Monday, November 30, 2009

Silver Spring/Kemp Mill Settlement today. New business tonight!



I am delighted for my clients that we settled today on their new home at 11720 Stonington Place,in Kemp Mill Estates, a subdivision in Silver Spring, Maryland. The buyers looked long and hard for a home that would their needs. The search was for over a year. Furthermore,the buyers were able to look at what the home could be...the potential. The home is a model that the buyers were looking for and they got a price that they were comfortable with. While the home isn't completely renovated,in fact it could use a lot of updated,the buyers were able to visualize the work that they would do if they would become the lucky home owners. In addition,the buyers brought in contractors to get estimates on the improvement projects that they would undertake,not just to compare prices,but to make sure they were within budget.

I am truly grateful for their business. For a real estate agent,there aren't many better ways to end the month than with a settlement,although there are still a couple of hours left in Novemeber!

I am looking forward to taking a buyer out tonight in Potomac,MD and hopefully it will be the home of their dreams. When it comes to your real estate needs, I am wherever you want to be in Metro-DC

Life is good!
Adam

adambashein@mris.com
Basheinhomes.info
301-943-4370

Adam Bashein
Licensed in MD & DC

Weichert Realtors
7821 Tuckerman Lane
Potomac,MD 20854
301-718-4100 ext. 132

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Attention future home sellers...buyers are visiting and buying your neighbors' homes!


For the 10th Straight week we have had more buyers at open houses than we had for the coinciding time period in 2008.

Does this simply mean that more people are looking at homes? No! More people are buying. Sales in Montgomery County Maryland are up 10% compared to last year.

If you are thinking about selling,ivite me over to provide a free, no obligation pre market analysis of your home .

Life is good!


Adam
adambashein@mris.com
basheinhomes.info
301-943-4370

Adam Bashein
Licensed in MD & DC

Weichert Realtors
7821 Tuckerman Lane
Potomac,MD 20854
301-718-4100 ext. 132

Sunday, November 22, 2009

The lasting impression or written thank you notes


Don't forget to send a thank you card--handwritten and through the mail,whether it is to thank people for birthday presents,meals people made to help you after a birth or G-d forbid death and to thank clients for their business. I thought it was nice and was just so impressed as I was going through the mail to get a thandwritten hank you card from Z Folio Gallery in California for a purchase made a week and a half ago.

Often many of us take the "easy route" and zap an email or don't send a thank you at all,which leaves givers wondering if you appreciated their gifts/purchase and may make them less inclined to help you/give you future business or refer you.
Think of it this way...how great do you feel when you receive a birthday card in the mail? I'll go out on a limb and say you feel pretty darn good and appreciated by you. I think a written note is one of the most honest and sincere acts of kindness and good will.

Friday, November 6, 2009

Review of Olney Real Estate for Sale



Yesterday I previewed some homes for sale in Olney,MD that are priced pretty well and are great opportunities to enjoy home ownership. If there specific homes you would like me to preview,let me know!

1. 18550 Clovercrest Circle in "James Creek" 3 bedrooms,2 full baths, 2 half baths
---Home is an end unit.
Exterior: The back yard intersects a forest in the back...there is no fence on back of yard to seperate your property from public land/other property. There is a small fence on the side.
There is room for a patio and you could probably add a deck off of the living room french doors. Currently the doors open to the outside but other than getting air you can't go outside.
When you walk in there is a half bath immediately to your left. You go upstairs and to your immediate right is the kitchen which has room probably for a table of 4 or if you wanted to add an island/another prepping area in the kitchen. Beyond the kitchen is a living room/dining room area. There is a fireplace in the corner of the room.
Upstairs bedrooms are average size. The master bedroom has a private full bath. Downstairs is a walkout basement and you enter the garage through the basement. You probably will have to put some money into the basement...I would have it checked for water damage/mold.
The home is priced well,I think, at $314900. Also have the hoa/condo fee. I talked to a for sale by owner down the street who is asking $425k. I didn't go inside. Maybe it is all granite all over the house,or everyhing top of the line.

2. 18704 Tanterra WAy "Brookville Knolls" 4 bedrooms,2.5 baths detached home on .25 acres of land. Flat land. Fenced yard in back. Garage + offstreet parking. Home is a contemporary.
Kitchen has lots of counter space. Nice view of front yard from kitchen. There is a seperate dining room area. Nice family room addition off kitchen with skylights. Private master bedroom. Seller is offering a home warranty (usually cover appliances).
So,I understand the home is asking higher than maybe you want to be at $365k. The questions are from a buyer standpoint,the benefits of a home with/ or without a condo fee/hoa fee--these fees are forever. Consider short term and long term costs and if it works. Single family home is also detached. Both homes have a garage. I wonder how much less the sellers would take since the kitchen does need to be updated...in good condition,but old.

3. 18519 Bowie Mill Rd. 4 bdrm,3 full bath. Large flat yard. Fenced yard. 1 car garage+ driveway space. NEw a/c 8/09 1st floor master bedroom with lare walk-in closet and private bath. Kitchen with maple cabinets. Asking $375k. Again I know above your range and like above. Consider costs of always having an hoa/condo fee verses not having one in your short term and long term costs
and it works.
Charming outside and inside.

http://www.olneymd.com/ = website about Olney

For more information and or questions about these homes and real estate in Olney,contact me today!



I am here to help and am anywhere you want to be in Metro DC

Adam



Adam Bashein, Realtor®
Licensed in MD & DC
301-943-4370 (cell)
adambashein@mris.com
301-718-4100 (office)
By the way, I am never too busy for any of your referrals

Weichert Realtors
7821 Tuckerman Lane
Potomac, MD 20854

Great news about Tax Credit for first time home buyers

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/05/AR2009110505439.html?referrer=emailarticle

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Giving referrals generates leads and increases your sphere of influence


What a small world. I called an out of town agent,in Massachusetts,to refer a potential home seller to him. The agent will pay me a commission for the referral if he gets the listing and upon a successful transaction. Very coincidentally he has a client moving to the Metro-DC area for a job and may be referring them to me. Unfortunately for his client,there seems to be a chemistry problem with the agent he was initially referred to. So, we'll see. I refer business because I believe in "giver's gain"...you can't get referrals without giving referrals.If you can't give,you won't get. A bonus as a realtor is that I earn commission even on out of town real estate transcations by referring them out.

By the way,I am never too busy for any of your referrals.


Make it a great day!

Adam
adambashein@mris.com
301-943-4370

Adam Bashein
Licensed in MD & DC

Weichert Realtors
7821 Tuckerman Lane
Potomac,MD 20854
301-718-4100 ext. 132

Enforcing lease terms and payment of rent


Many real estate investors/landlords rely on rental income to cover most if not all of their monthly mortgage payments and association fees. If they cannot command enough rent to cover these monthly expenses,they of course have to come out of the owner's(s') pocket(s).

Two issues I have been recently discussing with clients are the benefits of "oral leases" verses written leases and protecting yourself when your tenant(s)checks bounce.

I see very few upsides to oral leases. Everything is he said/she said,from what the tenant's rent is to how long the tenant's lease is. The benefit to a landlord might be that he/she can successfully kick a tenant out in a swifter manner than a written lease might say. But if a tenant wants to leave early,then he/she could probably leave quickly without recourse. Any arguments are he said she said.

Some landlords have told me that they do oral leases because their tenants tend to be month to month so the tenants will leave soon any way. They also argue that it takes too long/is too much of a hassle to do the paper work. I also hear,well the tenant is a friend/friend of a friend. Well,month to month tenants could end up renting longer than he/she/you anticipated. To beat the dead horse again an oral lease has no terms. Treat your investment like business and have things in writing whether you know your tenants or not. Don't let people take advantage of your kindness and being lax because of relationships.

Let's talk about rent. Most written leases drafted have a clause saying that if the rent check is late or if the rent check bounces,that the tenant owes X + the rent check. That is pretty basic and if your lease doesn't have that,make an addendum to your lease immediately. What many leases don't address are other potential consequences of rent check bouncing and/or being late. One bounced/late check can have several consequences. The landlord will pay a bounced check fee if the rent check doesn't clear...ok,that is covered by the lease clause on bounced checks.

What many leases don't address is if a tenant's bounced check/late check causes you to be late on paying your monthly expenses,such as mortgage (if there is one),HOA/condo fee (if there is one)and utility bills (if your tenant doesn't pay these),or if the bounced check causes any or all of these checks that you wrote to subsequentally bounce and you pay the fee for each of those bounced checks and the late fees charged by each company. You might want to talk with a real estate lawyer and/or property management company about adding such a clause to your leases.

So one remedy to avoid bounced checks is to require your tenant(s) to pay rent with a cashier's check/money order. I have never heard of a cashier's check/money order bouncing. Some people like to see their rent checks/touch the money. Ok. The downside is you still need to make a trip to the bank to deposit the check no matter how light or busy your schedule is. A negative about receiving rent checks in the mail...if you are out of town and your rent check comes in,you won't be able to deposit it until you get back to town and if your cash flow for making other monthly payments relies on the rent check,then you may fall behind on the other payments and that is nobody's fault but your own.

Another thing to consider is seting up a direct deposit/paypal for your tenants to pay your rent. Your tenant's(s')bank probably won't let him/her pay bills if there aren't sufficient funds in his/her account. This is certainly a good and efficient method of avoiding bounced checks,but you should still consider setting up a clause if their rent checking being late causes you to be late on other monthly expenses related to your property. The other benefit of having tenants make such a payment is that there is no argument on a late rent check that the mailman must have been slow on delivering my check to you because I mailed it out several days ago. You have online documentation of when the tenant(s) paid their rent. You just have to make sure your online account information is secure and you have to be careful about online identity theft and/or online hackers. But having online payments does save you time on going to the bank,depositing the check(s)if you are busy and/or out of town when the check arrives.

So,I suggest to all the landlords out there to always and forever use written leases,add terms to protect you in cases where a rent check is late or bounces where the terms go beyond one bounced check fee and determine the best/most efficient method for you to ensure that rent checks clear.

Make it a great day!

Adam
adambashein@mris.com
301-943-4370

Adam Bashein
Licensed in MD & DC

Weichert Realtors
7821 Tuckerman Lane
Potomac,MD 20854
301-718-4100 ext. 132