baltimoresun.com - Money & Spending

Dream Home: Solace in the city

Sun, 5 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Couple renovates a Baltimore rowhouse and finds a calm oasis in the midst of urban bustle

Couple renovates a Baltimore rowhouse and finds a calm oasis in the midst of urban bustle

Rental housing affordability worsens nationwide

Sun, 5 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400

The financial plight of the nation's 34 million renters has deteriorated rapidly since the beginning of the decade, yet they are rarely included in conversations about housing affordability.

Highlandtown is a haven for artists, place for entertainment

Sun, 5 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400

A haven for artists, a place for entertainment

Highlandtown is an artists' haven and a city arts and entertainment district bounded by Haven Street on the east, Pratt Street to the north, Patterson Park to the west and Eastern Avenue to the south.

Home sales

Sun, 5 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400

ANNE ARUNDEL 20711

Typically resilient Manhattan apartment prices skid 13 to 19%

Mon, 6 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Apartment prices in the typically resilient Manhattan market plunged in the second quarter by the largest annual amount in decades, data released last week showed.

2 builders plead guilty to misusing clients' funds

Thu, 2 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400

In rare criminal case, brother, sister admit misusing clients' funds, could face 15-year terms

In a rare criminal case against a Maryland homebuilder, a brother and sister who ran a Baltimore County company have pleaded guilty to misusing more than $225,000 in deposits from customers expecting new homes, the state attorney general said Wednesday.

Sinai Hospital opens eco-friendly $55 million expansion

Thu, 2 Jul 2009 16:05:00 -0400

Sinai Hospital at 2401 West Belvedere Avenue in Baltimore on Thursday opened an "eco-friendly" addition that includes a 29-bed intensive care unit, a 36-bed intermediate care unit, a helipad and an atrium with a 40-foot waterfall.

Md. homebuilder must give deposit refund, pay penalty

Thu, 2 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400

A Garrett County homebuilder and its backers must refund $154,599 in new-house deposits collected from consumers as well as pay penalties of $23,000, according to the consumer protection division of the state attorney general's office. The division found that Mark Shrout, William Cook and their company C&S Contracting Inc., violated Maryland's Custom Home Protection Act by collecting money from at least four families, failing to protect that money and failing to build the homes or refund the consumers. The attorney general's office recommends that people buy houses only from registered builders and ensure their deposits are protected by an escrow account, bond or letter of credit. Check whether your builder is registered by calling the Division's Home Builder Registration Unit at 410-576-6573 or toll-free at 877-259-4525, or at www.oag.state.md.us/homebuilder .

Settlement reached against Beazer Homes

Thu, 2 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400

ATLANTA - Federal prosecutors in North Carolina filed criminal fraud conspiracy charges against Beazer Homes USA on Wednesday, but they agreed to dismiss the case if the company complies with an agreement accepting responsibility for certain wrongdoing and pays millions to victims. In the deferred prosecution agreement, the company accepted responsibility for fraudulent mortgage originations and accounting practices and agreed to pay $10 million immediately toward restitution to victims. Beazer also agreed to pay up to $50 million as the company, which has been battered by the housing downturn, recovers financially, according to prosecutors and court records. The deferred prosecution agreement is in effect for five years. A spokeswoman for prosecutors, Suellen Pierce, said that the charges against the company will be dismissed if it complies with the agreement.

Developer sues state agencies that blocked Allegany project

Thu, 2 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400

$16 million in damages sought by Terrapin Run; county officials urge approval

A developer who wants to build 4,300 homes in a rural part of Allegany County and the county's elected commissioners have filed suit against Maryland's environmental and planning agencies, accusing them of illegally blocking the project.