Live Baltimore tells City Council it committed $1.6M for Buyback the Block, seeks sustained funding

Megan McCorkle, executive director of Live Baltimore, told the Baltimore City Council on the evening of the agency’s budget hearing that Live Baltimore has committed all $1.6 million allocated for its Buyback the Block down-payment assistance program and urged the city to identify ongoing funding to sustain the work.

Live Baltimore’s Buyback the Block program, funded through American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) resources administered by the mayor’s Office of Recovery Programs, provides up to $20,000 in down-payment assistance to eligible Baltimore City residents. “As of today, we have committed all of the $1,600,000 for this program,” McCorkle said. She said the program has helped “more than a hundred people” become homeowners in 50 neighborhoods across every council district, with buyers ranging in age from 23 to 78.

Why this matters: McCorkle presented figures the agency uses to argue for continued investment. Live Baltimore said influenced home purchases totaled $262,200,000 in fiscal year 2024, generating an estimated $12,100,000 in one-time tax revenue; McCorkle said that equates to roughly $66 returned in tax revenue for…