Buy into Baltimore!

I attended a “media roundtable” last month with some of the officers at the GBBR (Greater Baltimore Board of Realtors).

They dropped tons of stats, and some of them were actually surprising. 61% of all buyers in the City last year were first time buyers. I knew that number was going to be high, but 61%! Maybe going against my Granddad’s advice and focusing on first time buyers wasn’t such a bad idea after all.

But, as the title of this entry indicates, there were some great numbers for ladies out there. In Baltimore City in 2007, 32% of all buyers were single females. That absolutely crushes single men, who accounted for a pathetic 9% of all home purchases.

Baltimore is somewhat of an anomaly. Nationwide, single women account for 20% of home sales. In Baltimore that number is 32%. So what’s going on in Baltimore that makes single women here much more likely to buy a home?

It might have something to do with economic factors. Maybe Baltimore has better employment opportunities for females than the average city.

It might have more to do with social factors. For example, did you know that the median age for a women to get married in MD is 25.8? That is the 9th highest median age in the US. Since women are single in MD longer maybe they are therefore more likely to buy a home on their own.

Either way, it struck me as an interesting stat. And either way, it’s about time for guys in Baltimore to step up.

Since I’m writing this post anyway, might as well share some different possibilities for GBBR’s acronym:

Good Boys Bathe Regularly

Greedy Bastards Best Recognize

Giant Bears Boxing Rabbits

I could go on, but they would only get worse…

Obama gave another great speech while he was in town over the weekend. But I know I wasn’t the only one who heard him say “Let’s Get Out’a Here” as he left the stage. I’ve been talking about this around the office and everyone heard it, yet no one wrote about it. The Daily Show didn’t mention it. Even the Colbert Report passed up the opportunity to roast the new Prez. Is Obama just in a honeymoon period and above criticism? Or did I just mishear or misinterpret the end of his speech? Fast forward to the 5:30 mark or so,

Last year I actually missed out on the phenomenon known as restaurant week, but not this year! It should be easy since almost every restaurant in Baltimore seems to be participating so chances are I’d go to one that week anyways. I mean, Nick’s Fish House, Cafe Hon, & ESPN zone? I like all of these places, but can’t you get a $30 dinner or a $20 lunch there all the time? Where’s the deal? Restaurant Week, much like Ludacris, is amazing but needs to raise their standards a bit.