‘It’s a business’

Landlords have their own complaints. They say the process of evicting problem tenants is taking increasingly longer, and is costly for small mom-and-pop landlords.

Large landlords and property managers say small investors get in over their heads in a market they do not understand.

“It’s a very unfriendly climate for landlords in Baltimore,” said Keith French, an executive at Blue Star Property Management. “You have professional tenants who know how not to pay the rent just like you have slumlords. They come in and pay the first month and security. Then they stop paying, and we can’t get them out for three to six months.”

Ben Frederick III, a property manager, owner and broker in Baltimore for three decades, said such tenants force unsophisticated landlords out of the market and help drive the vacancy crisis the city faces today.

“Evicting people is not what I want to do,” he said. “It’s the worst thing to have to do. It’s horrible. But I’m not social services. It’s a business.”

Pat Mooney, a manager for property management firm Dunne Wright, said the process works better in Baltimore than in other Maryland jurisdictions because city judges rely on inspectors to provide objective findings.

His company, which manages about 700 properties, has faced dozens of escrow complaints.

“The judges are very fair,” Mooney said. “They understand what we’re dealing with.”

Michele Loving, 45, was one of the tenants with whom Mooney interacted. She