Maryland and Virginia Real Estate and Homes Blog

SUGGESTED LIST OF IMPROVEMENTS, UPGRADES, RENOVATIONS AND REPAIRS FOR FHA 203(k) or Conventional Home Improvement Purchase and Finance Loans. 

GENERAL, Chimney repair, Additions, Additional bath(s), Skylights, Finish attics, Finish basements, Repair termite damage, Treat termite infestations

REMODEL Bathrooms,Kitchens, replace appliances

UPDATING Exterior siding, Adding a second level, Add porch(s), Add stair railings, Attach Carport, Garage

ADD OR REPLACE SYSTEMS, Plumbing, Connect to Public Service, Heating, Air conditioning, Electrical systems, New plumbing fixtures, including whirlpool bathtubs.

WATER AND SEWER SYSTEMS, Add or replace well, Add or replace septic system (depending on lot size),

EXTERIOR, Roofing, Gutters, Downspouts, Siding.

INTERIOR, Flooring, Tiling, Carpeting.

ENERGY EFFICIENCY, Double pane windows, Insulated exterior doors, Insulation, Solar hot water systems, Caulking, Weather stripping.

LANDSCAPING, Patios and decks, Erosion control, Grading, Tree removal if safety hazard, Repair walkways, Repair driveways, Fencing (if in addition to first $5,000 minimum),

ACCESSIBILITY FEATURES, Remodel kitchens for wheelchair access, Lower kitchen cabinets, Install wider doors and ramps.

For more information, contact Lenn Harley, Broker, Homefinders.com, 800-711-7988, E-Mail.

MARYLAND AND NORTHERN VIRGINIA HOME BUYERS CAN TURN FIXER UPPER REAL ESTATE INTO BEAUTIFUL HOMES

FIXER UPPER HOMES FOR REHABILITATION IN MARYLAND AND NORTHERN VIRGINIA

Real estate in Maryland and Virginia offers many opportunities to buy homes in need of repair or upgrading.  The key is to find homes that need repair and can be purchased in the area preferred and in the price range that is comfortable and that includes the cost of rehabilitation, repair, upgrade. 

ALL THE HOME BUYER NEEDS IS A VISION 

Upgrades may include new windows, landscaping, steps, siding, roof, deck, garage, and more.

           Fixer Upper Homes * Foreclosure * Rehab Homes * Upgrade Kitchens * Repair Homes for Sale 
                                       Sweat Equity * FHA 203 (k) Loans* Conventional Rehab Loans

Maryland and Virginia home buyers are smart.  They know that there are many properties on the market that, with some repair and modernization, would make wonderful family homes.  Further, they understand that, after making upgrades and repairs to a house, the owner can realize a significant increase in property value. 

IT’S OPPORTUNITY TIME FOR HOME BUYERS 
The growth in the number of foreclosures in the area makes the fixer upper property a viable source for your first home purchase.  The missing link in buying a foreclosure or vacant home in need of repair is the financing.  HOWEVER, smart real estate agents know that financing is available. 

STEP BY STEP process to buy a fixer upper and make it into a beautiful residential property.

Parties in the transaction include
        The Home Buyers
        The Buyer’s Agent
        The Home Inspector
        The Mortgage Lender
        The Contractor
        The Consultant (FHA Loans)
        The Appraiser
        The Title Company

THE HOME BUYER NEEDS THE VISION. The home buyer is the most important party in the process of buying a fixer upper.  We, their Buyer’s Agents will show them a number of properties in their qualifying price range.  However, the home buyer must have the vision to know that when the upgrades to what is now an old kitchen with old appliances and cabinets, after upgrading, the kitchen will be not only functional, but beautiful and with “state of the art” appliances. 

Upgrades may include new cabinets, new flooring, new appliances, paint, and more.

THE BUYER’S AGENT HAS THE EXPERIENCE. Where the home buyer has the vision, the Buyer’s Agent has the understanding of the rehabilitation loan process to help the home buyer realize their goal.  Working together to locate the property that suits the price and location needs, the Buyers Agent will manage the contract process from search to settlement.   It is the Buyer’s Agent that coordinates the home selection, feasibility analysis, cost estimates, contract management through to the settlement with the seller who may be a foreclosing bank, investor or home owner with no funds to make repairs or upgrades to put the home in good marketable condition.

Areas in Maryland where many foreclosure and vacant properties suitable for rehabilitation loans may be located include:

MARYLAND foreclosure and vacant home locations include: Annapolis, Beltsville, Bowie, Clinton, Columbia, Ft. Washington, Frederick, Gaithersburg, Hyattsville, Lanham, Laurel, New Carrollton, Pasadena, Silver Spring, Upper Marlboro, Waldorf and more. 

VIRGINIA foreclosure and vacant home locations include:  Alexandria, Annandale, Ashburn, Bristow, Burke, Centreville, Denton,Dumfries, Falls Church, Fredericksburg, Gainesville, Greensboro, Herndon, Leesburg, Lorton, Manassas, Ridgly, Springfield, Sterling, Woodbridge and more.

                  Maryland and Northern Virginia areas served by Homefinders.com Network.

Courtesy, Lenn Harley, Broker, Homefinders.com, 800-711-7988, E-Mail.                                  

SEARCH LISTING OF HOMES FOR SALE IN MARYLAND AND VIRGINIA HOMESDATABASE.COM - All active listings from the MLS in Maryland and Northern Virginia.  Experienced Brokers and Agents ready to help.

WE CAN HELP!   

ALL I WANTED TO DO WAS MAKE A BUYER REFERRAL.

Earlier this week, I received a contact from a prospective home buyer about a property in DC.  I thought of Patricia Kennedy, one classy lady whom I knew would give these buyers the thoughtful and experienced service I seek in referral agents.  What followed led to an adventure in doing business on the Internet and concomitant technology beginning with:

• A Blackberry that was not operating.
• Phone messages not received.
• A blog loaded with extreme porn.
• More telephone messages.
• An e-mail acknowledgment.
• A phone call received.
• A referral made. 
• The porn removed from the web site.

SPAM FOR BREAKFAST EVERY DAY.  Over my years on the Internet, beginning in 1994, I have had to fight spam, hackers, spy ware, viruses, worms, more spam, and more porn and smut than any teen aged boy would want to hide under his mattress. 

It’s an ongoing battle that is annoying and costly.  In past years, when I tried to control the spam, I helped the spammers by having my e-mail address on my web sites, little realizing that was exactly where the spammers were getting my e-mail address when they crawled the Internet.  By 2004, it was taking me up to 2 hours just to download and dump the overnight spam volume.  A couple of years ago, I wised up and use a web based e-mail link that requires manual input.  Getting my e-mail address off my web pages reduced the spam volume considerably. 

Finally, in 2005, I installed spam filters on my Internet server which eliminated 95% of the daily volume.  Most of the rest I controlled with e-mail filters in my e-mail client.  As of today, the spam that comes to my e-mail box is minimal.  Who knows how much legitimate business is lost by these Draconian measures to protect myself and my business from absolutely choking on spam?  Who knows? 

DON’T LET YOUR GUARD DOWN.  This is a wonderful example of why it is imperative to monitor our Internet presence. 

I had one blog attached to Homefinders.com hacked.  Google caught it deindexed that page because the hacker had installed spyware.  Rather than try to repair it, I dumped the entire blog.  The risk of having my flagship web site hacked was too great.  There was clearly a hole in the Wordpress system big enough for a hacker to drive through.  I updated the Wordpress for all of my blogs to more secure issues.  My other outside blogs get a bit of spam and some smut but I have to approve them, which I don’t.  I add content to these little blogs regularly and the first task when I go in is to dump the comments.  Monitoring blogs is time consuming, but has to be done. 

It’s sad that, not only do we commit time and resources to Internet advertising, we are bombarded by the kooks and criminals that are way smarter than the law enforcement entities that purport to protect us.  Most of these intrusions into our blogs have little to no business intent, but are hacking for the sake of hacking or posting smut for the sake of posting smut.  They gain little if any benefit and merely operate to cause chaos.  Some very sick people get some very sick satisfaction of harming innocent and legal entities and individuals by their actions.

We are powerless to stop them.  So, we must be vigilant and do what we can to protect ourselves. 

ACTIVERAIN GOT IT RIGHT.  We complain when we get a single unsolicited e-mail from an itinerant Nigerian spammer trying to give us $23,000,000.  However, I am of the opinion that the systems in place on the ActiveRain system and servers are absolutely wonderful, professional and effective.  Protecting the ActiveRain blog from hackers and spammers was clearly paramount in the ActiveRain management planning and they did a good job.

SPAM will be with us for ever.  I personally would like to see some perp walks, but then, I always do. 

         * * * *  HARD CORE REAL ESTATE TALK  * * * *

FAX THE OFFER TO 222-555-8888.  YOU WILL BE NOTIFIED OF ANY DECISIONS IN 2-8 WEEKS.

Over the past year, we’ve read many posts by real estate agents and brokers detailing their frustration trying to SELL foreclosure or short sale listings. 

LET’S SET THE STAGE.

• Buyer is fully approved for more than the list price.
• Buyer is non-contingent and ready to take possession.
• House has been on the market for more than 6 months.
• House has been reduced in price from $379,900 to $299,000.

Buyer’s Agent has a few questions about the existence of other offers and tries to contact the listing agent.  Buyer’s Agent gets Listing Agent’s voice mail with the instruction:  “Fax offers to 222-555-8888.  You will be notified in 2-8 weeks of any decisions. 

BUYER’S AGENT WRITES AN OFFER FOR THE BUYER AND FAXES IT TO THE LISTING AGENT FOLLOWING THE INSTRUCTIONS IN THE MLS LISTING. 

• Buyer waits 3 days and calls his agent. 
• Buyer:  “Have you heard anything?” 
• Agent:  “No, the agent says it may take weeks to get an answer.”
• Buyer:  “Call the listing agent and tell them that if we don’t hear something in 24 hours, we’ll buy something else.”
• Agent:  “I’ll do that and get back to you.”

AGENT CALLS LISTING AGENT AND LEAVES THE MESSAGE THAT THE BUYER IS WAITING 24 HOURS FOR A RESPONSE OR THEY WILL BUY SOMETHING ELSE. 

No response from listing agent in 5 days after leaving many telephone messages.  Buyer instructs his agent to withdraw the offer and show him other properties, IF the buyer’s agent is lucky.  Often, a buyer will hold his agent responsible and move to another buyer’s agent.  This is one of the reasons so many experienced buyer’s agent decline to work with buyers who include foreclosures in their search for a home to buy. 

The above is a “worst case” scenario.  But, the result is the same in that the property has been listed for months, has lost significant value and there is a viable buyer and offer on the table that goes nowhere.

WHY DIDN’T THE LISTING AGENT RESPOND TO THE BUYER’S AGENT’S CONTACTS?  Because the listing agent:

The listing agents has no authority to negotiate for the bank.

The listing agents has no management authority to do anything other than transmit the buyers contract offer.

The listing agent has many listings from the same mortgage company and would be bogged down all day on the phone if they took a personal contact approach. 

The listing agent has given the foreclosure listings low priority because the mortgage company listings pay far less than consumer listings.

WHY DOESN’T THE MORTGAGE COMPANY THAT FORECLOSED ON THE PROPERTY ACT IN WAYS THAT WOULD MAKE THESE PROPERTIES MOVE FASTER??

BECAUSE THEY DO NOT KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING!!

The mortgage company employee that is in control of the portfolio of foreclosures,

• is NOT a real estate agent, real estate broker,
• has never sold real estate,
• has no understand of the real estate market,
• does not have any experience negotiating real estate sales,
• is a salaried employee and will receive a pay check no matter when the properties in their portfolio sell or for how much.
• final decisions for price, terms and conditions for ratified contracts is not in the authority of the loss mitigation clerk communicating with the listing agent.
• final decisions on contract approvals are often scheduled weekly or bi-weekly by committee.  

The primary reason these transactions are so difficult for the buyers agents, buyers and listing agnets is because the mortgage company, their representatives communicating with the listing agents have no experience selling real estate. 

• They have never been to real estate school.
• They do not have a real estate license.
• They have never showed a home to buyers.
• They have never written an offer for a buyer.
• They have never presented a contract to a seller.
• They have no understanding of the real estate market.
• They have no knowledge of real estate brokerage.
• They have no knowledge of condition or inspections.
• They have no understanding of disclosure.
• They have no understanding of presenting offers, counters timely.
• They get paid whether or not the contract closes.

The skill sets required for employees of the mortgage companies for loss mitigation representatives are not transferable to real estate sales or real estate brokerage. 

FACT:   BANKS AND MORTGAGE COMPANIES DO NOT KNOW HOW TO SELL REAL ESTATE.

Courtesy, Lenn Harley, Broker, Homefinders.com, 800-711-7988.

IT’S BEEN A ROCKY 2-3 YEARS.   Many real estate agents are working twice as hard for 1/2 the money, and they’re the lucky ones.   Many loan officers spend weeks documenting, getting approvals only to have a loan denied funding the day before closing.  No one ever really learns why but the implecation is always that the borrower didn’t qualify for one reason or another, more documentation, more money to close, house in wrong location.  I love that last one, house in wrong location.  A few years ago, many of these loans would have been approved and worthy home buyers would be moved in to their newly purchased dream home and making payments timely.

WHAT HAPPENED?  PERHAPS THERE IS JUST NO LOAN PRODUCT TO FIT THE NEEDS OF TODAY’S BORROWERS. 

REMEMBER THE ALT-A?  A LOAN PRODUCT REVIVED FOR A NEW MARKET.  When did we first learn of the Alt-A loan?  Seems to me it was sometime in 2002-2003, although I’m not sure.  I got an e-mail from a loan officer with whom I had done a lot of business over the previous 10 years. 

Lenn
Contact me about a the Alt-A loan product.
Alt-A loans will help buyers with good credit without income documentation.

The Alt-A was not a sub-prime PRODUCT.  The loans were purchased by Fannie Mae.  They met a need for consumers who “didn’t quite fit the traditional loan PRODUCT”. 

Interesting, I thought.  Goodness, this loan product must have been designed for some of our home buyers.  In the previous few months, we had prospective home buyers interested in taking advantage of falling interest rates but who couldn’t document sufficient income to qualify for the price range in which they wished to buy.  These buyers were either self employed contractors, business owners, sole proprietors, private duty nurses, software company partners, etc.  Many of these borrowers had been offered sub-prime loans because they couldn’t adequately document their income.  These buyers were almost all self employed, some with incomes to qualify at conforming rates or FHA but didn’t want to pay the high mortgage payments with the sub-prime rates.   The Alt-A loan PRODUCT was meant for this group of home buyers.

Primarily credit-score driven, the Alt-A loan product alleviated the limitations and due diligence headaches associated with documentation as well as assets and income verification. Translation:  If the credit score was high enough, the loan would be approved.  The borrower would pay a premium of 1/8 to 1/2% for the same interest rate, but they could buy their dream home.  Actuarial models had proven over and over again that borrowers with sufficiently high credit scores, 720 or above, were good risk borrowers.  WHAT?  No due diligence on the part of the loan officer/lender/investor???  Exactly.  The interesting thing about the Alt-A and similar loan products is that the guidelines do not require that the loan officer/lender/underwriter show that the borrower have the ability to repay the loan.  Such a deal! 

Of course, we know what happened.  The guys on Wall Street got greedy and designed a series of loan PRODUCTS that would permit more and ever more buyers to “qualify” but who didn’t have to demonstrate the ability to repay.  As long as Fannie Mae would buy the loans, bundle loans, chop them up and sell them to ever widening pools of big monied investors; investment bankers, hedge funds, sovereign wealth funds, etc., who knew that, as long as the American home owner continued to make their mortgage payment, their mortgage backed security was a safe investment. 

Alt-A Loans are defaulting left and right. 

What a difference 3 years make.  When home prices increased almost 100% in 4 years, the entire landscape of home buying and mortgage lending changes.  

• Folks who wanted to sell could not.
• Folks who wanted to buy could not.
• Mortgage brokers lost investors.
• Mortgage companies tightened guidelines.
• Fannie Mae ran out of money. 

YOUR LOAN IS NOT APPROVED!!  An interesting thing happened when Fannie Mae ran out of money.  Rather than admitting their incompetence and perfidy, they severely tightened the mortgage loan guidelines in an attempt to shift the blame for the lack of mortgage funding ability to the consumer borrower.  Loan officers were caught in the middle.   They knew the borrower met the guidelines when the buyers were approved.  The guidelines had become a moving target.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac ,who were experiencing monumental losses, falsified their  to be able to continue to borrow at advantageous rates to continue to buy loans on which no one had established the ability of the home owner to make their mortgage payments.  Of course, those same falsified financials permitted the Director, Franklin Raines, of Fannie Mae to receive multi-million bonuses. 

In 2004, $100,000 income qualified the average home buyer for a mortgage loan of about $525,000.  Many home buyers could qualify for 80/20 loans with $ZERO down payment.  As long as the credit score was high enough, a family could buy their dream home and qualify for a loan LTV of about 30-35% and often higher.  No longer did the ratios have to meet the traditional 28/36 test.  Millions of families took advantage of the liberal qualifying requirements.  Real estate agents sold a lot of real estate.  “Ah!  I remember it well.” 

In 2007, $100,000 income qualified the average home buyer for a mortgage loan of about $400,000.     Not only did the 2007 home buyer qualify for a much lower mortgage due to rising interest rates, the homes had increased in price almost 100% between 2002 and 2006.   The 4 bedroom Single Family Colonial on a 1/4 acre that was available in 2003 with a $100,000 income was now a 3 bedroom Town Home for the same $100,000 income.  Not only that, the buyers needed a down payment and a higher credit score to qualify for any loan.  Not only that, many buyers were pre-qualified, qualified, pre-approved, approved, provided a loan commitment, etc. only to find out 2 days before closing that their loan was not funded and their broker couldn’t find an investor.  Or, they got to the settlement table and found out that they needed another $4,000-$10,000 to close.  Why does everyone look at the real estate agent when that happens??

The above does not compare identical loan instruments because many of the loan instruments available in 2003 no longer existed in 2007.  Home buyers are often less interested in loan types than the monthly mortgage payment.  I love the American home buyer, but I do not give them any credit for understanding market value or mortgage loan products.  The consumer is focused on the monthly payment.  When it is low they know they can make it.  The fact that the payment will increase substantially is rarely the focus of the borrower.  They fully intend to refinance out of the ARM but need it to qualify to buy their dream home today.  There’s a bit of Scarlet O’Hara in most of us.   The American consumer is also very optomistic and very trusting of mortgage professionals.  They have to be.  They don’t understand what is happening.  Just give me my house!

WAIT, IT GETS WORSE!  For the first time in the history of the real estate market, not only did the home buyer / borrower have to qualify for the loan, so too did the property.  Remember the “DECLINING MARKET SYNDROME”?   Homes in some neighborhoods that had declined in market value or were thought to have the potential of declining in value at some unknown time in the unknown future, THROUGH A PROCESS OF DEVALUATION, were denied appraisals and the loan was denied. 

This was the most illogical force in mortgage lending in my memory since racial red lining. 

By about late 2006 to early 2007, home buyers looked at what they were qualified to buy and said “I don’t want that piece of junk”.   They stayed where they were and are just now coming back to look at the market, albeit, very, very slowly and with a lot of trepidation. 

Sure, it was a buying frenzy.  Prices were going up.  Interest rates were going down and, suddenly, families realized that it was an opportunity to buy in that great school district or buy that wonderful 4,500 square foot home that they had dreamed about for many years.  If they didn’t buy now, they might not be able to next year.  Of course, there were many buyers who purchased with the clear intention of reselling immediately following settlement.  Not a small percentage of these investment buyers were in the real estate industry. 

WHAT HAVE WE LEARNED?  A few things come to mind.

Just as car manufacturers design new vehicle models to respond to consumer demand, the mortgage industry designs mortgage products to respond to market changes.  Innovation is a good thing.  New products and new ideas fuel the engine of free enterprise.  However, in light of the disaster that is the real estate industry and mortgage industry today, in the future, I suspect that most of us will be just a bit more careful, run those numbers, and if a buyer doesn’t appear to qualify and show the ability to repay their mortgage loan, let them know it.  Show them the numbers today and 3 years from now.  Run that amortization table.  It’s an eye opener for many prospective home buyers.   

Courtesy, Lenn Harley, Broker, Homefinders.com. 

MARYLAND FIRST TIME HOME BUYERS, ONLY $1,000 NEEDED TO BUY A HOME UP TO $429,620. (edit/delete)

MARYLAND REAL ESTATE IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES CAN BE PURCHASED BY FIRST TIME HOME BUYERS WITH AS LITTLE AS $1,000.  Yes, Homefinders.com has been in the market looking for money for our first time home buyers.

                              WE FOUND FINANCING FOR $1,000 TOTAL CASH NEEDED.

Contact Lenn Harley, Broker, Homefinders.com, 800-711-7988 to make application for this special financing offered to home buyers.  Take advantage of helpful programs for financing and Homefinders.com’s experienced Buyer’s Agents will help you find that special home.  The real estate market in Maryland has a good inventory of homes for sale and our buyers are able to find their home of choice in a short period of time.  Call me and make an application. 

Also FREE for our home buyers - FREE One Year Home Warranty - FREE Home Inspection up to $400.

Experienced Buyer’s Agent to help you from Search to Settlement.  Prices for homes in Maryland are now back to the level of about 2004 prices.  It’s time to take advantage of the homes for sale and the special financing offered for our home buyers. 

The homes shown below are all priced in the $425,000 range and all qualify for First Time Home Buyers with a total investment of $1,000 ***.    

INCOME LIMITS UP TO $113,850 for a family of 3 or more.**

**Income limits for households of 1-2 is $99,000.

This assumes the seller will pay 3% towards buyers closing costs and prepaid items.

Minimum credit scores apply, call for pre-qualification, 800-711-7988.  We can help and you’ll be out looking at homes for sale with an experienced Buyer’s Agent this week. 

Special financing is available for First Time Home Buyers in Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Calvert, Carroll, Charles, Frederick, Howard, Montgomery, Prince George’s, Queen Anne’s Counties for chart above.

Contact Lenn to apply for special financing.  Lenn Harley, Broker, Homefinders.com, 800-711-7988.

HOMES FOR SALE IN MARYLAND are at an all time high inventory. Home buyers have a wonderful opportunity to buy at the best price in five years. Homefinders is on top of the pricing trends and will give you the best and latest information about the market to help YOU get the very best price, terms and condition possible. 

Enjoy the Home Buying Experience 

HOMEFINDERS.COM CAN HELP 

           Available for single family, townhouses and warrantable condominiums

HOME PRICES ARE DOWN, BUT ARE HOME BUYERS READY?  FIRST TIME HOME BUYERS ARE GETTING IN THE MARKET.  RESALE AND MOVE UP BUYERS ARE UNABLE TO SELL THEIR EXISTING HOME.  PROBLEMS THAT HAVE NEVER FACED OUR MARKET IN THE PAST. 

BANK FORECLOSURES A GROWING BUT NOT SIGNIFICANT PERCENTAGE OF HOMES LISTED FOR SALE.

FINDING DIAMONDS IN THE SAND.  OR, FINDING READY BUYERS IN THE CROWDS OF FENCE SITTERS.

WHO IS BUYING A HOME TODAY?  There are several types of home buyers today.  Knowing who they are will help
agents target their time and advertising money to viable market areas. 

IT ISN’T THE 1980S ANY MORE.  The days of personal promotion for agents are over.  Just touting your own personal
experience isn’t going to impress home buyers who have the benefit of a wealth of real estate information at their fingertips,
thanks to the Internet.  Many home buyers today believe that they have all of the information they need from the thousands
of “how to buy real estate” articles on the Internet. 

Think of the many web pages available to consumers about:

• Sellers have a hard time adjusting to falling prices.
• Many home owners are 100% leveraged and can’t reduce their price.
• Agents recommend higher than market prices to gain listings.
• Home owners still believe that their house is better than average.
• Buyers need more cash and better credit scores than at any time in about 7 years.
• Taxes have risen in many areas.
• Insurance rates have risen in many areas.
• There is no good real estate news in any media accessible to home buyers. 

HOMES ARE STILL SELLING

Homes are selling in many real estate market areas but at much lower numbers than at any time since about 2003. 
Between 2003 and 2005, prices escalated as much as 90-110 percent in many areas.  However, since 2005, when
prices started falling due to reduced demand (market force), prices are still out of the price range for many buyers who
find qualifying harder (market force), cash needs higher (market force) and sellers intractable (market force). 

FINDING THE DIAMOND IN THE SAND

Who are the home buyers today?  Think about it. Many consumers don’t understand the real estate market and
they know it.  Many buyers are looking for the bargain of the century and they say so.  Many buyers don’t know
the market.  Who are these buyers?

First time home buyers.
Foreclosure buyers.
Relocating home buyers.

First time home buyers are new to the market and ask for help.  They rarely even pretend to know what they are
doing and seek help from agents who are friendly, helpful, patient, have good qualifying skills, are willing to show
buyers homes to acquaint them with what their money will buy.  If you have the personal skills to work with first
time home buyers, you can sell homes.  Target first time home buyers in your advertising. 

Foreclosure buyers.  Foreclosures on the market today are not the old HUD homes that we remember from years
past.  Due to the mortgage mess, many luxury homes, new homes and recently built homes have been foreclosed
and offer wonderful opportunities for buyers who will buy if they can find a home that is considered a great buy.
Foreclosure buyers are not just investors any more.  Target foreclosure buyers in your advertising.

Relocating home buyers. Families with children in school select areas in which to buy based on transportation
alternatives for employment and schools.  Relocating families will buy rather than rent at higher numbers than
any other group.  Families with children are looking for stability.  They do not want to enroll children in public
school only to move them again a year later. These families will look at more homes and consider more areas, but,
with patience and helpful agents, they will buy.  Target relocating home buyers in your advertising. 

We can help home buyers get off the fence by knowing our market and understanding how to help buyers.

PINEY ORCHARD, A COMMUNITY IN ODENTON IN ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY, MD

PINEY ORCHARD IS A WONDERFUL COMMUNITY IN NORTHERN ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY.
The town of Odenton is a community popular with folks seeking an easy commute to:

Ft. Meade * BWI Airport * Baltimore * Annapolis * MARC Train * NSA *  Columbia

PINEY ORCHARD OFFERS AN ABUNDANCE OF ACTIVITIES FOR CHILDREN AND ADULTS

Opened in 1991, the community of Piney Orchard has been growing over the years to now over 3,500 homes including Condominium Homes, Town Homes and Single Family Homes.  The community of Piney Orchard is home to almost  8,500 residents.  Piney Orchard has developed into a viable village with home types for all.  Piney Orchard offers a community Elementary School

PINEY ORCHARD AMENITIES

Piney Orchard is an established community with maturing trees.  You’ll enjoy the amenities including a lake for fishing, boating and hiking.  Piney orchard is surrounded by acres of protected land, a river and beautiful quiet countryside. 

The Community Center is about 15,000 square feet and offers

Lap Pool * Fitness Center * Meeting Rooms * Tot Lots * Playground Area 
Tennis Courts * Ice Arena * Hiking and Biking Trails * Swimming Pools 
Child Care Center * 45 Acre Nature Preserve * Ball Fields

ROCKVILLE IS HOME TO THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT OFFICES FOR MONTGOMERY COUNTY, MARYLAND.   What features make a county or city a popular place to live?

Location?  Rockville is located in the heart of Montgomery County and is popular with residents for:

• Public Transportation, METRO, MARC Train, Ride-On Bus
• Shopping, White Flint Shopping Center
• Public Schools; Montgomery County Public Schools
• Housing, prices and variety of types and styles available

Rockville Demographics:

• Population - 51,000
• Land Area - 13.4 Square Miles
• Population Density - 3,720 persons per square mile
• Economic Growth - 1.1% Per Year (5 year average)
• High School Graduates - 94.1%
• College Graduates - 61.4%

PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION MEANS METRO.  Metro provides three stations for METRO riders; Rockville Station, Twinbrook Station and White Flint Station.  Rockville Metro offers effecient and comfortable connections to Bethesda, Gaithersburg, Silver Spring in Montgomery County.  The Rockville Stations also offer connections to and from Prince George’s County, New Carrollton, Greenbelt, College Park and Takoma Park; Northern Virginia Stations in Arlington, Alexandria, Fairfax County and Reagan National Airport.  Stations in Northern Virginia have hubs to connect to the Virginia Railway Experess Local Commuter Train.  At every METRO Station are connections to the Ride-On Bus which offers hundreds of connections throughout Montgomery County. 

SHOPPING IN ROCKVILLE BEGINS AT WHITE FLINT.   The sampling of White Flint stores below are an example of the style and variety availalbe.  Located just minutes from more shopping along Rockville Pike.  White Flint is the shoppers’ choice in Montgomery County.   Metro stops here too.

Bloomingdale’s Borders Books Lord & Taylor
Pottery Barn Kay Jewelers The Coach Store
Gap Godiva Chocolates White Flint Toys
Anne Taylor Banana Republic Victoria’s Secret
AMC Lowes Theatre
 

PUBLIC SCHOOLS IN ROCKVILLE are a popular attraction for families with children.  Comprehensive testing, boundary information for Montgomery County Public Schools is available at the Montgomery County Public Schools At A Glance site.  Information available includes but is not limited to:

• School Assignment
• Testing
• Demographics
• Special Programs
• Maps

HOUSING IN ROCKVILLE, MARYLAND offers a home for any serious home buyer.  Single Family homes are availalbe throughout as are townhomes and condominium homes.  Prices for real estate in Rockville ranges from the condo home priced at $150,000 to the luxury home with acreage priced at $3,300,000.  The average price for Single Family Homes in Rockville is about $525,000.  The home below is a wonderful example of a Single Family Home in the average price range.

Property Details for listing # MC6799992
Price:  $519,900 City:  ROCKVILLE
Bedrooms:  5 Bathrooms:  3 full  1 half
Type of Home:  Detached Style:  Colonial
Year Built:  1988 Lot Acreage:  0.366253
Subdivision:  NORBECK MANOR  County:  MONTGOMERY, MD
State, Zip:  MD, 20853  Status:  ACTIVE
Listing Office: RE/MAX Home Center