Danger of flooding in Dundalk?

Question

Good Day Everyone,

We're exploring investment possibilities in Dundalk, focusing on buy-and-holds to rent out. Just this morning I came across this article:

https://www.dundalkeagle.com/when-it-rains-it-floods-why-now/article_436b8ee8-3144-5125-9f0b-58ed0a7f4406.html

If the entire Dundalk area is prone to flooding, even if serious floods only happen once every few years, it seems be a good reason to stay away from that area. If only some areas get flooded and others don't, then one has to be choose carefully. But then the whole area is essentially on the water, plus all that climate change stuff with extreme weather and all...

What do others think about danger of serious flooding in the area?

Thanks,

Ilya

Ron Gallagher · Answer

The most shocking thing I learned in this forum thread is that Dundalk has a newspaper! (Sorry couldn't resist)

Michael Schleicher · Answer

If you are worried about flooding because the area is near the water, it sounds like you are also planning to avoid all of Eastern Baltimore County, Baltimore City, Harford County, and Anne Arundel County. That is a a very large region that you would choose not to consider simply because the properties may be within a one-mile radius of water. Basements in Dundalk will flood for the same reason a basement in Rockville will flood, and it has nothing to do with high tides, hurricanes, or other factors related to being a part of the Chesapeake Bay watershed area. If you are  looking to buy a property and worry about damage due to flooding, you will want to consider examining the waterproofing efforts that may or may not have taken place and potential hazards related to proper water runoff.

Stephanie P. · Answer

Ellicott City didn't flood because of bad drainage systems.  It flooded because of a number of factors, but a few were it's at the bottom of a hill, there was a huge rain event, the tributaries that would normally handle most of that water from the rain event have been diverted for development upstream so the water had no where else to go.

None of that is happening in Dundalk.  If many of today's regulations were around when Baltimore City, Baltimore County and certainly Anne Arundel county were being built, none of them would be around.

Ilya Z. · Answer

Thanks Russell. I am generally avoiding Baltimore City, but why is Dundalk a bad area to invest in? I noticed that the prices there have been going up quite a bit so the area might be too expensive already to get a property that would give me a positive cash flow (at least with the way I am planning to finance it). Are there other reasons?

Ilya Z. · Answer

Thanks Michael. So maybe just close proximity to water is not a good reason to discard a whole area. And I agree with you that you don't need to live near large bodies of water to get flooded. In fact, my basement got flooded a couple of months ago because my sump pump failed. I guess what I am concerned about is this (from the article):

That is, there might be parts of Dundalk that have bad drainage systems. In which case you might get something like what happened in Ellicott City: the downtown got flooded twice in a just a few years. I don't think you can protect your house from something like this with a sump pump. :-)

Russell Brazil · Answer

Theres plenty of reasons not to invest in Dundalk or Baltimore. Flooding isnt one Ive heard before.

Danger of flooding in Dundalk?

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