It’s that time of year again when summer begins to unfold on our calendars. A favorite family event for many Crofton area residents is the Sunday evening concert series at the Crofton Village Green. Here’s the schedule for 2013:

June 2 –  Pocket Change –  Formed in 1997 by a group of music teachers. Their easy listening music including Big Band, Latin, Oldies Rock and Roll, Swing, and Standards 

June 23 –  Big Band Caliente – An 18 piece jazz band reminiscent of the Cuban Big Bands in the 40’s and 50’s, performing traditional and modern jazz with a Latin twist. 

June 30 –  Tom Lagana Group – A protege of legendary jazz guitarist Charlie Byrd, Tom and his band perform jazz standards and more.

July 7 –  Annapolis Bluegrass Coalition – Thrilling audiences with their unique blend of traditional and contemporary bluegrass music.. 

July 14 –  Ruth Capobianco – A solo vocal artist performing cabaret music.

Bring your lawn chairs or blanket, bug spray and cold drinks, and enjoy this very special Crofton tradition.

Reminders for each of the Crofton summer concerts will be posted on Crofton News and Views on Facebook during the week preceding the event, so be sure to “Like” this Facebook page. 

Published originally on Activerain.

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The photos of any listing are extremely important to its sale because most of today’s buyers will see the home online first.  Buyers are looking for a house with the potential to become their home… one where they can easily imagine living. We can’t count on them to mentally remove clutter from photos so they can picture themselves and their families using the space. This must be done before the photos are taken. 

Just spend 10 minutes looking at random MLS photos, and it’s not hard to find examples of “what not to do.” 

The camera can only photograph what it sees, so I encourage my clients in the Crofton MD area to follow these suggestions for a photo-ready home.

Click on this link for a complete list of my suggestions
and readers’ comments published on Activerain.com

Preparing your home for sale and photos can be time-consuming, but there’s probably nothing more important to a home sale except pricing.

Three of my last four Crofton area listings sold to buyers who saw the homes online within 24 hours of listing. I don’t believe it’s a coincidence that the sellers of these homes did nearly everything I asked to make their homes photo-ready for these buyers.

Copyright 2006-13.  All rights reserved

“How will I find open houses?” you might ask, since most of us no longer subscribe to the daily or Sunday local newspaper. Well, you could always drive around and look for Open House signs, but it may help to start out with this list of local Open Houses scheduled for tomorrow, Sunday, April 21, 2013.

The lowest price home on this list is located on Simsbury Ct in Stonehaven Mews, off Nantucket Drive near Nantucket Elementary.  It just happens to be my listing so, of course, I encourage you to start with this home.  It’s like new, having been rebuilt after a grease fire in 2012. Just take a look at this beautiful kitchen!  Better yet, stop in between 1–4 p.m. and introduce yourself to hostess Beth McCloy.

CROFTON:

• 1013 Simsbury Ct –  $239,900
• 1747 Kingsgate Dr – $250,000
• 2087 Lower Ct –  $499,000
• 2325 Seabury Dr –  $534,960
• 1803 Chaneys Grant Ct – $557,900
• 2433 Chelmsford Dr –  $565,000

DAVIDSONVILLE:

• 3402 Lynchburg Ct –  $393,000
• 1271 Lavall Dr –  $625,000
• 3752 Tanglewood Lane –  $800,000
• 1004 Howard Grove Ct –  $815,000
• 1409 Monforte Dr –  $1,295,000

GAMBRILLS:

• 634 Highland Farms Cir –  $412,990
• 1104 Flower Tree Ct –  $349,000
• 1002 Duckett Farm Way –  $899,990

ODENTON:

• 856 Thicket Ct –  $439,000
• 1391 Odenton Rd –  $500,000
• 853 Thicket Ct –  $500,000
• 801 Cortland Ct –  $549,990

If you’re unable to attend the open house tomorrow but would like to see one of these homes, contact me for an appointment later in the week.

Source:  MRIS

Crofton Home Sales Up Over Last Month

Real estate market data for Crofton, Maryland, provided by Margaret Woda, of Long & Foster Real Estate, Inc.

Home sales during March were up more than 8% from February, but down quite a bit from March 2012.  

Days on market is another indicator of the real estate market and this number was up 80% from February but down nearly 40% from March 2012. In fact, the days on market haven’t been lower than this any March since 2006.  

Crofton home prices were down last month, whether you compared them with the previous month or the same month a year ago. This may be due, at least in part, to the lower average price for new Crofton listings during the same month.

These mixed signals indicate that the market is alive and well, but not showing any convincing trends in spite of some quick sales and a few bidding wars. One trend, however, is the listing inventory in Crofton MD, which has been trending down over the past the past 2 years, as you can see in this chart:

SUMMARY OF THE CROFTON REAL ESTATE MARKET:

Home Owners, a shrinking inventory is good for you because buyers have fewer choices. If this continues, home owners can anticipate more competition for the existing inventory, likely leading to improved home values. Don’t look for 2005 home prices, however, because any return to that level is unlikely in the immediate future.   

Home Buyers, a smaller inventory means you’ll be competing with other buyers for fewer homes. It’s important for you to have a loan pre-approval before you begin your home search, and to work with an agent who is an experienced negotiator.

If you’re interested in knowing what’s on the market now in Crofton, you can find that information by clicking on the computer image.

To find out what you home is worth in the current market, contact me today.

Approximately 10% of the homes sold in 2013 will be purchased by boomerang buyers –people who lost their homes in the past five years. In fact, nearly a half million boomerang buyers will purchase a home this year and several million more will in the next eight years. This activity will likely contribute significantly to the housing recovery.

Some experts expected the housing crisis to cause a shift toward renting but boomerang buyers don’t support that theory. They still believe the American Dream includes home ownership. Rising rents, increasing home prices and low mortgage interest rates are further fueling their return into the housing market. In many areas, including the Baltimore-Washington-Annapolis triangle, it is often less expensive monthly to own than to rent.

If you, or someone you know, has lost a home to foreclosure or a short sale, it’s a good idea to consult with a mortgage lender to find out if you qualify now to purchase again. It may not take as long to reestablish credit as you expected.

If you’re selling a home in the Crofton area, ask your agent how the marketing plan for your home targets boomerang buyers.

Read more about Bidding Wars This Spring, Spring’s Wild Card and Boomerang Buyers.

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