Baltimore City homes: buying, selling and renting

Where Baltimore City is

The city sets its own property tax: $2.248 per $100 of assessed value for FY2027, against $1.10 in Baltimore County. Both add the same $0.112 state rate, so on the same assessment a city tax bill runs roughly double the county bill.^[1]

Two MARC commuter lines start downtown. The Penn Line runs from Penn Station, opened in 1911, and from West Baltimore. The Camden Line runs from Camden Station, next to Oriole Park.^[2][3][4]

Housing stock

Half of the city's 295,032 homes are attached rowhouses or townhouses, 41% were built in 1939 or earlier, and the median year built is 1947.^[5]

Rowhome condition changes house to house on the same block. Stephen's company renovates city rowhomes every week, and the same problems keep coming up: work done without permits, original sewer lines, galvanized supply pipes and old wiring. We pull the permit history on rowhomes we show, and we budget for a sewer scope on anything built before 1950.

Getting around

• MARC Penn Line: scheduled weekday trains from Penn Station to Washington Union Station take about 50 to 68 minutes; from West Baltimore, about 45 to 59.^[4]
• MARC Camden Line: Camden Station to Union Station takes about 59 to 74 minutes on the weekday schedule.^[4]
• Metro SubwayLink runs 15.4 miles between Johns Hopkins and Owings Mills. City stations include Shot Tower, Charles Center, Lexington Market, State Center, Upton, Penn North, Mondawmin, West Cold Spring, Rogers Avenue and Reisterstown Plaza.^[6][7]
• Light RailLink covers 30 miles from Hunt Valley to Glen Burnie and BWI, through Mt. Royal/MICA, Lexington Market, Convention Center and Camden Yards, then south through Westport, Cherry Hill and Patapsco.^[8][9]

Before you buy or rent here

• Every rental that is not owner-occupied, including a single rowhome, needs a Baltimore City rental license as well as yearly property registration. The license takes a passing inspection by a Maryland-licensed home inspector registered with the city (or a passing Section 8 inspection) plus the lead certificate number for each unit.^[10][11][12]
• Since January 1, 2026, city rental licenses last two years and do not transfer when a home is sold. A buyer who keeps a rental needs a new license within 60 days, and the license number has to appear on the lease and in ads.^[13]
• A deed can't be recorded in the city without a lien certificate. It costs $55, takes about seven business days and is generally good for 45 days, and any open liens on it have to be paid in full before the transfer records.^[14][15]
• City homebuyer incentives (Buying Into Baltimore, Live Near Your Work, Vacants to Value Booster, the First-Time Homebuyers Incentive) need a homebuyer class and at least $1,000 of your own money, and you apply at least 30 days before settlement. Funding is first come, first served; all five were still open on October 19, 2026.^[16]
• Maryland's state transfer tax is 0.5% of the price. When the buyer is a first-time Maryland homebuyer who will live in the home, the state rate drops to 0.25%, paid entirely by the seller.^[17]
• Renting out a home built before 1978? It must be registered with the Maryland Department of the Environment and brought up to the lead risk-reduction standard, with a passing lead-dust test, before each new tenant moves in.^[18][19][20]

Public schools: Baltimore City Public Schools. Check any address with the city's school enrollment guide, which links the City Schools zoned-school locator.

Parks and landmarks

• Patterson Park, founded in 1827, covers 137 acres in East Baltimore; its Pagoda dates to 1891.^[21]
• Herring Run Park runs 375 acres along Herring Run in Northeast Baltimore.^[22]
• The Gwynns Falls Trail runs about 15 miles from the Inner Harbor through Carroll Park to Gwynns Falls and Leakin Park.^[23]
• The B&O Railroad Museum at 901 W Pratt St opened in 1953 around an 1884 roundhouse, a National Historic Landmark.^[24]

Neighborhood guides

• Belair-EdisonPorch-front rowhomes next to Herring Run Park
• Pigtown (Washington Village)1800s rowhomes beside the B&O yards and Carroll Park
• Patterson ParkItalianate and Victorian rows next to the 137-acre park
• Morrell ParkRowhouses near I-95, with a rental we manage

Our work in Baltimore City

Stacey's city clients have bought in Four by Four, Madison Park, Barclay, Upton, Park Circle, Saint Josephs, Belair-Edison, Washington Village, Broadway East, Carroll-South Hilton and Lucille Park (each one from a client's Zillow review). SW Property Management's rentals are in Mosher, Saint Josephs and Morrell Park.

A few city homes from our sales archive:

Homes we've sold in Baltimore City

Address	Bedrooms	Sold for
150 W Lanvale Street, Bolton Hill	4	$610,000
3 W Mount Vernon Place #1, Mount Vernon	1	$164,900
3713 Springdale Avenue	6	$425,000
4006 Wilke Avenue	4	$275,000

Affiliated business disclosure: Monarch Bay Renovations (MHIC #149066) is a separate company owned by Stephen Wilson, the team lead. You are free to use any contractor you choose.

• 945 N Ashburton St - Mosher, 3-bedroom townhouse, $1,800/month (managed by SW Property Management)
• 3319 Elbert St - Saint Josephs, 3-bedroom townhouse, $1,575/month (managed by SW Property Management)
• 1728 Spence St - Morrell Park, 3-bedroom townhouse, $1,795/month (managed by SW Property Management)