Are You a House Flipper? Take This FREE Class in Millersville, Maryland

There's a lot more to "flipping" houses than most people realize. Unless you're an all-cash buyer, one of the biggest hurdles to overcome is securing funding for your renovation project. If you'd like to learn more about the basics of financing for real estate investors, CHARTER TITLE and KELLER WILLIAMS FLAGSHIP OF MARYLAND are holding a FREE CLASS on the subject tomorrow, Feb. 3. The class will cover:

- finance options for investors;

- ideal property types;

- equity based loans;

- seller financing and seller second loans; and

- commercial financing options.

The class will be held in the Keller Williams Flagship office training room, 1111 Benfield Blvd., Suite 250, Millersville, Maryland, 21108. Class time is 10 am until 11:30 am, and light breakfast refreshments will be served.

For more information on the class, or on investment property purchases in general. contact Jerry Kline, Realtor, Keller Williams Flagship of Maryland, at (443) 924-7418.

Hope to see you there!

Sold in Odenton Maryland's Lions Gate Neighborhood!

542 Greencrest Lane in Odenton Maryland

Congratulations to my seller clients, Jo Ann & Robert King, on the sale of their townhome in Odenton's Lions Gate community, located five minutes south of Fort Meade, Maryland. The home, featuring three finished levels, a two-level deck and a quiet location in the back of the neighborhood, sold in four days for $11,000 more than the asking price. There were multiple bids submitted by interested parties.

Sold as a fixer-upper, the new owners will be replacing the carpet and appliances and repainting much of the interior. The home includes three good-sized bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths, a fenced yard and a stone patio.

Thanks for all your help and patience through the home sale process, Robert and Jo Ann!

If you or someone you know needs help buying or selling a home in the greater Annapolis/Baltimore/Washington, D.C. area, call Jerry Kline, realtor with Keller Williams Flagship of Maryland today! (443) 924-7418

A Look at New-Construction Townhomes in the Fort Meade, Maryland, Area

Nearly a Dozen New Townhome Communities Are Being Built Within Five Minutes of This Key Federal Intelligence Hub

Home buyers searching for new homes in the greater Fort Meade, Maryland, area have a wide array of properties to choose from at the moment. In terms of townhomes in the areas of Odenton, Severn and Hanover, there are nearly a dozen new-home construction communities underway, with several of the big national home builders fighting for market share.

In Severn, just east of Fort Meade and adjacent to the installation’s Rockenbach gate, there are four major new construction townhome communities being built. All are less than a five-minute drive from Fort Meade. They are:

Community

Built by

Price Range

Millstone Village

D.R. Horton

$302K - $404K

Boyer’s Ridge

Lennar

$308K - $404K

Jacob’s Forest

M/I Homes

$289K - $319K

Jacob’s Forest

Beazer

$292K - $334K

Arundel Forest

Toll Brothers

$435K - $500K

In Hanover, just north of Fort Meade, there’s also lots of new construction activity. The building boom there is being fueled by continued job growth at the Fort Meade installation as well as by the recently opened Maryland Live Casino at Hanover’s Arundel Mills Mall. The Hanover new-construction townhome communities include:

Community

Built by

Price Range

Park Side

Ryan Homes

$327K - $402K

Park Side

NV Homes

$399K - $422K

Oxford Square

Lennar

$400K - $461K

Enclave at Arundel Preserve

Toll Brothers

$417K - $447K

Several other new townhome communities also are being built around Fort Meade. Adjacent to Fort Meade to the south is Odenton, a very popular location for military and civilian employees working at the base. The Town Center Commons community, being built by Ryan Homes, is less than a mile from the base and sits on Maryland’s MARC commuter rail line. The Odenton MARC Station provides direct access to the Penn Line, a heavily used commuter line for workers and students travelling to Baltimore and Washington, D.C., each day. The MARC system connects directly to AMTRAK, providing easy train access to the entire northeastern U.S. corridor.

Finally, in Elkridge, Maryland, a few miles northwest of Fort Meade, Ryan Homes is building its Howard Square luxury townhome community. The community is located near the intersections of Interstate 95 (with direct access to Baltimore and Washington), Rt. 1 and Rt. 175. New townhomes in that community range from $309K to $393K.

Given the wide variety of new townhome choices in the greater Fort Meade, Maryland, area, home buyers are best served by a realtor familiar with these specific projects. Jerry Kline of Keller Williams Flagship of Maryland, based in Odenton, has helped many buyers compare and contrast these communities, builders, home models and amenities. Contact him today for more help choosing just the right home near Fort Meade.

Jerry Kline is a Realtor with the Odenton, Md., office of Keller Williams Flagship Realty (1216 Annapolis Rd., Odenton.) For more information on the local real estate market, contact him at (443) 924-7418.

A Closer Look at Recent Home Sales in Odenton's Piney Station Neighborhood

Piney Station is one of many smaller neighborhoods comprising the large and popular Piney Orchard section of Odenton, Maryland. The charming group of 200+ townhomes that makes up Piney Station is directly adjacent to the well-used and multifaceted GORC Park.

I recently took an in-depth look at the real estate microclimate of Piney Station townhomes without garages. Overall, 2014 was a worse year for these Piney Station home sellers than 2013.

Based on MLS data for these homes sold over the past two years, here’s what I found: - 8 Piney Station townhomes without garages sold in 2013; - 7 such homes sold in Piney Station in 2014; - In 2014, the average sale price of these homes was $328,285; - In 2013, the average sale price of these homes was $329,875; - The average amount of closing assistance provided by the sellers of these homes to their buyers in 2014 was $7,024 (2.13%); - The average amount of closing assistance provided by the sellers of these homes to their buyers in 2013 was $5,964 (1.8%); - The average “closing price minus seller help” amount netted by sellers in 2014 was $321,261; - The average “closing price minus seller help” amount netted by sellers in 2013 was $323,911; - The average number of days these sold homes stayed on the market in 2014 was 65 days; and - The average number of days these sold homes stayed on the market in 2013 was 29 days.

As 2015 began, 2507 Black Oak Way and 2480 Ivy Landing Way were the only Piney Station homes for sale without garages.

For more information on the Piney Orchard community and other homes in the greater Odenton and Fort Meade areas, contact Jerry Kline, Realtor, Keller Williams Flagship of Maryland, at (443) 924-7418.

2014 in review

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2014 annual report for this blog.

Here's an excerpt:

A San Francisco cable car holds 60 people. This blog was viewed about 1,300 times in 2014. If it were a cable car, it would take about 22 trips to carry that many people.

Click here to see the complete report

The Cliftons Complete Their Pasadena, Md., Home Purchase

Pasadena Home Sales

Robert and Alicia Clifton completed the purchase of their new Pasadena, Md., home Dec. 22, just in time to move in for Christmas. The Cliftons relocated to the central Maryland area from Georgia to accommodate Robert's new assignment with the Coast Guard.

Avid boating enthusiasts, the Cliftons selected a large single family home with a 3-acre wooded lot, just a stone's throw from the water and a marina. Congratulations on your new home, Robert & Alicia, and thanks for allowing me to help you with the search and purchase!

If you know someone looking to buy or sell a home in the Baltimore/Washington/Annapolis area, call me at 443-924-7418. I'll be glad to help!

Congratulations Sharon George on the Sale of Your Piney Orchard Condo!

Sharon George needed help selling her mother's condo in the Piney Orchard section of Odenton, Md. The ground floor unit in Chestnut Gable was bright, airy and completely renovated. Staged beautifully, priced right and effectively marketed, the home sold very quickly. Thanks, Sharon, for all your good humor and teamwork!

Do you know someone thinking of buying or selling a home in the greater central Maryland area? Have them give me a call on my direct line (443) 924-7418. I'd be glad to help them any way I can!

Jerry Kline Named Keller Williams Odenton Agent of the Month for November

Many thanks to my buyer and seller clients who closed their real estate transactions in November -- among them Randy Barth, Mike & Melissa Fletcher, and David & Isabella White. All of you could have chosen any real estate agent out there, and I very much appreciate the trust you put in me to get your goals accomplished. Thanks, also, to all of the agents in the Keller Williams Odenton office. You're all great friends and you’re always there when I need help!

November Housing Stats for Gambrills: Sales Steady, Prices Down

Year-over-year housing figures for Gambrills, Md., show that the number of homes sold in the area last month remained on par with the number of homes sold in November 2013. However, the median price of those homes dropped 18 percent from last year.

Moreover, the homes sold in Gambrills last month stayed on the market much longer than the year before.

According to data prepared by RealEstate Business Intelligence, the average price of detached single family homes sold in Gambrills in November dropped 16 percent from last year. The average price of attached homes, which include townhomes, condominiums and duplexes, dipped 29 percent.

The number of homes actively for sale in Gambrills in November (67) was roughly the same as the prior year (62). However, homes sold last month took 58 percent longer to sell than last year. The average “Days on Market” was 106 days in November 2014, up from 67 days in November 2013.

Overall, 14 homes sold in Gambrills in November 2014, compared to 13 over the same period last year. Ten of the homes sold last month were detached properties and four were attached homes.

Jerry Kline is a Realtor with the Odenton, Md., office of Keller Williams Flagship Realty (1216 Annapolis Rd., Odenton.) For more information on the local real estate market, contact him at (443) 924-7418.

Odenton, Md., Home Prices, Sales Slumped in November

Number of Homes Sold Dropped 29 Percent; Median Prices Down 8 Percent

November brought a steep drop in temperatures to Odenton and nearby Ft. Meade, Md., and along with the cold weather came a corresponding chill in the local real estate market.

Year-over-year housing numbers show that fewer homes sold in Odenton in November 2014 than in the previous November. Average home prices here dropped and homes took longer to sell.

Median home prices in zip code 21113 dropped 8 percent, from $305,000 to $280,000. The number of homes that were sold fell 29 percent, from 38 to 27. And the average number of days those homes stayed on the market rose 18 percent, from 45 days to 53 days.

Last month also saw a 20 percent jump in the total number of homes listed for sale in Odenton compared to the previous November (147 homes versus 122 homes).

The number of detached single family homes sold in Odenton took the biggest hit, dropping 53 percent, from 15 homes to seven. Similarly, the median sale price of those homes plunged 36 percent from the same time last year.

Attached homes, which include townhomes, condominiums and duplexes, fared a little better by comparison. Average prices of attached homes sold in Odenton dropped 4 percent over the previous year, while the number of attached units sold dropped from 23 to 20.

The housing data was issued by RealEstate Business Intelligence.

Jerry Kline is a Realtor with the Odenton, Md., office of Keller Williams Flagship Realty (1216 Annapolis Rd., Odenton.) For more information on the local real estate market, contact him at (443) 924-7418.