NEW HOME LISITNG FOR SALE IN NOTTINGHAM, MARYLAND LISTED EXCLUSIVELY BY: MIKE KLIJANOWICZ - REMAX AMERICAN DREAM   8901 PARLO ROAD NOTTINGHAM, MD 21236 FOR MORE INFORMATION, PHOTOS, & VIRTUAL TOURS VISIT: HTTP://8901ParloRoad.isellmdhomes.com       CLICK HERE OR ON THE MAP ABOVE TO USE MY STATE OF THE ART MAP BASED HOME SEARCH SYSTEM! Search for ALL of the homes that are currently for sale, Search for ALL of the recently sold homes in your neighborhood including those listed in the MLS system and those that were never listed by real estate agents (for sale by owners, new construction, etc), Search by whatever terms you want: zip codes, school boundaries, and even neighborhoods. Find out information on local schools, neighborhood demographics, and even find the closest Starbucks or fav... 06/12/2012

Can An Agent Represent Himself? I would think that an individual could represent himself or herself. However, an agent, by definition, is one who represents someone else. So, in a real estate transaction, where an agent wants to sell his or her own house or wants to buy a house for himself or herself, can that person perform that transaction as an agent? This has been done by some agents and it has been supported by their brokers. Would it be more appropriate to have another agent, whether from the same brokerage or not, act as the agent for this particular type of seller or buyer? To complicate the matter, let's assume that a buyer, who is a licensed real estate agent, contracts to purchase a house and that this buyer acts like an agent by using the brokers name and forms. Since this a... 06/11/2012

HUD Pays Very Little For Vandalism My client has a HUD owned house under contract. Of course, the house is being sold as is. It is almost in livable condition, but it does not impact the purchase because he is paying cash. But then, along come the copper thieves.  Apparently the price of copper is relatively high, which encourages useless animals to make a living by stealing copper from houses which are not their own and then selling it. However the issue is with HUD. The HUD contracts are written such that the buyer will take the house in its as is condition even if something happens to the house after the contract is ratified.  It even seems that the buyer could lose the earnest money deposit if they were to back out of the contract because of vandalism. HUD is not all bad though, the... 05/03/2012

I Work In Maryland; Someone In California Can Help Me As a general statement, it is certainly true that someone in California can help someone in Maryland. This is the beauty of a site like Active Rain.  Real estate agents from around the country, from around the world, can share their knowledge and experience, hence improving the profession as a whole. However, I received an email from a firm based in California.  They are inviting me to possibly work leads which they are generating in my area. I have not heard of the firm but based on experience with similar concepts, I would guess that they are not real estate agents, not real estate brokers, but rather that they are professional internet marketers. Yes, they are professional internet marketers who advertise a product or a service wh... 05/02/2012

My Bank Would Only Give Me $50,000 I went to my bank and requested $100,000.  No, this was not a request for a loan.  I was asking for money from my own account. They would only agree to give me $50,000 from my own account! What do you mean $50,000?  I asked for $100,000, not $50,000. We understand, but we can only give you $50,000. Apparently, you don't understand.  I asked for $100,000; I need $100,000. We can only give you $50,000, because that is all that is in the account. Now I was getting angry.  What in the hell does what is in my account have to do with how much I want and need.  If I can't get $100,000, then I am not going to take any of it out. Okay, that is fine with us. Oh great!  That is some attitude from my own bank.   Does this sound vaguely familiar to you? Maybe not w... 04/11/2012

Which Incentive Is Better: $10K to the Agent or $10K to the Buyer? Let's assume for the sake of discussion that there is a house listed for $200,000 and that the offered commission to cooperating brokers is 3% of the purchase price. Other incentives for selling the house aside, such as lowering the price, improving the property, staging the home, and so on, let's focus on two particular incentives. The first incentive is to offer, beyond the 3% commission, a bonus to the selling agent of $10,000 for a settled transaction. The alternative incentive is to offer $10,000 in closing assistance for the buyer of the property. Which one is more likely to lead to a faster sale of the property? There are agents who look for bonuses and there are agents who try not to show properties if the commis... 03/13/2012

  There Goes My Mobile Office   Distracted driving has been a major issue lately.   Consideration has been given to the idea of passing legislation which would ban the use of manual transmissions.   If such legislation were passed, then you can rest assured that it would not stop there. Next hands free transmissions would be banned.   It would go even further than that as eventually devices would be installed which would prevent the use of either of these transmissions.   Contact your legislators and tell them that this obsession with ridiculous laws must stop.   02/23/2012

BALTIMORE COUNTY SHORT SALES - PERRY HALL CONDOS FOR SALE NEW PROPERTY LISTING BY MIKE KLIJANOWICZ - REMAX SHORT SALE SPECIALIST INTRODUCING 102 SURREY LANE NOTTINGHAM, MD 21236   PRIVATE SETTING FOR THIS IMMACULATE END BUILDING UNIT ADJACENT TO GUNPOWDER STATE PARK! NEW WOOD LAMINATE FLOORING,FRESH NEUTRAL PAINT,VERY NEAT & CLEAN,ALL APPLIANCES CONVEY,LOTS OF XTRA CLOSET/STORAGE SPACE,ENJOY THE VIEWS OFF YOUR BALCONY,CLOSE TO SHOPS,RESTAURANTS,& MAJOR HIGHWAYS! THIS IS A SHORT SALE SUBJECT TO 3RD PARTY APPROVAL! 2 SHORT SALE AGENTS + PROF. NEGOTIATING FIRM = FAST APPROVAL!       CLICK ON THE ABOVE PICTURE FOR THE VIDEO TOUR ON YOUTUBE!        CLICK HERE OR ON THE MAP ABOVE TO USE MY STATE OF THE ART MAP BASED HOME SEARCH SYSTEM!  Search for ALL of the homes that are currently for sale,... 02/19/2012

In My Room Do we exist as individuals or do we exist as individuals which are part of a larger entity which is our society? Perhaps in answering the question we do not have to choose one or the other of these choices, but rather we might say that we actually exist as both. As examples of how we are both, we only need to look as far as the sports which we play.  For instance, with sports such as baseball, football, or basketball certainly there are individual efforts and individual accomplisments, but the ultimate goal of winning is not achieved unless all of the individuals work together as a team. A quarterback throws a pass, but he throws it to a receiver and he only is allowed to throw it if his blockers give him enough time.  So the individual efforts are important for each other in... 01/19/2012

How Did We Miss This? You went to look at a few houses with the possibility of making an offer to purchase one of them. One of the houses seemed to meet your needs, so you thought that it would be worthwhile to bring the rest of the family to see it. When we pulled up to the house with the other members of the family, you were embarrassed.  You were thinking that this house looks terrible.  How did we miss all of these problems? But remember how you were in a hurry to get inside.  If the inside did not meet your needs, then you did not want to waste time looking at the outside.  This house seemed to meet your needs and desires, but then you were anxious to get to the next house so you did not take the time to look at the outside.  So, into the car and away we went. Now excited to show t... 01/13/2012

Lock The Lock Box Please I know that you are in a hurry.  You have ten listings to see with one client and then you will look at another set of homes with another client and then you expect to write up two offers before later going to three settlements and then finally you will be able to start working. So with all of this activity, I can understand how you may not have time to lock the door or put the key back into the lock box or if you do put it back how you do not have time to close the lock box. Do it anyway!  Take the time to do something right!   01/13/2012

They Were Shocked By Their Tax Assessed Values Every three years, in Maryland, properties are assessed to determine their value for tax purposes. Supposedly, the assessed values are in accordance with actual market values. When real estate prices went up a few years ago during the boon in the market at percentages reaching 20 percent per year, the tax assessed values went up accordingly. Fortunately, the property tax for existing homeowners did not go up by the same amount, even though their property's assessed values had gone up.  This was due to the Homestead Act, which limited the annual increase in their taxes to 4 percent per year.  Unfortunate for home buyers, they would be hit with the full amount of taxes for the assessed value. In recent years, tax assessed values came down in ... 01/04/2012

Game PlanMaryland Under Governor Martin O'Malley, the State of Maryland has been aggressively planning and implementing a comprehensive smart growth policy. With the PlanMaryland initiative, more of the future growth would occur within existing areas of infrastructure.  Efforts would be made to decrease commute times, increase the use of public transportation, and increase the possibilities for walking and biking. The plan would try to save agricultural land and open spaces, reduce the levels of pollution on the water, land, and air, and keep the costs of growth low. While the plan would increase the density of existing areas, it would not completely prevent growth in outlying regions. On the PlanMaryland website, there is an interactive game which shows the impact of different planning... 12/22/2011

Term Limits; Home Limits Many people have suggested that there should be term limits for all political offices.  They believe that with the current system that politicians are always in campaign mode.  As soon as they are elected they are thinking about getting relected rather than thinking about long term solutions to issues. As an alternative, they might want to consider increasing the length of all terms to six years rather than limiting the number of terms.  This would allow for the politicians to give some thought to longer term solutions to issues without having to worry about whether their plans were showing immediate results or not. Home Limits Let's for a moment assume that anyone who resides in a home can only stay in it for two years. If they were to purchase the home, it is ... 12/21/2011

My Dog Ate My Homework Okay, it was not really a dog and it was not really homework, but the concept was the same. Sometimes our clients are busy doing other things or are distracted and prevented from getting back to us with our urgent needs. My client really was prevented from getting to her assignment to look at listings which I had emailed to her and it really was the fault of her pet kitten. Be patient with your clients.  As much as we wish that they did, their lives do not revolve around their agents. 12/10/2011

You Gave It Away Long Ago We have all heard sellers say to us "I'm not going to give it away." Usually this statement has nothing to do with the actual market value, with the condition of the property, or even with reality. Instead, it is based upon some warped sense of the value of the property which the seller must have pulled out of a hat. In many cases, the sellers fail to recognize that their property is not in the same condition as other properties which deserve to sell at a certain price. These are the sellers who have given their property away long ago. Long ago when: they stopped trimming their trees and bushes and let a jungle grow around their house;   they stopped cleaning their carpet and let it build up with mud, tar, oil, and other contributions from their pets;   they de... 12/02/2011

Here Comes Peter Cottontail Here comes Peter Cottontail, Hoppin' down the bunny trail, Hippity hoppity, Easter's on its way. Easter seems to get here sooner and sooner every year. No wait, that's what they say about Christmas. Well, enjoy the Christmas season, but keep a close eye on the upcoming Spring. My prediction is for a decrease in unemployment numbers, a stabilizing of real estate prices, and a slight increase in mortgage interest rates. What does this mean? It means that buying a house now before the interest rates start to go up and while it is still a buyers market makes more sense than waiting until the spring. If you do wait until after the holiday season, then be prudent now and do not overspend hence leaving yourself in too much debt to be able to buy that house of which ... 11/29/2011

If a society could exist without money, then what would your role be in such a society? Money is used as a common denominator to measure and to trade goods and services. Without the goods and services, there would be no need for money.  In and of itself it has no value.  It only has value as per the definition stated above. Following through on this concept, the true wealth in a society is in the goods and services and not in the money.  Since money is only there as a reflection of the goods and services, the amount of money in a society should not be more than those goods and services. However, when our economy is viewed, there seems to be an abundance of business operations which are directly related to money, perhaps more than the amount of goods and services. Examples of the many pr... 11/23/2011

Occupy Your Parent's House Movement Lien Free Home Owners Are An Economic Problem. To be healthy the economy needs money to be flowing. Of course, money is generated when wealth is created, but if there is no money to buy the newly generated wealth, then the wealth will not be produced. Lots of wealth has been created in the United States, but lots of it is tied up and not flowing in the economy. One place where the money is tied up, about two trillion dollars of it is in banks, which is absurd.  Banks distribute money and they make a profit in doing it.  So one might ask why are they holding onto the product which they sell.  This would be similar to Walmart or Sears collecting a big inventory of goods and then not selling them. But another place where much of the country's wealth is t... 11/16/2011

How Much Does a Potential Condition Raise the Value of a Property? Potential means that something is possible, but it is not actually that at the current time. Assume that someone has a house which sits on a two acre lot. Assume that houses similar to this house which sit on lots from about 1 to 2 acres in size are worth about $300,000 plus or minus a few thousand. Maybe in the particular area lots of about 1 acre are worth $50,000. Assume further that the property in the example has the potential to be subdivided into two lots of about 1 acre each.  One lot would be where the current house sits and the other lot would be where potentially another house could be built. Because this property has the potential to be subdivided is it worth an extra $50,000 or closer to $350,000? In other w... 10/18/2011