Realistically, what could I afford in Baltimore?

[Audra De Falco]

Alright, so I am a New Yorker born and raised and I have always wanted to own a row home. Being that price in NYC are prohibitively expensive (let's not even go there... lol) I realize my dream of home ownership (as in my own brownstone or row home) will probably never happen here an that is okay.

Initially I was thinking about sub30k properties but I just don't want to put that much work in for a property I probably wouldn't keep for 30+ years.

So I've been looking at places to buy in the near future. Possible contenders were Philadelphia, Harrisburg (quickly x'ed out because I heard it's just not safe though I looooove the old housing stock), Albany, Buffalo, Troy, Rochester, Pittsburgh and Baltimore. I think my heart is set on Baltimore. It also seems to make sense financially: you can buy a 4-plex for under 400k, take out an FHA loan (probably not what I'd want to do--I'd want to put down 20%) and rent out all four units.

Am I crazy or is Baltimore a good market right now? If you guys know of any towns on the east coast with lots of row houses and a somewhat lively downtown, even if very small, let me know.

Let's say, hypothetically, I had 80k to use in savings, made 80k a year and had good credit (700+). Could I afford a 4-plex in a decent enough area of Baltimore to pay for my mortgage, build up equity, and put at least a thousand back into savings each month? Or is this a total pipe dream? Please smack me in the face with reality as hard as you want, guys!

[Rebecca Zadell]

There are two problems. First, there aren't really that many multifamily homes. You could totally buy several houses in a row, if that is your plan, though.

The second is that many, many parts of Baltimore are street by street. You can buy a townhouse for $4000, but it may not be a wise idea. The multiple trips down are a very good idea.

I'd check into some of the meetups in the Baltimore area. There are several, and would be invaluable to you.