The 200+ neighborhoods of Baltimore

[9ft5wt]

Anyone here calling Charm City homebase for their mustachian lifestyle?

I lived in Locust Point and Federal Hill for a few years. Currently living abroad and thinking of moving back to Baltimore.

There are obviously some terrible areas and some truly great ones. Hoping to find a 2 bedroom row home that needs a little work for under $160k.

Thinking near Patterson Park, Mt. Vernon, Highlandtown...

http://livebaltimore.com/ is a great website with tons of resources on the neighborhoods.

Anyone have any experience living this lifestyle in Charm City?

[downtownshuter]

I only know Baltimore as the place where The Wire and Serial take place :)

[CU Tiger]

Totally depends where you work. I have opinions about lots of neighborhoods, and there are many good places to live here.

Baltimore is a big place though, and I would need to know how to narrow it down.

I will say that you can definitely get a fixer upper in many neighborhoods for less than that. You just need to do your research.

[TheThirstyStag]

Agreed that there are many nice neighborhoods in Baltimore.

Look into Old Northwood.  Some nice attached homes in a wooded, safe area.

[vern]

I loved living in Baltimore back in the day.  But it's been a while so my info is surely dated.  (Moved out in '96.)

Since you mentioned Patterson Park though...

https://medium.com/@TraceyHalvorsen/baltimore-city-youre-breaking-my-heart-1873a505ce2a

[SuperSaver]

I moved to Baltimore about 8 months ago and love it. We live in downtown Baltimore, about 10-15 minutes walk from my office, the inner harbor, mount Vernon, the aquarium, my doctors office and the farmers market. My fiance gets a free light rail monthly ticket so his commute is also free. We go to pints in the park, lots of fun free events & use our car 1-2 times a week maximum (visiting friends and family, grocery shopping and Sunday drives to the fiances office prior to light rail hours). I live in a semi expensive secure access building but it's location allows my fiance to Save on commuting, be a one car family and gives us access to all the best parts of the city.   Sorry I don't know much about the neighborhoods but you can definitely be mustacians in Charm City. My brother in law lives in a row home like you described right outside the city and has access to the Marc, mta and bus lines. It's sadly in a fixer up neighborhood though. Good luck!

[Papers of Indenture]

Baltimore born and raised.

You want a row home? I recommend the following for possible bargains in relatively safe areas. I''ll give each a "gentrification" score with 1 being a pioneer neighborhood containing a few brave souls.....5 having completed the gentrification process.

Hampden (4.0) artsy hip hood with plenty of old Baltimore redneck residue insulated by borders with JHU, the Jones Falls, and Roland Park. Lots of restaurants and boutique shops. this is my home

Remington (3.0) Hampden's little brother to the south. Slightly more adventurous. Up and coming hipster destination. old school punk rock venue and a couple of good restaurants call it home.

Greek Town (2.5) More Honduran than Greek now. Next to Canton and Brewers Hill. Dicier than both but you'll be fine if you're not a sheltered dumbass

Station North (3.0) (home to the Baltimore art school scene. lots of art students and hip dives. North Avenue corridor can be scary for sheltered dummies)

Charles Village (4.5) Next to JHU. Lots of Hopkins students and teachers. Tame but urban. Most of the properties are or have been split into apartments at some point and show their age.

Pigtown (2.0) still very working class with a noticeable smattering of UMD Medical School students and artsy types. Dont venture too far west. Stick to the areas closest to MLK Blvd. Bargains with potential

Hollins Market (2.5)  see Pigtown. Closer to UMD Med center than the former. Both areas have been targeted for gentrification for a while now but it hasnt ever kicked into full gear.

Highlandtown (2.5) you know about this one. largely hispanic working class. formerly an eastern european working class hood. an assortment of gentrifiers have migrated north from Canton.

Patterson Park (3.0) see Highlandtown. Has benefitted a little more from Canton and Fells Pt migratory patterns. The houses along the eastern edge of the park are the best bet. The northern edge of the park has been upgraded but is not be for the faint of heart.

Butcher's Hill (3.5) small area. has been upgraded significantly in the last 12 years. borders some rough territory to the north just like Patterson Park and Highlandtown do.

SoBo (4.0) you'll know this one. the area below Federal Hill but not quite Locust Point. probably the hardest place on this list to find something at your price point. every once in a while an old Irish or Polish grandma dies and a house goes on the market for a great price.

Woodberry (3.5) neat little mill neighborhood tucked in across the falls from Hampden. borders rough territory to the west that makes living there tough at times if you're a sheltered dummy.

Mt Vernon (5.0) everyone knows this one so not much needs to be said. will be difficult to find an entire house at a bargain price point but is doable along the edges with some patience.

Upper Fells Point (3.5) probably familiar with this. great access to everything in this area. contains the Perkins Homes housing project.

Little Italy (4.0) you might be able to find a relative bargain on the edges of this hood at auction and the access from this location is amazing...but stay away unless you do not own a vehicle and love tourists. impossible to park here.

Northwood (3.0) lower middle class to working class african american hood. not a trendy or hip place but very affordable. access is pretty poor. Northwood is more like an inner suburb. better to avoid excessive property tax in the County.







Looking for a stand alone house? You can try these but you would be better off in the County avoiding City property tax:

Hamilton
Parkville City Side
Arcadia

[misschedda]

I live in an apartment in Mount Vernon, but I wouldn't suggest most of Mount Vernon as a place to look for a fixer upper rowhome. They're pretty pricey.

[9ft5wt]

AWESOME information! Thank you very much. 

I love the city. Great food. Great music. Tons to do.

What are your general feelings regarding the direction the city is headed? I saw some recent reports (<2 years ) about the city headed for financial ruin.

http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2013-02-06/news/bs-md-ci-financial-ruin-20130206_1_pension-system-mayor-stephanie-rawlings-blake-pension-issue

Also, the crime.  Wikipedia data claims violent crime rates at about 1.4% and property crimes at 4.6% of the population.  Stay out of the shitty areas and your fine?

[Papers of Indenture]

If you stay out of the shitty parts you are as safe as you are in any other big east coast City. If you live here for a long time you will likely be the victim of crime at some point...it happens. Property crime, petty theft...maybe a mugging. You're not going to get gunned down unless you're a drug dealer or gang member. Random violence happens everywhere. If you have basic street smarts and a sense of awareness you will be just fine.

The City is indeed heading for financial trouble. Baltimore certainly isn't alone in this. Municipalities are heading for bankruptcy all over the country. Make of it what you will. The City leadership is corrupt and cronyism rules. Again...this is not uncommon with cities on the East Coast. A great leader with the vision to lower property taxes in a controlled way similar to what happened in Boston.

There is a new development next to Harbor East that will bring a new skyscraper to Baltimore and buoy the downtown area even more. Downtown is pretty vibrant. Need to find a way to bring along the rest of the City.

It's a tough place but you are correct.....there are some great hangouts here. Good food, good music venues, tons of unique corner pubs everywhere. The City certainly has character.