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Old 09-18-2019, 09:33 PM
 
50 posts, read 182,582 times
Reputation: 131

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Hi all!

My son and his family are going to be stationed at Fort Meade. He wants to buy a house
And found a cute one in Baltimore- 16 miles from base.

However.... I looked up the zip code and the crime stats and schools look horrible:-(.
21225...

I know he wants to get moving on this - as his family is living with his sister in her small house,
but isn’t there anywhere else that maybe safer?

Or is it really not that bad?

I let them know about Ellicott City etc, but they were out all
day with a realtor, so I’m just a worried mama. I don’t know where they looked.



Thanks!!
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Old 09-19-2019, 04:49 AM
 
Location: Odenton, MD
3,525 posts, read 2,320,333 times
Reputation: 3769
Quote:
Originally Posted by Saturngoddess View Post
Hi all!

My son and his family are going to be stationed at Fort Meade. He wants to buy a house
And found a cute one in Baltimore- 16 miles from base.

However.... I looked up the zip code and the crime stats and schools look horrible:-(.
21225...

I know he wants to get moving on this - as his family is living with his sister in her small house,
but isn’t there anywhere else that maybe safer?

Or is it really not that bad?

I let them know about Ellicott City etc, but they were out all
day with a realtor, so I’m just a worried mama. I don’t know where they looked.



Thanks!!
Odenton, Columbia, Ellicott City, Elkridge are all good options. You can get to the base within 5-20minutes from any of them. All have very high ranking education systems and are substantially "safer" neighborhoods statistically than Brooklyn, Baltimore (which by Baltimore standards is not that bad)

If they are trying to live in the city... Federal Hill, Locust Point, Fells Point, Canton would be my immediate go-to neighborhoods. All are extremely safe, urban and walkable locations in very pretty parts of the city downtown.

I'm Navy and if he's of sufficient rank his BAH should give him something of pretty decent quality/size in any of those locations
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Old 09-19-2019, 07:01 AM
 
Location: The Triad
34,088 posts, read 82,945,062 times
Reputation: 43661
Quote:
Originally Posted by Saturngoddess View Post
My son and his family are going to be stationed at Fort Meade. He wants to buy a house...
Good for him. Don't do it.
Don't buy a house in any new town until you've been there long enough
to be able to answer the sorts of questions you have from your own direct experience.

Rent. On base if possible and for a year or more.
Be CERTAIN about the assignment and the community... THEN look to buy.
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Old 09-19-2019, 08:39 AM
 
Location: Sneads Ferry, NC
13,370 posts, read 27,030,896 times
Reputation: 6980
Quote:
Originally Posted by MrRational View Post
Rent. On base if possible and for a year or more.
Be CERTAIN about the assignment and the community... THEN look to buy.
Agreed. In addition, there are very high closing costs in Maryland, that you cannot recoup in a short time. I think that buying in Baltimore County would be a mistake, given the crime statistics, quality of schools, etc. Anne Arundel or Howard County are better options.
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Old 09-19-2019, 09:29 AM
 
Location: PA
110 posts, read 88,745 times
Reputation: 272
My sister and her family rented in a nice neighborhood when her husband was stationed at Ft. Meade, it was in Elkridge and they lived off of Grassy Garth Dr. That was 20 years ago so, not sure how it is now.
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Old 09-19-2019, 11:15 AM
 
Location: Cumberland
7,005 posts, read 11,301,565 times
Reputation: 6279
Eh, I would avoid Brooklyn, Baltimore City limits. Not a nice hood, lots of prostitutes, drugs, some murders. Other parts of the zip may be better.
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Old 09-20-2019, 07:36 AM
 
833 posts, read 520,527 times
Reputation: 641
What's his budget? The trick to figuring out the Baltimore/DC area is to know that it costs more to buy a house in a district with good schools and less crime. Without knowing his budget, not much help can be provided other than general vicinity.

I'd start with area code 20723 - Laurel, Howard County - and see if there's an option within budget. The commute will be pretty easy and the schools will be good overall.
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Old 09-21-2019, 03:34 AM
 
Location: Mount Airy, Maryland
16,277 posts, read 10,405,411 times
Reputation: 27593
I am retired and now drive for Uber. I have driven Baltimore a ton and have gotten to know it pretty well. While Brooklyn is not as bad as West Baltimore it's not the place to move and raise a family. Tell your son to get as far from Baltimore City as he can, I'm serious about that. Once while driving I flagged down a Baltimore City officer, which is rare as they are nowhere to be found, and asked her if I was crazy to be driving in the city given the crime. She looked me in the eye and said I should really stick to the county. This was at 9 in the morning.

There are plenty of safer communities with good schools that have already been mentioned. We used to live in the Russett Community in Laurel which was just down the road from Ft Meade and it was very safe and nice. And rent for a year first.
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Old 09-21-2019, 08:00 AM
 
Location: Stuck on the East Coast, hoping to head West
4,640 posts, read 11,933,539 times
Reputation: 9885
I'm in Crofton and many of my neighbors are military guys stationed in Ft Meade.. Odenton is also nearby. I would definitely rent.
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Old 09-22-2019, 09:40 PM
 
2,333 posts, read 1,963,265 times
Reputation: 1321
Quote:
Originally Posted by goldenage1 View Post
Agreed. In addition, there are very high closing costs in Maryland, that you cannot recoup in a short time. I think that buying in Baltimore County would be a mistake, given the crime statistics, quality of schools, etc. Anne Arundel or Howard County are better options.
That of course depends on where in Baltimore County.

Why do people keep looking up places in large metros that are cheap and think they are somehow making out. CHEAP PLACES IN BIG CITIES ARE ALWAYS IN BAD AREAS!!! Brooklyn is a dump!

How many times do people keep referencing Brooklyn on here......
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