Towsontown Spring Festival 2012

The Towsontown Spring Festival Saturday and Sunday May 5 & 6, 2012!

It is the 45th Annual celebration, and this year should be as fun-filled as ever!

It begins this Thursday, May 3, with Towson Gardens Day from 10-3pm, followed by the “Beach Bumz” free concert from 5-7pm.

Friday, May 4 showcases a free concert with “Uncle Jack” from 5:30-9pm.

Saturday 10-7 and Sunday 1-7 showcase the main events with the Family Fun area with moon bounces, carnival games & more for a price, as well as the area with pony rides & petting zoo for additional fun. New this year is the “tween” area with spider climb, obstacle course & more.

The 98 Rock beer & wine garden is back for the adults, as well as the Mix 106.5 Court Plaza beer & wine garden and sound stage.

Live music will be showcased on the stages throughout the weekend for a $2 per person fee.

For very little money, you can enjoy so much that the Towsontown Spring Festival has to offer! Come to Downtown Towson & enjoy this weekend!

944 Walnutwood New Washer and Dryer

944 Walnutwood Road in Hunt Valley Station has another NEW fantastic reason to buy. BRAND NEW Whirlpool Steam Washer & Dryer were installed Thursday, April 26, 2012!

The seller loves them already — and is sad to part with them!

They only take up part of the good sized laundry room that already has plenty of counter and cabinet space built-in!

944 Walnutwood Rd is a fantastic home, listed for a fantastic price (lowest on the market in the Huntington Manor Glen,) with a FANTASTIC master bathroom that you just can’t miss.

For more information or to make an appointment, please contact me. This is such a wonderful Hunt Valley home!

 

Baltimore Star Spangled Sailabration

Baltimore will be hosting its’ first air show as part of the Star Spangled Sailabration June 13-19, 2012.

The Star Spangled Sailabration revolves around 40 tall ships coming into the Inner Harbor, beginning the National launch of the Bicentennial of the War of 1812! You will be able to have free tours of the tall ships, Harborfront activities, and the premiere of a new song by Philip Glass, the “Overture of 2012.”

The celebration coincides with Flag Day, which is June 14.

The Blue Angels will be heading the Baltimore Air Show, which should be both Saturday & Sunday afternoons, June 16 & 17. The time is currently TBD. There will be a concert and fireworks at Fort McHenry on Saturday night!

The Sailabration Village in the Inner Harbor is planning to showcase hands-on kids activities, international culinary goodies from the Tall Ship chefs, as well as performances from the countries’ embassies represented by the Tall Ships. More details are on the 200th Celebration site.

Don’t miss this exciting event in Downtown Baltimore this June. It should be spectacular!

Photo courtesy of ojbyrne via Flickr CC

Five Possible Issues with Lowball Offers in Baltimore Real Estate

The market for the past few years has been on the buyers’ sides, so it isn’t surprising to have seen some lowball offers.

Recently, the market has been changing in places, and a lowball offer may affect a buyer in ways they had not thought of before. Trulia wrote a post about five facts to consider, and they are good ones. Here is my take on those five things to consider.

1) Understand the Market Temperature. What does this mean? Well, if the market is on a downturn, then a lower offer may not be unreasonable, because the market is showing that it is declining. If list prices are up, as are contract prices, take note. You can be sure the seller has been watching what is happening around them!

2) Use Comparable Homes to Decide on Offer Price. Is there a home that looks similar? What did that home have? The kitchen was original? The basement unfinished? If the home you are considering has granite counters, beautiful cabinets, hardwood floors, and a finished basement, then that house should be worth more than the one that needs all of that work done.

3) Time. How long has the house been on the market? How long has the buyer been looking? If the house has not been on the market for a long period of time, the seller may feel that their asking price is right.

4) Sellers are Human. What if the seller feels their house is priced correctly for the market, and a buyer offers a very low price? How do you think the seller would feel? Unhappy? Offended? Very possibly. If a buyer truly feels the house is worth much less than the seller’s asking price, then they should demonstrate why.

5) The Buyer May Never Get The House. If a seller feels slighted or offended, keep in mind #4 — sellers are human. Might that offense mean the seller won’t work with that buyer? Possibly. And they may sell to someone else who offers more up front, even if they negotiate to where you would have come up to.

Sellers don’t have to counteroffer. They can reject an offer outright.

A buyer should understand the market and what is happening, and a buyer’s agent can help guide them through the process by sharing facts and statistics.

For more information on a specific area of Baltimore real estate, please contact me. I would be happy to help!

 

*Please note, if you are under contract or working with another agent, I cannot be involved in that situation! Thank you!*

 

944 Walnutwood Rd Hunt Valley Open House

944 Walnutwood Rd in Hunt Valley’s Huntington Manor subsection of Hunt Valley Station, is a beautiful townhouse in a convenient location.

It has three bedrooms and two full baths upstairs, while the walk-out lower level has another bedroom and full bath.

This wonderful Hunt Valley townhouse will be open this Sunday, April 29, 2012 from 12-2pm.

For a sneak peek before visiting on Sunday, here is a slideshow of the house, area and local amenities!

We hope to see you at 944 Walnutwood Rd in Hunt Valley this Sunday!

230 Chantrey Road Timonium Rancher Open House

230 Chantrey Road is a lovely ranch home located in the popular Springlake community in Timonium.

This Timonium single family home has newly redone hardwood floors, a beautiful kitchen, and updates galore!

It will be open to the public this Sunday, April 29, 2012 from 12-2pm.

Enjoy this slideshow of photos!

Come visit 230 Chantrey Rd in Timonium this weekend. A wonderful home ready for new owners!

Possible New Zoning at Colony at Kenilworth

The Colony at Kenilworth apartments in Towson may get larger, if the company who owns it has their say in changing their zoning.

The Kenilworth Drive apartments are currently zoned residential, and if they are able to change, would have 4.5 acres of business, plus 8.5 acres of higher density apartments (40 per acre instead of the current 16 per acre), and 3.5 acres of the residential. This could potentially bring tall, high rise buildings into the Towson neighborhood, where even the Shops at Kenilworth remain low to the ground.

This could increase traffic tremendously, on a road that is already very highly trafficked and in disrepair (and has been under construction for some time.)

Final votes on zoning change request are May 3, 2012.

If you are concerned with the possibility of taller buildings and less trees in this Towson neighborhood, please make sure to contact County Councilman David Marks, (here is link to his Baltimore County site) to let him know you do not agree with the potential up-zoning of the Colony at Kenilworth.

Please also contact Ms. Nancy Hafford of the Towson Chamber of Commerce (see link for phone number and email,) who is a planning board member and did not make the request a separate issue at the zoning work session last week, so it was able to pass without issue. Let her know you do not support this zoning change.

Any zoning change would have to be approved by the County Council, according to the Towson Patch article. Make sure the County Council hears your concerns!

Parkville Home Sales March 2012

Parkville home sales showed both positive and negative signs in March 2012.

Total home sales were up 8.4% to $8,698,688 sold. The average sales price, however, was down 11.31% to $158,158.

Ten more homes sold this March, for a total of 55 homes changing hands. Thirty-seven of those homes were detached, single family homes, with sales prices averaging $165,565, a drop of 20.54%, while townhouse average sales price actually rose 10.92% to $142,933.

There were 260 homes for sale last month, a drop of 28.57% from the same period last year. Ninety-five homes came on the market in March, while 8o homes went under contract.

The mixed numbers hopefully show that the Parkville real estate market is beginning to stabilize. There are still a number of short sales and foreclosures in Parkville, which is most likely the reason for the lower average sales price.

Here is a link to the detailed report on Parkville home sales March 2012.

For more details on your Parkville house value, please contact me. I would be happy to guide you!

Quarry Lake Spring and Garden Show 2012

Quarry Lake is having a Spring and Garden show this Sunday, April 22, 2012 from 11-6.

There will be flowers and garden vendors, as well as a children’s area with face painting, moon bounce, and more.

Food & wine will be available, as well as arts and crafts vendors.

Antique cars will be on display, a DJ will be spinning tunes, and a karaoke contest will happen at 2pm!

Add onto that a magician, Karate demonstrations, and a youth performing arts show, and there is something for everyone.

Visit Quarry Lake right off Greenspring Avenue, exit 22 off 695 this Sunday. Even without the show, there are a number of wonderful stores in the shopping plaza. From Amuse Toys to California Tortilla, Quarry Wines to Fresh Market, Starbucks to Rite Aid, this a convenient location for many!

Johns Hopkins University Spring Fair 2012

The Johns Hopkins University Spring Fair 2012 is this weekend, April 20-22.

It is a student-run fair, and is for both the University and the Baltimore community!

There is a large Kids section with games, arts & crafts, and educational activities. There will also be the Monkey Man, a bounce house, the Maryland Zoo Mobile, reptile fun, a magician and more!

There are events happening throughout the weekend for kids and adults alike. A beer garden awaits those 21 & older, and there will be musical performances, museum shopping, and contests. There are over 30 food vendors to enjoy, as well as arts and crafts sellers as well.

Visit their website to find details on what is happening, where, and when!

The Johns Hopkins Spring Fair runs Friday. April 20 from 12-8pm, Saturday April 21 from 10am-8pm, and Sunday, April 22 from 10am-6pm.

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