Affordable Housing Issue Gaining Attention

As you’ll see in my real estate sales report at the end of the newsletter, residential prices in Garrett County have been growing strongly, far outpacing increases in wages.  Combined with record-low inventory of available units, it can be extremely difficult or impossible for a family earning an average wage in Garrett County to afford their own home. People working in vital occupations such as construction workers, teachers,  first responders, and medical personnel are in this class of local residents who are have good stable incomes, but often can’t afford to buy a modest home where they work.
A local grass roots organization has recently been stood up to help address the issue and has held a number of public meetings to gather information and ideas.  Although the group is still in the formative stages, these meetings have been well attended and well run, providing a solid foundation for the organization and an initiative which may be a long term effort, but will pay long-term dividends.
They have started a Facebook Group which I’d encourage you to join if you’re interested in the issue here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/housingforallgc
The QR codes in the picture below take you to a survey to help guide the direction of the group and a link to donate to support this initiative.

What to do outside in the Winter

• Cross country skiing – there  needs to be about a foot of snow on the ground (sometimes less if conditions are right) so that rocks and roots are covered up, but it’s a great workout once you’re out there. New Germany and Herrington Manor State Parks both offer ski rentals and have some flat trail areas for beginners.  The Meshach Browning Trails at the McHenry Community Park have some good XC skiing trails which are often groomed when conditions allow (and I have a chance to get out there and ride the snowmobile around on them!) You can check out what it’s like to XC ski at Herrington Manor on my video trail tour there. My dog Spencer, also loves it.

• Fat Tire biking –  long-timer followers of my adventures know that bikes and I generally don’t get along, so I can’t give you any first-hand information about fat tire biking, but it looks like a blast and a great way to stay biking in the winter.  Herrington Manor State Park rents them if you want to try out the experience. My Lions Club also hosted a Fat Tire Bike “race” at our McHenry Community Park last winter put on by the Deep Creek Adventure Bureau and all reports we got back were the trails were great for biking it. 
• Ice Skating –  JTF1, a local event and activity group, has built a covered ice rink at the Grantsville Town Park at Pavilion 3. They have public skate times, and skate rentals for all sizes of feet.  Check out more info on when/where it is here. You can also skate on Deep Creek Lake (or other frozen lakes or ponds) – just be careful! You can check out my video on skating on the lake here where I go over some safety checks you should be aware of. 

• Snowshoeing and hiking – And then there’s just good old walking around in the woods! If the snow is really deep (about 2 feet) and there’s no trail already broken, you’ll probably want some snowshoes, but for the most part, a good pair of water resistant boots will be fine.  During the winter, I like relatively dry trails that drain well and have a great view.  The High Rock  and Meadow Mountain Overlook Trails are two of my favorites for keeping your feet dry and ending with amazing overlooks. 

Introducing Deekie, the Deep Creek Dragon

History Corner

Local stuff to do

Real estate perspective

Have we hit the price peak for real estate in Garrett County and Deep Creek Lake? Only time well tell, but there is a lot of info in my Garrett County Real Estate Sales report I just put together.  

In this graph, I show the average sales price and numbers of sales each year going back to 1993 for the DCL Area and Rest of Garrett County.  You can clearly see that rising trend since 2019 I talked about in the Housing Availability section above. There’s lot more info in the full report. You can download the full report or get the link to a narrated video of it on my website. 
Check out my real estate website as well for more information on what’s out there, or call or email me anytime to chat about these trends and how to build a strategy to meet your real estate goals!