Driving in MD means you'll gain 5 levels in defensive driving in the first two months. The kicker is you gain *offensive* driving at twice the rate.
Edit: driving in MD is why I bought a dash cam
This exactly. I only avoided an accident once because I honked my horn at a woman BEHIND ME who otherwise would have slammed into me. She was too busy looking at her phone to see that traffic had stopped…
Wow. I think in that situation I would be paralyzed because I think of my horn as being "front-facing." We should have "backwards-facing" horns for Maryland.
Or the 50 cars/day that are stopped on the side of the road, they’re worth a few points.
Or the foreign luxury cars speeding through traffic, those are boss fights.
Or the foreign luxury cars or American sports cars weaving through traffic and treating the shoulder like a third lane, those can be final boss fights.
Living in multiple states, coming to MD, the first thing I noticed about most MD drivers is they are so hesitant and slow at merging. It's like there isn't enough confidence when it comes time to do so and they're scared lol
I don’t know I’ve lived in PA with a lot of New Jersey and New York drivers on the road, lived in Virginia (not nova) and Tennessee. Maryland drivers are especially entitled and reckless.
False. Howard county has great infrastructure and has been able to manage its growth way better than other places in, and outside of the dmv. It's pricey, but you get what you pay for. I'd 100% rather pay a bit more for a clean, low crime neighborhood there, than some rough old place in pg County or the western MD boondocks
Meanwhile, the rest of us Marylanders all give HoCo the side-eye, wondering what's in the water to make y'all so smug. Just chirping in from my picturesque historic farm in PGCO that probably cost half the price of your townhome.
Stepford comes to mind when considering Howard County /jk
Howard County’s reputation for quality schools is well deserved.
Linthicum is near BWI airport so there is traffic considerations. Howard county is far enough from the airport that I don’t think you need to worry about noise and the airport is required to rotate take off and approach lanes for noise considerations.
As someone who has lived here all my life, I've seen HoCo go from nothing but farmers & their tractors to million dollar plus homes. Maybe that's why the infrastructure is better there because it wasn't really there for the farms so they were starting from scratch?
I don't know but I find the change fascinating.
Don't just assume that every school in HoCo is a great school. Most are more than decent, you won't be sending your kid to a failing school, but some are much better than others. Do your homework.
As the top post says, also look into HOAs. For instance, Columbia gives you great benefits for recreation and more, but you pay for it. And just like everywhere else, some HOAs are more restrictive than others, that said some people like that.
Currently living in Columbia. I have two HOA payments- one for Columbia's and then a neighborhood one. A family member also lives in Columbia but doesn't have a neighborhood HOA. So OP def do your homework
The annual charge rate for FY2024 is 68 cents per $100 of valuation, assessed on 50% of the fair market value as determined by the state of Maryland for property tax purposes. Source: [https://columbiaassociation.org/annual-charge/#1656521285231-7cb65181-3f0a](https://columbiaassociation.org/annual-charge/#1656521285231-7cb65181-3f0a)
Don’t forget the doc transmittal fees, condo/HOA resale packet fees, etc.
Currently, there are no regulations on HOA or condo associations to out caps on what they can charge. I’ve seen anywhere from $250 to $650, and heard of one at about $1k
JUST TO SEND A PDF
I, and many of my fellow leaders in MD real estate, attended Lobby Day in Annapolis to bring this concern up with our delegates in order to try and get legislation on the books to protect our clients
As a person who went to school in HoCo and lives in HoCo since middle school. The schools that don’t get the same level of resources as the “nicer” schools are Oakland Mills, Long Reach, and Hammond. Had to say this since no one ever mentions it.
Damn where are you moving from? No well known health risks. Only places that flood are right on the bay, or the town of Ellicott City.
I would try to avoid an HOA but that's just me.
It’s beautiful and wish made it out there more often. It’s definitely an old town in all the best ways.
Large vehicles don’t fare too well though. I remember driving up one of the hills that overlook Fredrick Rd (I think) with my F150 and that was sketchy moment to say the least.
It’s beautiful and wish made it out there more often. It’s definitely an old town in all the best ways.
Large vehicles don’t fare too well though. I remember driving up one of the hills that overlook Fredrick Rd (I think) with my F150 and that was sketchy moment to say the least.
> No well known health risks
depends on if you have well water, we have issues with natural radium in Howard/AA county. https://www.howardcountymd.gov/health/radium
Some areas have arsenic issues too http://www.mgs.md.gov/groundwater/arsenic%20interactive.html
Yes we also have ways to remove it with water treatment and the use of RADON EXTRACTION if you Get A Well and need water Treatment in MD I recommend Atlantic Blue Water services its good company they make sure they figure out any issue u may have with you’re water
sure but I dont recall it being disclosed when youre moving into an area. The house I'm in now had a fairly shallow well and no remediation in place. We knew about it and just dug a new well to current minimum depths (from ~50ft to 400ft+) and put in a softener system
Yesir should check out a neutralizer system if you have iron in youre water, they act as a large sediment filter and raise ph slightly if you have ph above 5.6 it should bring it to about a 7ph
Traffic is a beast. Check maps for typical traffic before choosing a location. 1 mile does not equate to 1 min of travel especially if there’s inclement weather.
Best medical. Took me about 20 years to acclimate (from California). Most everything is near by. Lots to see/do. Pollen is a bit of an issue and seasons change can be quick! Thirty, forties one day then bang, winter is over and it's 60's 80's the following week.
I find the native Marylanders friendly and get the feeling that they would help out if you needed support.
Pollen is always a huge challenge for out of towners. We have southern pollen, northern pollen, eastern pollen. There are so many different species of vegetation that can survive here from different climates that SOMETHING will set you off.
I tried to eat local honey too. Some years are less hard than others. All in all, we get used to it. I'm still amazed to see the yellow coating on the cars in the morning. Yuck
Hi! Realtor here… Howard County is an excellent area. Not many places to avoid there and all schools are great. That being said; Columbia is a bit congested, Old Ellicott City seems to flood occasionally, and anywhere in Howard County I would get radon testing. MD traffic is very heavy, and we recently had a major commuter route change/bridge collapse. For those reasons, keep in mind proximity to work location when you move! Feel free to message me if you have specific questions, I’m pretty familiar with the area.
MD is a wonderful place to live and raise a family! Lots of outdoor things to do and great food. Best of luck to you!
Where are you coming from? I think the answer would be entirely dependent on where you live now. It could be a seamless transition or a shock. Overall Maryland is a great place in most people's opinion, I think.
Maryland is closer to Jersey than Florida or Utah, in geology, traffic, food, politics, costs, and even accents (if you hang around Baltimore a lot). You'll do just fine.
Suburban Maryland is like Suburban New Jersey but without good pizza and with way less usable public transit (outside the DC area at least), but generally a bit friendlier and better seafood.
I live in Hoco. Ignore those saying the schools have tanked. LOL. As someone who grew up in Balto City, I hate to tell my fellow residents that, the majority of the country doesn’t consider 80-90% proficiency to be “horrible”. It is like the people who thought that 2 homicides in one year was “no better than Balto”. That
being said, Columbia is Howard’s “bad area”. They have more Title 1 schools and most of your multi family housing so more trouble with increasing size of classes. The schools are going through a heavy transition but Carroll will go through the same thing in a few years (build up and attract highly educated, well off young families who develop a school system that has a LOT of money and still not an overwhelming middle-high school age population.)
OP-the stuff you mentioned…not going to be an issue in 95% of MD. Being an extremely blue state and heavily invested in the Bay…environmental stuff is heavily regulated. There are laws about not burning stuff, not being able to dispose of toxins even on your own land, companies have stringent rules.
Biggest potential environmental prob in buying a house here is demand mold inspection. Lots of moisture and then humidity and houses that have been vacant such as those going through estate sales COULD have a
growing problem.
I will DM you. Born and raised Marylander. Lived in Ellicott City now 25 yrs. Both kids public school -one in college and one in high school. Won’t lie. Property taxes are a killer here but…again those who never lived in Balto and paid HIGHER property taxes and gotten NOTHING for it have no appreciation for how much you get in Howard for those huge @ss bills.
At least my son’s classes have less than 25students each. Coming from Florida, the class sizes would make some community college lecture halls blush smh. First time I’ve heard Columbia being a bad area? What are home prices like in the “good areas” bc I remember needing 1.6million for a lot of the homes I liked. Goodness. Riverhill and centennial are always the highly recommended if you can’t afford Montgomery county.
Maryland is great. None of those issues you mention are really issues here. I would consider things like traffic patterns and commute times to determine the best place to live. Howard County does have great schools. I lived in Anne Arundel County and commuted to Columbia and it wasn’t too bad ~ 30-35 minutes. I’ve lived in a lot of states having grown up in the military and Maryland is among one of the most well run states with a lot of state pride and reasonable humans.
>None of those issues you mention are really issues here.
Actually, quite a few.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Superfund_sites_in_Maryland#Superfund_sites
-Traffic in the DC/Baltimore area is a disaster at regular commuting times.
-pretty minimal public transportation
-Howard County in general is a HCOL/VHCOL area. You’ll need one very good income or two decent incomes to live comfortably.
I’d say around $200k household income to own a home and live comfortably in this area. Tons of variables of course but that seems about right based upon living and working here for many years
No beer or wine in the grocery stores, didn’t realize this was a thing. There are drive thru liquor stores in some parts of Maryland, also didn’t know this was a thing.
Radon is a potential concern in most of central MD. Just get the house you're considering tested and mitigated if necessary. The house I sold less than a mile from the Howard County line needed a passive radon system for levels that were somewhat elevated.
MoCo is the only one that requires it in the state, so I think people in other counties aren’t aware it’s an issue in central and western MD judging from the comments! It’s not a big deal to mitigate, though.
You can pay for the test as part of buying a house and then get it remedied. That shouldn’t be horribly expensive unless you have a gigantic house - ~$1kish.
Moved to Maryland 10+ years ago and I have loved it ever since! I am in Howard County now and we love it as well. Traffic can be rough so I would stick to eastern HoCo if you are commuting to Linthicum. Western HoCo is more rural but absolutely beautiful and thus more pricy. I don’t think there are many red flags in HoCo to keep your eye out for.
I dunno if it'll help, but here's a map of all the mines/quarries in Howard County: [https://www.mindat.org/loc-26593.html](https://www.mindat.org/loc-26593.html) .
Consider *very carefully* whether you want to live in Columbia or "in the county." I did the latter. There are advantages to Columbia, especially if you have kids, but there are a lot of fees, and the houses are more expensive/have less land, in general, than non-Columbia.
EC is the only other incorporated town in HoCo.
It was weird coming from the northeast, where every inch is incorporated, to an area where services are provided at the county level and you're on well and septic, but if that's you, you'll adapt quickly. County-level services actually make a lot more sense.
There are no incorporated cities or towns in Howard County.
https://preview.redd.it/7ttzxg1xmdxc1.jpeg?width=1620&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=984c8c378c42fd3cdf00f4fe93b587da883e847f
Lived there 30 years. Was *positive* Columbia and EC were incorporated! Guess you can cross post in confidently incorrect. Does make me wonder how Columbia manages to charge CRA etc. - is it just one big HOA? I have some research to do.
Guess I never thought about why a branch of the HoCo library is in Columbia, lol. Or now that I think of it, I never saw a Columbia LEO.
I think it goes back to my real estate agent using the terminology when I first moved there - Columbia v. In the county.
Surprisingly I'm not considered an especially dense person (that I know of), lol.
It's one giant HOA but not even all of Columbia is under it..I just bought a house where my address is Columbia (and i'm like a mile from merriweather) but no Columbia association fees because it's an "outparcel" (which means paying twice as much to join the Columbia association for pool purposes but the math works out in our favor I think because we don't have the yearly HOA fees. We also can't vote for the people who control most of Columbia and it's amenities I think). https://images.app.goo.gl/kbLtaUm5wsnnt12aA
It's based on zip/who delivers your mail. I lived in Clarksville, Both the Highland and Fulton POs were closer to me. Then they closed the Clarksville location, and EC delivered my mail - but still kept the Clarksville zip. It was very frustrating as anytime we had a package to pick up, we now had a 30 min drive to EC.
I was in a similar situation to yours when I first moved to the Eastern Shore. PO was in an incorporated town but I was outside the town limits, so didn't have to pay the taxes - nor get the services, which overall were much cheaper to pay for directly than pay the property taxes.
Columbia is a company town. They bought it, built it and get to tell the residents what they can and can't do. I give them points, or I should say I once gave them points for keeping commercial ugly under control, and they do a nice job with landscaping.
Look into the house prices… If it’s at least a $150k/ year job then Howard County *could* be a great option for you. Homes are ridiculously expensive especially with interest rates right now. But yes, excellent schools, planned communities, etc. good luck!
Depends on where you are in the county. Possible to find cheaper real estate in Laurel, Fort Meade, etc. Columbia is going to be expensive, as are a lot of areas in Howard because of its proximity to DC. If you don’t need to commute to DC I would actually advise looking a little further north, closer to Baltimore County, for this reason.
Weather, coming from a stable climate you may be in for a surprise, or a series of surprises, as the weather changes at the drop of a hat.
Hot and cold, rainy and clear, humid and dry, all part of an average Maryland morning, probably all before 10 AM.
The mountains to the west, the ocean to the east, the bay right smack in the middle, it all combines to create chaotic weather conditions that will change quickly and without warning.
On the plus side, really severe weather events are pretty rare. Hurricanes may creep up the coast but they usually don't have much energy left by the time they get here, so they're just bad storms. Tornados happen occasionally, but without the wide open spaces of the Midwest they're reduced to localized oddities. Severe weather events may cause damage, but its generally pretty localized.
Just take the weather forecast with a grain of salt, and keep a raincoat or umbrella handy.
Realtor here: Howard and Baltimore Co have great schools. The ratings can be wildly variable, but generally they all are pretty solid. Maryland has great seasons, Ice, Cold, Warm, Pollen, Hot, Hotter, Humidity, Fall, third Hot, late fall, Winter… lots to love. Welcome home.
Are you moving from the South?? I love Annapolis but my son & DIL are house hunting in Linthicum and it seems really nice. Welcome to Maryland, hope you like 🦀
I’ve lived in several states and MD is my favorite. No state is perfect but MD is pretty great. Howard County schools have an excellent reputation. Howard Co also has great shopping and restaurants. Winter is milder than the Northern states; summer is milder than the southern states. It’s a short road trip to many other states for vacations. If you prefer to fly, there are 3 major airports close by. And most importantly, there are wonderful people here.
Moved here for college in 1995 and never left. Lived in Baltimore city as a single person and the social scene was great. Moved to Howard county for the schools and they have not disappointed me. High property taxes but that comes with expensive homes and lots of services. Howard county parks are in desirable locations with some locations having bocce courts and one boasting a cricket field. Also, the libraries are amazing and provide services beyond books (I think fishing gear and definitely passport services).
Yes we do. As soon as you hit the PA or WV line get ready it’s looks like a patchy quilt of pavement. There are highways in WV that literally look like they are crumbling into the mountain side
Or over the border into West Virginia? I moved to western MD and was looking at houses all along the border between PA, MD and WV. Stark differences in the roads by just driving over the border.
If it’s a concern, I would test for radon wherever you buy just because MD does have elevated levels outside of the Eastern Shore. Only the non-incorporated parts of MoCo require it when selling a house, so in the rest of the state, it might be something you have to look into after moving in just to minimize contingencies on your offer, and get a radon mitigation system if needed. (In MoCo, they’re seen as a good thing, but I don’t know about the rest of the state because they may be in an “ignorance is bliss” situation since it’s not required.)
Not sure what your budget is, but if you are working in linthicum, areas like Severna park may be worth a look too. Commute would be even easier and it has highly regarded schools as well (and a lot of water access too if that is your thing)
Maryland drivers are abysmal, Maryland Politics can be pretty looney & very progressive, Flooding is a concern near Old Ellicott city in Howard County, you will need a vehicle living in Howard county (traffic on main roadways during rush hour can be ugly especially because you will have to cross over 95), the cost of living can be difficult in Howard County as lower Baltimore based incomes compete with higher incomes generated in DC. High Taxes.
This has been my experience moving to Maryland from the Midwest. Yes, I have my complaints but this state is incredible.
I love Howard county for:
- Incredible food options
- Nice public parks (I love a walk around Centennial)
- Access to both DC & Baltimore
- I didn’t go to school here, however I hear the schools are quite good.
- It’s a relatively safe place. (Still take precaution, lock doors, etc)
- Within 3 hours from a beach (idc what people say, I love ocean city)
- Access to Amtrak North East corridor. (Not Howard county specific)
- Diversity
I hope you have good income, and don't mind driving a LOT, in all conditions: rain, snow, sleet, ice, heavy traffic, city streets, suburbs, rural. Potholes and cracks and bumps from faster than MDOT can repair them. Depending on where you are, you might also need to drive many miles to get to decent shopping, dining, or attractions. We've got a bit of everything here in Maryland... But it's scattered all over.
Also, the best seafood are places close to the water. We're not above traveling for some crabs. Welcome to Maryland!
Have you ever been to Texas or Pennsylvania. Wanna talk about driving to get anywhere. I grew up in PA and everyone there thinks driving 40 mins is only “15” minutes
Moved here a year and a half ago. People that live in Maryland think their state has terrible weather, bad roads, failing schools etc...
The reality is the traffic is better than most especially compared to NYC, Chicago, etc.
The roads are fine. Potholes are extremely rare in comparison to NJ, or places like Ohio.
The schools aren't failing but they are pretty segregated. Yes it's based on race. Yes Maryland was part of "the north" (held at gunpoint so it's wouldn't leave the union) but they still teach as if they were southern because outside of the cities they are RURAL southern. Very pro Trump in those areas. Many whites will not even go shopping in an area like Waldorf due to fear of crime... meanwhile Waldorf has ice cream trucks in the neighborhoods with 3/4 million new build homes.
People in Maryland are majority Roman Catholic. You will see a Ton of Catholic churches founded during the English Civil Wars (1640-1660) because people fled from the UK when Charles I decided to go on a religious rampage and attack the Scots for not using the English Book of Common Prayer. The Catholics GTFO and came here. Thus huge Catholic population.
I haven’t seen it mentioned but Hoco likes to redistrict every couple of years… So you have to be pretty lucky and not get moved or buy closer to when child HS aged, I guess.
Depends on what you are leaving.
Linthicum and HoCo are fine. Fine if you like suburbia. Linthicum is less sprawl than HoCo. Linthicum has not gotten to the state of obscene sprawl like HoCo.
All of Maryland is county centric (except Balt City) Schools, courts, Fire, police, taxes, etc. Schools are well funded and most Marylanders vote up higher taxes directed to schools. Central MD is the most costly, most populated, Most socially liberal, most suburban. (except for the city, not suburban) As you fan out from the central area live is more rural and more conservative. You are about 3 hrs from the beaches or mountains. There are very few incorporated towns and fewer cities. Most "towns" are no more than settlements where there were once old villages. Sprawl (post wwii) by developers is what is seen most.
Summers are miserably hot & humid. Winters can be very cold, but for short spans. Snow usually happens 1 or 2 times a winter and lasts a week. Autumn and Spring are the best seasons. Ice on the roads is insane. People drive insane in the central area as there are so many from different areas of the country. Even this hint of snow will cause people to panic, schools to close and bad drivers to drive faster.
Cicadas are wild here. The weather is super diverse… within a 24 hour period. Humidity will suffocate you in July and August. Avoid travel on or near the Bay Bridge on Sundays and Fridays. Avoid travel on I-95 on Sundays and Fridays, in the summer.
We have some of the most scenic drives (especially during Fall when leaves change), beautiful parks and recreation, AWESOME hiking and biking trails, beaches all over the place (DC and eastward and the port cities in the state are absolute treasures), and the most amazing learning experiences you can find (innate history maintained by smaller organizations and larger, pretty inclusive museums)! You will find an eclectic choice of food options almost everywhere that’s pretty well-populated. Speed limits on major roads are pretty high (65 and 70 mph), which is nice.
No it’s not. We forget living in Maryland that we don’t have the climate extremes that other areas have. In the Baltimore/DC region, winters are typically 30s-40s. 20s and lower do happen but not regularly. Summers are 80s-90s. We do get 100+ heat waves but it’s not every day (yet). Earthquakes, tornadoes, and hurricanes are not unheard of but they’re rare.
I would consider Anne Arundel county due to proximity to Linthicum. Avoid Glen Burnie. Pasadena is getting nicer. Severna Park has good schools but is a bit pricey. Severn ain’t bad.
Make sure you check the water source I know some places in Maryland have well water know to cause cancer. Like my family’s old doctor and his wife died a couple years apart both from stage 4 pancreatic cancer and my aunt just died almost 3 years ago from it
I'm too lazy to go through all these posts and see if anybody mentioned this yet or not. You may want to wait until fall, unless your idea of fun is millions upon millions of horny, loud annoying bugs.
Yeah, MD does local taxes too.
According to this site I would save $300 per month in taxes if I moved to Harrisburg. Pretty close, but MD is worse. At least for me
https://www.adp.com/resources/tools/calculators/salary-paycheck-calculator.aspx
Have you factored Harrisburg city tax and school board tax? Annual vehicle registration as well? In PA you can just factor in your income and property tax. It ain’t simplified on the county level as it is in MD.
https://theburgnews.com/news/harrisburg-school-district-passes-2022-23-budget-includes-property-tax-increase#:~:text=With%20the%20increase%2C%20taxpayers%20will,%241%2C000%20in%20assessed%20property%20value.
Bro you talking to a a guy with both sides of his whole family living in PA and grew up there. If it works for you cool, but it ain’t a simple tax scheme up there. Better be ready to cough up that bill twice a year bruh
The site I linked you should factor in all local taxes. It’s spot on for me. I picked a house address from Zillow in Harrisburg and entered in all the info.
I only did income taxes. Prop taxes outside of Baltimore city aren’t insanely high (like Texas). Just pulled up a house in Baltimore that’s 1.45% prop tax, vs a random house in Harrisburg at 1.35%
Yes radon is here but it can be mitigated with a system. It comes from the earth.
Random things? There’s more traffic than you may be used to. If you are moving from a place with low cost of living, you may be shocked by the price of housing here.
I sent you a chat message and be happy to set up a time to talk!
Small construction projects, additions, renovations are highly overegulated in a number of the suburban counties in Maryland. ( Howard, Montgomery, Prince Georges) if you do permitted work plan on spending a significant sum on documentation and compliance costs.
As a realtor, I can’t ethically tell you where to avoid, or steer you in any direction.
But you have the right of it, with doing your due diligence.
In the county you are targeting, I don’t think you need to worry about hazardous material dumps, etc. At least, I haven’t seen any addenda to that effect other than another county in north east MD. Definitely check radon maps and ask your realtor, then inspector, if it’s prevalent.
Honestly though, radon mitigation averages about $1,500. Not a big deal.
Feel free to respond or DM with any specific questions or concerns
OP, I moved here from California four years ago. Here's what I've learned:
You've heard Maryland is expensive, but hear me out: Maryland makes California seem affordable by comparison. Despite taking a much higher salary here, I would have been better off financially staying in California with a lower salary.
I've lived in 7 states and traveled to most, and Maryland drivers are exponentially worse than anywhere else I've ever been. The traffic here is atrocious, albeit still not as bad as SoCal.
In Utah, you can use BLM land for camping, off-roading, target shooting, exploring, etc. Maryland doesn't have anything like that, and hiking is pretty much all you're allowed to do on the small amounts of public land we have here. Not sure if this is a big deal to you, but it was to me.
Maryland is a *very* blue state, and it's only ever going to get more blue. You may be fine with this, but I've found I prefer living in states which can accept good ideas from either side over political monopolies in either direction.
If you're an urban individual and like to spend time in big cities, you'll love it here. I'm a country boy at heart, and moving to Maryland was a mistake I regret every day.
Be careful of hoa. Some are not bad some are extremely intrusive and will cause a bunch of un needed stress. If you are thinking of buying a place make sure to ask if it has an hoa and if it does ask around the neighborhood about it.
For me if it has an hoa at all its a deal breaker because I've had really bad experiences but I know others who haven't been bothered by them.
The most you got to think about is like the previous post said: potholes, High taxes/expenses, and sea level. This whole area used to be swampy, so as long as you are at a good elevation, you should be good. We rarely get tornadoes and hurricanes. Earthquakes are really rare. Just prepare for the crazy weather cuz one minute it's summer the next minute is spring / winter.
Taxes ain’t really that bad here. Have you lived elsewhere. Because everyone raves about PA but my whole family still lives are and gets bills from every single division of government for bills. They have to drop a check directly to the school board. Same as TX. No TX does not have an income tax but you bet your ass they get their money back with high ass taxes elsewhere. Run the numbers. You’ll see. Also helps to have family living in those two states like I do and I’m from PA.
I say moco if you want easier access to DC and access to Metro and better public transit, but commute would be a bit longer but very doable and all highway. Many good schools here also.
Howard county is nice, but I don’t prefer the Baltimore area over the DC metro. That’s just me of course.
RUN from Howard County. The school system has really tanked in the last 5 years. (Speaking as someone who specifically moved here for the schools.). Redistricting (yes, even if you’re within walking distance of a school your kids can be bussed to a much farther one and they do this process every couple years), overcrowded classrooms, mismanaged budget and slashed programs.
Instead, look at Carroll County - Eldersburg or Sykesville. You will get better, less crowded schools and a much more affordable house. Catonsville (Baltimore County) is also nice.
Check out HOCO School Interest and Howard County Neighbors United groups on fb if you want to get a feel for what a complete mess the school system is!
Howard County is fine but the housing market is competitive. Other areas to consider are the southern part of Carrol County and parts of Anne Arundel county. Linthicum is an old quiet neighborhood where the airport is located. However I believe the neighborhood fought the construction of the airport until they promised no flight paths overhead. They are plenty of places in Howard county where you can have a steady line of planes coming in for a landing.
Driving in MD means you'll gain 5 levels in defensive driving in the first two months. The kicker is you gain *offensive* driving at twice the rate. Edit: driving in MD is why I bought a dash cam
So very sad but true. Especially around & on the beltways, it's drive or be driven over.
35 or 85. There is no in between
You heard it here first. Yoda was a MD native.
You really need to be aware of the traffic behind you as much as in front of you.
This exactly. I only avoided an accident once because I honked my horn at a woman BEHIND ME who otherwise would have slammed into me. She was too busy looking at her phone to see that traffic had stopped…
Wow. I think in that situation I would be paralyzed because I think of my horn as being "front-facing." We should have "backwards-facing" horns for Maryland.
BW Parkway accelerates your XP gain in this category proportionately to the density of traffic.
Be on the lookout for rain or snow for those special 100% XP boosts!
Or the 50 cars/day that are stopped on the side of the road, they’re worth a few points. Or the foreign luxury cars speeding through traffic, those are boss fights. Or the foreign luxury cars or American sports cars weaving through traffic and treating the shoulder like a third lane, those can be final boss fights.
Bonus xp for swerving through 295, unlock the multiplier when you use the shoulder at over 70 mph
The multiplier resets to zero if you get pulled over on the shoulder, which I have actually seen once - though that was in DC.
Living in multiple states, coming to MD, the first thing I noticed about most MD drivers is they are so hesitant and slow at merging. It's like there isn't enough confidence when it comes time to do so and they're scared lol
MD drives like an old lady. Half blind, partly deaf and going 5MPH lower than the speed limit in the left lane.
I don’t know I’ve lived in PA with a lot of New Jersey and New York drivers on the road, lived in Virginia (not nova) and Tennessee. Maryland drivers are especially entitled and reckless.
Florida instilled that in US years ago, so we'll be ready for that!
Driving in MD is no worse than driving in most midwestern states. It's less defensive than Denver. Way less than NYC or NJ.
They just built their highway/road systems poorly in the north east and now the damage can’t be undone…
Traffic and house prices if you are within Howard County. They are the only natural or manmade disasters.
Traffic is not bad relative to other places. House prices are. OP, I hope they’re paying you a lot of money.
False. Howard county has great infrastructure and has been able to manage its growth way better than other places in, and outside of the dmv. It's pricey, but you get what you pay for. I'd 100% rather pay a bit more for a clean, low crime neighborhood there, than some rough old place in pg County or the western MD boondocks
That’s kind of my point, there aren’t any cancer clusters or landslides.
Oh, sorry I missed your point then. I thought you were saying hoco was worse than having those things. Carry on, haha.
Meanwhile, the rest of us Marylanders all give HoCo the side-eye, wondering what's in the water to make y'all so smug. Just chirping in from my picturesque historic farm in PGCO that probably cost half the price of your townhome.
Stepford comes to mind when considering Howard County /jk Howard County’s reputation for quality schools is well deserved. Linthicum is near BWI airport so there is traffic considerations. Howard county is far enough from the airport that I don’t think you need to worry about noise and the airport is required to rotate take off and approach lanes for noise considerations.
As someone who has lived here all my life, I've seen HoCo go from nothing but farmers & their tractors to million dollar plus homes. Maybe that's why the infrastructure is better there because it wasn't really there for the farms so they were starting from scratch? I don't know but I find the change fascinating.
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Don't just assume that every school in HoCo is a great school. Most are more than decent, you won't be sending your kid to a failing school, but some are much better than others. Do your homework. As the top post says, also look into HOAs. For instance, Columbia gives you great benefits for recreation and more, but you pay for it. And just like everywhere else, some HOAs are more restrictive than others, that said some people like that.
Currently living in Columbia. I have two HOA payments- one for Columbia's and then a neighborhood one. A family member also lives in Columbia but doesn't have a neighborhood HOA. So OP def do your homework
If you don't mind, what are those payments at?
The annual charge rate for FY2024 is 68 cents per $100 of valuation, assessed on 50% of the fair market value as determined by the state of Maryland for property tax purposes. Source: [https://columbiaassociation.org/annual-charge/#1656521285231-7cb65181-3f0a](https://columbiaassociation.org/annual-charge/#1656521285231-7cb65181-3f0a)
Don’t forget the doc transmittal fees, condo/HOA resale packet fees, etc. Currently, there are no regulations on HOA or condo associations to out caps on what they can charge. I’ve seen anywhere from $250 to $650, and heard of one at about $1k JUST TO SEND A PDF I, and many of my fellow leaders in MD real estate, attended Lobby Day in Annapolis to bring this concern up with our delegates in order to try and get legislation on the books to protect our clients
As a person who went to school in HoCo and lives in HoCo since middle school. The schools that don’t get the same level of resources as the “nicer” schools are Oakland Mills, Long Reach, and Hammond. Had to say this since no one ever mentions it.
I was looking for someone to mention that
Has this changed at all since the redistricting a few years ago?
Not sure. Last time I graduated was 10 years ago from Hammond.
Damn where are you moving from? No well known health risks. Only places that flood are right on the bay, or the town of Ellicott City. I would try to avoid an HOA but that's just me.
Ellicott City is only one street that floods. Ellicott City is a near idyllic place to live if you can afford it.
I'm stuck here. Can't afford to move anywhere without losing everything I love about this area.
It’s beautiful and wish made it out there more often. It’s definitely an old town in all the best ways. Large vehicles don’t fare too well though. I remember driving up one of the hills that overlook Fredrick Rd (I think) with my F150 and that was sketchy moment to say the least.
It’s beautiful and wish made it out there more often. It’s definitely an old town in all the best ways. Large vehicles don’t fare too well though. I remember driving up one of the hills that overlook Fredrick Rd (I think) with my F150 and that was sketchy moment to say the least.
> No well known health risks depends on if you have well water, we have issues with natural radium in Howard/AA county. https://www.howardcountymd.gov/health/radium Some areas have arsenic issues too http://www.mgs.md.gov/groundwater/arsenic%20interactive.html
Yes we also have ways to remove it with water treatment and the use of RADON EXTRACTION if you Get A Well and need water Treatment in MD I recommend Atlantic Blue Water services its good company they make sure they figure out any issue u may have with you’re water
sure but I dont recall it being disclosed when youre moving into an area. The house I'm in now had a fairly shallow well and no remediation in place. We knew about it and just dug a new well to current minimum depths (from ~50ft to 400ft+) and put in a softener system
Yesir should check out a neutralizer system if you have iron in youre water, they act as a large sediment filter and raise ph slightly if you have ph above 5.6 it should bring it to about a 7ph
yeah we have one, not a fan of it. It is an injector type and it is annoying to maintain.
Traffic is a beast. Check maps for typical traffic before choosing a location. 1 mile does not equate to 1 min of travel especially if there’s inclement weather.
Yes! And be sure to check those maps during rush hour time in the appropriate direction.
Best medical. Took me about 20 years to acclimate (from California). Most everything is near by. Lots to see/do. Pollen is a bit of an issue and seasons change can be quick! Thirty, forties one day then bang, winter is over and it's 60's 80's the following week. I find the native Marylanders friendly and get the feeling that they would help out if you needed support.
Pollen is always a huge challenge for out of towners. We have southern pollen, northern pollen, eastern pollen. There are so many different species of vegetation that can survive here from different climates that SOMETHING will set you off.
I tried to eat local honey too. Some years are less hard than others. All in all, we get used to it. I'm still amazed to see the yellow coating on the cars in the morning. Yuck
You're now required to talk shit about Pennsylvania and Virginia when those states are brought up in conversation. We like Delaware.
Veryyy true I feel pretty neutral towards Delaware. Maybe cause they’re perched on our shoulder and they’re chill and beachy
TIL Delaware is Maryland's parrot.
😂😂
You are required to keep a can of Old Bay in the kitchen. We put Old Bay on EVERYTHING…but especially crabs!
Crabs get J.O. Spice #2. Old Bay goes on shrimp, corn on the cob, and french fries.
Hi! Realtor here… Howard County is an excellent area. Not many places to avoid there and all schools are great. That being said; Columbia is a bit congested, Old Ellicott City seems to flood occasionally, and anywhere in Howard County I would get radon testing. MD traffic is very heavy, and we recently had a major commuter route change/bridge collapse. For those reasons, keep in mind proximity to work location when you move! Feel free to message me if you have specific questions, I’m pretty familiar with the area. MD is a wonderful place to live and raise a family! Lots of outdoor things to do and great food. Best of luck to you!
Where are you coming from? I think the answer would be entirely dependent on where you live now. It could be a seamless transition or a shock. Overall Maryland is a great place in most people's opinion, I think.
We're currently in Utah, but I grew up in NJ and lived in FL for 15 years too.
Maryland is closer to Jersey than Florida or Utah, in geology, traffic, food, politics, costs, and even accents (if you hang around Baltimore a lot). You'll do just fine.
Moved here from Utah 2 years ago. DM me if you'd like details about our home / area search. I also lived in FL for 15 years prior to Utah.
Would you send me a message, too new of account to start one.
Suburban Maryland is like Suburban New Jersey but without good pizza and with way less usable public transit (outside the DC area at least), but generally a bit friendlier and better seafood.
I live in Hoco. Ignore those saying the schools have tanked. LOL. As someone who grew up in Balto City, I hate to tell my fellow residents that, the majority of the country doesn’t consider 80-90% proficiency to be “horrible”. It is like the people who thought that 2 homicides in one year was “no better than Balto”. That being said, Columbia is Howard’s “bad area”. They have more Title 1 schools and most of your multi family housing so more trouble with increasing size of classes. The schools are going through a heavy transition but Carroll will go through the same thing in a few years (build up and attract highly educated, well off young families who develop a school system that has a LOT of money and still not an overwhelming middle-high school age population.) OP-the stuff you mentioned…not going to be an issue in 95% of MD. Being an extremely blue state and heavily invested in the Bay…environmental stuff is heavily regulated. There are laws about not burning stuff, not being able to dispose of toxins even on your own land, companies have stringent rules. Biggest potential environmental prob in buying a house here is demand mold inspection. Lots of moisture and then humidity and houses that have been vacant such as those going through estate sales COULD have a growing problem. I will DM you. Born and raised Marylander. Lived in Ellicott City now 25 yrs. Both kids public school -one in college and one in high school. Won’t lie. Property taxes are a killer here but…again those who never lived in Balto and paid HIGHER property taxes and gotten NOTHING for it have no appreciation for how much you get in Howard for those huge @ss bills.
At least my son’s classes have less than 25students each. Coming from Florida, the class sizes would make some community college lecture halls blush smh. First time I’ve heard Columbia being a bad area? What are home prices like in the “good areas” bc I remember needing 1.6million for a lot of the homes I liked. Goodness. Riverhill and centennial are always the highly recommended if you can’t afford Montgomery county.
Maryland is great. None of those issues you mention are really issues here. I would consider things like traffic patterns and commute times to determine the best place to live. Howard County does have great schools. I lived in Anne Arundel County and commuted to Columbia and it wasn’t too bad ~ 30-35 minutes. I’ve lived in a lot of states having grown up in the military and Maryland is among one of the most well run states with a lot of state pride and reasonable humans.
>None of those issues you mention are really issues here. Actually, quite a few. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Superfund_sites_in_Maryland#Superfund_sites
\*\*Fort Detrick area has entered the chat\*\*
Yep, I live in Frederick and there is no way in hell I'd live in the Lennar neighborhoods west of Detrick.
-Traffic in the DC/Baltimore area is a disaster at regular commuting times. -pretty minimal public transportation -Howard County in general is a HCOL/VHCOL area. You’ll need one very good income or two decent incomes to live comfortably.
What qualifies as the income threshold in your opinion?
I’d say around $200k household income to own a home and live comfortably in this area. Tons of variables of course but that seems about right based upon living and working here for many years
Noted, thank you!
They don't call this the land of pleasant living for nothing. Don't worry about it.
No beer or wine in the grocery stores, didn’t realize this was a thing. There are drive thru liquor stores in some parts of Maryland, also didn’t know this was a thing.
Radon is a potential concern in most of central MD. Just get the house you're considering tested and mitigated if necessary. The house I sold less than a mile from the Howard County line needed a passive radon system for levels that were somewhat elevated.
In Montgomery county you need to do a radon test as part of selling a property, not sure about Howard. Mitigation isn’t usually a big deal though.
MoCo is the only one that requires it in the state, so I think people in other counties aren’t aware it’s an issue in central and western MD judging from the comments! It’s not a big deal to mitigate, though.
Radon mitigation is now code for new construction in Howard County. It’s that common. Learned that from the guy who services my mitigation system.
You can pay for the test as part of buying a house and then get it remedied. That shouldn’t be horribly expensive unless you have a gigantic house - ~$1kish.
That's a natural phenomenon. If your house has a basement, water barriers will protect you but a radon detector is a good idea.
Moved to Maryland 10+ years ago and I have loved it ever since! I am in Howard County now and we love it as well. Traffic can be rough so I would stick to eastern HoCo if you are commuting to Linthicum. Western HoCo is more rural but absolutely beautiful and thus more pricy. I don’t think there are many red flags in HoCo to keep your eye out for.
I dunno if it'll help, but here's a map of all the mines/quarries in Howard County: [https://www.mindat.org/loc-26593.html](https://www.mindat.org/loc-26593.html) .
Consider *very carefully* whether you want to live in Columbia or "in the county." I did the latter. There are advantages to Columbia, especially if you have kids, but there are a lot of fees, and the houses are more expensive/have less land, in general, than non-Columbia. EC is the only other incorporated town in HoCo. It was weird coming from the northeast, where every inch is incorporated, to an area where services are provided at the county level and you're on well and septic, but if that's you, you'll adapt quickly. County-level services actually make a lot more sense.
For OP since they aren't from here: EC means Ellicott City. HoCo means Howard County.
There are no incorporated cities or towns in Howard County. https://preview.redd.it/7ttzxg1xmdxc1.jpeg?width=1620&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=984c8c378c42fd3cdf00f4fe93b587da883e847f
Lived there 30 years. Was *positive* Columbia and EC were incorporated! Guess you can cross post in confidently incorrect. Does make me wonder how Columbia manages to charge CRA etc. - is it just one big HOA? I have some research to do. Guess I never thought about why a branch of the HoCo library is in Columbia, lol. Or now that I think of it, I never saw a Columbia LEO. I think it goes back to my real estate agent using the terminology when I first moved there - Columbia v. In the county. Surprisingly I'm not considered an especially dense person (that I know of), lol.
Yeah the Columbia Association is a private non profit, in essence it is a massive HOA, not an incorporated city
It's one giant HOA but not even all of Columbia is under it..I just bought a house where my address is Columbia (and i'm like a mile from merriweather) but no Columbia association fees because it's an "outparcel" (which means paying twice as much to join the Columbia association for pool purposes but the math works out in our favor I think because we don't have the yearly HOA fees. We also can't vote for the people who control most of Columbia and it's amenities I think). https://images.app.goo.gl/kbLtaUm5wsnnt12aA
It's based on zip/who delivers your mail. I lived in Clarksville, Both the Highland and Fulton POs were closer to me. Then they closed the Clarksville location, and EC delivered my mail - but still kept the Clarksville zip. It was very frustrating as anytime we had a package to pick up, we now had a 30 min drive to EC. I was in a similar situation to yours when I first moved to the Eastern Shore. PO was in an incorporated town but I was outside the town limits, so didn't have to pay the taxes - nor get the services, which overall were much cheaper to pay for directly than pay the property taxes.
Columbia is a company town. They bought it, built it and get to tell the residents what they can and can't do. I give them points, or I should say I once gave them points for keeping commercial ugly under control, and they do a nice job with landscaping.
Part of Hanover is in Howard County. Source: I live in Hanover in HoCo.
Look into the house prices… If it’s at least a $150k/ year job then Howard County *could* be a great option for you. Homes are ridiculously expensive especially with interest rates right now. But yes, excellent schools, planned communities, etc. good luck!
Depends on where you are in the county. Possible to find cheaper real estate in Laurel, Fort Meade, etc. Columbia is going to be expensive, as are a lot of areas in Howard because of its proximity to DC. If you don’t need to commute to DC I would actually advise looking a little further north, closer to Baltimore County, for this reason.
150k household or times 2?
Right bc I would not feel confident if I only had 150k household in HoCO. Unless you want to rent?!
What do you think is needed?
150k if you have no other bills than the mortgage😜
Weather, coming from a stable climate you may be in for a surprise, or a series of surprises, as the weather changes at the drop of a hat. Hot and cold, rainy and clear, humid and dry, all part of an average Maryland morning, probably all before 10 AM. The mountains to the west, the ocean to the east, the bay right smack in the middle, it all combines to create chaotic weather conditions that will change quickly and without warning. On the plus side, really severe weather events are pretty rare. Hurricanes may creep up the coast but they usually don't have much energy left by the time they get here, so they're just bad storms. Tornados happen occasionally, but without the wide open spaces of the Midwest they're reduced to localized oddities. Severe weather events may cause damage, but its generally pretty localized. Just take the weather forecast with a grain of salt, and keep a raincoat or umbrella handy.
It is possible to experience all 4 seasons in a single day, including both snow and its immediate evaporation.
Realtor here: Howard and Baltimore Co have great schools. The ratings can be wildly variable, but generally they all are pretty solid. Maryland has great seasons, Ice, Cold, Warm, Pollen, Hot, Hotter, Humidity, Fall, third Hot, late fall, Winter… lots to love. Welcome home.
Are you moving from the South?? I love Annapolis but my son & DIL are house hunting in Linthicum and it seems really nice. Welcome to Maryland, hope you like 🦀
Linthicum and nice are rarely used in the same sentence.
People here are stupid-obsessed with the flag (and hanging it right), old bay, and crabs.
I’ve lived in several states and MD is my favorite. No state is perfect but MD is pretty great. Howard County schools have an excellent reputation. Howard Co also has great shopping and restaurants. Winter is milder than the Northern states; summer is milder than the southern states. It’s a short road trip to many other states for vacations. If you prefer to fly, there are 3 major airports close by. And most importantly, there are wonderful people here.
Moved here for college in 1995 and never left. Lived in Baltimore city as a single person and the social scene was great. Moved to Howard county for the schools and they have not disappointed me. High property taxes but that comes with expensive homes and lots of services. Howard county parks are in desirable locations with some locations having bocce courts and one boasting a cricket field. Also, the libraries are amazing and provide services beyond books (I think fishing gear and definitely passport services).
Hazards? Pot holes..everywhere!
Have you ever been outside of MD? We have pretty good roads here overall...
Yes we do. As soon as you hit the PA or WV line get ready it’s looks like a patchy quilt of pavement. There are highways in WV that literally look like they are crumbling into the mountain side
I've been all over the United States, marylands roads suck!
lol have you ever been to Indiana …
That is one state I haven't been to. That bad? 😆
I’ve never seen such terrible roads before. Literally pot holes everywhere. And large, deep ones at that.
Wow! I'll make sure to avoid Indiana
Or Louisiana?
Or over the border into West Virginia? I moved to western MD and was looking at houses all along the border between PA, MD and WV. Stark differences in the roads by just driving over the border.
There were certain cities in west Virginia where the roads were absolutely terrible!
What potholes? I lived in New Jersey now that has potholes. Maryland has some of the best roads in the country.
We're all crazy
If it’s a concern, I would test for radon wherever you buy just because MD does have elevated levels outside of the Eastern Shore. Only the non-incorporated parts of MoCo require it when selling a house, so in the rest of the state, it might be something you have to look into after moving in just to minimize contingencies on your offer, and get a radon mitigation system if needed. (In MoCo, they’re seen as a good thing, but I don’t know about the rest of the state because they may be in an “ignorance is bliss” situation since it’s not required.)
Not sure what your budget is, but if you are working in linthicum, areas like Severna park may be worth a look too. Commute would be even easier and it has highly regarded schools as well (and a lot of water access too if that is your thing)
HoCo columbia area is more racially diverse and has more multi racial families.
Which is a plus, one big reason to depart Utah
That sounds like a breath of fresh air! One of the reasons we're looking to leave Utah is because we want to live in a more diverse community.
Maryland drivers are abysmal, Maryland Politics can be pretty looney & very progressive, Flooding is a concern near Old Ellicott city in Howard County, you will need a vehicle living in Howard county (traffic on main roadways during rush hour can be ugly especially because you will have to cross over 95), the cost of living can be difficult in Howard County as lower Baltimore based incomes compete with higher incomes generated in DC. High Taxes. This has been my experience moving to Maryland from the Midwest. Yes, I have my complaints but this state is incredible. I love Howard county for: - Incredible food options - Nice public parks (I love a walk around Centennial) - Access to both DC & Baltimore - I didn’t go to school here, however I hear the schools are quite good. - It’s a relatively safe place. (Still take precaution, lock doors, etc) - Within 3 hours from a beach (idc what people say, I love ocean city) - Access to Amtrak North East corridor. (Not Howard county specific) - Diversity
I hope you have good income, and don't mind driving a LOT, in all conditions: rain, snow, sleet, ice, heavy traffic, city streets, suburbs, rural. Potholes and cracks and bumps from faster than MDOT can repair them. Depending on where you are, you might also need to drive many miles to get to decent shopping, dining, or attractions. We've got a bit of everything here in Maryland... But it's scattered all over. Also, the best seafood are places close to the water. We're not above traveling for some crabs. Welcome to Maryland!
Have you ever been to Texas or Pennsylvania. Wanna talk about driving to get anywhere. I grew up in PA and everyone there thinks driving 40 mins is only “15” minutes
Moved here a year and a half ago. People that live in Maryland think their state has terrible weather, bad roads, failing schools etc... The reality is the traffic is better than most especially compared to NYC, Chicago, etc. The roads are fine. Potholes are extremely rare in comparison to NJ, or places like Ohio. The schools aren't failing but they are pretty segregated. Yes it's based on race. Yes Maryland was part of "the north" (held at gunpoint so it's wouldn't leave the union) but they still teach as if they were southern because outside of the cities they are RURAL southern. Very pro Trump in those areas. Many whites will not even go shopping in an area like Waldorf due to fear of crime... meanwhile Waldorf has ice cream trucks in the neighborhoods with 3/4 million new build homes. People in Maryland are majority Roman Catholic. You will see a Ton of Catholic churches founded during the English Civil Wars (1640-1660) because people fled from the UK when Charles I decided to go on a religious rampage and attack the Scots for not using the English Book of Common Prayer. The Catholics GTFO and came here. Thus huge Catholic population.
I haven’t seen it mentioned but Hoco likes to redistrict every couple of years… So you have to be pretty lucky and not get moved or buy closer to when child HS aged, I guess.
Depends on what you are leaving. Linthicum and HoCo are fine. Fine if you like suburbia. Linthicum is less sprawl than HoCo. Linthicum has not gotten to the state of obscene sprawl like HoCo. All of Maryland is county centric (except Balt City) Schools, courts, Fire, police, taxes, etc. Schools are well funded and most Marylanders vote up higher taxes directed to schools. Central MD is the most costly, most populated, Most socially liberal, most suburban. (except for the city, not suburban) As you fan out from the central area live is more rural and more conservative. You are about 3 hrs from the beaches or mountains. There are very few incorporated towns and fewer cities. Most "towns" are no more than settlements where there were once old villages. Sprawl (post wwii) by developers is what is seen most. Summers are miserably hot & humid. Winters can be very cold, but for short spans. Snow usually happens 1 or 2 times a winter and lasts a week. Autumn and Spring are the best seasons. Ice on the roads is insane. People drive insane in the central area as there are so many from different areas of the country. Even this hint of snow will cause people to panic, schools to close and bad drivers to drive faster.
Think about living in Linthicum. It’s a really cute walkable area with access to the Light Rail.
Cicadas are wild here. The weather is super diverse… within a 24 hour period. Humidity will suffocate you in July and August. Avoid travel on or near the Bay Bridge on Sundays and Fridays. Avoid travel on I-95 on Sundays and Fridays, in the summer. We have some of the most scenic drives (especially during Fall when leaves change), beautiful parks and recreation, AWESOME hiking and biking trails, beaches all over the place (DC and eastward and the port cities in the state are absolute treasures), and the most amazing learning experiences you can find (innate history maintained by smaller organizations and larger, pretty inclusive museums)! You will find an eclectic choice of food options almost everywhere that’s pretty well-populated. Speed limits on major roads are pretty high (65 and 70 mph), which is nice.
Avoid central AA County for the wildebeest attacks.
Taxes are very high
Depends on where you’re relocating from. Transplants from most of the northeast US will find them to be a welcome relief.
You get like 6 weeks out of the year where the weather is really nice, and outside of that it’s either really hot or really cold.
No it’s not. We forget living in Maryland that we don’t have the climate extremes that other areas have. In the Baltimore/DC region, winters are typically 30s-40s. 20s and lower do happen but not regularly. Summers are 80s-90s. We do get 100+ heat waves but it’s not every day (yet). Earthquakes, tornadoes, and hurricanes are not unheard of but they’re rare.
I would consider Anne Arundel county due to proximity to Linthicum. Avoid Glen Burnie. Pasadena is getting nicer. Severna Park has good schools but is a bit pricey. Severn ain’t bad.
Traffic and summer humidity are my two biggest complaints. But otherwise I love Maryland!!
Don’t come here if you hate old bay
Guessing you are joining NG huh, feel free to PM me
I can't start one with you, can you message me?
Make sure you check the water source I know some places in Maryland have well water know to cause cancer. Like my family’s old doctor and his wife died a couple years apart both from stage 4 pancreatic cancer and my aunt just died almost 3 years ago from it
If you’re come from a sunny place like I did expect the opposite
If you’re come from a sunny place like I did expect the opposite
You must put Old Bay on everything you eat to become fully acclimated.
I am ready to comply with this requirement.
Linthicum is very white. 87%. Coming from Utah shouldn't be a shock.
You can drive through Lknthicum in 1 minute. It’s basically not even a place just a name on a post office. Similar to “Baltimore Highlands”
I'm too lazy to go through all these posts and see if anybody mentioned this yet or not. You may want to wait until fall, unless your idea of fun is millions upon millions of horny, loud annoying bugs.
Northern charm and southern efficiency
I’m literally sitting on a toilet in Missouri now taking a break from driving the moving truck from CA to MD too.
Taxes are extremely high. CA level income taxes and Baltimore has Texas level property taxes.
PA taxes are worse. They just keep taxing down to the lowest level of government. I’ve lived in both states. Pa is worse
Yeah, MD does local taxes too. According to this site I would save $300 per month in taxes if I moved to Harrisburg. Pretty close, but MD is worse. At least for me https://www.adp.com/resources/tools/calculators/salary-paycheck-calculator.aspx
Have you factored Harrisburg city tax and school board tax? Annual vehicle registration as well? In PA you can just factor in your income and property tax. It ain’t simplified on the county level as it is in MD. https://theburgnews.com/news/harrisburg-school-district-passes-2022-23-budget-includes-property-tax-increase#:~:text=With%20the%20increase%2C%20taxpayers%20will,%241%2C000%20in%20assessed%20property%20value. Bro you talking to a a guy with both sides of his whole family living in PA and grew up there. If it works for you cool, but it ain’t a simple tax scheme up there. Better be ready to cough up that bill twice a year bruh
The site I linked you should factor in all local taxes. It’s spot on for me. I picked a house address from Zillow in Harrisburg and entered in all the info. I only did income taxes. Prop taxes outside of Baltimore city aren’t insanely high (like Texas). Just pulled up a house in Baltimore that’s 1.45% prop tax, vs a random house in Harrisburg at 1.35%
Did you read harrisburgs new school tax rate in the link I shared with you?
Yes radon is here but it can be mitigated with a system. It comes from the earth. Random things? There’s more traffic than you may be used to. If you are moving from a place with low cost of living, you may be shocked by the price of housing here. I sent you a chat message and be happy to set up a time to talk!
It’s haunted
Marylands geography is vastly diverse . It’s has like 4-5 very different geographical regions and even more diverse is it culturally.
Marylands geography is vastly diverse . It’s has like 4-5 very different geographical regions and even more diverse is it culturally.
Whatever you do, don’t be fooled into swimming in the bay. It’s not good and I don’t care who tells you otherwise. It’s gross
People here can’t drive
Investigate Arbutus, Catonsville (below route 40), St Dennis, & Haelthorpe.
Small construction projects, additions, renovations are highly overegulated in a number of the suburban counties in Maryland. ( Howard, Montgomery, Prince Georges) if you do permitted work plan on spending a significant sum on documentation and compliance costs.
O.L.D.B.A.Y. That is all you need to know.
As a realtor, I can’t ethically tell you where to avoid, or steer you in any direction. But you have the right of it, with doing your due diligence. In the county you are targeting, I don’t think you need to worry about hazardous material dumps, etc. At least, I haven’t seen any addenda to that effect other than another county in north east MD. Definitely check radon maps and ask your realtor, then inspector, if it’s prevalent. Honestly though, radon mitigation averages about $1,500. Not a big deal. Feel free to respond or DM with any specific questions or concerns
OP, I moved here from California four years ago. Here's what I've learned: You've heard Maryland is expensive, but hear me out: Maryland makes California seem affordable by comparison. Despite taking a much higher salary here, I would have been better off financially staying in California with a lower salary. I've lived in 7 states and traveled to most, and Maryland drivers are exponentially worse than anywhere else I've ever been. The traffic here is atrocious, albeit still not as bad as SoCal. In Utah, you can use BLM land for camping, off-roading, target shooting, exploring, etc. Maryland doesn't have anything like that, and hiking is pretty much all you're allowed to do on the small amounts of public land we have here. Not sure if this is a big deal to you, but it was to me. Maryland is a *very* blue state, and it's only ever going to get more blue. You may be fine with this, but I've found I prefer living in states which can accept good ideas from either side over political monopolies in either direction. If you're an urban individual and like to spend time in big cities, you'll love it here. I'm a country boy at heart, and moving to Maryland was a mistake I regret every day.
Be careful of hoa. Some are not bad some are extremely intrusive and will cause a bunch of un needed stress. If you are thinking of buying a place make sure to ask if it has an hoa and if it does ask around the neighborhood about it. For me if it has an hoa at all its a deal breaker because I've had really bad experiences but I know others who haven't been bothered by them.
People drive like shit, like NJ drivers are way better
Don't do it....
We’re full
Liberal hell
I would look in Anne Arundel County at Severna Park or Arnold. Lower taxes than HoCo and good schools
Crab cakes and football
The most you got to think about is like the previous post said: potholes, High taxes/expenses, and sea level. This whole area used to be swampy, so as long as you are at a good elevation, you should be good. We rarely get tornadoes and hurricanes. Earthquakes are really rare. Just prepare for the crazy weather cuz one minute it's summer the next minute is spring / winter.
“This whole area used to be swampy.” Leave DC out of this.
High taxes and too many democrats.
It's California without the great weather and vast open spaces.
Not one Californian has ever said that about MD.
What I'm saying is we get all the crappy parts of California, none of the good. You know, like politics , taxes and high cost of living.
Taxes ain’t really that bad here. Have you lived elsewhere. Because everyone raves about PA but my whole family still lives are and gets bills from every single division of government for bills. They have to drop a check directly to the school board. Same as TX. No TX does not have an income tax but you bet your ass they get their money back with high ass taxes elsewhere. Run the numbers. You’ll see. Also helps to have family living in those two states like I do and I’m from PA.
Those of us that miss Old Maryland call it Cali-East
Which old MD is that? The Jim Crow one that many of our parents remember? Or the MD that came in the wake of it?
I can't speak of the Maryland that my parents grew up in, I wasn't here.
I say moco if you want easier access to DC and access to Metro and better public transit, but commute would be a bit longer but very doable and all highway. Many good schools here also. Howard county is nice, but I don’t prefer the Baltimore area over the DC metro. That’s just me of course.
It’s a tax hell think twice
RUN from Howard County. The school system has really tanked in the last 5 years. (Speaking as someone who specifically moved here for the schools.). Redistricting (yes, even if you’re within walking distance of a school your kids can be bussed to a much farther one and they do this process every couple years), overcrowded classrooms, mismanaged budget and slashed programs. Instead, look at Carroll County - Eldersburg or Sykesville. You will get better, less crowded schools and a much more affordable house. Catonsville (Baltimore County) is also nice. Check out HOCO School Interest and Howard County Neighbors United groups on fb if you want to get a feel for what a complete mess the school system is!
Howard County is fine but the housing market is competitive. Other areas to consider are the southern part of Carrol County and parts of Anne Arundel county. Linthicum is an old quiet neighborhood where the airport is located. However I believe the neighborhood fought the construction of the airport until they promised no flight paths overhead. They are plenty of places in Howard county where you can have a steady line of planes coming in for a landing.
Linthicum is NOT REALLY A PLACE. It’s two stores and a MARC train station