Washington DC Regional Real Estate Information
Our website has been selected as Realty Times' "Site of the Day" for 04/20/2012.
You may use this address anytime in the future to refer back to this selection as "Site of the Day":
http://realtytimes.com/rtpages/20120420_siteoftheday.htm
Use after 4/20/12
We just launched a new comprehensive Ciment Team web site, www.ciment.com, with advanced real estate tools and information resources that provides expanded search of the MLS/MRIS and the ability to view full listings, photos and virtual tours. As in our prior web site, My Listings tab has all that plus, disclosure forms and brochures.
Our new site provides the ability to print out full listings brochures with all the photos for ANY listing in the MRIS! A major new site feature is the real-time access to Montgomery County data from the MRIS for your: neighborhood, subdivision, condo, or city. The site has integrated our Daily Market Snapshot Reports and updates for county-wide Active and Sold data for City/Zip Code/Subdivisions/Condos of your interest. Please note, the latter (sold) reports are generally unavailable and particularly difficult to construct for subdivisions and condos.
In the Home Sales tab we have integrated our own innovative search tool, Validate Property, that allows you to input any address (or MLS #) and check its entire history in the MLS/MRIS in real time. This is a very quick research tool and is the most up-to-date MRIS search anywhere! Please check out our new site and we would love to get your feedback. In particular, if you want some searches or reports not shown, feel free to contact us with your suggestions or ideas and we will try to help out.
As a Buyer Agent, I am exhausted/happy to report that I haven't been this busy in months! I have eleven active buyers working with me now….and, in the past 2 weeks, five have written offers and are now under contract! I am also keeping track of potential buyers who "dropped out" of the market during the slow fall and winter….I want them to know that with interest rates at all-time lows and inventory in short supply, we can sell their current home and find a new property that meets their requirements…so waiting isn't a good strategy!
My big problem is lack of inventory. Everything that is well-priced and in good condition is selling so quickly that many times, when I call to arrange a showing, the house is already under contract! I have to suggest to my buyers that if they like a house….write, write, write before someone else snatches it away! Reminder: don't even bother to write an offer without a good, strong pre-approval letter from a lender.
Despite the hot market activity, I am still negotiating price and condition. The house has to be priced "right" and in very good condition to attract a quick offer. Also, we are not over-bidding because appraisals are still a concern. We don't want the deal to die if an appraisal comes in low, forcing the buyer and the seller to negotiate (again) on the new price.
One other thought….I have to help my buyers understand that negotiating a contract is just the beginning of the process. We still have to work with the home inspection and the appraisal so that we can close the deal. Working with a Buyer Agent helps take some of the worries off of their shoulders.
The market has taken off after a very slow December and January. My listings are getting lots of showings and contracts. This past week was probably the most hectic week I have had in over the past 5 years. I personally handled negotiations on 7 properties that resulted in a change of status. My homes are priced competitively by realistic owners. I invest lots of time and resources to advertise my listings effectively with color visual tours and brochures and feature my listings across the major real estate Internet sites. This results in lots of attention and contracts. The next step is to get these homes through home inspections and financing appraisals so we can close these transaction. No small task given the new complexities in the market.
Wes Foster, Founder, CEO, Long & Foster, announced that Barbara Ciment Placed in the Top 50 from over 10,000 L&F agents in the entire Mid-Atlantic region.
Barbara Ciment served as a featured panelist at the Annual Planning Day, Long and Foster, King Farm Office January 10, 2011. Barbara shared her hands-on-experience with the King Farm agents explaining our process for helping both buyers and sellers make informed decisions in a challenging economy
Emily Lurie, “Best MD Buyer Agent” has launched a weekly Blog entitled, ‘Matchmaker, Matchmaker Working as a Buyer Agent’
Wide Range of Reports on this Blog: We are expanding our sharing of information on this Blog. You may already be aware that the Blog provides Daily Montgomery County Active and Recent Sold reports. Here you can view reports by Zip Codes, Cities, Subdivisions or Condos by the following simple URLs.
Zip codes: CimentBlog.com/zips
Subdivisions: CimentBlog.com/subs
Cities: CimentBlog.com/cities
Condos: CimentBlog.com/condos
If you want to see reports on cities, zips, subdivisions or condos not reported, then, just send me a note and I will add your desired areas to our site. You can always also sign up for eAlerts from the MLS by using my Search widget on my main web site, www.ciment.com. In the future, I will be developing eNewsletters that I will send to registered users.
Sometimes just a look at a month-to-month comparison will tell a whole story. Looking at December 2011 versus December 2010 is such a case. In December 2010 there were 3,399 active listings with an average list price of $554,845. While in December 2011 there were 2,880 active listings with an average list price of $612,171. In December 2010, the average close price was $499,792, while in December 2011, the average close price was $429,006. So in 2010 sellers were asking for less and getting more. Or, conversely, in 2011 sellers are asking for more but getting less, by a far margin. This is a case where sellers are thinking the market has improved and are asking for a premium (higher listing price) while in reality this is not the case, as close prices have actually declined over the last quarter of 2011.
