business
September 18, 2007
E-Trade Financial Corp. slashed forecasts yesterday for 2007 profit as the discount brokerage exited the wholesale mortgage business because of a slew of bad home loans.
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Baltimore County Council backs waterfront condo plan
September 18, 2007
The Baltimore County Council voted last night to support a marina owner's plan to build a 36-unit waterfront condominium in Bowleys Quarters.
The proposal by Galloway Creek Marina owner Milton Rehbein must win approval by the Planning Board and undergo a review by county agencies. But the 7-0 council vote allows the project to move forward as a "planned unit development." The designation, while subjecting the plans to public hearings, would eliminate certain zoning rules if the project is deemed to benefit the community.
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Buyers rejoice
September 16, 2007
For area house hunters seeking to capitalize on today's buyers' market, Dominic Levis has a question:
Got plasma?
The four-story, 3,000-square-foot home he and a friend are selling in Butchers Hill has seven flat-screen plasma televisions already installed in several rooms, including three 15-inch television-DVD units -- two in bathrooms and one in the kitchen.
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Prepaying mortgage usually smart
September 16, 2007
Much attention is being paid to homeowners who can't afford their mortgage payment. But what if your bill is manageable? Or your interest rate hasn't moved upward yet? Should you prepay some of your mortgage?
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Foreclosure rates linked to loan type, local economy
September 16, 2007
Just how bad is the foreclosure situation? If you caught summaries of the latest delinquency and foreclosure numbers released by the Mortgage Bankers Association of America, you could only conclude: Yikes, it is getting scary out there.
Bottom line: The scary foreclosure and delinquency rates you're hearing about are for real. But they're highly concentrated - among loan types, local and regional economies, and especially prevalent among investors in formerly high-flying markets who are finally throwing in the towel.
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What we buy, what we want, and what we'll pay extra for
September 16, 2007
The National Association of Realtors surveyed 2,530 homebuyers, both first-timers and repeat buyers, who purchased a new or resale home between late 2005 and early this year. The survey showed that the typical house purchased during that period was one story with three bedrooms, two baths and 1,840 square feet. The median price paid was $205,000.
According to the survey, the top-ranked features included central air, a garage with two or more spaces, walk-in master closet, backyard/play area and high-speed Internet access. Less than 5 percent were interested in a wet bar, central vacuum or intercom. More than 50 percent of buyers said they would pay more for a house with hardwood floors, high-end kitchen appliances and granite countertops.
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Greenspan says he didn't see extent of mortgage risk
September 14, 2007
Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan acknowledges he failed to see early on that an explosion of mortgages to people with questionable credit histories could pose a danger to the economy.
In an coming interview, Greenspan said he was aware of "subprime" lending practices, where homebuyers got low initial rates only to see them later jacked up, causing severe payment shock. But he said he didn't initially realize the harm they could do.
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30-year rates drop to 6.31%, the lowest level since May 17
September 14, 2007
Rates on 30-year mortgages dropped this week to the lowest point in four months, providing some relief for people hoping to refinance their existing mortgages.
Freddie Mac, the mortgage company, reported yesterday that 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages averaged 6.31 percent this week, the lowest level since May 17, when 30-year mortgages averaged 6.21 percent. The rate had been 6.46 percent last week.
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Paulson urges mortgage help
September 13, 2007
Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr. said yesterday that the turbulence that has hit financial markets will take some time to be resolved, especially in the area of subprime mortgages.
Paulson, speaking to officials of some of the country's biggest financial firms, said the Bush administration was looking for their help in making sure subprime homeowners get assistance in dealing with sharply rising mortgage payments as their initially low adjustable-rate mortgages reset to higher levels.
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Mortgage brokers group adopts code of ethics
September 13, 2007
In the wake of the subprime lending crisis, a state mortgage-broker trade group is taking steps to shore up the profession's image and separate itself from unethical brokers who contribute to borrowers' mortgage woes.
The Maryland Association of Mortgage Brokers, which represents about 800 of the state's 10,000 licensed brokers and loan originators, said yesterday that it has adopted a code of ethics and professional standards that members must follow to retain their membership.
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New census data point to root of slumping housing market
September 12, 2007
Since 1990, homeowners have faced a growing gap between their incomes and the price of their homes, a development that helped create today's housing slump, an Associated Press analysis of new census data shows.
The widening gap in all but a handful of the nation's 500 largest cities helped make the recent boom in housing prices unsustainable, according to analysts. The rising prices were fueled largely by low interest rates and risky borrowing, rather than increasing incomes.
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Bigger role proposed for 2 mortgage giants
September 11, 2007
Sen. Charles E. Schumer proposed yesterday that two government-sponsored mortgage giants be allowed to increase their role in the home loan market as a stabilizing force for the troubled mortgage industry.
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Home loans remain surprisingly affordable
September 11, 2007
The mortgage industry is in turmoil. Every day brings new revelations about soaring foreclosure rates, billion-dollar losses and lenders shutting down. Yet, through it all, the safest and most popular type of loans remain surprisingly affordable.
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Towson retail proposal weighed
September 11, 2007
Baltimore County officials are considering kicking in $18.2 million toward a new parking garage for a private retail development near the heart of the county seat called Towson Circle III.
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Bargain hunters buy up houses
September 10, 2007
Foreclosures are rising, home prices in some neighborhoods are falling and the lending industry is in turmoil. What a great time, some think, to be a real estate investor.
This down market is a far cry from the housing boom of a couple of years ago, when rapid sales and price jumps drew hundreds of rehabbers, "flippers" and wannabes to Baltimore in a modern-day gold rush. Some, caught by the sharp change since then and saddled with loans they can't cover, are trying to get out as fast as they can. But others are jumping in, seeing in the market reversal an opportunity to buy low now and sell high later.
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The 7 biggest mortgage mistakes
September 10, 2007
A home loan is the biggest debt, and most costly monthly bill, most of us ever have. That's why the seven biggest mistakes borrowers make when shopping for a mortgage can cost so much money and aggravation. Avoid them and you're a much happier and smarter home buyer.
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Insider's Guide to Locust Point
   September 9, 2007
Few neighborhoods reflect the changing face of Baltimore as much as Locust Point.
The hulking Domino Sugars factory topped with its iconic neon sign anchors the South Baltimore neighborhood's historically blue-collar base. But just east along the waterside, developers are converting an old grain silo and elevator into high-rise condominiums and retail. The neighborhood's growing residential core is at the center of the peninsula and ringed by industrial areas.
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Health of housing market depends on whom you ask
   September 9, 2007
How worried should homeowners or sellers be at the moment? Looking at two nationally quoted measures of home values, you might be perplexed.
At the end of August, Standard & Poor's Case-Shiller national home price index reported that prices fell by 3.2 percent from the second quarter of 2006 to the same period this year. Declines in property values in some metropolitan areas were much more severe - down 11 percent in Detroit, 7.7 percent in Tampa, 7.3 percent in San Diego, 7 percent in Washington, D.C., 4 percent in San Francisco and 3.7 percent in Boston.
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Foreclosure rates rise
   September 7, 2007
As homeowners struggled to make higher payments on adjustable mortgages, the rate of new foreclosures this spring soared to its highest level in the nearly three decades that records have been kept. Maryland, however, had a smaller rate of new foreclosures than many states.
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Minorities pay more for home loans
   September 6, 2007
Minority residents are more vulnerable to rate shock from subprime mortgages in Baltimore, where even upper-income African-American homebuyers were almost four times more likely to get a high-cost loan than low-income white borrowers last year, according to a study of federal home loan data.
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US advises lenders to ease failing home loans
   September 5, 2007
The Federal Reserve and other banking regulators issued special guidance yesterday urging loan service companies to work with borrowers in danger of defaulting on their home mortgages.
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Mortgage Breakdown
   September 2, 2007
This is not your parents' mortgage market. A generation ago, banks took on deposits and lent that money to homebuyers who took out 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages. That changed when Wall Street got involved in recent decades. Investment banks provided capital to mortgage companies so they could make the loans, and then bought the loans and bundled them into securities that are sold to investors.
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