maryland: Determining Land Value - 02/18/08 02:22 PM
    We do a fair amount of land sales here in Southern Maryland, and trying to determine land values is a complicated process, much more so than determining the value of someone's home.  Everybody wants to make top dollar for their land when they go to sell it, but how do you know what top dollar really is?
    With home sales, this is a straight-forward process.  With land, the financial factors of the analysis becomes far more difficult.  It's because of this reason that so many Realtors do not work in land sales (It's a ton of work, … (1 comments)

maryland: ROBOTS INVADE Washington, D.C.! - 02/09/08 05:45 AM
 The Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. has a really cool Japanese culture and hyper-culture arts festival going on through 2/17/2008, and if you get the chance, check out their website and look at some of the shows and exhibits they have!  Some of the shows are even free! The coolest part of it all is the robots they have there!  Asimo, a Honda designed robot that can walk on it's own is there, as well as robots that can play the trumpet, humanoids that can carry on conversations, even robot seals (They oddly cute, and they purr!)!   The art exhibits … (3 comments)

maryland: Rails-to-Trails Creates More Charles County Recreation - 02/06/08 01:46 AM
I'm excited about Charles County's newest recreational development!  In October, 2006 the Navy donated a 13 mile stretch of train track running from White Plains to Indian Head, and now that stretch of dormant track is slated to be turned into a recreational trail for Charles County!
They're planning to tear out the tracks and install a 100' wide asphalt and gravel trail so that residents can use the former rail line as a hiking trail, bike path, and possibly even for horseback riding!
There are about 14,000 miles of trails in the United States, said Jeff Ciabotti, vice president of … (1 comments)

maryland: Charles County Maryland Foreclosure Report February 2008 - 02/03/08 04:02 AM
Charles County has seen an upswing in Bank Owned (REO) properties for sale in the past month.  In my last report, I indicated that there were 55 current foreclosures on the market in Charles County.  That number has now crept up to 69.
Increasing Foreclosures
 REO properties are rising because of the fallout from the credit crunch, obviously.  Foreclosures negatively affect the value  of homes and force the overall value of homes in a region to decrease.  As the number of foreclosures goes up, the cost of buying falls, plain and simple.
Some (not all) of the foreclosures that are on … (0 comments)

maryland: A Theory About Dogs and Real Estate... - 02/02/08 07:46 AM
As some of you may know, I'm a very big supporter of rescuing dogs from shelters, and I have 3 rescues myself.  January has been a very busy month for me (and I hope it has for you, too!), and the biggest downside to the increased business is  the decreased time I have to spend with my puppies.
I'm always amazed by how unconditional their love really is!  For the past week I've been getting home close to midnight, and my feet are ready to fall off when I walk through the door.  Without fail, all of my dogs wake up … (22 comments)

maryland: La Plata Town Hall Meeting Recap (1/22/2008) - 01/27/08 08:38 AM
    Thomas and I just got back from the La Plata town hall meeting, and the council voted to send a letter to the State Highway Administration (SHA) recommending AGAINST a traffic light at 301 and Oriole Lane in La Plata, MD.
    There was a very large crowd of people in attendance, mostly residents of the subdivisions that would be affected by the Kohl's development plan.  Quite a few people spoke out regarding both Kohl's and the traffic light proposal, and they were in large part opposed to the potential development.
    There's a few thoughts that … (2 comments)

maryland: Hilton Comes To Waldorf, Maryland! - 01/21/08 02:00 AM
      Hilton is coming to Waldorf!  No, not the whining airheaded blond bimbo with more money than sense, but the Hilton Hotel Chain has plans to build their first hotel in Charles County.  Specifically, they're planning on settling in Waldorf, Maryland, near the St. Charles Town Center Mall.
    The land was purchased for 1.95 Million Dollars, and Hilton plans on building a 130 room Hilton on the location.  Apparently they like the fact that the location has close proximity to the mall and "O'Donnell Lake"(When I was a kid "O'Donnell Lake" was known as "that drainage pond behind … (0 comments)

maryland: La Plata Development; How Much is too Much? - 01/18/08 09:42 AM
    I refuse to let this be a rant about rapid over-development here in Charles County and specifically, La Plata, MD.  I'm not against growth, development, and modernization (I know, I'm a Realtor, isn't it my job to promote growth and development?), in fact I think that Charles County, Saint Mary's County, and Calvert County are the undiscovered gems of Maryland.  I love living here, and part of the reason for that is because of the mix of suburban and rural environments that are close at hand.
    La Plata has been my favorite locale in the county for … (1 comments)

maryland: Kohl's in La Plata? Town Hall Meeting Tonight! (1/14/2008) - 01/14/08 03:52 AM
The proposal for a Kohl's Department Store in La Plata, MD will be discussed tonight at the La Plata Town Hall Meeting.
La Plata Town Hall is the location for a meeting at 7 p.m. Jan. 14 between representatives of Kohl’s department store and members of the Quailwood, Hawthorne Greene and Jamestown communities to discuss the proposed construction of the store on Oriole Lane in town. La Plata Town Council members will be on hand to discuss the community’s issues and concerns regarding the proposal. Town hall is at 305 Queen Anne St.
If you're a Charles County resident, you should … (0 comments)

maryland: Calvert County Real Estate Maryland Market Statistics, December 2007 - 01/14/08 01:44 AM
    Here's the latest on the current Calvert County real estate market! Sluggish sales trends are continuing to force prices down while making it increasingly difficult to get a home sold due to the market pressure.
What's Good:
    The number of active, available homes on the market has fallen again.  As fewer and fewer homes are listed for sale, the difficulty in selling should (at least in theory) ease.  June of last year saw over 1,100 active listings, while in December that number was closer to 950.  There's a couple of reasons for this. 
    First, many … (0 comments)

maryland: Charles County Maryland Real Estate Market Statistics, December 2007 - 01/14/08 01:24 AM
    Here's the latest on the current Charles County real estate market! Sluggish sales trends are continuing to force prices down while making it increasingly difficult to get a home sold due to the market pressure.
What's Good:
    The number of active, available homes on the market has fallen for the third consecutive month.  As fewer and fewer homes are listed for sale, the difficulty in selling should (at least in theory) ease.  September of last year saw over 1,750 active listings, while in December that number was closer to 1,500.  There's a couple of reasons for this. 
(0 comments)

maryland: 179 Acres of Land Donated To Environmental Trust! - 01/12/08 03:50 PM
Here's some good news for local residents!  The "Boy Scout Property" east of Rt. 235 has been donated to the Maryland Environmental Trust by Facchina!  This is a 179 acre property that was once slated to see over 200 homes put in, but thanks to the donation, development will be strictly curtailed!
 "I am glad we were able to work with [the Maryland Environmental Trust] and St. Mary's County to conserve this vital property while also benefiting the county's rural legacy program, the Naval Air Station's buffer zone and the Chesapeake Bay critical protection area," Facchina said in a statement.
(1 comments)

maryland: Charity Basketball Game This Sunday (1/13/2008) in La Plata, MD! - 01/10/08 06:07 AM
I want to share this in hopes that you, your family and friends may be interested in taking advantage of some unforgettable family entertainment on Sunday afternoon, January 13, 2008.  The game will be at the La Plata High School Gym in La Plata, MD where the Charles County Dribblers will take on the Harlem Ambassadors in a friendly basketball game.  The action begins 4 p.m. This is a charity event sponsored by the La Plata Lions Club with proceeds to benefit the planned hospice house to be built in the future by Hospice of Charles County.  Ticket are available in advance from a La Plata Lions Club member or by … (0 comments)

maryland: Making Ugly Land Beautiful Again! - 12/30/07 06:57 AM
    Well it's about time!  Everyone who lives on the western side of Charles County knows that there is  a distinct lack of public parks and resources in the area.  The Pisgah, Maryland Park announcement, means that the Bryans Road/Indian Head area will be seeing lots of improvements!
     The new park has already gotten it's funding approval from the Maryland Board of Works, and they're planning on spending $1.87 million dollars on the project.  Remember the old Pisgah Landfill?  Well, that's where this new project is going!  It's a case of beautifying one of the uglier spots in … (2 comments)

maryland: Understanding the Housing Slump - 12/14/07 06:23 AM
    There was an interesting news piece this morning on NBC 4, talking about how the Maryland housing market is going to continue like this for the next year.  The report was based off of anticipated loss of tax revenues due to the housing slump, and stated that the market is not about to improve in the near future.    This got me to thinking about what exactly it's going to take in order to see any sort of market improvement.  In order to see a turn-around, we need to understand what is causing this mess in the first place. Overpriced Mark-Ups    … (0 comments)

maryland: Charles County Maryland Market Statistics, November 2007 - 12/10/07 08:33 AM
    Charles County has been impacted heavily during the recent market downturn (although not as badly as PG County).  Sales are down roughly 33% from this time last year, average days on market is up over 85% to 132, and average sales prices have fallen as well.      Prices are down roughly 3% from November of 2006, and will continue to fall so long as we see supply exceeding demand.  117 homes were sold last month, out of almost 1600 for sale.  This is typical of the entire region, where supply exceeds demand by at least 12 months.      Also typical … (0 comments)

maryland: Saint Mary's County Maryland Market Statistics, November 2007 - 12/10/07 08:02 AM
    St. Mary's County, Maryland has a few interesting points to make note of when looking at the overall market health.  First, the average and median sales price of a home here has gone up.  While this is a very good sign, it is not the only indication that the local market is performing as well as everyone would hope.
The best indicator of how the market is doing is by looking at how many days a home is on the market (on average).  In Saint Mary's County, that time on market has risen 38%, from 92 days to 127 … (0 comments)

maryland: Calvert County Maryland Market Statistics, November 2007 - 12/10/07 05:58 AM
    Calvert County, much like Southern Maryland, is currently working through downward sales trends and coping with lackluster sales in the real estate market.  Although sales volume is only down by roughly 10% county wide, a look at the bigger picture gives a much better indication of what the local market is actually facing.
     Prices are very likely to continue to fall.  If there were 69 homes sold in November, and 996 homes currently on the market, that means that there is an overstock of roughly 14 months.  As long as supply continues to exceed demand to this … (0 comments)

maryland: Homeowners See Possible relief... Pro's and Con's Abound - 12/07/07 02:45 AM
    The cat is out of the bag, and it looks like there may be help for people who are facing unmanageable ARM's.  Now *some* people with these sub-prime mortgages can get their teaser rate frozen for 5 years in order to avoid impossible payments.
    The New York Times has a good article discussing the widely varying views concerning the new proposal.  Let me first give a brief description of the plan Bush announced to help bailout homeowners.  This proposal will only work for homeowners who:
    Took out their loan between January 2005 and July 2007 … (2 comments)

maryland: *ATTENTION LENDERS* HOW LOW WILL THE FED GO THIS TIME? - 12/03/07 04:17 PM
    I'm hearing all over the radio right now here in suburban D.C.
    The general consensus is that there's going to be a half point drop on December 11th, and some Industry insiders here in Washington are claiming that a full 1% between now and the end of January would not be out of this world.
    I know that doesn't dictate mortgage loan rates directly, but it can and will influence them and I know a few lenders who are already anticipating the drop.
    I'd like to hear some opinions, particularly from lenders who are better versed in … (7 comments)

 
Jonathan Benya, The Benya Group (The Benya Group)

Jonathan Benya

The Benya Group

Waldorf, MD

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The Benya Group

Address: 1997 Annapolis Exchange Pkwy, Suite 500, Annapolis, MD, 21401

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