You are selling your Ocean City home or condo.  A prospective buyer inspects it, likes it, and decides to make an offer. You can depend on human nature. He will try to have you accept an offer lower than your asking price. This is a time to calm down and evaluate the offer.

Now what? First of all, if you are going to even consider an offer it must be in writing and signed. It must have a definite time limit, and it should be accompanied by a respectable amount of “good faith” money.  That amount will depend on the value of your home, the mortgage market and the buyer’s financial condition. Respect your Realtor’s advice on this subject.

Once these elements are fulfilled, it’s up to you to either accept his lower offer, reject it outright, or make a counter-offer to sell somewhere between the two. Just remember, if it’s not in writing and accompanied by a reasonable amount of money – taking your house off the market would be a poor judgment.

There is more to consider when you receive an offer than just the price and there are more ways to respond to any offer to buy your home than just a simple yes or no. Let your REALTOR do the negotiating. Please avoid speaking with the buyer directly.  Communicate your wishes to your agent so he or she can accurately represent your interests. By using your agent you can more freely speak your mind and much more easily express your emotions and frustrations without the risk of damaging the negotiations.  Don’t be afraid to ask questions.  Now, you hired a good REALTOR – let the negotiations begin!

Walk right out your back door to your privately deeded boat slip from your waterfront two bedroom condo located in the lovely community of Hidden Harbour. Notice that glimpse of Assawoman Bay? Newly renovated to include appliances, cabinetry, ceramic flooring, granite countertops and stereo  surround sound. Conveniently located within steps to the beach and Ocean City’s Northside Park.

Canal front boardwalk & outdoor community pools.

Offered At $299,900

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Perfect beach getaway! Affordable and easy to care for oceanfront efficiency at the High Point North Condominium. Newly replaced in 2008, kitchen cabinets, appliances, bathroom sink, light and shower doors.  Can accommodate up to 6 people. Large outdoor pool and oceanfront sun deck.  Offered at $169,900

So many buyers are taking advantage of interest rates at historic lows, either by re-structuring debt with a refinance or purchasing a new home or condominium.  However, the recent economic issues have created even tougher guidelines and credit requirements and there are some things that consumers must be aware of when applying for a loan.

A leading credit expert, Linda Ferrari, developed the top 10 credit don’ts during the loan process, to help you understand the loan transaction and those things that can unknowingly wreak havoc on your credit report.

1.    Don’t do anything that will cause a red flag to be raised by the scoring system

2.    Don’t apply for new credit of any kind

3.    Don’t pay off collections or charge offs

4.    Don’t max out or over charge on your credit card accounts

5.    Don’t consolidate your debt onto 1 or 2 credit cards

6.    Don’t close credit card accounts

7.    Don’t pay late

8.    Don’t allow any accounts to run past due-even one day!

9.    Don’t dispute anything on your credit report

10.Don’t lose contact with your mortgage and real estate professionals

A prepared educated borrower is a successful borrower!

1)   What exactly do the condo dues include?

2)   Is there adequate coverage on the master insurance policy?

3)   Does the condo association limit the size of, or prevent you from having pets?

4)   Are there any pending special assessments?

5)   Will you be able to obtain conventional financing?

6)   Are there any special policies regarding rentals?

7)   Is the condo association self managed or is there a paid management company?

8)   Are there a significant number of other owners not current on their condo dues, & how does that affect you?

9)   What is the difference between a common element and a limited common element?

10) What have been the recent sale prices of similar properties in the building?

There are many special considerations as you evaluate your purchase of a property that is held within a condominium regime.  You should always consult a real estate professional and get all the facts before making any final decisions.  Some states (Maryland included), have state statutes that protect the buyer with a Right of Rescission. These rescission periods generally kick in after the purchaser has had time to review all of the condominium documents. Make sure you know the laws in your state.

You may have seen today’s Inman News article reporting on the Senate’s approval of an amendment to a bill that would, among other things, provide for an extension of the June 30 closing deadline for buyers who took advantage of the federal government’s tax credit.

While the Senate has approved its version, differences with the House version must still be reconciled before the amendment can take effect.

This is certainly a positive development for those homebuyers who took advantage of the tax credit but who are having difficulty meeting the June 30 closing deadline due to the significant increase in activity for lenders, title agencies and other related services required for closing.

The amendment, should it be passed, provides an extension only to those whose homes were under contract by April 30, extending the deadline to close the transaction another three months to September 30. The amendment does not extend the benefits of the tax credit, but applies only to deals already in the pipeline.

My office will continue to monitor the progress of this important piece of legislation.

Harbour Club at Heron Harbour Isle in Ocean City…it doesn’t get much better then this! This beautifully decorated 2 Bdrm 2 Full Bath condo is just waiting for you. Lovely interior appointments plus vaulted ceilings for enhanced spacious appearance.  Large private courtyard. Harbour Club has a fabulous amenity package to include 2 outdoor pools, 1 indoor pool, a clubhouse w/ fitness center, saunas & meeting rooms, tennis courts & a beautiful bird sanctuary overlooking the bay and wetlands. Harbour Club has recently redone their exterior siding and added maintenance free railings.

Offered at: $249,900

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Bird Sanctuary

This meticulously maintained 2 bedroom 2 full bath Ocean City condo at Club Ocean Villas II is the perfect beach getaway! You enter your condo through your private front enclosed porch area, which has plenty of room for picnic table, lounge chairs and storage. You relax in the comfort of your fully furnished and equipped condo at the beach. The community has an outdoor and indoor pool for year round use. All this and you are just steps to the beach. Offered at $182,900.

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Join Devin Holland, of Mid-Atlantic Title Services, and myself as we discuss the new RESPA regulations which became effective 1/1/10 and how this effects a home or condominium purchaser.

Thank you Devin, for taking the time to talk with me.

Monica

It doesn’t mean doing whatever it takes to get a deal done.

It doesn’t mean undermining the very fundamentals of our profession just to line your own personal bank account.

It doesn’t mean trying to sell real estate outside of your area of expertise.

It doesn’t mean delivering poor customer service, but promising the sun, the moon and the stars to unsuspecting buyers and sellers.

I’ve been on this soapbox for a while.

My very first blog post addressed this issue.

Fortunately, there has been a resurgence of conversation surrounding our real estate community’s absolute need for change within our industry. As it stands now, most states require a bare minimum pre-licensing class, take a State administered test, and you have a real estate license. Oh, by the way newly minted real estate agent, congratulations, you are now qualified to help home buyer’s and sellers make decisions regarding possibly the single largest investment in their lives.

What other business can you start with no inventory, no operating capital (besides minimal dues), and only a 40/60 hr (whatever your state requires) time commitment? You pass a test you’re now a bona fide real estate professional. Sounds pretty bad huh… I think it is.

Here’s some of the changes that I think need to occur:

First and foremost have higher admission standards. Require a minimum of a Bachelor’s degree to qualify for a license. You could take classes working towards your real estate license while attending college, or if you already have a degree, and now want to obtain your real estate license, we should then have in place higher pre-licensing requirements. Let’s mandate that those choosing to enter our career (and I call it a career) make a real commitment to learning and understanding the field they are entering. Also, for those that are already in the business, we need to increase the continuing education requirements in order to keep your license.

Getting a real estate license should not happen by default. In too many instances that is the case. In my market, for example, there are many licensees who have retired or left other jobs, re-located, and then decide they’ll “sell a little real estate” part time for a little extra cash. Isn’t that scary? When that individual brings me an offer on one of my listings, I cringe. Inevitably, they are at best, ill prepared, and have presented an improperly executed offer to purchase. I find myself doing their job, because they are clueless. This person is not best representing their customer or client, and furthermore, these kinds of stories continue to feed the public perception of our industry.

I’ll go on. Once you have met the educational requirements and earned a license, there now needs to be supervision of this person who has just been turned loose as an agent. State mandated programs, administrated by the Broker of Record would be appropriate. A Broker must have a pre-approved instructional program in place to educate this new licensee. There is so much more to selling real estate that is not covered in our current day pre-licensing courses.

Let’s talk specialization and different levels of qualifications. We must train in specific areas; i.e – foreclosures, short sales, commercial real estate, 2nd home ownership, investment properties, farm properties, condominiums, industrial properties, leaseholds, etc. etc. We don’t want a licensee who is not qualified, to be able to list, sell and/or lease any type of property they want. There should be a system in place to have mandatory educational requirements in order to work, and represent yourself as a “specialist” in a given area of expertise. Yes, I know there are GRI, CRS, CCIM and so on. But we are not required to have these designations to sell or lease properties within these different speciality markets.

Ok, enough, you get my point. With the ever changing economic climate, and the uncertainty of our housing market, we have to enact stronger guidelines. We need highly trained real estate professionals, who can offer sound advice and guidance to home buyers and sellers. We have to position and empower our National, State and Local Boards, as well as the Departments of Licensing Regulation in order to “Raise The Bar” in our industry.

We need to deliver truly AMAZING service in order to thrive and survive!