Any Suggestions? (Baltimore, Severn, Severna Park: short sale, real estate, townhouse)

[deelmit]

I'm moving from NY to MD in September. I have been looking for a home in Belcamp, Bel air and Baltimore county with no luck. My price range is only 235k. Coming from NYC I must have a garage and I'm finding it very difficult to find a townhome or single family home with a garage in my price range. I'm a single female so safety is an issue. I will be working at John Hopkins in Baltimore city. Can anyone please give me a few areas that I should take a look at. Thanks

[hokiejane]

That's a pretty tall order. You can get a townhome in that price range in the Abingdon area, but not with a garage. You might have to compromise, but don't compromise on safety.

I was in the same state of mind about 18 years ago. I had to have a garage, but didn't want to spend a fortune. The only townhomes with garages at the time where in Amyclae in Bel Air, and they were more than I wanted to spend. I ended up getting a very small 3 br house in Bel Camp with a garage that served me very well while I was there. I see the real estate assessment on that house is now $192,000, but I don't know what the market value is.

[deelmit]

Thanks a lot I have been thinking about giving up on a garage but when I have to sit in my car for 45 mins in NY for a parking spot I just can't. Many of the townhomes have assigned parking one spot per home, that to me is ridiculous. I did put in an offer for a townhome in Belcamp that was a short sale, I have been waiting for an answer for 3wks now. I have to keep looking and my agent keeps showing me homes in not so good areas. Thanks again

[janetvj]

Originally Posted by deelmit

Thanks a lot I have been thinking about giving up on a garage but when I have to sit in my car for 45 mins in NY for a parking spot I just can't. Many of the townhomes have assigned parking one spot per home, that to me is ridiculous. I did put in an offer for a townhome in Belcamp that was a short sale, I have been waiting for an answer for 3wks now. I have to keep looking and my agent keeps showing me homes in not so good areas. Thanks again

Just an FYI...parking issues - especially in the metro area (outside of Baltimore City) - are not anywhere near what you are experiencing in NY. I bought a townhouse in the Middle River area of Baltimore County (a much closer commute to Johns Hopkins) 15 years ago as a single female. No garage, but each townhouse has 2 assigned spaces. No safety issues, and no parking issues, even without a garage.

[trying2moveup]

Why is an assigned parking space ridiculous? My TH had 2 and in the 8 years we lived there i think there were only 3 times that someone was parked in the space that should not have been (i.e., not us or someone we were expecting) - as soon as they "realized" their mistake, the hopped on it and moved the car.

In most communities the assigned space(s) is as close to the front/back of your house as it can be. The visitor spaces are spread all over.

[hokiejane]

The one assigned spot isn't bad as long as there is a lot of extra parking. I have a friend in who lives in a townhouse in Box Hill South in Abingdon, and I've never had a problem finding a spot in the overflow parking area when I visit.

Hopefully you can get a nice little house in Belcamp. But be aware that there are train tracks not too far away, and the noise from the trains can be bothersome if you're really close like I was. It helped when they put an overpass over them and they stopped blowing the whistle at the intersection there though. Also, you'll get rocked by the Proving Grounds on occasion.

To see where the tracks are...

Map of [4300-4359] Winners Cir Belcamp, MD by MapQuest

[Njrover0216]

Have you thought about looking into Anne Arundel County as well? You will not experience the traffic you would commuting to a home north of Baltimore. Pasadena, Severna Park, Arnold are safe areas and you would not have to worry about parking issues.