Why Baltimore is a buy

Why Baltimore Is One Of The Best Places In America To Buy A Home Right Now

Published by Michael J. Schiff, Team Leader, The Schiff Home Team of eXp Realty

There has never been a better time to make the case for Baltimore – and right now, the data makes it for us.

While national headlines are full of housing market uncertainty, fragmented forecasts, and stories about Sun Belt cities watching their home values fall, Baltimore is quietly doing something remarkable. It is holding its value. It is growing. And compared to almost every comparable market on the East Coast, it is offering buyers something increasingly rare in 2026: genuine, sustainable value in a city with real bones, real community, and real long-term upside.

I have been working in this market for years. I have watched it through cycles, downturns, and booms. And I want to tell you clearly, as someone whose job depends on reading this market accurately: right now is one of the best windows to buy a home in Baltimore that I have seen in a long time. Here is exactly why.

The National Picture Makes Baltimore Look Even Better

To understand why Baltimore stands out, you need to understand what is happening everywhere else.

The “affordability economy” – a term economists are using to describe the dramatic divergence in housing markets across America – is reshaping the national landscape in real time. Markets that overbuilt during the pandemic boom are now paying the price. Cape Coral, Florida is down nearly 10% year-over-year. Phoenix, Tucson, and Palm Bay are down between 4% and 6%. Across Florida, California, and Texas, 28 of America’s 53 largest metros saw home price decreases through February 2026. Sellers in those markets are cutting prices, offering concessions, and watching buyer interest evaporate.

The winners? Mid-Atlantic and Rust Belt cities – places like Kansas City, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, and Baltimore – that never got overheated to begin with. These are markets with constrained supply, institutional demand anchors, and price points that still make sense for the buyers who want to live there. Kansas City is up 8.6% year-over-year. Pittsburgh is up 5.8%. And Baltimore, right in the heart of the Northeast’s strongest-performing region, is holding steady with appreciation that reflects real demand rather than speculation.

The national market is fragmented. Baltimore is on the right side of that fragmentation.

The Affordability Gap With D.C. Is Extraordinary – And Still Growing

Here is the single most compelling number in this entire blog: a condo in Washington, D.C. costs approximately $465,000. The same condo in Baltimore costs around $210,000. That is not a small difference. That is a life-changing difference.

The gap is just as dramatic in the suburbs. The median single-family home in Montgomery County, Maryland tops $800,000. In Baltimore County, that same home costs under $400,000 – less than half the price. Arlington and Alexandria in Northern Virginia are running around $690,000 and higher. Loudoun County sits near $895,000.

Baltimore home prices are approximately 40% more affordable than Washington, D.C. – and D.C. is only 40 miles away. For buyers who work in the D.C. metro, the MARC commuter rail makes Baltimore a legitimate, affordable alternative. A monthly MARC pass runs $200 to $300 – a fraction of what you would spend on a mortgage that is twice the size. For remote and hybrid workers who no longer need to be in a D.C. office daily, Baltimore is not just an alternative. It is an obvious upgrade.

As D.C. prices continue to rise with no end in sight, that gravitational pull toward Baltimore is only getting stronger.

What Baltimore’s Numbers Look Like Right Now

Let’s bring it home with local data.

Baltimore City posted a median home price of $240,000 in March 2026 – up 6.7% year-over-year according to Redfin. Hot homes in strong city neighborhoods are going under contract in as few as 24 days and selling at or above list price. Neighborhoods like Canton, Federal Hill, Fells Point, and Hampden continue to draw strong buyer interest, while emerging communities like Highlandtown, Remington, and Lauraville offer genuine value for buyers willing to look one neighborhood beyond the obvious choices.

Baltimore County remains one of the most compelling suburban markets on the entire East Coast. With a median around $363,000, homes in communities like Towson, Catonsville, Owings Mills, and Pikesville are moving quickly – frequently in under three weeks – and still generating competitive offers when priced and presented well. The county carries only about 1.8 months of housing supply, meaning demand meaningfully outpaces available inventory.

Across the broader Baltimore metro, home values have appreciated more than 42% over the past five years. That is not a bubble. That is compounding, fundamental value growth in a market with real demand drivers – and it has happened without the speculative frenzy that has now put Sun Belt markets in reverse.

Why Baltimore’s Demand Is Structural – Not Seasonal

One of the things I tell buyers who ask me about long-term risk in this market is this: Baltimore’s demand is not driven by trends. It is driven by institutions.

Johns Hopkins Medicine and Johns Hopkins University employ more than 40,000 people combined – making them among the largest employers in the state. People do not stop needing to work at Johns Hopkins because mortgage rates ticked up. The University of Maryland Medical System, the NSA and Fort Meade cybersecurity corridor, T. Rowe Price, Under Armour, and the Port of Baltimore create a diversified, resilient employment base that is not going anywhere.

The Baltimore metro population reached 2,387,000 in 2025 – up 0.72% from 2024 – and projections from Harbor Stone Advisors suggest the metro could add more than 20,000 households over the next five years. Baltimore City lost approximately 50% fewer residents to domestic migration in 2024 than in 2023. People are staying – and more are coming.

That kind of institutional, demographic foundation is what separates a market with genuine long-term upside from one riding a wave that eventually breaks.

Rates Are Moving In The Right Direction

Timing is never perfect. But the rate environment heading into May 2026 is more favorable than it has been in over a year.

The 30-year fixed rate is currently at 6.23% as of April 23rd – the lowest point of the entire spring buying season, and nearly 60 basis points below where it was a year ago. Fannie Mae’s April forecast projects rates settling at 6.1% through the rest of 2026 and into 2027 – a gradual, steady improvement that is already unlocking buying power for buyers who were sidelined 12 months ago.

On a $363,000 Baltimore County home with 20% down, the difference between a 6.81% rate and a 6.23% rate is roughly $120 per month – over $1,400 per year in payment savings. That is real money. And with Baltimore home prices up 6.7% year-over-year, the buyer who waits six months for rates to improve slightly may find that any rate savings are offset by a higher purchase price.

The window is open. It will not stay open forever.

Who This Market Is Perfect For Right Now

First-time buyers – Baltimore City’s median around $240,000 remains one of the most accessible entry points for homeownership on the entire East Coast. First-time buyers made up 32% of all existing home sales nationally in March 2026, and in Baltimore, there are still genuine opportunities to get into a home, build equity, and plant roots in a city that rewards those who believe in it.

D.C. commuters and hybrid workers – If you are spending D.C. money on rent and do not need to be in the office five days a week, the math of owning in Baltimore is almost impossible to argue against. You get twice the house for half the price, 40 miles up the road.

Move-up buyers in Baltimore County – If you bought a starter home in the county in 2019, 2020, or 2021, you have likely built significant equity. The appreciation over the past five years has been real and meaningful. Using that equity to move up into a larger home or a different community while rates are near their spring low is a strategy worth discussing.

Long-term thinkers – Baltimore is not a get-rich-quick market. It never has been. It is a steady, fundamentally sound market that rewards patient buyers who buy well, maintain their homes, and hold for the long term. The 42% five-year appreciation tells that story clearly.

The Bottom Line

The national housing market is complicated right now. Some markets are struggling. Some are thriving. And a handful – Baltimore chief among them – are offering something genuinely rare: real value, real stability, and real upside in a city with a history, a character, and a community that you cannot manufacture.

I am proud to work in this market every day. I am proud to help buyers find their footing here and sellers unlock the equity they have built. And I am genuinely excited about where Baltimore is headed.

If you have been thinking about buying here – in the city, in the county, in any of the communities we work in every day – I would love to have a real conversation about what makes sense for your situation. Not a sales pitch. Just an honest, informed look at what the market is offering right now and how you can make the most of it.

This is a good time to be a Baltimore buyer. The numbers say so – and so do I.