Highlights
Buying a house, condo or other real estate the largest and most complex purchase most Americans will ever make -- remains a huge part of the economy. In 2007, a dismal time for the business, about 6.3 million housing transactions occurred in the United States, according to the Realtor's trade group. But the market has taken a serious body blow in recent years. The National Association of Realtors predicted the sales of existing homes in 2007 would be 10.8 percent below 2006. Sales of new homes were expected to be at the lowest level in a decade. The Internet has made it much easier for a layperson to locate properties that fit their needs and budget. As a result, while about 90 percent of tr...
Buying a house, condo or other real estate the largest and most complex purchase most Americans will ever make -- remains a huge part of the economy. In 2007, a dismal time for the business, about 6.3 million housing transactions occurred in the United States, according to the Realtor's trade group. But the market has taken a serious body blow in recent years. The National Association of Realtors predicted the sales of existing homes in 2007 would be 10.8 percent below 2006. Sales of new homes were expected to be at the lowest level in a decade. The Internet has made it much easier for a layperson to locate properties that fit their needs and budget. As a result, while about 90 percent of transactions involve a real estate agent, the rest were simply buyers and sellers hooking up independently. By-owner sales are popular among many people, in part because it saves on commissions. But even more buyers favor using a real estate agent who has the expertise and time to negotiate the complex processes. It may be obvious that no purchase in your life will ever be as crucial, but the good news is that it does not have to be as intimidating as you think. The single best piece of advice is not to let the big numbers and the jargon unnerve you. Simple, easy-to-understand step-by-step advice and instructions are available in literally hundreds of books in the library, on-line articles and websites (enter the words "real estate tips" and "selling" or "buying" in any search engine). Most give the exact same information although each may have a bit of a bias such as favoring by-owner or using a Realtor. Other significant advice: have patience; this can often be a long process and time usually is on your side. Trust your instincts; if a deal seems too good to be true, there's often a reason. Believe in options; just like buying a used car, there is always another house out there. Buying a home is essentially a lengthy parade of complex decisions, starting with whether this is the right time to be making a transaction. But the websites and books lay out the specific criteria you can use to make an informed judgment call rather than just making a blind guess. For buyers, the process includes finding out precisely how much you can spend on a house without destroying your standard of living; locating financing; identifying a large array of potential homes so you are not focused on one choice; visiting, inspecting and evaluating properties; negotiating a deal, and closing the deal.
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Good afternoon, Baltimore: Friday lunchtime lowdown
ON THE SITE... Job growth stumbles, raising pressure on Fed: Job growth braked sharply in May and the unemployment rate rose for the first time in 11 months, to 8.2 percent. Weezer to headline Charm City Music Festival: Baltimore, no stranger to niche...Tags: Baltimore County, Festive Events, Woodlawn (Baltimore, Maryland), Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, Baltimore Weather
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Dollars and scents
On the wave of unwanted publicity over unruly youths downtown, owners of businesses around the Inner Harbor were probably none too thrilled to have the smell of dead fish wafting through the air last weekend. Naturally, they brushed it off as having no...
Tags: Seafood, Natural Resources, Food Industry, Wildlife, Foods and Beverages
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Baltimore-area housing market sees bidding wars return as buyers' choices shrink
David D. Igla lost out on three Ellicott City homes in the past few months before he finally beat the competition and had an offer accepted.
What kind of so-called buyer's market is this, he wondered?
Some houses zip off the market —...Tags: Rentals, Mortgages, Real Estate, Property, Real Estate Sellers
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Housing forums to discuss FHA financing issue for condo associations
Howard County Housing is hosting three community forums this month beginning Thursday with housing professionals to discuss the growing problem of condo associations loosing Federal Housing Administration financing. "Condominiums are often a first time...Tags: Interior Policy, Housing and Urban Planning, Real Estate, Federal Housing Administration, Ellicott City
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'Mad Men' selling ... homes?
The lexicon of real estate listing language has many terms for putting a positive spin on features the average buyer wouldn't like. "Bold" for the orange-and-green themed condo. "Cute" for the house decorated for princess-loving preadolescents. Now...
Tags: Real Estate
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Council passes bill aimed at helping condo buyers
The County Council Monday unanimously passed a bill that will prohibit a property owner from obtaining a county rental license if they are more than 30 days behind on their condominium association or homeowner association fees. "The key is that we want...Tags: Rentals, Ethics, Real Estate, Finance, Federal Housing Administration
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The investor: Business in, and of, The Sun
My first memories of The Baltimore Sun go back to 1982, when my wife and I were planning to move to Baltimore from Massachusetts. In the days before the Internet, home buyers turned to The Sun's classified ads to get their arms around the range of housing...
Tags: Mortgages, T. Rowe Price, Finance, Real Estate, Super Bowl
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Nonprofit plans to rehab 500 city homes
A North Carolina nonprofit group launched an ambitious affordable housing program Friday to rehabilitate 500 vacant or foreclosed homes in Baltimore near Johns Hopkins Hospital — an area with desolate stretches in the shadow of the world-renowned...Tags: East Baltimore Development Inc., Rentals, Land Resources, Hospitals and Clinics, Natural Resources
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Howard Co. housing director faces range of challenges in a tough economic climate
Howard County housing director Tom Carbo can tick off plenty of reasons to live in Howard County — good schools, safe neighborhoods, relatively easy commutes to Baltimore and Washington. But when the time came for him to purchase a home for his...Tags: Rentals, Real Estate, Finance, Property, Family
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Lawmakers gird for renewed debate on lead poisoning
With efforts to reduce lead poisoning among children at a crossroads, Maryland lawmakers are wrestling with proposals to expand state regulation of home sales, rentals and repairs to reduce youngsters' exposure to the toxic metal.
But the biggest...Tags: Rentals, Lawyers, Home Improvement, Trials, Prince George's County
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Baltimore-area home sales, contracts rose in February
Baltimore-area home buyers picked up the pace in February ahead of the important spring selling season, helped along by unseasonably mild weather.
Real estate agents say they're seeing more activity and hope it's a good sign for spring, rather than...Tags: Rentals, Real Estate, Real Estate Sellers, Computing and Information Technology Industry, Crossroads
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Joining the affordable-housing movement
Mike Posko was building a house with Habitat for Humanity International — in Nepal — when the Baltimore-area affiliate emailed him late last year to ask him to come in for an interview.
He got the job.
Posko, who took over as Habitat for...Tags: Mortgages, Real Estate, Finance, Nepal, Foreclosures
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Mar 25, 2012
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