Baltimore County Announces Legislation to Penalize Vacant and Blighted Properties to Incentivize Economic Development and Housing Opportunities in Baltimore County

TOWSON – Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski today announced plans to introduce legislation to improve quality of life in Baltimore County communities by establishing penalties on vacant and blighted properties in order to further incentivize rehabilitation and redevelopment.
 
“Transforming blighted and abandoned properties in our communities supports economic development, improves residents’ quality of life and creates much-needed housing opportunities for all,” said Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski. “This commonsense legislation will be yet another tool to encourage reinvestment in our neighborhoods and ensure Baltimore County remains a safe – and vibrant – place to live, work and raise a family.”
 
In 2023, Baltimore County passed legislation to create the county’s first-ever process to designate properties as “vacant” as part of the Olszewski administration’s package of foundational legislative reforms to expand access to new housing opportunities and address community concerns in Baltimore County.
 
In addition, Baltimore County created the first-ever Vacant Properties Portal, a public tool which documents properties found and confirmed to be vacant. Since establishing this law, Baltimore county has already confirmed over 430 vacant properties.
 
During the 2024 legislative session, the Maryland General Assembly passed House Bill 2, allowing local jurisdictions to establish a subclass and set a special rate for vacant and abandoned property.
 
In accordance with this state law, Baltimore County is proposing to establish a penalty – $10 per $100 of the property’s assessed value – which may only be applied to vacant structures that have been cited as both vacant and unfit for habitation or other authorized use.
 
Property owners will have six months to remedy the issue before a lien is placed on the property. The penalty will be removed if the Baltimore County Department of Permits, Approvals, and Inspections (PAI) determines that the structure has been razed, redeveloped, or made fit for habitation or other authorized use within six months.
 
50 percent of collected revenue will be directed to the Neglected Property Community Fund -- which provides financial assistance to bring blighted properties into legal compliance, and 50 percent of will be directed to Baltimore County’s Housing Opportunities Fund -- a dedicated funding source which supports the development, rehabilitation, and preservation of affordable and attainable housing.

The proposed quality of life effort would take effect beginning July 1, 2025.