Jody Landers is passionate when he talks about housing in Baltimore.
Landers, executive director of the Greater Baltimore Board of Realtors, is opposed to a recommendation by the Baltimore City Task Force on Inclusionary Zoning and Housing that would require builders to designate a certain number of units in new development as affordable, and offer the units for sale to residents earning less than $60,000 for a family of four.
“There is a lot of affordable housing in Baltimore City,” Landers said.
Citing numbers from the Multiple Listing Service for the city, Landers said 1,200 homes currently on the market are offered at less than $150,000.
“One of the things we try to do is dispel the myth that there is no affordable housing,” he said.
He fears that recent growth in the home building industry could be hampered if developers are required to sell homes at below-market value.
“I don?t want any restrictions on private developers who are coming in here with private money,” Landers said. “Let the market handle it. In the long run, that?s going to lead to more development in the city.”
State data shows that home construction growth is well under way in the city without needing to be bolstered by any public program, he said.
According to state building permit records, new housing units in Baltimore City have decreased just once since 2000 and shown significant growth since 2003. In 2000, 257 housing permits were issued, while 195 were issued in 2001 and 295 were issued in 2002. In 2003, the number of permits issued climbed to 695. In 2004, 740 permits were issues, and in 2005, 1,256 permits were issued.
From 1990-99, 1,997 permits authorizing housing construction in the city were issued by the state, according to state data. During that same 10-year period in Baltimore County, 33,416 units were authorized for construction.
“These are city-owned vacant houses that are listed on the MLS,” he said. “Our agents are taking contracts in, with 150 properties already sold under this program. Buyers are under a requirement to rehab the houses within 18 months. The city has netted about $2.5 million from these houses, which go back on the tax roll and raise [property] value in the neighborhoods.”
