We had our best year yet in 2016 and as we approach Christmas and the New Year, we want to reach out and thank you.
It's hard to believe, but Christmas is almost here. I wanted to reach out and wish you and your family a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year!
We had our best year yet in 2016, and we appreciate you helping us get there. Thank you for letting us serve your real estate needs and trusting us with your referrals.
We look forward to a prosperous 2017 and hope you have a healthy and happy Christmas and New Year.
If you need anything, we're always here to help. Just give us a call and we'd be happy to speak with you.
I'd like to officially invite all of our friends and clients to join us Tuesday, November 22nd at Liberatore’s in Bel Air from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. for our Thanksgiving party! We'll also have food and an open bar, just like last year.
We can't tell you enough how much we appreciate your business and the referrals you send us. I look forward to seeing you Tuesday the 22nd!
If you're in the market for a home, you need to ask the right questions. Today we have a set of preliminary questions that every house hunter should be armed with.
When house hunting, there are a lot of questions you should ask in order the find the right home at the right price and in the right condition.
First, you’ll want to have a consultation with your buyer's specialist to go through all the things that are important in terms of wants and needs in your next home—the needs are always the most important. We also want to drill down on the wants as well so that everyone is on the same page. Since there is never a truly perfect home, we want to focus on hitting all the needs. Buyers always have a laundry list of wants, but what are you willing to sacrifice because of pricing or inventory?
Be sure all your needs are covered before focusing on the wants.
When you see a home, one of the first things you should ask is how many days it has spent on the market. If it's a hot property that shows well and is priced appropriately, it could go in as quickly as one to three days. Sellers who start with their price too high and are forced to come down may be on the market for closer to six months.
Then, you'll want to look at the updates and overall condition of the house. Look at the major mechanicals of the house, like the roof and whether there have been water or mold issues, for example. Ask your agent about the things that they run into on a regular basis.
If you’d like a full list of the questions you should be asking as a Baltimore home buyer, reach out to us by phone or email and we'd be happy to set you up. We want to make sure the home buying process is a great one for you.
One fear that many home sellers have before accepting offers on their home is that after the buyer signs the contract, they won’t be able to find a place to live. Is it possible to buy a new home while selling your current one? Though this is not an overly common situation in our area, it does happen. In the event that you’re unable to find a home after going under contract on your current one, a good real estate agent will be able to find you a home you love or negotiate to get you more time. To find out how we help our clients do this, watch this short video.
Some of our clients worry about being able to find a new home after selling their current one. We don’t often see issues with this today, but there are certainly instances of this in more of the hot pockets of Baltimore and Harford County.
If your home does sell really quickly, generally we can negotiate a home-of-choice contingency for you to be able to find a home, and sometimes we can get that extended, if need be.
We are often able to negotiate rent-backs and extensions with buyers.
For example, recently, one of our clients was not able to find a home that they liked within that 30-day time frame, so we were able to negotiate another 30 days, plus a rent-back period. This was a win-win for both these sellers and the buyer who purchased their home, since the buyer knew that they would still be able to buy the house and the sellers were given an additional 60 days after settlement to move out. This gave these sellers a 120-day period to find a house.
A good real estate agent will be able to help you through this process so that you don’t have to worry about ending up homeless after your home sale.
If you have any other questions about buying and selling a house simultaneously, feel free to give us a call or send us an email. We’d be happy to help you!
Despite an overall shift starting to happen in the real estate market across the country, interest rates in Maryland are holding steady.
The market was really busy throughout the summer, and we’re starting to see a little bit of a shift happening across the whole country. There is a slight uptick in days on market, we’re seeing some prices decrease a little bit, and it’s taking a little longer to sell homes. However, I think we’re a little more protected here in the Maryland area. There are certain pockets that are super busy. In certain areas there is a ton of inventory; in other areas there is next to no inventory. There are properties selling with multiple offers in as little as three or four days, and others still sitting on the market after several months. The latter case has caused the slight depreciation in price.
We’re seeing interest rates still holding right now.
We’re seeing interest rates still holding right now, and we think it will stay that way throughout the election period. Depending on who gets elected, that may shift slightly afterward, but I would not expect that we see much of a change in the next several months. If you have any further questions about the real estate market, feel free to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you.
There are many great Baltimore area homes for sale. Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here for a FREE Home Price Evaluation
so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You
may also call me at (410) 638-9555 for a FREE home buying or selling
consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.
I would like to take a minute to wish everyone a happy New Year! I hope your holiday was fantastic. Since the holiday season, we've experienced a booming housing market here in Baltimore.
We're seeing an extremely busy market from buyer activity and low inventory. It's busier than usual because it's warm outside and interest rates are going up. Last month, the Feds raised their rates 0.25%. While this hasn't affected mortgage rates yet, they are predicted to continue to climb over the next couple quarters.
A 1% interest rate increase might not seem like much, but if you're a buyer, you're purchasing power goes down 10%. That means if you're looking at $300,000 homes and the rates go up 1%, you can only afford to look at $270,000 homes. Take advantage of the market now while rates are still low.
Inventory is a little dismal right now. However, more homes are coming onto the market now that the holidays are over. Homeowners have been prepping their properties for the market over the winter to list in the spring.
If you're thinking of selling, my team and I can do a market analysis for you to go over. We also offer marketing, staging, and professional photography. We recently added a Matterport Camera, which allows home buyers to take a 3D tour of your property online.
If you're thinking of buying, we also have access to a lot of homes that are not on the market. We work with Wells Fargo foreclosures and investors who rehab and sell homes, so we have access to those as well.
Finally, if you have any real estate questions at all, give us a call or send us an email. We would be happy to help you!
