Retirement in MD? (Silver Spring, Ellicott City, Bethesda: low income, apartments, rentals)

[quakerchick]

How is it MD for a retired person? Is it affordable and comfortable? My mother wants to come down, however she doesn't want to live with me.

[goldenage1]

Originally Posted by quakerchick

How is it MD for a retired person? Is it affordable and comfortable? My mother wants to come down, however she doesn't want to live with me.

A short answer is that it is not very affordable. If your mom can afford it, there are several condominium complexes for 55+ people in Ellicott City, Laurel, Gambrills and so on. Condos sell for around $250K. Howard and Anne Arundel Counties usually sponsor lots of activities for seniors. Montgomery County has a reduced cost lunch program, and discounted bus and Metro tickets for seniors.

Montgomery County probably has some low-income subsidized apartments with long waiting lists.

On the whole it is not as affordable as Delaware. Maryland has no property tax breaks unless you have very low income. Your Social Security is not taxed, but other income is taxed.

[goldenage1]

Since you did not say where in Maryland you mother would live I had to make assumptions, which may have been misleading. There are less expensive condos in Montgomery County, such as $70-80K in Leisure World or Silver Spring. If she were to live on the Eastern Shore or Western Maryland, I am sure she could find reasonable rentals. However, the fact is that the Washington DC area is one of the most expensive areas in the country for a retiree, and there are few breaks.

[quakerchick]

Looking around silver spring, north laurel area maybe further in. But not more than an hr from dc.

[North Beach Person]

Originally Posted by quakerchick

Looking around silver spring, north laurel area maybe further in. But not more than an hr from dc.

Welcome to Maryland. What's in your wallet?

[Captain_Fingers]

Originally Posted by goldenage1

Maryland has no property tax breaks unless you have very low income. Your Social Security is not taxed, but other income is taxed.

I agree with everything you said except for the property taxes. I get a sizeable (about 30%) break since my condo is my primary residence. This is in Bethesda, and I do know that rates and other policies vary from county to county. Oddly enough, I found that PG rates are higher than Montgomery. Go figure!

[Captain_Fingers]

Originally Posted by goldenage1

Since you did not say where in Maryland you mother would live I had to make assumptions, which may have been misleading. There are less expensive condos in Montgomery County, such as $70-80K in Leisure World or Silver Spring. If she were to live on the Eastern Shore or Western Maryland, I am sure she could find reasonable rentals. However, the fact is that the Washington DC area is one of the most expensive areas in the country for a retiree, and there are few breaks.

Can you really get $ 70-80K condos in Leisure World? I knew some people who bought theirs for around $ 300K, and its not a particularly large one. Downtown Silver Spring is getting very expensive from that facelift. I doubt you can get anything in the DC area for that little.

[North Beach Person]

Originally Posted by Captain_Fingers

I agree with everything you said except for the property taxes. I get a sizeable (about 30%) break since my condo is my primary residence. This is in Bethesda, and I do know that rates and other policies vary from county to county. Oddly enough, I found that PG rates are higher than Montgomery. Go figure!

Is the break from the Homestead Exemption or a County low-income Circuit Breaker (that's what it's called in Calvert)?

I ask because the Homestead Exemption is available to all primary residence owners regardless of income after living in the residence for a year. The Circuit Breaker is aimed at low income seniors and, at least in Calvert, has to be repaid when the property is sold or inherited.

[reiflame]

Originally Posted by Captain_Fingers

I agree with everything you said except for the property taxes. I get a sizeable (about 30%) break since my condo is my primary residence. This is in Bethesda, and I do know that rates and other policies vary from county to county. Oddly enough, I found that PG rates are higher than Montgomery. Go figure!

Yeah, but that's at the whim of the county government. They could decide to get rid of it tomorrow, and you'd have no recourse.

OP, as long as your mother does not mind the rat race around DC and the high cost of living, then she'll be fine. If she's on a fixed income and is worried about future expenditures, then Maryland is probably not for her. Our taxes only trend in one direction.

[slowlane3]

Originally Posted by Captain_Fingers

I agree with everything you said except for the property taxes. I get a sizeable (about 30%) break since my condo is my primary residence. This is in Bethesda, and I do know that rates and other policies vary from county to county. Oddly enough, I found that PG rates are higher than Montgomery. Go figure!

Not so surprising. As mentioned several times on this forum, PG County has hardly any industry, therefore nearly all its income must come from residential property taxes. Montgomery and Fairfax counties are very different, and have PLENTY of high-tech industries as revenue sources. Furthermore, the average home in PG County is probably worth less than in other suburban counties, and therefore PGC's RATE must be set higher, in order to yield the same revenue per household.