Contact MargaretArchive for the 'Real Estate' Category
Multiple Offers Are Back
April 3rd, 2010 Categories: Real Estate
Some Crofton and Bowie home sellers are experiencing a flashback to the seller’s market of a few years ago with multiple offers on their homes.
It was déjà vu this past week in our local real estate market as some disappointed home buyers, eager to go under contract in time for the soon-to-expire tax credit, found themselves on the losing end of a bidding war for their dream home. The combination of tax credit and customary Spring real estate market up-tick has created a surplus of home buyers competing for the best properties on the market.
64 Crofton homes are under contract and pending settlement right now. In the Greater Crofton area (adding Odenton and Gambrills to Crofton) the total number of homes pending settlement is 169, including 45 listed as “potential short sales”. Additional info: 47 of the homes under contract are detached; 23 homes were priced over $500,000.
59 homes are currently under contract and pending settlement in North Bowie (20715 – north of Rt. 50). All but seven of these are detached homes. In Greater Bowie there are 354 homes under contract. Unfortunately, 152 of these homes were listed as “potential short sales”. Other numbers of interest: Detached homes total 251; 22 of them were listed at $500,000+.
Multiple contract situations inevitably alter the negotiating strategy for home buyers and their agents. Making a full-price offer may not be enough – a buyer must make their best offer up front as to a speedy settlement, forgoing frivolous inspections, and not asking for excessive seller concessions.
It’s a good time for home sellers, right now, but don’t expect it to last. I suspect we’ll see a lull in real estate activity in Crofton and across the country in May, after the tax credit deadline passes.
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FocusOnCrofton.com is your one-stop source for information about Crofton, Maryland, and the surrounding area. It’s my way of keeping current residents informed about their community and real estate matters while also attracting relocating home buyers to the Crofton area (including Bowie, Crownsville, Davidsonville, Fort Meade, Gambrills, Millersville and Odenton). Please feel free to contact me any time for more information.
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How to Do an Online Home Search
March 26th, 2010 Categories: Real Estate
Over 80% of today’s home buyers begin their search online. If you’re looking for a home in Crofton MD, for example, you will probably click on the tab at the top of this page titled “Search for Homes” – or perhaps you’ll click the button at the end of this post.
LISTING NUMBER: If you know the listing number for a home (perhaps it’s identified in a print or online ad for the property), you can enter it into the space provided near the top of the search page:
STREET ADDRESS: Or you can go to the bottom of that screen to “Search by Street Address” if you’ve driven past a home with a sale sign in the yard and want information only about that home (or all the homes for sale on a particular street).
More likely, however, you want to do a general search – but not TOO general, because you want to find homes in the location and price range you prefer.
GENERAL SEARCH:
It’s actually quite easy to do an online home search using the “Search for Homes” tab:
- Specify the city(ies) or zipcode(s) you will consider.
- Limit the price range.
- Indicate how many bedrooms and baths you need.
I’m always amazed at how many people search only by zipcode, without any additional criteria – even price range. Here’s why you might want to limit the price range, bedrooms and bathrooms:
When I searched today for Crofton homes using the above parameters, I found 153 homes for sale. By fine-tuning my search to $300–$400,000 with 3+ bedrooms and 2+ baths, however, the list narrowed from 153 to 32 homes.
CUSTOMIZED SEARCH: But this is just the beginning. Now click on “More Search Options” to the right of the “Find Listings” button (see below).
This link is the key to truly customizing results to satisfy your own unique wants and needs. When you do that, you can choose specific features… a basement, garage, and fireplace, for example.
When I added those restrictions to my home search tonight, however, the results were “zero” because there were no homes with those features currently on the market in my price range… in my preferred zipcode.
At this point, I could change the features in my search or check another nearby zipcode for homes that meet my search criteria. If there were several homes in the results for this highly customized search, on the other hand, I may limit my search to a specific subdivision (or 2 or 3) or even add additional features.
Crofton home buyers don’t have to register to do a home search on this website or on MargaretWoda.com, but they do have to register to receive email updates of new and/or revised listings which meet their search criteria. If they didn’t, I wouldn’t know how to address the email updates!
Hundreds of people receive these every day, and I couldn’t call or email them even if I wanted to, so you don’t have to worry that your registration might be interpreted as a license for me to nag you. It just isn’t going to happen because I’m too busy helping people who ask for my help to spend my time tracking down those who are not yet ready.
By the way, you can un-subscribe or change your search criteria at your own convenience.
So what do you think… are you ready to get started? Just click on the little house at the bottom of this post - the one that says “Search for HOMES”.
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FocusOnCrofton.com is your one-stop source for information about Crofton, Maryland, and the surrounding area. It’s my way of keeping current residents informed about their community and real estate matters while also attracting relocating home buyers to the Crofton area (including Bowie, Crownsville, Davidsonville, Fort Meade, Gambrills, Millersville and Odenton). Please feel free to contact me any time for more information.
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Sell Your Crofton Home in the Next 51 Days
March 10th, 2010 Categories: Real Estate
If you’re thinking of selling your Crofton home any time in the next year, it’s probably in your best interest to get it on the market now.
That’s because April 30 is looming (51 days), and the opportunity for home buyers to get the $8,000 first-time buyer or $6,500 repeat-buyer tax credit will end. I’m guessing we’ll see a big lull in Crofton area real estate sales for quite a while after that.
While real estate market conditions do favor buyers right now with the tax credit, low interest rates, and high inventory, home sellers aren’t likely to see better conditions for selling any time soon.
But your home won’t sell if it’s not on the market. So pick up the phone… call me or your favorite Crofton area REALTOR to find out what it will take to get a contract on your home before April 30, when the tax credit ends.
If you missed my earlier posts about the tax credit, here they are again:
- Early End Likely for Spring Home Buying Season
- IRS Releases Rules for Repeat Buyer Tax Credit
- Begin Your Home Search Online
- Home Sellers, Find Out What’s Selling in Your Neighborhood
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FocusOnCrofton.com is your one-stop source for information about Crofton, Maryland, and the surrounding area. It’s my way of keeping current residents informed about their community and real estate matters while also attracting relocating home buyers to the Crofton area (including Bowie, Crownsville, Davidsonville, Fort Meade, Gambrills, Millersville and Odenton). Please feel free to contact me any time for more information.
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The Five Stages of a Short Sale
March 3rd, 2010 Categories: Real Estate
Some Crofton MD home sellers are facing a short sale situation. If this describes you, it may help to know what to expect.
If you’ve been following me on Facebook, you already know that my husband Larry had both knees replaced last month. He’s recuperating right on schedule, and now he’s getting around with a cane after just three weeks.
It’s been an interesting journey for the entire family, and I can attest to the five stages they told him (and us) to expect:
1. Anxiety.
2. Oh my goodness… what have I done!?!?!?
3. Okay, this hurts but I can handle it.
4. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.
5. Why did I wait so long?
This is not too different from the emotional journey some of my clients experience when their home value is lower than their mortgage balance. In other words, a short-sale is their solution to a problem – somewhat like knee replacement was a solution for my husband’s knee issues.
So let’s look at those five stages from the perspective of an “under-water” homeowner:
1. Anxiety. Making the decision to begin the short-sale process and choosing the right REALTOR to represent you.
2. Oh my goodness… what have I done!?!?!? – Completing all the paperwork required for a short sale is time-consuming and emotionally difficult, as you spill out every detail of your personal financial history.3. Okay, this hurts but I can handle it. The wait for approval by your lender – many weeks and sometimes months.
4. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. Short-sale approval by your lender! (Now you can “just” deal with normal seller concerns such as appraisal, home inspection, and title search.)
5. Why did I wait so long? Settlement.
Once the short-sale is behind you and you’re “back on your feet”, in a manner of speaking, it is such a relief. Now you can begin to rebuild your credit and your life. This is, indeed, a question you’ll be asking yourself… Why did I wait so long?
A short sale is something no one wants to face, but it is a fact of life for many people today. Your neighbors, your relatives, prospective buyers… they WILL understand that your situation is a result of market conditions and not a flaw in your character or a failure on your part.
They won’t judge you, so stop worrying about that and pick up the phone to call me or another Crofton area REALTOR for help.
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FocusOnCrofton.com is your one-stop source for information about Crofton, Maryland, and the surrounding area. It’s my way of keeping current residents informed about their community and real estate matters while also attracting relocating home buyers to the Crofton area (including Bowie, Crownsville, Davidsonville, Fort Meade, Gambrills, Millersville and Odenton). Please feel free to contact me any time for more information.
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Odenton, Gambrills, and Davidsonville Real Estate News
February 19th, 2010 Categories: Real Estate
Crofton MD real estate sales were up 160% in January 2010 (13) compared to January 2009 (5), but what about the Greater Crofton Area?
Units Sold:
Odenton - 16, down 20% from 20 sold in January 2009
Gambrills – 1, down 50% from 2
Davidsonville – 5, up 15% from 2
Crofton real estate statistics improved in virtually every category last month. How did nearby communities compare?
Days on Market:
Odenton – 144, up 22% from 118 in January 2009
Gambrills – 219, up 133% from $394,375
Davidsonville – 126, up 9.57% from 115
Crofton – 86, down 47.56% from 164
Average Sold Price:
Odenton – $322,005, relatively stable with only a 2.33% drop from $329,690 in January 2009
Gambrills – $285,000, down nearly 28% from $394,375
Davidsonville – $759,400, up 8.74% from $699,000
Crofton – $15,552, up 17.57% from $268,400
Median Sold Price:
Odenton – $281,000, down 7.18% from $302,745 in January 2009
Gambrills – $285,000, down nearly 28%
Davidsonville – $749,000, up 7.15% from $699,000
Crofton – 290,000, up 16% from $250,000
With only one sale in Gambrills (21054) during the month of January, there’s really not enough information to draw any conclusion(s) except that the absorption rate in Gambrills is over 4 years, with just one of the 51 homes on the market selling each month - and that assumes no new listings come on the market during that period, which is unlikely. Let’s hope this is an anomaly, and that real estate picks up in Gambrills during the spring months.
The Greater Crofton Area, as a whole, just didn’t do as well as Crofton (21114) in January. I think we should keep that champagne on ice and hold off any celebration until the entire community has similar positive news to report.
Home buyers, what do these numbers mean to you?
If I were a betting woman, I would bet you can get a better “deal” on a home outside the 21114 zipcode, because Crofton homesellers will be feeling a little cocky after such a great month.
I recommend you check out the detached homes for sale in Four Seasons Estates to get the best bang for the buck in this area.
Home sellers, what do these numbers mean to you?
It’s still a “buyer’s market”, even in the 21114 zipcode. Homebuyers are still in the driver’s seat when it comes to demanding their price, terms and condition because the home inventory is very high.
A sub-text that isn’t evident in these statistics is the impact of the temporary tax credit for both first-time and move-up home buyers; once the April 30 deadline passes, it’s likely we’ll see a negative turn in the real estate market.
If you want to sell your home any time soon, you must be aggressive in your pricing, terms, and marketing for the next 75 days.
While it’s good for you to be familiar with real estate statistics in your zipcode, it’s better for you to know the ones for your own neighborhood. If you’re thinking of selling or buying a home, contact me or details about specific neighborhoods or types of homes (detached, condos, townhomes).
RELATED LINK: Crofton Real Estate Sales Up 160% in January 2010
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FocusOnCrofton.com is your one-stop source for information about Crofton, Maryland, and the surrounding area. It’s my way of keeping current residents informed about their community while also attracting relocating home buyers to the Crofton area (including Bowie, Crownsville, Davidsonville, Fort Meade, Gambrills, Millersville and Odenton). Please feel free to contact me any time for more information.
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