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Post by moosie on Aug 3, 2007 21:02:04 GMT -4
oh--just for the hell of it-- "The fact that I didn't spell one word correctly makes no impact on my intelligence level." it is separate, not seperate received, not recieved asinine, not assinine, and, in another post. judgments, not judgements.
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thomas
Full Member
Welcome to the Land of Pleasant Living!
Posts: 169
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Post by thomas on Aug 3, 2007 21:22:09 GMT -4
UGH!
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kami
Full Member
Posts: 180
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Post by kami on Aug 3, 2007 22:04:58 GMT -4
I agree with Thomas. That is like someone saying they want to live in Potomac but they can't afford it so they should build more affordable housing I don't mind having housing for teachers, police officers, firemen, or anyone else in that catagory. I do not want housing provided for criminals or people that don't contribute to our county. I am very proud of my county. I don't want anyone living here that doesn't feel that way or doesn't care about taking care of the place we live and where our children are being raised.
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Post by moosie on Aug 3, 2007 22:23:37 GMT -4
when i moved here 30 years ago, it was a different place. it was just barely affordable for me at the time, but we struggled and made it work. no one gave us anything. we got a break in that the mortgage company was patient with "us kids," but that was it. i feel very, very fortunate. i am now surrounded by mcmansions. no way i could afford to live here now, even with increased income. the cost of living here has escalated more than salaries. people have to live within their means, or less. i have no problem with affordable housing, per se, but, as noted above, such things can be abused. i don't know all the differences in the housing options, and i don't want to encourage a criminal element, either. there is affordable housing here already--it just might not be a huge lot, or on the water, or in whatever your preferred place is, but everyone faces that in their lives. the teachers, police, etc., should be paid higher salaries for the valuable and sacrificing work they do--i think most would agree with that. so what about working to achieve that, instead of glorifying sports and movie stars and such, who get paid way out of line with their actual contribution. they do make a contribution, but how do you compare that to what a fireman faces? probably another thread, anyway.
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Post by moosie on Aug 3, 2007 22:24:33 GMT -4
oh--and my apologies to speeder, but one should be able to back up what one uses as an argument! ;-)
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Post by speedergurl68 on Aug 4, 2007 5:58:19 GMT -4
lol...well at LEAST you caught it moosie!! lmaorotf (except that last one...THAT one got by me!) ;D
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Post by moosie on Aug 4, 2007 11:28:01 GMT -4
anyway, the point is not your spelling--though i wish everyone were better at it. the point is not even the booboo of touting your intelligence and then having a bunch of mistakes. the point is that it does not matter. if you have an opinion, you are entitled to that opinion. if you have a valid point, then it is valid if it is valid, not because of anyone's intelligence or lack thereof. this should be a place where people can voice their opinions without getting personally attacked. yak on, guys, and keep it fun!
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Post by kl on Aug 4, 2007 12:18:24 GMT -4
Thanks Ann, and Moosie. And Speeder, how about you worry about your own life, and stay out of mine? Thanks very much. Perhaps being so highly intelligent, and stating the reasons why there are so many misspelled words in your posts, pretty much contradicts your own statement? It's, as it's been mentioned above, a public forum, where we can post our opinions. Appears to me, Ms. Thin- Skinned, that it's perfectly fine for you, as ahighly intelligent person, to berate others, but WHEN SOMEONE DISAGREES, OR ATTEMPTS TO MAKE THINGS A BIT CLEARER...
So take another look, nd you will see, that it wasn't an attack on you. You just took it a bit more personally. And you know what they say about arguing on the internet.....
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Post by qtboyforlife on Aug 6, 2007 13:09:38 GMT -4
I was cruising about the board today after a bit of disturbing information on the development going up next to the Shore Stop. If I read correctly, the development is going to be "Government Assisted Housing"?! Forgive my ignorance, but would someone please explain to me the difference between Section 8 housing and "Government Assisted" housing? Are they putting projects up on Kent Island?? If they did, WHAT idiot on the P&Z Com. thought THAT was a good idea? Did our low crime rate piss Annapolis off?? Are the Democrats in charge trying to improve the city's crime rates by shipping people over HERE?? I am most confused and concerned!! My husband has been here for more than 35 years....and I have been here 7. This seemed to be an ideal place to have our family and life...someone please let me know what is going on..either in PM or here..I don't care which. There are no Government assisted living housing going up on Kent Island. The QA zoning requires that developers building more than 28 homes on a single plot to set aside 10% of the homes and sell them at affordable prices (I think the current price range is $150-200K, not exactly low income). The Ellendale project has 168 (?) homes out of which 17 will be "Affordable", the rest I heard a rumor will be in the $400-600 range single family and town home. Developers make an average 100-200% mark-up (depending on when they bought the land). They can afford to break-even on a few homes. The only "Project" type development in the works is the 20+ acer's donated to a organization out of Baltimore (I can't remember their name but it's mentioned in the equal rights lawsuit filed against the county comm) and that's located next to Cemetery Lane in Grasonville (I think it's a planned extension of the current low income homes already there). Drugs always have and always will be a problem there, it's QA's equivalent of Curtis Bay. Oh I would suggest doing a ride along or get copies of 911 transcripts to get a real idea what the crime rate is in QA's. Or get a radio scanner and listen in to the Police frequency. There is a lot of stuff that goes on that no one hears about. Remember if the cop doesn't file a police report, the news can't report it in it's Blotter....Not to say it's anything like Annapolis, but I bet you some nights it's not far off.
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Post by Guest on Aug 7, 2007 8:21:57 GMT -4
Yes, QA & Talbot are "nice" places and yes, they do have high average home costs. Why? Because both counties have a lot more waterfront property that a lot of other counties.
Don't you think every place has experienced rising home prices during the past decade. If I had to buy my house today from scratch, I couldn't do it. I am able to enjoy tons of equity that I have earned over the past 10 years - like many other homeowners.
I also moved here originally 20 years ago because my husband and I were unable to find a home we could afford in the area where are parents lived. Did we blame this on anyone? No, we kept looking til we found a place we could afford. Did we have to drive a little further to work? Yes, but it was worth it - we were "homeowners" now and earning equity.
So.... 20 years ago we moved here because we were able to buy a home on our modest little salaries when we weren't even able to buy a townhouse across the bridge. We commuted back and forth to work , lived frugally and eventually "upgraded" to a larger piece of property with a waterview. We now have a nice home on a nice piece of property and own a business in the county. We are by no means wealthy, but we are enjoying life. We have not gotten where we are from government help or because we have jobs where we are making 100K, we got here through TIME.
As far as "affordable" housing - there ARE $300K homes available in the area - perhaps, not just a whole new development of them. If you dont' think $300K is affordable, you're living in the wrong decade. You'd be hard pressed to find anything under that across the bridge or even as far as Dorchester. The prices are going up EVERYWHERE - as is everything else. How about we start demanding "affordable fuel" from our government?
I don't mean to knock or offend anyone. I just want everyone to keep things in perspective. These are not easy times we are living in and that is just a fact of life. We have all been spoiled by the free-flowing money of the past decade or two and we've become accustomed to excess.
I also agree that we are not free of crime. It may not seem like much because our population is so small, but as a percentage of the whole, my guess is that we are right up there with Anne Arundel and other places. We have been blessed with very few major crimes here in QA's, but I think that is a luxury of our small size - the odds are with us.
As far as affordable versus public. In my opinion we DO have affordable housing here - you just need to look for it. Public housing - I'm not crazy about it. It is a proven fact that most public housing communities attract crime and personally, I don't want that in my backyard. No one does. I DO have an issue with public housing facilities being built on prime waterfront/view property. Just for the sole fact that if the county owns prime real estate, wouldn't it make more sense to sell it, bank some of the money and purchase a cheaper piece of property to put housing on that you aren't going to make money off of? And before anyone flames me, it's not bieng stuck up or anytihng - it's just smart business.
Bottom line - live within your means, which is not easy these days. You are in control of your own destiny and if it means commuting or working two jobs to enjoy the american dream of homeownership, so be it. There are no free rides in life!
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Post by kl on Aug 7, 2007 9:12:15 GMT -4
So Guest. Let's put this into perspective. Lets use you as an example. Do you think, if it were today, that you and your wife were looking for a home..Would a $300,000 be affordable to you? In perspective, while the cost of almost everything has risen drastically in the past decade or so, wages, for the average middle class wage earner, has remained stagnant.
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Post by John on Aug 7, 2007 9:21:34 GMT -4
Where is "Riverside II community"? How many units and how many are planned for phase II?
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Post by Frank on Aug 7, 2007 9:55:26 GMT -4
In perspective, while the cost of almost everything has risen drastically in the past decade or so, wages, for the average middle class wage earner, has remained stagnant. Where did you get this information? My middle class wages have well over doubled in the last ten years doing the same job.
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Post by Guest on Aug 7, 2007 11:59:39 GMT -4
I have to agree with Frank's statement - wages HAVE gone up over the past 10 years. Heck, look at minimum wage - it's more than doubled in the 20 years I've been in the work world.
I'm not saying it's easy to buy a house when you are first getting started these days, but I do think it is possible. I know plenty of young people who work 2-3 jobs and do whatever it takes to save up a down payment for a home becasue that is what they want in life. I also know plenty of young people who go out drop a couple hundred bucks every weekend at the bars and still live at home becasue they "can't afford a place of their own".
If I were young and trying to buy a house today, with no equity to help me out, and it just didn't look like it was going to happen around here (the Balt/Wash area is a notoriously expensive place to live), I'd probably be doing some research on other parts of the country where I could get the most bang for my buck - where my salary would be the highest in relation to the housing cost.
Life is what you make it.
In regards to Riverside:
From the QAC website - Riverside Estates is a low/moderate-income rental housing project. The Development is located on Riverside Drive in Chester. The community includes 23 two-bedroom townhouses. One unit is fully handicapped accessible. Tenants pay at least $335 rent per month, plus utilities. Residents with higher incomes pay up to 30% of their adjusted gross income for rent.
Riverside II is 108-113 apartment units constructed in 12-plex buildings and addition of a Community Building.
Life is what you make it.
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Post by Frank on Aug 7, 2007 12:25:46 GMT -4
I agree. I wanted to be a homeowner, so I worked 2 jobs to qualify to get my first house. We bought older cars so we wouldn't have a car payment, and we settled on a smaller house than we wanted to make sure we could pay the monthly mortgage. Eating out was usually McDonalds or Burger King for the first six months, but we were homeowners!
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Post by BlueMule on Aug 7, 2007 13:02:12 GMT -4
I agree. I wanted to be a homeowner, so I worked 2 jobs to qualify to get my first house. We bought older cars so we wouldn't have a car payment, and we settled on a smaller house than we wanted to make sure we could pay the monthly mortgage. Eating out was usually McDonalds or Burger King for the first six months, but we were homeowners! Amen, Frank. It worked for me back in 1975. The 3 bedroom, 2 bath house in Montgomery County went for $68,950 but all things being equal, I was only pulling down a smidge over $16K a year and the Missus was getting about $8k. Good credit, good budget, and using what 'smarts' you have (and I don't have an over abundance of them)... it's doable. Extrapolate from there...
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Post by moosie on Aug 7, 2007 13:19:38 GMT -4
i just realized how rambling this is--sorry! to hold on to our mortgage, we basically lived on tomatoes i grew, crabs i caught, mac and cheese, and the kindness of friends, and that was when things were "cheap." i don't know what affordable housing is any more, but i see plenty under 300K, and enough under 200k, to make me think it is nor impossible to find housing. why, by the way, do you think everyone has been and is coming here--because it is cheaper! i don't think we would really be excluding firefighters, first-time owners, etc., would we? i do think you have to be careful about whether affordable housing means projects. i do think there should be "affordable" housing, but when development went nuts around here, so did these issues. i don't think everyone should get to live on the water just because they want to and expect someone else to pay for it. you live where you can live and work your way up like everyone else. it seems everyone wants everything without having to work for it anymore. as "guest" said, it is true that in other parts of the country life is cheaper. people find new jobs, relocate, whatever, all of the time. ever watch the show on hgtv. you can get a monster house in other parts of the nation for what you get a small nothing for here. just some things to think about. here, it is what it is. annapolis is worse. other parts of the county or shore are less. you just have to deal with it.
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Post by kl on Aug 7, 2007 14:20:55 GMT -4
In the most part, wages haven't risen to compete with inflation, and the other higher costs. Starting salary for a firefighter is what? $37,000? Maybe less? He may be single, or engaged. Or divorced with one or two children. He would be living awfully tight in one of those 300,000 homes.
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Post by Frank on Aug 7, 2007 14:44:02 GMT -4
A firefighter just starting out wouldn't qualify for a home anyway. A doctor right out of school wouldn't qualify either. You need time on a job to show you are able to be employed over time. You may also need time to save for a down payment. Nobody starts a new job, and buys a new home. Most people will rent for a few years, then buy a home with some money saved, good credit, and a will to make it work.
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Post by jake on Aug 8, 2007 17:44:50 GMT -4
They're also special loans for teachers, police, and firefighters, which only they can get. Not sure if CDA money is available in QACO, probably is, and this can be a great way for full-time employed family's to purchase a home they can't normally afford.
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Post by Frank on Aug 9, 2007 8:15:34 GMT -4
Well there you go!
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Post by Anne on Aug 9, 2007 17:56:11 GMT -4
I found this site that has all the proposed residential/land developments in the county. You can find information on affordable homes, stats on the homes sold in the county and other stuff that is going on with our county. Go to: qachousingmarket.blogspot.com/The lady that is putting the blog together- her husband is a former commissioner and can find answers for you. She is very nice. and I think she is a realtor??
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