The Obama Administration’s Efforts To Stabilize the Housing Market and Help American Homeowners | April 2015 U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development | Office of Policy Development and Research

U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development

Spotlight on the Housing Market in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD MSA | Page 1

Spotlight on the Housing Market 

in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, 

MD MSA

The Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD Metropolitan Statistical Area (Baltimore MSA) is located in central Maryland and includes the independent 

city of Baltimore and 6 counties: Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Carroll, Harford, Howard, and Queen Anne’s. As with other areas in the Mid-Atlantic, 

the foreclosure crisis was less severe than in most parts of the country, but the recovery from the crisis and subsequent recession has been 

somewhat slower than for the nation overall. Home prices appreciated 30 percent more than the national rate during the housing bubble, but 

the ensuing decline in prices was less steep—26 percent compared with a national decline of 32 percent. The lower property values and the 

resulting underwater mortgages were primarily fueled by investor speculation and unsustainable mortgage lending going into the crisis. The rise in 

unemployment and underemployment during the recession added further to rising defaults and the decline in property values. The share of mortgages 

at risk of foreclosure (those 90 or more days delinquent or in the foreclosure process) did not peak until the beginning of 2013—three years later 

than for the nation—but reached a similar rate. Contributing to the later peak in the share of mortgages in the foreclosure pipeline in Baltimore 

was the passage of state legislation in mid-2010 that allowed for foreclosure mediation in an effort to prevent foreclosures. Baltimore currently ranks 

83rd among metropolitan areas for share of mortgages at risk of foreclosure. The share of distressed mortgages has declined in Baltimore—the 

result of nearly five years of moderate job growth, state legislation that curtailed foreclosure actions, and the local use of the Administration’s 

mortgage assistance programs. The need for recovery efforts continues, however, as Baltimore ranks high among metropolitan areas for the 

proportion of mortgages that remain underwater. The Administration’s broad approach to stabilizing the housing market has been a real help 

to homeowners in Baltimore and the surrounding area. This addendum to the Obama Administration’s Housing Scorecard provides a summary of 

local economic trends and conditions and the impact of the Administration’s efforts to stabilize the housing market and help local homeowners.

Population Growth, Employment, 

and Housing Market:

With more than 2.7 million people according to the most 

recent Census, the Baltimore MSA is the 20th largest in 

the nation. From 2000 to 2010, Baltimore’s population 

increased by an average of 15,750 people, or 0.6 percent, 

a year. Natural population growth (births minus deaths) 

accounted for 74 percent of the population growth during 

this period. An average of nearly 4,100 people per year 

moved to the Baltimore MSA during the last decade, 

Baltimore MSA Housing Unit Growth Outpaced Population and 

Household Growth During the Past Decade

Date of Census 4/1/2000 4/1/2010

Baltimore MSA Population 2,552,994 2,710,489 

 Annual Growth Rate — 0.6%

Baltimore MSA Households 974,071 1,038,765 

 Annual Growth Rate — 0.7%

Baltimore MSA Housing Units 1,048,046 1,132,251 

 Annual Growth Rate — 0.8%

Source: Census Bureau (2000 and 2010 Decennial)

accounting for the remaining 26 percent of the net population increase. The 

highest influx of people moving to the area—an average of 8,000 annually—

occurred between the years 2001 and 2004. 

During the decade spanned by the Census, new housing 

construction grew faster than household growth in Baltimore.

Net annual housing unit growth of 0.8 percent in the Baltimore metropolitan 

area during the last decade was greater than the corresponding population 

and household growth rates of 0.6 and 0.7 percent, respectively. The rate of 

increase in vacant units in the Baltimore metro area during the 2000s was 

considerably less than the national rate, however, with vacant units increasing at 

an average annual rate of 2.6 percent, compared with 4.4 percent nationally, 

according to the Census Bureau. Investor speculation stimulated overbuilding 

in the years leading up to the housing crisis, with the increase in the share of 

investor purchases very similar to the national upturn. Specifically, from 2000 

to 2005, investor home sales rose from 7.2 to 13.7 percent of total sales in the 

Baltimore metro area, while the corresponding increase for the nation was from 

8.0 to 14.6 percent. Subprime lending also contributed to the overbuilding. A 

study by the National Bureau of Economic Research indicates that the Baltimore 

MSA ranked 31st out of the top 107 metropolitan areas with the highest share 

of subprime originations during 2005, with subprime originations as a share of 

new mortgages at 22 percent in Baltimore. A conservative estimate based on 
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HMDA (Home Mortgage Disclosure Act) data indicates that 

high-cost (proxy for subprime) originations tripled nationally 

between 1998 and 2005, while a study by the Center for 

Responsible Lending estimates that approximately 90 percent 

of subprime mortgages during that period faced increases in 

monthly payments of 30 to 50 percent within a few years, 

causing borrowers with subprime loans to typically default at 

more than 7 times the rate of other mortgages.

Baltimore’s economy is improving. The local economy 

was growing moderately before it began to decline in 

2008. From the second quarter of 2003 through the first 

quarter of 2008, jobs increased at an average annual rate 

of 1.2 percent, the same as the national increase during this 

period. The impact of the Great Recession was not as severe 

for the Baltimore metropolitan area as it was for the nation. 

Jobs in the MSA declined at an annual rate of 2.2 percent, 

from the second quarter of 2008 through the first quarter of 

2010, compared with a national decline of 3.1 percent. The 

recovery from the recession has been somewhat weaker for 

Baltimore than for the nation, however, with jobs increasing 

at an annual rate of 1.5 percent from the second quarter of 

2010 through the first quarter of 2015, compared with a 

1.7-percent increase nationally.

The Baltimore MSA is home to several large hospitals and 

institutions of higher learning. During the recent recession, 

a period when every other private sector in the MSA lost 

jobs, the education and health services sector expanded 

at an average annual rate of 2.4 percent. Job losses were 

most severe during this period in the construction sector, 

where jobs declined at an annual rate of 10.9 percent and 

accounted for nearly 30 percent of the loss in employment 

in the MSA. Job losses were also fairly substantial for 

the information sector (-6.7 percent), manufacturing (-5.9 

percent) and retail trade (-4.8 percent). The recovery from 

the recession has been led by the professional and business 

services sector (4.5 percent) and leisure and hospitality 

(4.0 percent), with jobs in education and health services 

increasing at an average rate of 1.9 percent. Growth in 

these sectors was offset by average annual job losses of 4.4 

percent in information and 2.2 percent in manufacturing. 

The not seasonally adjusted (NSA) unemployment rate for 

the Baltimore MSA peaked at 8.7 percent in February 2010 

and as of March 2015 has fallen to 5.7 percent (seasonally 

adjusted data for metro areas are currently unavailable). 

In comparison, the NSA unemployment rate for the nation 

peaked in January 2010 at 10.6 percent and fell to 5.6 

percent by March 2015. The national seasonally adjusted 

unemployment rate peaked in October 2009 at 10.0 

percent, falling to 5.5 percent by March 2015.

Home sales in Baltimore have improved, but growth slowed in 

2014. After peaking at 69,700 units sold in 2005, purchases of previously 

owned (existing) homes in the Baltimore MSA declined between 2006 and 

2011 by an average annual rate of 10 percent. Existing home sales have risen 

since 2011 by an average annual rate of 9 percent, although the pace slowed 

to only 1 percent growth in 2014. By comparison, existing home sales in the 

nation peaked in 2005 and declined by an annual rate of 14 percent between 

2006 and 2008. Existing home sales began to rise again nationally in 2009, 
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U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development

increasing at an average annual rate of almost 5 percent 

from 2009 to 2013, but slowed in 2014, declining by 

3 percent. As for new home sales, purchases peaked in 

2006 at 7,875 units in the Baltimore MSA before falling from 

2007 through 2009 at an annual rate of nearly 20 percent. 

New home sales increased at an annual rate of 4 percent 

(albeit on a low base) from 2012 to 2013, but the pace 

slowed in 2014, declining by nearly 2 percent. Nationally, 

new home sales peaked in 2005 before declining by an 

annual rate of 13 percent from 2006 through 2011; sales 

have increased since at an annual rate of 14 percent (also 

on a low base) from 2012 through 2014. 

Home prices in Baltimore rose more steeply 

but declined less than for the nation during the 

housing crisis. The CoreLogic repeat-sales house price 

index (HPI) shows that home prices in the Baltimore MSA 

rose nearly 30 percent more than for the rest of the nation 

during the housing bubble but had a less pronounced 

decline of 26 percent from their peak in September 2006 to 

their low in March 2012. The national peak-to-low decline 

was 32 percent (from April 2006 to March 2011). Investor 

speculation had an impact on the rise in home prices in 

the Baltimore MSA, with sales to investors averaging 11 

percent in Baltimore during the bubble, but lower than the 

13 percent share nationally. As described earlier, subprime 

lending was also a factor in fueling home prices in the 

Baltimore MSA. Since reaching their low point, home prices 

in the Baltimore metropolitan area have risen 6 percent—

one-fifth the 30 percent low-to-current increase for the nation. 

Home values in the Baltimore MSA are currently on par with 

prices in late 2004, while home prices in the nation are on 

par with early-2005 prices.

The apartment vacancy rate in Baltimore has 

tracked fairly closely with the national rate during 

the past two years. According to MPF Research, the 

Baltimore MSA apartment vacancy rate was 4.7 percent in 

the first quarter of 2015, up from 4.6 percent a year earlier, 

representing generally balanced market conditions. The 

uptick in the vacancy rate occurred with the completion of 

a large number of new apartment projects during the past 

year; the demand for rental units has been especially strong 

in Baltimore City. The national apartment vacancy rate was 

4.5 percent during the first quarter of 2015, down from 

5.0 percent a year earlier. During the first quarter of 2015, 

the average apartment rent in the Baltimore MSA increased 

1.6 percent from a year earlier to $1,211, compared with 

a nationwide increase of 5.0 percent to $1,186. Overall 

rental market conditions in the Baltimore metro area remain 

weaker than the apartment market due to a high number 

of vacant single-family rental properties. According to the CPS/HVS (Current 

Population Survey/Housing Vacancy Survey) conducted by the Census Bureau, 

as of the first quarter of 2015 the overall rental vacancy rate for the Baltimore 

MSA was 9.2 percent compared to a national rate of 7.1 percent. The 2013 

ACS (American Community Survey) indicates that single-family homes accounted 

for 38 percent of all rental units in the Baltimore MSA, while representing 35 

percent of all rental units in the nation. 

Trends in Mortgage Delinquencies and 

Foreclosures: 

The share of distressed mortgages in Baltimore has declined but 

still exceeds the national level. As of February 2015, the Baltimore MSA 

placed 83rd out of 381 metropolitan areas ranked by share of mortgages at 

risk of foreclosure (90 or more days delinquent or in the foreclosure process) 

according to Black Knight Financial Services, Inc. From 2000 through 2004, 

the share of mortgages at risk of foreclosure in the Baltimore MSA was above 

the corresponding national share, but from 2005 through the middle of 2011, 

the share of distressed mortgages in Baltimore fell below the national rate, 

according to CoreLogic data. In 2007 and 2008, when the foreclosure crisis 

began and single-family foreclosures were largely driven by unaffordable nontraditional loan products, the increase in mortgages at risk of foreclosure in the 

Baltimore MSA rose at a slightly slower pace than nationally. Specifically, from 
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U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development

the beginning of 2007 to the end of 2008, the share of 

distressed mortgages in Baltimore increased 2.7 percentage 

points (from 1.0 to 3.7 percent), compared with a national 

increase of 2.9 percentage points (from 1.6 to 4.5 percent). 

Beginning in 2009, foreclosures were increasingly driven by 

loss of income, unemployment, and strategic defaults as the 

economy worsened, according to research by the Federal 

Reserve Bank of Chicago. A sharp spike upward in the 

share of distressed mortgages occurred in 2009 for both the 

Baltimore MSA and the nation. By early 2010, mortgages at 

risk of foreclosure reached a peak of 8.0 percent nationally, 

and have since fallen to 3.6 percent. The share of distressed 

mortgages in the Baltimore MSA continued to increase for 

another 3 years, peaking at 7.9 percent in the beginning 

of 2013; the share has since fallen to 5.0 percent as of 

January 2015. Contributing to the later peak in the share of 

mortgages in the foreclosure pipeline in Baltimore was the 

passage of state legislation in mid-2010 that allowed for 

foreclosure mediation in an effort to prevent foreclosures. 

The time it takes to complete a foreclosure in the State of 

Maryland is still well below the national average, however. 

As of the first quarter of 2015, the average time to complete 

a foreclosure in the State of Maryland was 493 days 

compared with a national average of 620 days. The current 

decline in mortgages at risk of foreclosure in Baltimore is 

similar to the national trend. Over the last year, the number 

of distressed mortgages decreased by 26 percent—from 

20,150 to 14,850—compared with a national decline of 25 

percent over the same period.

RealtyTrac data show the rate of foreclosure 

completions in Baltimore has been almost half 

the national rate since April 2009. From April 2009 

through March 2015, the number of foreclosure completions 

as a percentage of all housing units was 1.7 percent in 

Baltimore, nearly one-half the 3.1-percent rate for the nation. 

Since reaching a low point at the end of 2011, foreclosure 

completions have become more volatile. In the first quarter of 

2015, for example, foreclosure completions were down 30 

percent from the previous quarter but up 72 percent from the 

previous year. With rising home prices and low inventories 

of homes for sale, lenders have been resolving defaults 

Foreclosure Completion Rates in the Baltimore MSA

Area

First Quarter 2015 Since April 1, 2009

Foreclosure 

Completions

Foreclosure 

Rate

Foreclosure

Completions

Foreclosure 

Rate

Baltimore MSA 1,320 0.12% 19,250 1.7%

Nation 82,100 0.06% 4,104,700 3.1%

Notes: Foreclosure rates as percent of all housing units. Data through March 2015 

for foreclosures since April 2009.

Sources: Realty Trac and Census Bureau.

more quickly. In addition, foreclosure activity has been increasing in states 

such as Maryland, where a slower foreclosure process led to a backlog that is 

beginning to clear.

The efforts of numerous state and local entities and financial 

institutions in partnership with the federal government have 

helped contain the rate of foreclosures. In April 2008, Governor Martin 

O’Malley signed the Foreclosure Law Process Reform Bill (Senate Bill 216/

House Bill 365), which provides protections for homeowners in the foreclosure 

process, including more time and notice before and after a foreclosure action 

is filed, more rights during the process, and more time to assert those rights 

should the lender fail to comply with the law. In May 2010, Maryland passed 

an additional foreclosure prevention law (House Bill 472), which allows a 

borrower to file a request for foreclosure mediation in which the parties involved 

meet with an impartial individual in an effort to reach an agreement on a loan 

modification or other form of loss mitigation. The need for recovery efforts 

continues. As of the fourth quarter of 2014, 13.2 percent of mortgages in the 

Baltimore MSA remain underwater, up slightly from 13.0 percent a year earlier, 

according to CoreLogic. This compares to a 10.8 percent share of underwater 

borrowers (those who owe more on their mortgage than the value of their home) 

at the national level.

The Administration’s Efforts To Stabilize the 

Baltimore MSA Housing Market:

The Administration’s mortgage and neighborhood assistance programs—the 

Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP, which is part of the broader 

Making Home Affordable program), the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) 

mortgage assistance programs, and the Neighborhood Stabilization Program 

(NSP)—combined with assistance from the HOPE Now Alliance of mortgage 

servicers and the National Mortgage Servicing Settlement have helped stabilize 

the Baltimore MSA housing market.

From the launch of the Administration’s assistance programs in April 2009 

through the end of February 2015, more than 100,600 homeowners have 

received mortgage assistance in the Baltimore metropolitan area. More 

than 56,700 interventions were completed through the HAMP and FHA loss 
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mitigation and early delinquency intervention programs. 

An estimated additional 43,900 proprietary mortgage 

modifications have been made through HOPE Now Alliance 

servicers. While some homeowners may have received help 

from more than one program, the number of times assistance 

has been provided in the Baltimore metropolitan area is 

more than five times the number of foreclosures completed 

during this period (18,800). 

Under the landmark National Mortgage Servicing 

Settlement signed in February 2012, more than 17,366 

Maryland homeowners have benefited from over $1 billion 

in refinancing, short sales and completed or trial loan 

modifications, including principal reduction on first and 

second lien mortgages provided as of June 30, 2013. 

Nationwide, the settlement has provided more than $50 

billion in consumer relief benefits to more than 631,000 

families. That is in addition to the $2.5 billion in payments 

to participating states and $1.5 billion in direct payments to 

borrowers who were improperly foreclosed upon between 

2008 and 2011.

Given over three rounds, the Neighborhood 

Stabilization Program has invested $7 billion 

nationwide to help localities work with non-profits and 

community development corporations to turn tens of 

thousands of abandoned and foreclosed homes that lower 

property values into homeownership opportunities and the 

affordable rental housing that communities need. 

Baltimore MSA Housing Units to Date Benefitting 

From NSP by Type of Activity 

 Construction or Rehabilitation 237

 Homeownership Assistance to Low- and Moderate-Income 37

Total Housing Units 274

Additional Projected Housing Units 177

NSP1 funds were granted to all states and selected local governments on a 

formula basis under Division B, Title III of the Housing and Economic Recovery 

Act (HERA) of 2008; NSP2 funds authorized under the American Recovery and 

Reinvestment Act (the Recovery Act) of 2009 provided grants to states, local 

governments, nonprofits and a consortium of nonprofit entities on a competitive 

basis; and NSP3 funds authorized under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and 

Consumer Protection Act of 2010 provided neighborhood stabilization grants to 

all states and select governments on a formula basis.

Overall, a total of $32.8 million in NSP funds has been awarded to three 

grantees in the Baltimore MSA: the City of Baltimore, Baltimore County,

and the non-profit, Healthy Neighborhoods Inc. In addition, a total 

of $31.7 million in NSP funding was awarded to the State of Maryland, of 

which $9.6 million has been reallocated to the Baltimore MSA. Approximately 

274 households have already benefited from direct NSP grants to recipients 

in the Baltimore MSA, and activities funded by the program are expected to 

provide assistance to an additional 177 owner-occupied and renter households. 

Data on households benefiting from NSP funds reallocated to the Baltimore 

metro area from the State of Maryland are currently not available. Notes: These housing units are the result of direct NSP grants to recipients in the

Baltimore MSA. Data on units resulting from sub-grants to the Baltimore MSA from the 

State of Maryland are not available.