Carlyn Lowery, Associate Broker, Lowery Home Team at eXp Realty, Annapolis and Anne Arundel County MD Real Estate

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Some folks read these blog posts with their favorite RSS reader such as iGoogle, some subscribe by email, some follow me on Twitter, and some find it most convenient to discover the latest news when checking in with friends on Facebook.   The formatting seems nicest here, yet some of the other delivery methods are more convenient.

I’m still experimenting with Facebook and Twitter, and would love to hear how you like to use them for both work and play.

P.S.  Call me today for all your Annapolis real estate needs.

“Stop My Double Mortgage Payments, and Get This House Sold Now!” Say Annapolis Real Estate Owners with Vacant Homes

Vacant House in Annapolis

Vacant House in Annapolis

One mortgage payment is bad enough, but two is sometimes just too much to bear. And vacant homes cause all kinds of problems.

Insurance coverage may lapse after thirty days.
Little problems may turn into big problems, because no one was around to notice.  A small trickle becomes toxic mold.
Lawn mowing, leaf blowing, gutter cleaning, snow shoveling – enough to deal with when you live in a home, and a real hassle when you live elsewhere.
Neighbors get mad when the home and yard deteriorates.
The city issues fines for code violations.
Realtors recommend low sales prices, or say they can’t help.

What’s the alternative, renting the home out and risking bad tenants who might trash it?

For those who have had enough, and are determined to stop the double mortgage payments and other ongoing expenses and hassles, other options are available.  Our growing network of Annapolis real estate professionals includes people who create custom solutions, with a little flexibility on everyone’s part.

Professional rehabbers who renovate homes for resale, “hard money” lenders who fund rehabbers, landlords who like to have property and tenants to manage, investors who subsidize mortgage payments for a portion of the equity, note buyers who convert seller financing to cash, insurance experts who provide policies for vacant homes, Realtors who bring home buyers and renters, people who want to “rent to own” or buy with a “lease-purchase.”

If you’d like to participate in these ways or others, please get in touch, and let’s see how we can work together to get more of these vacant homes occupied!

P.S. Call me today for all your Annapolis real estate needs.

Annapolis Real Estate Owners Affected by Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM) Resets

Annapolis real estate owners will be affected by upcoming adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) resets, and time will tell exactly who and how.

I’ve been hearing a lot lately about the large number of option-ARMs and Alt-A loans  that are due to reset in 2010 and 2011, and people are wondering what the effect will be on our local real estate market.

If you want to read about the doom and gloom, and review lots of data, an interesting source is the book
More Mortgage Meltdown: 6 Ways to Profit in These Bad Times, by Whitney Tilsen and Glenn Tongue, or the authors’ web site More Mortgage Meltdown.

[tomatoframe width=”120″ height=”240″]http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=koalaconcepts-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=0470503408&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr[/tomatoframe]

I like these guys, and not just because I’m biased because Glenn Tongue is another Wharton grad. They’ve put together a lot of data, and assembled a detailed Powerpoint presentation which they share on their web site. Reviewing them made for a frightening Halloween for me!

Of course, after calming down, the question everyone wants to know is, “How does this affect me and our local market?”  Lots of Alt-A notes and fewer option ARMs were issued in the Annapolis area during the boom.  American Home Mortgage (AHM), a major Alt-A lender, was extremely successful in Annapolis and Anne Arundel County (and all across the country), due to their combination of low rates and easy approval process.  Perhaps that had something to do with them being the first lender to stop funding loans and quickly file for bankruptcy in August 2007, starting the mortgage meltdown.

Our local Annapolis and Anne Arundel County market is strengthened by many factors, among them our being the Maryland state capital, sited on the Chesapeake Bay, being close to Washington, DC, and having Homeland Security and the Baltimore Washington International Airport in the area. These are some of the factors that give confidence on our real estate values over the long term.

Perhaps the most important questions for your consideration at this point are: What type of loan or loans do you have?  Do you know?  And does your income continue to be sufficient to afford your payments, or has the recession put that in danger?

Do you have a 30-year fixed mortgage?  Or are you paying interest only?  Or do you have a choice of how much to pay?   Will your loan convert and start amortizing? Will your payments adjust based on some formula and interest rates in the coming months or years? If you are not sure, you might pull out your closing documents, call your lender, or call me, and get clear.   If your payments are likely to change within the next year or two, this is a good time to plan ahead so you are not caught by surprise. And if you know someone who anticipates trouble, please put us in touch.

P.S.  Call me today for all your Annapolis real estate needs.

Annapolis Real Estate Market Statistics September 2009

For the first time in five years, existing home sales have increased for four months in a row, according to an August report by the The National Association of Realtors® (NAR). Existing home sales – including single-family, townhomes, condominiums, and co-ops – increased 7.2 percent in July, which is the largest monthly sales gain recorded since 1999. Analysts are projecting an increase in 2009 of existing home sales to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.24 million units, which is 5 percent above the 4.99 million-unit pace set in July 2008.

Existing Home Sales By Region

“The housing market has decisively turned for the better,” said Lawrence Yun, chief NAR economist. “A combination of first-time buyers taking advantage of the housing stimulus tax credit and greatly improved affordability conditions are contributing to higher sales.”

Anne Arundel County figures for August 2009 are shown below.

2009 2008 % Change
Total Sold Dollar Volume: $ 170,183,103 $ 162,938,402 4.45 %
Average Sold Price: $ 360,557 $ 376,301 – 4.18 %
Median Sold Price: $ 300,000 $ 325,000 – 7.69 %
Total Units Sold: 472 433 9.01 %
Average Days on Market: 132 121 9.09 %
Average List Price for Solds: $ 406,090 $ 415,341 – 2.23 %
Avg Sale Price as a
percentage of Avg List Price: 		88.79 % 90.60 %
Total Number of NEW listings
taken for the month: 816
Total Number of Properties
marked Contract for the month: 375
Total Number of Properties
marked Contingent for the month: 204
Total Number of NEW pendings
(CONTRACTS + CONTINGENTS): 579

Source: Metropolitan Regional Information Systems, Inc. – MLS Resale Data
Information is deemed reliable, but is not guaranteed.
P.S.  Call me today for all your Annapolis real estate needs.

Here are some client reviews of Carlyn Lowery…

“Carlyn got us a quick sale above the asking price. She qualified prospects well, used a professional photographer for advertising photos, and provided expert advice during negotiations. Carlyn is what other Realtors aspire to be!”
– Paul Donnelly

“As first time home buyers, Carlyn Lowery was very attentive to our basic needs of walking us through each step of the home buying process from a novice standpoint. The long detailed list of items due at specific times from the start of the contract all the way through to the week of closing was greatly appreciated. It was great having an agent who took the time to clearly lay this all out for us. End result – a very smooth time at settlement. No surprises!”
– Ann Hannam

“We wanted a professional who would work with us to sell our home
quickly for a good price and protect our interests as sellers through the process.
Carlyn’s business acumen is her (and will be your) greatest asset.”
– Sue Bogard

“Carlyn was wonderful. She was organized, prepared, and knew the steps to take to sell our home quickly and used a wide array of marketing to get the job done. She gave great advice
during each of the phases, and in particular on the negotiation.”
– Michael Morgan

 

Questions? Call Carlyn Lowery today.

443-569-3977 – Direct
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