Archive for the 'Homebuyer' Category
More Silver Spring, Md Real Estate Market Reports - Seven Oaks Subdivision and South Silver Spring Condos
November 7th, 2007 Categories: Downtown Silver Spring, Home Sellers, Homebuyer, Houses in Silver Spring, Seven Oaks, Silver Spring Condos, Silver Spring Neighborhoods, South Silver Spring
        New Real Estate Market Activity Reports
Single Family Homes
Seven Oaks Subdivision – 20910 & 20901
Condominiums in South Silver Spring – 20910
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                Aurora Condominiums
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                The Silverton
                 8045 Newell Street Condos
Luxury Town Houses Cameron Hill  – 20910
If you are thinking about Selling Your Silver Spring House, Condo or Townhouse - Call on Debbie Cook and The Silver Spring Team for a No Obligation Market Report on Your Silver Spring Condominium. With our 21 years of Experience and our Enthusiasm for Silver Spring, we know how to get Silver Spring Homes Sold Fast and for Top Dollar in the Current Silver Spring Real Estate Market.
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Click for an Over the Net Comparative Market Analysis (CMA) of your Silver Spring Home
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Silver Spring, New Construction, Estates at 4 Corners Finally Gets Going - Old House Razed Recently
July 31st, 2007 Categories: 4 Corners, Cape Cod, Craftsman, Homebuyer, Houses in Silver Spring, New Construction, Real Estate, Real Estate Market, Silver Spring Neighborhoods, South 4 Corners, old houses
The Site has (now had) a Sprawling Brick and Stone 
Cape Cod Style house that was built in 1947. The house that used to be at 220 University Bvd West was once used as a Dentist’s Home/Office. The property Sold for $860,000 in April of 2005. The lot size is 37,987 square feet and is on a corner bordered by University Blvd W, Brunett Avenue and Gilmoure Drive in the Fairway Subdivision of South Four Corners,Silver Spring, Md. 20901. The house is now razed and 5 Single Family Homes are proposed to 
be built on this site. Two Homes will face University Blvd West and 3 Homes will face Gilmoure Drive.
Pre-construction prices Start at $799,000 with 3,300 square feet and go up to $874,000 with 4,000 square feet. Homes will have at least 4 Bedrooms and 2.5 baths. There are 5 models to choose from and the lot sizes range from 6,000 to 9,000 square feet. The 2 houses that will face University Blvd have the larger lot sizes and will have driveway access from Gilmoure Drive.
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The MRIS listing and details for the new homes here. Two of the homes according to the MRIS Listings are under contract and 2 are ACTIVE Listings. Sales are brokered by Long and Foster Real Estate, Inc for K2 Homes. More info about the Houses and site are on the K2 Development Website  Â
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Unrepresented Buyer and For Sale By Owner -The Ongoing Nightmare that’s too Close to Home!
July 17th, 2007 Categories: Home Sellers, Homebuyer, Real Estate, Real Estate Market, old houses
This real estate horror story popped up recently and is continuing to occur in Norfork, Virginia. The story is extremely detailed with actual legal documents and photos.Â
The reason it hits home for me is that I am a Realtor and I frequently deal with older houses and buyers and sellers of these houses. Â
Over the years, I have heard transaction horror stories from other agents, lenders, real estate and title attorneys.  During my 21 years as an agent, I have some doosies of my own that I could tell. The difference is that all of their stories and my stories had agreeable endings.
This story has taken on a never ending life of it’s own! Read it here. Â
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What’s Up with Home Features for 2007?
December 18th, 2006 Categories: Homebuyer, Houses in Silver Spring, Real Estate, Real Estate Market
December is when publications like to forecast upcoming trends for the new year. Mark Nash, author of a number of books on real estate, has come up with some good ones, based on a survey of more than 900 industry professionals.
Here’s some of the features homeowners should be looking to put in their dwellings in 2007: Upscale garages. “It’s no longer the out-of-sight-out-of-mind dumping ground. Today’s garage owners want them decked out with cabinet and storage systems, mini-refrigerators, insulation, heating and air conditioning and durable but residential-looking flooring.
” Man caves and Mom caves.”Personal dedicated space for one person in a household where they can go and work on projects or chill without being disturbed.”Two home offices. “Rising gas prices and commuting times have created more two-work-at-home families. Size matters, make sure each is at least ten-by- ten feet.” Rejuvenation rooms. “A one-stop space for exercising, meditation, yoga, sauna and fancy steam showers. Showers are going upscale too. Waterfall fixtures, programmable temperature.” Heated patios, walkways and driveways. “Northern baby-boomers are tired of shoveling and are looking for ways to decrease winter maintenance, plus many have discovered how also heating the patio can add an extra couple of weeks enjoyment in spring and fall.”
Snoring rooms. “Adjacent, second bedrooms to the master, offer relief from the buzz saw and an alternative to the couch. A godsend for millions of relationships nationwide.” Modular Housing. “Many think of the out-dated double wide as the typical modular, but modular options and quality have exploded from the top end 11,000 square foot home, with every whistle and bell, complex finishing details.” Sustainable Design. “Energy conservation, indoor air quality, and resource conservation. Natural forms of energy, such as wind, solar, and geo-thermal if available on-site, are maximized.”
Structured wiring. “Right up there with all the buzz about green homes is structured wiring, now entering the main stream must-have for technology based home buyers. Coaxial TV cable (RG-6), Category 5E voice and data lines, distributed radio, remote camera security are wired through out a home into multi-outlet boxes called in the trade, home network centers.” Mixing finishes on kitchen base and wall cabinets. “Matchy-matchy is out in kitchen design. The new look is to have stained-wood bases and painted wood upper cabinets. The old-Europe-look rules, but with today’s appliances.”
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Lots of New Faces Ditching the Burbs and Heading to Urban Condo Frontier
December 13th, 2006 Categories: Homebuyer, New Construction, Real Estate, Real Estate Market, Silver Spring Condos
Are you part of the demographic trend that’s driving the rising cost of condos in recent years? According to the NAR (Nat’l Assoc of Realtors), increases in condo values have recently begun to outstrip those of single family homes for the first time ever. NAR says that between 2001 and 2004, condos appreciated at a whopping 57% to the skimpy 25% of single family homes.Â
Changing Middle class lifestyles and demographics are one factor behind the shift, economists theorize. The Census Bureau reports that there has been a decline in nuclear family households in the US, which was 40% in 1970, to a mere 24% in 2000.
Designing a more streamlined living situation has become increasingly desirable for single parents, divorced individuals and busy retirees, as well as the single professionsals who were drawn to condo life when they first appeared in the early 1980’s. Why tie yourself down to a suburban yard and commute, condo-converts reason, when for some big bucks more, you could live in an urban setting and spend your time doing other things?Â
The good news is that lots of new condos are being built for those willing to pay the price. The potential bad news, warn economists, is the possibility that the rise in condo values may be attracting speculators, who hope to cash in quickly, while the market looks hot. Some markets, like Chicago, are already facing a glut of condos. Not so, here in Silver Spring, MD where our market was HEALTHY - Stats for us are here in a previous post. I am polishing my crystal ball with questions about what will happen with the Silver Spring’s Real Estate Market next year? Anybody have any ideas on the subject?Â
Thumbnail History Lesson: During the late 1980s condo values in some areas, fell by as much as 50%, during which time single family home values dropped by less than half that amount. It took almost a decade for condo prices to go back up. Food for thought.
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Interest Rates Continue to Fall - Happy Holidays to Home Buyers
December 12th, 2006 Categories: First Time Homebuyer, Homebuyer, Houses in Silver Spring, Real Estate, Real Estate Market
Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Survey reports the average interest rate on a 30 year fixed rate mortgage to be 6.08 percent for the week ending December 7th. This is down from the previous week’s 6.14 percent and the LOWEST RATE this year since mid-January.
“Continued signs of slowing in the housing market and weakness in the manufacturing sector helped keep mortgage rates down this week,” said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist.
Is a new home on your wish list this holiday season? The falling interest rates can help make your wish a reality. Visit the Silver Spring Team Homesearch Site to view all Silver Spring and Surrounding Area real estate listings. And give us a call. We have the expertise, knowledge and experience to make your new home a Reality! Also from a previous post why Holidays are the Greatest Gift to Homebuyers.
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Housing Affordability in Silver Spring, Md - Let the New Gov Know what YOU Think!
November 29th, 2006 Categories: First Time Homebuyer, Homebuyer, Houses in Silver Spring, Real Estate, Real Estate Market
It is great to announce that the Maryland Association of REALTORS® (MAR) launched an initiative yesterday to be known as the League of Maryland Homeowners (LMH). LMH will give homeowners and aspiring homeowners a voice in Annapolis and build an online movement for housing affordability along with the efforts of REALTOR® members.
The goal of the League of Maryland Homeowners is to give homeowners a voice in the public discussion about how to address the challenge of keeping housing affordable. LMH will provide information to the public and tools to help them communicate with elected representatives at the State and local levels about housing affordability policies.
Promoting LMH easily allows clients to weigh in on public policies affecting their ability to afford a place to live. My clients want a home that they can afford; I want to get them that home. LMH will also give my clients information about new incentives, programs and financing that will be introduced in the upcoming legislative session.
I am publicizing the link below to my clients, customers and friends in upcoming newsletters, mailings or emails that I send: http://www.leagueofmarylandhomeowners.org/
MAR is not asking for any mailing lists or contact information about my current buyers or previous clients. They are asking to help MAR broadcast this effort.
If they are interested, current and potential clients and prior buyers and sellers can follow the link to sign up for LMH on their own and, initially, sign a short letter to Governor-elect O’Malley.
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Holiday Season Greatest Gift for Homebuyers
November 20th, 2006 Categories: Homebuyer, Real Estate, Real Estate Market
 During the slow home sales holiday season between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day, even extending through Super Bowl Sunday in many communities, few people think of buying a house or condominium. However, if you want to purchase a home and can drag yourself away from holiday festivities, this is the absolute best time of the entire year to be a home buyer.
Why is that, you ask? The answer has two parts: (a) only serious motivated sellers have their houses and condominiums listed for sale during this slowest season of the year for home sales, and (b) competition from other prospective home buyers is at its lowest now so your purchase offer will be extremely welcome and seriously considered by a motivated home seller.
There is an additional reason 2006 year-end is an especially good time to be a home buyer. That reason is it is a “buyer’s market” in most cities, meaning there are more homes listed for sale today than there are qualified buyers in the market so sellers  can be extremely anxious.
It’s a great time to be a home buyer.
BEFORE SHOPPING FOR A HOME, SHOP FOR A MORTGAGE. However, before rushing out to buy a house or condo, smart home buyers first get approved in writing for a home mortgage. This is a slow time of year for mortgage lenders so they welcome your loan application.
Although mortgage brokers can arrange mortgage pre-approvals, the letter or certificate must come from an actual lender, such as a bank or mortgage banker. Most home mortgage pre-approvals are valid for 60 to 90 days. Read the rest of this entry »
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