Definitely not... Expect to pay $16-$18 for fried/grilled oysters (we live in an absolutely cursed time).

>There are so many things wrapped up in this. It's hard to unwrap.

That's an understatement. It's made more challenging by the fact that the upper command is full of people who are either flat-out lying about their purview and abilities or are just dumb.

I had an exchange with a former district commander that's now a major at headquarters and when she explained how her officers operate according to the consent decree, it was like she had read an entirely different document.

Power plant gets a bad rep on Reddit but it’s a fun time if you want to get hammered and party. I like getting trashed and riding the mechanical bull at PBR.

I have been looking for the same thing

Aw, jeez, this is terrible news. I'd really love to see this mansion get restored, but as time goes on I get less and less hopeful.

It's especially terrible to hear that the nearby church wants to convert it into a parking lot. I highly doubt the area around Lafayette Square is lacking for parking. What is it with churches in this city and letting historic houses molder away? First the townhouses on Preston in Mt Vernon, now this...

UPDATE: Looks like it was torn down.

Enough police will be hard to manage. Who wants that job? Low pay. People hate you and are not respected. Oh by the way, get shot at from time to time.

There are so many things wrapped up in this. It's hard to unwrap.

I so badly want to get into Magnet fishing

I want to first say that I live in Baltimore City, and I absolutely love it.

BUT, I can not recommend enough AGAINST your idea. For the following:

• Baltimore is a city of neighborhoods, it's gonna take some time to find the one your like, or even the block you like.
• New career is hard for everyone, make sure you like the job and want to stay
• Baltimore rowhomes can be a bear. And in general you'll need a bit of work in each house when you move in
• This is not the best time to rush into a house, take a few years to make sure Baltimore is where you want to be a take the dive
• Public transportation: figure out where you're gonna work, and find a home that the commute is feasible. Too many people don't live near bus lines then are shocked when there are no busses

You aren't wrong! But we didn't get fat overnight and we aren't gonna get skinny one morning in the gym. Funds can reprogrammed and we can get a control of the other spending. Congress passes around a trillion dollar like it's nothing and it scares me. We've gotten so used to it.

A million seconds is 12 days A billion seconds is 32 years A trillion seconds is 31,688 years

I strongly agree with previous posters that you should consider renting at least for the first year. Take the time to get to know the city - there are hundreds of neighborhoods here, all with their various pros and cons. You might find in a year's time that you like a place you'd never have considered now.

If you can afford a $200k-225k house, you can probably comfortably afford $1500/month in rent - this is enough to get you a 1BR in most nice neighborhoods. Transit can be tough in the city, so it never hurts to live near where you work or at least within a one-seat bus ride. Walkable + safe + close to MARC immediately makes me think of Mount Vernon, Otterbein, or Ridgely's Delight, but if you don't drive I would take a serious look at where you'll be commuting to and work backwards from there.

posting from a throwaway account because I live in Violetville and I don't want to get fined again. I'm not black but I got fined 6 times in 2020 and 2021 after I said something about Village of Violetville ruining the neighborhood. My fines were the same as yours. Tall grass. The pics were the front of my house, the backyard of some other house. I never got a notice in the mail until after it was overdue.

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1. Invest in secondary education and financial literacy for youth and adults.
2. Protect workers with benefits and wages. You have to be careful with this because the democrats screwed that up and capitalism took advantage.
3. Make teachers a highly regarded commodity. The administration treats them like shit. Parents treat them like shit.
4. Youth sports, clubs, recreation facilities, and more. Homework Youth centers that provide tutoring and meals. A safe space to spend time.

There's more...

But you need to allow Parents to be Parents. Stop having government sponsored programs from profiting off not doing their job.

Eliminate the corruption in Baltimore and complete financial mismanagement in the city in schools.

Reform government assistance to help people get to move away from it instead of taking advantage of it. Some programs mothers are making more money being single mothers and discourages families. We need strong families. Strong communities.

Attack systematic racism. We need to help our society and stop locking them up. Keeps dads from being fathers and continues the circle. So prisons need to stop profiting from butts in beds and passing funds to the judges and other areas of the legal system. Biden and Harris and Clintons have done that in a big way and republicans haven't done much to slow it down.

Yea, don't listen to that guy. He probably doesn't own. The taxes are built into your mortgage payment. I bought my first house at 22 and it's a much better investment then renting.

You will have the look for something in a lesser desirable neighborhood more then likely but plenty of those are safe. Possibly right on the outskirts of Fed Hill or Canton and hope the "good" area pushes towards you. Definitely find a good realtor and their are some first time home buyer incentives you can probably qualify for.

Thanks for the recommendations! I’ll check those neighborhoods out.

And thanks for the other advice! I am pretty sure I will want to stay as Baltimore hits every location requirement I was looking for and I’ve been on the search for a while! Thanks!

I totally get this! But the truth is I am tired of renting. That is a silly reason but I’ve been working fulltime since I was 18 and have significant savings despite the fact that I currently pay over 2k a month to live where I’m living right now haha. I don’t have any debt either and a great credit score. I’m eligible for down payment incentives as well. I want to buy.

I’m kind of open to renting for a few more months, in order to eligible for another grant in 2024 but end goal is still to buy haha.

I got pre-approved for more than $225k, I just don’t know if it’s worth raising my limit because I don’t want to keep spending 2k a month of my take home pay on housing. I understand the risks that come with homeownership and I’m fine with them.

Thanks for the advice though!

I'm not interested in defunding the police, but rather reforming them to where they're virtually unrecognizable from who they are now. Even if you're ideologically lazy with all the "ACAB" nonsense, we still need the police. Even if you have fully funded social programs to address generational poverty and violence, you still need to stabilize public safety so folks have a chance to heal and improve their community. Not to mention the right of citizens to be able to walk out of their houses without encountering open-air opioid markets and dodging crossfire.

Now, the optimal thing would be that we have enough police to actually do the job. It'd also be nice if the current ones would do their job at all (and do so while not violating the most basic of civil rights). I lost the point where this all had to be ideological. The police, particularly the union, are such a bunch of snowflakes, making out their job to be part of their political identity.

If Wes Moore can somehow thread the needle that reassures the police, giving them a proverbial pat on the head with a "good job" while addressing inequality, civil rights and public safety at the same time, I would be ecstatic.

https://www.wbaltv.com/amp/article/baltimore-magnet-fishers-guns-harbor-patapsco-river/42971279

Not to mention that the governor is slowly stripping the Boost program that helps low income kids go to better performing schools.

I’m one of those Hereford Zone kids. I think the perception of how many Hereford Zone days we got is much greater than reality. I think in high school we might have one every, or every other year where we got off and the rest of the county/city didn’t.

Also - it makes sense. The Hereford Zone makes up a third of Baltimore County’s land mass and it’s consistently a few degrees colder than the southern areas. Those extra degrees mean the difference between wet roads and icy roads (which are hard to treat because again… huge area to cover)… and there are tons of really tight, really windy roads up in Hereford.

Take solace that it didn’t take you 30 minutes to go anywhere growing up and your nearest shopping center wasn’t in Shrewsberry PA

At your price point you could look at some smaller rowhomes in Remington or Hampden, 2bd 1ba 1000sqft will sell in the 180-200k sort of range.

Probably more in the $200-250k range, there’s some similar houses in Upper Fells/Highland Town.

But certainly spend time getting to know an area and the city as a whole before you commit to buying a house. Nothing wrong with renting to get to know an area, and make sure it’s a place you want to stay for at least 5 years.

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At your age, I would suggest waiting to buy a house.

Obviously, I’m not sure how much you’ve got saved, but a house in the $225k range that meets your criteria may require a bit of work. If things go wrong and stuff breaks, you’re on the hook for paying for repairs that you may not have anticipated. So unless you’ve already got a decent rainy day fund, repair costs may become problematic. Plus, you will owe a couple thousand on property taxes each year. So, besides your mortgage, you’ll have those costs to deal with too. Homeownership is more costly and burdensome that most realize…

Moreover, you’re 22. Who knows where you’ll be in five years? A house is a big commitment at a time in your life where you’re just setting out on your path.

My advice? Find a dope rental at a price point that allows you to horde some cash. If you still like living in Baltimore after a few years and you feel more or less permanently settled here, then buy.

Dang thats a big piece!

Every Thursday from 6-8 in Fells

I will start a separate one for another location in the city on another night.