HampdenFest 2010

HampdenFest 2010 will be held September 11, 2010 from 10 am – 7 pm on the Avenue — 36th Street — in Hampden, Hon!

HampdenFest is a community arts festival with four blocks of arts & crafts vendors, local food and drink, antiques, kids’ activities, three stages for art & musical performances, and the Hampden Village Merchants Association shops.

The silly & fun event is the toilet racing (yes, you read that right, toilet racing), where participants will have built a car-type racing machine using a clean toilet, and race in drag-racing type competition. The first heat begins at 10 am.

A short-film mini Film Festival will be held with shorts from local producers.

This comes on the heels of the fun Annual Honfest that was held June 12 & 13, 2010. Hampden is such a great hub of neat events. So come on down to Hampden, Hon, and visit Hampdenfest on the 11th!

Buying into Baltimore $4,000 Incentive Fall 2010

Buying a home Baltimore just became a little sweeter for homebuyers looking on the east side.

The Housing Authority of Baltimore City sent a press release out this morning with this great announcement that 50 eligible buyers participating in the Buying into Baltimore event on September 11, 2010 will receive $4,000 towards their new home, an increase of $1,000 over the past 13 years of the program. These are 5 year forgivable loans, meaning that if the buyers remain in the home for 5 years, they will not have to repay.

The Spring Buying into Baltimore Fair was held on May 8, and was a great success.

September’s Buying into Baltimore Event & Tour will begin at Mergenthaler Vocational Technical High School on Hillen Road in Baltimore from 8:30 am – 2 pm.

From the press release:

To receive the money, participants must:
1) live in the desired home as the primary owner/occupant,
2) possess a valid homeownership counseling certificate,
3) participate in the “Buying into Baltimore” tour and have the tour ticket validated at four homes,
4) buy in the eastern part of Baltimore (see Live Baltimore website for boundary details),
5) purchase a home that is less than $417,000, and
6) sign the home sales contract after the event takes place.

Funds are distributed on a first-come, first-served basis. Participants must close on a house within 90 days of the eastern region fair to receive the $4,000 award. There are no income restrictions on this program, nor does a recipient have to be a first-time homebuyer.

The Boundaries, from the Live Baltimore website are:

Boundary dividing line:

Starting from the North (Baltimore City/Baltimore County Line)…

• Head South on Charles St.
• To West on 29th St.
• To South on Howard St.
• To West on Camden St.
• To South on Russell St. and continue to County Line

So if you are considering buying a house in East Baltimore City, contact me to learn more!

Maryland Taxation of Forgiven Debt in Short Sales

The Maryland Taxation of Forgiven Debt in Short Sales bill was signed by Mayor O’Malley on May 20, 2010.

This is great news because it PREVENTS the tax of the debt forgiven.

A few counties in Maryland — Anne Arundel, Prince George’s, and Montgomery had begun charging recordation and transfer taxes based on what was owed to the bank, NOT what the current transfer price was in a short sale situation.

This emergency bill, HB590/SB657 puts an end to this practice.

Now, if a seller in distress short sales their house, they will only have to pay recordation and transfer taxes on the price they are selling it for — not what they owe.

Honfest 2010

Honfest 2010 is coming up, and the Hons in Hampden are ready!

This year’s Honfest is June 12 & 13.

For those unfamiliar with the Baltimore term, “Hon”, here is an explanation from the Honfest website:

HonFest is a local tradition. The Bawlmer term of endearment, Hon, short for Honey, embodies the warmth and affection bestowed upon our neighbors and visitors alike by historic working-women of Baltimore. HonFest is an annual celebration in honor of these women.

Honfest 2010 is adding on a fun evening the night before with the Concert in the Park from 6-10 pm at Roosevelt Park.

Saturday and Sunday, attendees can delight in music, crafts, and fun, not to mention wild, outrageous hair, outfits, and accents! Sunday afternoon is when the full judging happens with the “Top 10 Hons” and talent show.

Honfest takes place over 4 blocks of 36th street on the Avenue in Hampden.

There are many shops, restaurants, and Hampden houses nearby!

Hampden is also home to the Miracle on 34th Street lights show around the holidays in December.

Come visit Hampden in Baltimore on June 12 & 13 — you’ve never experienced anything like it!

Preakness 2010

The 135th running of the Preakness is Saturday May 15, 2010.

This is one of the biggest horse races, part of the “triple crown” with the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes in New York.

The Preakness is run at Pimlico Race Track in Baltimore City.

This race is a big one for the track and for the city, as it brings in visitors from across the US to visit the City of Baltimore and see horse racing at its’ finest, while hopefully also staying to enjoy the food and entertainment our city has to offer.

For the local Baltimore crowd, the Infield is the place to be with the big party-like atmosphere, a concert on the mainstage this year by Zac Brown Band and O.A.R. as well as performances by Mr. Greengenes and Collective Soul on an additional stage.

Leading up to Preakness Saturday includes Black Eyed Susan Day on Friday where the whole course will be covered in pink in recognition of Susan G Komen for the Cure. The Black Eyed Susan race happens Friday as well. This is one of the oldest stake races, and its name comes from the Maryland State Flower.

Friday night at 8:30 pm in the Inner Harbor is the 37th Annual Preakness Parade of Lights. Baltimore Raven Willis McGahee is the Grand Marshall. The parade runs from Market Place to Pratt Street over to First Mariner Arena.

So many fun Preakness events happening in Baltimore this weekend!

Qualify for $3,000 Buying Into Baltimore 2010 Homebuyer Fair and Neighborhood Tour

This Saturday, May 8, 2010, you can qualify for $3,000 to help buy a home in the West side of Baltimore City in the Buying Into Baltimore 2010 Homebuyer Fair and Neighborhood Tour.

What do you have to do to qualify for the $3,000 award?

First, you must visit 4 of the 16 homes featured on the tour. These are just samples of homes on the market that would qualify for the award. Meet and begin at the Polytechnic Institute at 1400 West Coldspring Lane, Baltimore, MD 21209. (As a side note, the East Side Buying Into Baltimore 2010 Homebuyer Fair and Neighborhood Tour will be September 11, 2010).

More details to qualify and receive the award from the LiveBaltimore.com site:

Bring your validated/stamped ticket, signed contract of sale & photo ID to Baltimore Housing, Office of Homeownership (417 E. Fayette St. Suite 1125 – contact info will be on ticket). You will be eligible for the award funds if all of the following conditions are met:

• A housing counseling certificate is required before a commitment letter for award funds will be issued. Counseling must be completed prior to signing a contract of sale. We urge you to get this housing counseling as soon as you can; it must be completed BEFORE signing the sales contract. Click here for a list of housing counseling agencies.
• You are one of the first 50 people to submit the validated home tour ticket, valid homeownership counseling certificate, and signed contract of sale to the City’s Homeownership Office.
• You must use this home as your primary residence.
• You close on your new home within 90 days from the event date. Contracts signed prior to the event will not be eligible for the award funds.
• Your property is within the fair boundaries.
• Your mortgage amount cannot exceed $417,000.
• You are encouraged to use a Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac approved lender.
• You must invest a minimum of $1,000 from personal funds/resources.
• The award is secured by a Deed of Trust written for a five-year term; the payback obligation reduces 20% for each year of occupancy and is released after the five year period.

Purchase contracts must be signed and dated after the “Buying into Baltimore” event, not before. Contracts signed prior to the event date will not be accepted.

So here you have a great opportunity to buy a home in Baltimore City and receive a reward for doing so!

Contact me for more information on the West Side Buying into Baltimore 2010 Homebuyer Fair and Neighborhood Tour.

Short Sale Tax Update for Anne Arundel and Montgomery Counties — is Baltimore County to Follow Suit?

Starting immediately, Montgomery County and Anne Arundel County in Maryland will be collecting transfer taxes on the UNPAID BALANCE OF THE MORTGAGE on short sale properties INSTEAD OF the sales price.

Derek Massey, President of Mid-Atlantic Settlement Services, reported this information on his company’s blog yesterday.

This could mean a difference of a lot of money to a seller who is already upside down in their mortgage and cannot pay the deficiency. It sounds like the county will pursue this money AFTER settlement, letting the buyer proceed with buying the house, as this SHOULD NOT be their problem/issue. If the county will not let the sale go through without this, and the seller does not have the money to pay, it is possible the buyer would be looked at to pay the deficiency (though how fair is that to a buyer?), but with the new RESPA laws and new Good Faith Estimates in place, this could cause a decent delay in settlement.

The question that I have is how the counties can do this, meanwhile regular sellers don’t have the option of taking that reduction in their transfer tax? Let’s say a seller who bought the house for $150,000 8 years ago is selling for $225,000 now. Shouldn’t they, therefore, be able to pay transfer on their mortgage left from the $150,000 technically?

I am sure that the Maryland Association of REALTORS (R) and other organizations will be fighting this new policy, hopefully before it comes into effect in Baltimore County and Baltimore City short sale house transfers.