The-Chevy-Chase-Real-Estate-Guide

Who Said the Market is Dead?

Judy Glazer (Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage) — Thu, 28 Oct 2010 18:19:13 -0700

Still think the market is dead and no one is buying a home? Think again!

I sat on an open house this past Sunday in Chevy Chase, Md. near the DC line. The home belonged to an agent in my office so she asked me to sit for her. The home had been nicely renovated about 12 years ago and the landscaping was beautiful.

They listed the home just slighly below what they thought it was worth in a effort to get alot of feet in the door. Oh did I mention it was over $1M?

I opened the home at 1pm on Sunday and the feeding frenzy began. I could not even keep track of the number of people/parties that came into the home, stayed for hours in some cases and wanted to buy this house.

There was so much interest prior to the open that the owner/agent decided not to take offers until the Tuesday following the first and only open. I personally had the opportunity to write 2 offers for this home from open house guests that did not have agents and fell in love.

There were 17 offers in all and each one escalated well beyond the $1M list price. Offers came in all shapes and sizes. From conventional financing, to free rent back, to buyer paid closing costs to all cash and no contingencies! I had the highest offer but the contingencies became the deal breaker.

I guess it is safe to say, in the Washington area anyway, that great houses - priced right are still very much in demand!

PARKWAY DELI- THE BEST DELI IN MARYLAND, IS IN CHEVY CHASE!

Judy Glazer (Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage) — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 19:40:35 -0700

I can still remember going to Parkway Deli for Sunday brunch when I was just a little girl. With their New York style menu you could choose from anything from a whitefish platter (my father's favorite), to a chopped liver sandwhich (my mom's choice for sure) to every kids delight - fabulous french toast made from challah bread!

My all time favorite dish however had to be the kosher hot dog wrapped in bologne!

No matter what time of day or night you would go, there would always be a plate of pickles on the table and a bread basket to start. The waitresses knew all the diners and you would always run into people you knew. The original owners, Mike and Rose would be behind the checkout counter offering free candy to the little ones and greeting all of their guests by name.

Of course that was a long time ago and Mike and Rose have long since gone. Their son Stuart and his sons have continued in their path and have managed to keep Parkway Deli thriving for over 45 years!

The menu has changed a bit but many things have not. The pickles at the table have been replaced with a pickle bar and a second dining room was added several years back, but the food is as good as ever and many of the traditional Jewish dishes are still available.

You can no longer order a bowl of borsht, but you can still get the best Matzo Ball soup in town! And yes, the kosher hot dog wrapped in bologne is still on the menu!

If you are going to go there for Brunch be sure to get there early as it fills up fast, but don't worry you can get breakfast at anytime!

Oh, and be sure to get a black and white on your way out!

Going Green in Your Bathroom

Judy Glazer (Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage) — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 19:02:50 -0700

Going Green in Your Bathroom

If it is time to remodel your bathroom or you are just looking for ways to support the enviroment while saving money in the meantime you may want to consider this before you start. The bathroom is the second greatest source of water and heat waste in the home to the kitchen.

27% of water consumed in the home is in the toilet alone! This fact led to people putting large objects such as bricks in their tank and to the infamous low flow toilets that never really worked.

A better solution to save both water in both consumption and energy is by installing a dual-flush toilet. These toilets consist of two flush buttons; one for light work and the other for heavy. I think you get the picture. These toilets have been in use in Europe for many years and are now available in the US for around $250 - $400 (in line with other top brand toilets).

These toilets can save up to 17,000 gallons of water per year and up to $50 to you. If you do not need to replace your old toilets just yet, you can retrofit your existing comodes with a dual-flush mechanism for about $70!

Who doesn't look forward to a warm shower or bath at the end of a stressful day? Of course that makes this the greatest source of energy use in your bathroom. In this situation you need to go directly to the culprite - your hot water heater!

You can add extra insulation to your tank-type heater by installing an insulated blanket around it - this reduces energy use by 4-9%. You can help further by insulating all accessible water pipes. Lastely, most water heaters are set to 140 degrees, by simply turning your temperature down to 120 degrees you will still be able to enjoy a nice hot bath while saving up to $60 per year!

If you are ready to replace your 15 year old hot water heater however you might consider a new storage water heater. They are technically similar to high efficiency furnaces and puts nearly all possible BTU's into the water instead of up the flue. A 50 gallen unit currently runs about $1700 (vs $380 for tank type models) and cost around $400 to install. These prices will no doubt go down as demand goes up. A cost which is offset by the current tax credit of $300 and an annual fuel savings of approximately $100 per year!

They do take a bit of getting used to though as you are likely to get a shot of cold water before the hot water kicks in.

Don't forget! 22%-40% of our landfills are from contruction debris. You can help reduce ground pollution, odor and the unsightleness of landfills by donating your items such as toilets, sinks, vanities and light fixtures to places like the Habitate ReStore.

Maybe your item is just what another "green" remodeler is looking for!

Saving Rock Creek

Judy Glazer (Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage) — Mon, 20 Sep 2010 19:56:06 -0700

The waterways and creeks that line Rock Creek Forest are a major part of what makes this neighborhood so appealing. It takes only a few steps out of your door to enjoy the beautiful scenery created by Rock Creek. Unfortunetly due mostly in part to the historic lack of adequate stormwater control, many of the waterways and creeks have suffered extreme damage.

Over the years, many of the streams in the County's historically urban areas have received fast-flowing, highly erosive urban stormwater runoff from impervious surfaces such as roads, concrete, pavements, parking lots, and rooftops. Many of Montgomery County's older urban and suburban areas were developed in an era when paved surfaces were built without concern for what would happen to rainfall runoof. Stormwater management was not as big a concern as it is today. These areas did not develop with adequately sized stormwater drainage systems and stromwater ponds to recieve, detain, and filter runoff before it flowed into streams. As a result, during rain events runoff flushed into streams unmitigated.

Damage to local creeks and streams that flow through ours and other county neighborhoods being the result.

The county is embarking on a three-part, watershed restoration effort to rehabilitate the stream system, introduce better management and control future runoff from additional urban surfaces throughout the county.

There will be an Public Meeting at Rosemary Hills Elememtary School on September 27th at 6:30 pm. The purpose of this meeting is to discuss and outline plans for the Donnybrook Stream Restoration Project. There will be presentation at 6:45 followed by an open forum.

For more information on this project go to http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/dectmpl.asp?url=/Content/dep/water/watershedRestoration.asp

Listing Agent & Contractor, Good Business or Conflict of Interest?

Judy Glazer (Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage) — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 13:59:32 -0700

My neighbor listed her house about a year ago (not with me unfortunetly, or fortunetly depending on how you look at it but that's for another time). Anyway, the house was a mess, she was the daughter of the original owner and inherited it when they passed. She has been living there with her extended family (i.e. daughter, grand daughter etc.). NOTHING, and I mean NOTHING had been done to the house in 50 years. I'm talking original 50's tiles of varying shades of pink and yellow in the bathrooms. Commercial grade carpet over beautiful hardwood floors and a basement that had extensive water damage to the ceiling tiles from years of broken pipes and smelling like a smoke infested bar on a Saturday night. She originally listed her house for what homes in better shape in the neighborhood had been sold for, one of my listings included. Of course she got no bites and promptly switched agents. She somehow wound up with a listing agent, who surprise surprise has a small construction business on the side. Needless to say, he talked her in to investing more than $35K on a new kitchen (with his company of course) but does no other improvements to the house. He then jacks up the price to reflect the investment taking it way over the comps for the area. Keep in mind the house has now been on the market over half a year!

The house continued to sit on the market for over 300 days and finally went under contract. The owner had to ultimately drop the price $20K below where she started from originally before the renovation! My point to all of this is that I feel real estate agents that have businesses like renovation companies have other agendas. In my opinion she could have gotten the price she ultimately came down to without the investment for the renovation encouraged by the listing agent who stood to make the profit.

Would he have recommended the renovation if it wasn't his company doing the work? Or would he have pushed her to make the less expensive fixes the house needed to net the lower price she eventually had to accept.

Does one's professional judgement get clouded when you have your mind on other business matters? I for one believe it does and would be leary of agents who "double" as contractors. This is not to say all are bad or dishonest but think about it. Are they really acting in the best interest of their client or for themselves?

Just a thought.