looking for fed hill or fells/butchers hill/canton homes w/parking (Baltimore: rentals)

[nibur123]

ok here it goes...i'm a bmore native currently living in dc, but ready to relocate back to bmore. i lived in canton before so i know the drill, but this time i am looking to buy, but must have parking (as a long time city dweller w/o it, i can't take it anymore!).

interested in fed hill or fells/butchers hill/canton. i have seen some houses with parking pads, how hard will it be to find a house with one? price range to $325K.

also, i'm in my early 40s, is there an area i should focus on? all have their pros and cons, kinda want to be in a centralized location so thinking upper fells/butchers hill, but not sure.

any input/suggestions is greatly appreciated. i plan to marc train to my job in dc until i am able to land something in bmore (goal is to work in the city).

thanks in advance!

[kharing]

Hard under $325K, but I found two:

http://www.redfin.com/MD/Baltimore/9...4/home/9874723

http://www.redfin.com/MD/Baltimore/3...4/home/9883811

[Mick_Feisty]

I mainly come here to read up on Colorado, but thought that I may be in a unique position to help.

It just so happens that my wife and I are both Realtors who live in Butchers Hill and work in Canton. I have lived in Canton or BH since 1998 and own several rentals in the same neighborhoods. I also own a very small parking lot in BH. In the 5 years that I have rented spots, I have only ever had 2 tenants not renew... and that was because they moved out of state. You're right - parking is at a premium and having a parking pad makes city life so much more enjoyable.

Here is what I found with a quick search of Canton, Fells, Upper Fells/ Butchers Hill and Brewers Hill. I did not review all of these but supposedly they all have off-street parking. You have options. Most are in Canton.

http://mrislistings.mris.com/DE.asp?...-247090734-667

Couple of quick things to consider:
- Parking pads are a function of the housing stock and alleys. You see more parking pads in Canton because the vast majority of the houses are over 12' wide and there are a lot of decently wide alleys that allow for a not-too-difficult turning radius. Furthermore, there are very few "alley streets" (no curbside parking) that block the rears of the larger houses like in BH. BH has large houses that are plenty wide for parking, but with the prevalence of the alley streets the rear yards that would be converted to a parking pad are often land-locked so to speak (no rear access to an alley). The large BH houses also tend to cost more than $325k. Fed Hill/ So BMore has a lot of small, cramped streets that make parking pads difficult.
- If you can afford a $325k traditional house, then you can likely afford a $350k (take this with a grain of salt as it is too late for me to crunch the numbers) tax credit rehab where the taxes are "frozen" at the much lower, pre-rehab level for 10 years. In other words, you can broaden your search a little in neighborhoods where the tax credit rehabs are popular.
- Houses in Brewers Hill are generally a bit wider than Canton homes. Most are closer to 14' wide whoch makes the turning radius easier and the pad itself less cramped. Brewers Hill is gaining in popularity due to more house for the money and close proximity to the new Canton Crossing shopping.
- If you havent been here lately, come take a look. There have been a lot of changes: most streets in Canton are now angled parking (allows for more spots), Canton Crossing is finished, Jefferson Square (S of Hopkins at Butchers Hill NW corner) is about to open in earnest, more rehabbing in Highlandtown and Brewers Hill, etc.

Hope this helps.
Let me know if you have any other Qs or if we can help in any way.

I rarely come to the Maryland forum so you may get a quicker reply by PMing me or emailing me directly: dmcquate@cummingsrealtors.com

Best of luck!

[nibur123]

Very helpful information! Sounds like there have been improvements to Canton, happy to hear that. Will give you a shout if I have additional questions.

[Mick_Feisty]

Sounds good and best of luck!

[anex99]

Originally Posted by Mick_Feisty

I mainly come here to read up on Colorado, but thought that I may be in a unique position to help.

It just so happens that my wife and I are both Realtors who live in Butchers Hill and work in Canton. I have lived in Canton or BH since 1998 and own several rentals in the same neighborhoods. I also own a very small parking lot in BH. In the 5 years that I have rented spots, I have only ever had 2 tenants not renew... and that was because they moved out of state. You're right - parking is at a premium and having a parking pad makes city life so much more enjoyable.

Here is what I found with a quick search of Canton, Fells, Upper Fells/ Butchers Hill and Brewers Hill. I did not review all of these but supposedly they all have off-street parking. You have options. Most are in Canton.

[url]http://mrislistings.mris.com/DE.asp?k=796680X1RP9&p=DE-247090734-667[/url]

Couple of quick things to consider:
- Parking pads are a function of the housing stock and alleys. You see more parking pads in Canton because the vast majority of the houses are over 12' wide and there are a lot of decently wide alleys that allow for a not-too-difficult turning radius. Furthermore, there are very few "alley streets" (no curbside parking) that block the rears of the larger houses like in BH. BH has large houses that are plenty wide for parking, but with the prevalence of the alley streets the rear yards that would be converted to a parking pad are often land-locked so to speak (no rear access to an alley). The large BH houses also tend to cost more than $325k. Fed Hill/ So BMore has a lot of small, cramped streets that make parking pads difficult.
- If you can afford a $325k traditional house, then you can likely afford a $350k (take this with a grain of salt as it is too late for me to crunch the numbers) tax credit rehab where the taxes are "frozen" at the much lower, pre-rehab level for 10 years. In other words, you can broaden your search a little in neighborhoods where the tax credit rehabs are popular.
- Houses in Brewers Hill are generally a bit wider than Canton homes. Most are closer to 14' wide whoch makes the turning radius easier and the pad itself less cramped. Brewers Hill is gaining in popularity due to more house for the money and close proximity to the new Canton Crossing shopping.
- If you havent been here lately, come take a look. There have been a lot of changes: most streets in Canton are now angled parking (allows for more spots), Canton Crossing is finished, Jefferson Square (S of Hopkins at Butchers Hill NW corner) is about to open in earnest, more rehabbing in Highlandtown and Brewers Hill, etc.

Hope this helps.
Let me know if you have any other Qs or if we can help in any way.

I rarely come to the Maryland forum so you may get a quicker reply by PMing me or emailing me directly: [email]dmcquate@cummingsrealtors.com[/email]

Best of luck!

What area of Butcher's Hill is the parking lot you own? I am moving to Baltimore next month and have been looking for places to live near this area. I might be interested in a dedicated parking lot. Also, what is the price.

Thanks

[Mick_Feisty]

^^^ It's on the 200 block of South Duncan St.

However, we have no available spaces and actually have a decent sized wait list. We have only ever had 2 tenants not renew in the 4 years we have been renting spots and those folks didnt renew because they moved out of state.

We rent the spots for $105/ mo but could probably get close to $125.

[GoPhils]

Not an expert on some of the other neighborhoods but when I lived in Highlandtown it seemed like the best bang for your buck as far as being in a decent area with parking, and you can even find places that have both a "yard" and parking where in a lot of places it's one or the other. For example 224 S. Conkling at $189K.