Relating to Real Estate
Bills of Interest to Real Property Lawyers that were Passed by the 2015 General Assembly of Maryland
The 2015 session of the Maryland General Assembly ended at midnight on April 13. During the session, 941 Senate Bills and 1,291 House Bills for a total of 2,232 bills as well as six Senate Resolutions and eight House Resolutions had been introduced. Of the 652 bills that passed both houses, the following affect real property or are otherwise of interest to Maryland real estate lawyers.
Bills Passed by the General Assembly
The bills marked with chapter numbers were signed into law by Governor Lawrence Hogan, Jr. on April 14. There are two more scheduled signing dates: April 28 and May 12.
House Bill 123 (Chapter 68) — Baltimore City - Residential Retention Property Tax Credit - Modification
This bill alters the Baltimore City Residential Retention Property Tax Credit to allow a recipient of that property tax credit to also receive a specified local property tax credit that offsets local revenue increases resulting from a local income tax rate above 2.6%. As a result, the bill allows Baltimore City to provide the Targeted Homeowners Tax Credit (THTC) to recipients of the Residential Retention Property Tax Credit beginning in fiscal 2017. Baltimore City adopted the THTC in 2012 to provide property tax relief to homeowners and attract new city residents. The goal of the program is to reduce the effective tax rate for owner-occupied dwellings by 20 cents by the year 2020. Homeowners who have an approved application for the Homestead Property Tax Credit on file with the Maryland State Department of Assessments and Taxation automatically receive the THTC. The Act takes effect June 1, 2016 and applies to taxable years beginning after June 30, 2016. The bill terminates on June 30, 2024.
House Bill 182 (Chapter 75) — Housing - Community Development Administration - Residential Mortgage Loans
The bill authorizes the Community Development Administration (CDA) to refinance a residential mortgage loan if the original loan was made by CDA or the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD). The bill authorizes CDA to purchase residential mortgage loans from eligible mortgage lend ers for the purchase or rehabilitation of (a) a homeowner’s primary residence if the property is located in a sustainable community or (b) a residential mortgage loan for the refinancing of a residential mortgage loan made by CDA or HCD. HCD may waive the require ment for the mortgage lender’s certificate for certain of these loans. The Act takes effect on October 1, 2015.
To view all 16 bills that were passed and the bills that did not pass, view the full article on pages 11-15 of the May 2015 issue of The Barrister, a publication of the Bar Association of Baltimore City.
For more information, contact Edward J. Levin.
Ed Levin
410-576-1900 • elevin@gfrlaw.com