Homeownership advocates do not like "We Buy Houses" signs because they believe, at best, that the come-ons encourage people with difficulties to sell for less than their homes are worth. At worst, the signs are a conduit for scammers.
The housing market decline and sharp increase in mortgage defaults have made many more homeowners vulnerable to sell-quick offers than in 2006, when the bill was passed.
"They get sucked in," said Mary Warlow, marketing director at Belair-Edison Neighborhoods Inc., a nonprofit that offers housing counseling and other community services. "It can have a negative impact on the whole neighborhood."
It is unclear whether an owner of an illegally posted sign has ever had to pay because a resident took evidence to the city. The police stepped in early and tracked some owners down, Clarke said, but the result might have been warnings rather than fines.
Alan Chantker, president of the Mid-Atlantic Real Estate Investors Association, said he has never heard of anyone getting fined, whether citizen-initiated or not.
Chantker, who said his group warns investors that they are not supposed to post on public property, has not heard of someone getting a phone call. "And the phone number's right there," he added.
Even with numbers printed on the signs, Clifford said, tracking down the responsible parties and getting a citation into their hands "is harder than it sounds." The 2006 law also gave citizens permission to throw the signs away, and he thinks that was what many residents wanted.
Cheron Porter, a spokesman for the housing department, said the city also responds to calls asking for sign removal. It received 58 of those requests last fiscal year.
She said the department is "actively trying to create a process that is just and expedient for all involved" on citizen-initiated fines.
"The most important thing is the signs are coming down," Porter said. "Now, worrying how you're going to get paid for it - I would hope that is less of a priority for everyone involved."
It is true that the Community Law Center could benefit from fine-sharing - if there were fines - because it has been active in the push to get rid of "We Buy Houses" advertising. Some of the 1,200 signs in its collection were pulled down during a removal event it helped organize in 2006.
But Strupp said his objective is for violators to be held accountable - not just have their signs tossed. He noted that the Community Law Center has tracked down sign scofflaws and found that many have skirted the law in other ways, including improperly registering their limited liability companies.
Strupp said he is at a loss to explain what regulatory feedback the city wants from the community. His nonprofit has been talking to officials for months about the topic, he said.
Clarke sees the delay as foot-dragging.
"This was not a favorite bill of the bureaucracy," she said. "It means work."
jamie.smith.hopkins@baltsun.com
