Baltimore residents already have been hit hard by the pandemic, mayor should cancel this year’s tax sale

With the financial devastation and uncertainty wrought by the pandemic, we must act to prevent additional harm to Baltimore City residents — and that means delaying or canceling this year’s tax sale. At the annual auction, held in May, city government sells delinquent property tax liens to the highest bidders, generally private investors. This often leads to a devastating foreclosure for the homeowners whose liens are sold and to the loss of equity they have in the home. Haven’t city residents dealt with enough this year? The time is overdue for Mayor Brandon Scott and Finance Director Henry Raymond to postpone or cancel this year’s tax sale — or, at the least, remove homeowners from the sale, to protect residents from the potential loss of their homes.