Gary and Mary Nelson-Harford County Real Estate

MA and PA Heritage Trail

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Mon, 21 May 2012 10:22:00 -0700

Yesterday, I had an opportunity to spend the morning walking the MA and PA Heritage Trail and began to think why it took so long for me to take this wonderful walk, the sun was out, temperature was moderate and comfortable, and the trail was clean and inviting. We parked on the North Tollgate parking and did the walk from Tollgate Road to Annies Playground. The walk was 1.4 miles and went through some woods as well as past some farm land.

We started by walking down the trail that led toward the woods, there is a wooden bridge that goes over a creek that we had to stop and take in the atmosphere of the area. Looking below, we watched as some dog owners were playing with their dogs with the dogs getting wet and having the time of their lives.

Continuing on, we break out of the woods and start our walk past the farm land that is waiting to be planted. This farmland is slightly rolling and you can see the farm house with barns and out houses upon the hill. This was mostly level and it really allowed us to make some time.

Arriving at Annies Playground, we decided to take some time and watch as the kids were playing and the parents chasing them down and basically having a great time on this sunny afternoon. Sitting in the garden like area, we noticed that most of the benches and statues were donated in memory of a loved one. It is amazing that this playground was created because of a tragedy and is now making parents and children alike very happy.

We left the playground and began our trek back through the farmland and back into the woods, across the bridge and began the walk up toward our vehicle. At this point, we find that the walk back is uphill and the angle is more pronounced than what we thought it was coming back. Suffice it to say that we burned a few more calories on this uphill walk.

I look forward to having another walk real soon, it is enjoyable and relaxing which is what we all need more of..

Gary Nelson

www.HarfordCountyHomes.net

The Nelson Group of Remax Components

Harford County, MD

410-459-6920

Changing Company's-Why I did it

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 15:10:17 -0700

When you have worked at the same company for nearly 10 years, it is difficult at least for me to consider leaving to another company and making all the changes that must be made in such a move. Last month, my team and I left Long and Foster and became a proud new associate at RE\MAX Components in Harford County Maryland. The move was fairly smooth, or at least as smooth as one can make it whenever a move is made, and I think opens a new door of opportunity for my team and I to reach new heights.

What I want to do is try and answer the question as to why I made a move after spending so long at my previous brokerage. I looked at folks who have made this same decision and always questioned myself about whether the grass was greener on the other side or was it the same old dirt. Some of those people who I saw leave eventually returned and for them, I have to say that the grass must not have been as green for them and always brought me back to why would I ever think it would be greener for me?

I did not make this decision lightly; it has actually been something that I and my team have been debating for at least 2 years. We felt that we were at a plateau with regards to the ability of increasing our income at Long and Foster and I had even went to management and asked for an increase to our split which I was told no. My team and I spent a lot of time to talk with other brokers to find out what they had to offer and what incentives we could expect to receive if in fact we moved. We spent hundreds of hours discussing the pros and cons and quite honestly had come to an impasse in making a decision. So what was the one thing that help make our decision to leave?

In December, an incident happened in our office that was an indicator to me that my team was being cheated out of prospects and leads that we should be rightfully receiving. Let me explain how this works, in the office that I was in, when a prospect called in to the office on a specific property, the receptionist or duty agent is suppose to call the listing agent if that listing agent was in the office at the time of the call. If the listing agent was not in the office when the call came in, then the duty agent would be able to attempt to work the prospect and get a client from the call. My team was a high producing listing team compared to the normal agent so in theory, there should be an abundance of leads being sent to us, after all; someone from my team was almost always in the office during work hours. We did get called for some calls, but in December, we were told that a prospect for one of our listings had come in and not only were we not called, but the agent on desk duty went on and sold our listing to the lead call.

At first, I assumed that the agent had made a mistake, I like to think the best about everyone until proven wrong, but then I had heard this agent had made the same actions with other leads that should have been sent to the listing agent. When I took all the facts into account, then it was obvious that this was a trend and that it was most likely not the only agent doing this from the duty desk. When we took this concern to management, we were basically ignored in our request for some type of compensation for the loss with regards to the agent who we have proof of this type of behavior.

That day in December was the day that we as a team decided that we were moving, fortunately; we had been in negotiations with what we feel is a great company. We moved to RE\MAX Components and up to this day, I want to say that yes; the grass is greener on the other side of the fence. I am now at a company where a call on one of my listings comes to our team whether we are in the office or not.

What is the problem in Washington DC?

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 11:55:11 -0800

I am not one that follows politics much, but for the life of me, I am unable to figure out why our elected officials cannot put aside the "Party" and get some actual work done. All we seem to hear today is that "the government is going to shut down", "they are decimating medicare", "social security is going to be cut". I know that our country is having a lot of problems, there isn't one person who has not felt it to some degree, but instead of playing the blame game, lets do something to fix it. I am curious, am I the only person who feels that we need to clean house in congress and replace the whole lot of them with people that have common sense.

Whenever I run out of money, that means that I am unable to purchase anything. When our federal government runs out of money, they either figure out how to increase taxes or they fire up the printing presses. I have created a budget to help me with my spending, and I have to say that it works as long as I follow what I put to paper. The math is quite simple, income minus expense equals money remaining, if there is a negative at the end, I figure what I can cut from the expenses. It seems to me that the legislators we have in the federal government think the only solution to the budget is to increase income and not worry about expenses. In my humble opinion, there is a lot that can be cut from the national budget and that is what the legislators need to be doing instead of playing the games that they seem to so much love. It all comes down to priorities.

I am hoping that all the american people will take time in the upcoming election period and make changes to get the country back upon sound footing. We have many rights in this country as well as responsibilities; one of those responsibilties is to vote for those who represent us. We are less than a month away for the primaries, lets get out there and make our voices heard.

Thanks for letting me rant...

Gary Nelson, A Voter

Changing Company's - Why and How would you do it?

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 14:59:10 -0800

I have seen many agents who switch company's on a consistantly regular basis, one I know has made 5 different company's her home in the last two years. I sometimes sit back and think that maybe the grass is greener on the other side, but then realize that whenever someone changes companies, it costs that agent to do that change.

My questions to my fellow real estate professionals is Have you ever changed companies and was that change a good thing or bad thing for your business? I would appreciate any comments as I am curious how this would affect the agent.

Gary Nelson, Associate Broker

Harford County Maryland

Hiring a Real Estate Agent to Short Sale your home

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Sun, 23 Oct 2011 22:31:00 -0700

Mary and I have a niche in working with homeowners that need to sell their home as a short sale, and there have been many times that we have been questioned on what to look for in a real estate agent that can successfully complete a short sale. Harford County has its share of homes that have to be sold in a short sale just like many places throughout the country and our team has performed this service many times over. I believe that it is important to know for the homeowner considering selling their home short that not every real estate professional has the training, experience, or abilities to be a short sale agent and it really is important for the agent to acknowledge this fact.

We started working on these types of transactions about 4 years ago when a previous client called us when they had problems in paying their mortgage due to a job loss. We went to their defense and worked out a solution where the bank allowed us to sell the home for less than what the clients owed. This had been done occasionally back then and I have heard from agents who have done them every so often for many years so that tells me that this has been around for quite some time. At the time, we had no training or experience in these types of sales but were able to get the job done. We then found others having the same difficulties and then we learned of a training program that dealt with how to do short sales called Certified Distressed Property Experts (CDPE). Once we took this course, we created a process that allows us to get the transactions done with the least amount of problems and in the shortest amount of time.

So, the most important questions that I think a homeowner will need to ask at a minimum to a real estate professional they consider hiring to list their home for a short sale are the following:

1. Are you trained to work with short sales as a listing agent? There are many training programs out there and if an agent is going to work on short sales, they should get the proper training to make sure they have the skill to get it done correctly. There are many good agents that have been trained in this process and there is no reason why a homeowner cannot find a good agent that is trained. A website I recommend is www.CDPE.com which is in my opinion one of the better training agencies for short sale training.

2. How many short sales have you been involved with? I would want to know that the person I am hiring has some experience in performing short sales. I would consider an agent who is teamed up with a short sale specialist who has experience, after all; agents have to get experience. We help several agents in our office whenever they need help.

3. What is your success rate in the short sales you were involved with as a listing agent? At one time, 1 out of 4 short sales successfully completed was a good number and was the average success rate for many agents. Today, I would want an agent who has a good record in successful transactions as the listing agent. Obviously, an agent just starting in short sales may not have a record, if they are being assisted by another agent who is experienced, what is that agent’s success rate.

These most likely are obvious questions but I hope that this short article helps someone who may be considering a short sale.

Gary Nelson, CDPE, GRI, e-Pro

Harford County, MD. 410-459-6920, Long and Foster Real Estate

My Experience taking CRS 200-Business Panning and Marketing

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 21:43:55 -0700

Recently, I had the opportunity to take CRS 200 which is the class for Business Planning and Marketing. This class is one of the core classes that allows the agent to work toward the designation as a Certified Residential Specialist (CRS). I have been in the real estate business for nearly 10 years, and often heard other agents talk about how great the CRS classes were, so decided to finally take one. I have to say that Robert Morris did an excellent job at keeping our attention for two days and I learned some great information. I can now attest to the fact that this was one of the better classes I have ever taken and also made the decision to continue on with getting the CRS designation.

This is the time of the year that I always start my business plan for the next year and when this class was brought to my attention, I thought it would be a good class to take to see if I could learn a better process. I had taken several business planning classes over the years and felt that at worst, I would pick up at least one thing that would be beneficial in doing the business plan for 2012. All I can say is "WOW". Robert, thank you for an extremely wonderful class.

We started out on day one with learning what a business is, the characteristics of a successful business, and working on a mission statement and vision statement of which I had been working on mine for a couple of years now. When we finished the first day, I came home and worked for a couple of more hours and finally completed a mission statement that I was happy with. The class was interactive which made learning the material that much more fun. We then proceeded to do a situation analysis that showed me some great numbers that every agent should know not only about my groups production, but about the market in our area. I was blown away at how I can use these same numbers and the way that they could be mingled in with my marketing items. The stages of business growth was very enlightening as to where my team was at today and where I want to take them. At the end of this chapter, I had a good idea of how to find out where my business was at today as compared with other businesses and markets.

Day two was where we got into the meat of creating a business plan and forecasting what we needed to do to make our financial goals for 2012. We discussed the three types of budgets we would need to complete, how to predict income, what we were going to need to do to make the income for the budget, and all types of tips to make a successful business. Something that I really came out of the class with today was that a business doesn't only need to pay the bills, it needs to make a PROFIT! Day two continued with marketing and what was needed to bring about some good marketing techniques to make the money needed to make a profit.

I would highly recommend anyone who wants to get some quality education what will help your business to take a CRS class, they are most definately worth the money and you will take away real knowledge that will help you succeed in business.

Gary Nelson, GRI, e-Pro, CDPE, CIAS

Harford County, Maryland 410-459-6920

Making changes in life

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 10:50:44 -0700

This morning, I decided to get up early and take a walk, something that I don't believe I have ever done. Lately, I have been doing a lot of things that are what we can consider "out of the norm" for me. I guess the thing that changed my prospective on life is in March, I had a wake up call by way of a heart attack that called out for me to change my habits. It has been a most difficult trip thus far but I think the results will be most favorable. My mindset has to be on continuing the good habits that I have started and not get back into the rut of making bad decisions.

The first habit I changed was I started the process of ending my smoking of cigarettes. I started out using the patch which is something that I had used successfully before and it worked. I guess that what works sometimes isn't guaranteed to work all the time as the patch was a bust. It did help reduce the amount I smoked a day but did not help me with the cravings. My second plan of action was using a drug called Chantix. I had heard some good things about this drug and it did live up to it's reputation. After the first week where I was allowed to smoke, I stopped smoking and did not have any cravings what so ever and have been smoke free for 116 days and have no desire to return to smoking.

Whenever most people quit smoking, there are tons of positive things that happen to that person such as easier to breath, able to walk more without losing their breath, a sense of smell returns but there is one negative thing that can and usually does happen when you quit smoking and that is weight gain. Within a matter of weeks, I gained nearly 20 pounds and picked up an inch or two in the waist line. This is something that I was afraid of and of course it happened to me, so I decided that something needed to be done. I had noticed an associate in my office who had lost around 40 pounds in two months and I questioned him on what he was doing that was allowing this weight loss. He introduced me to Herbalife and the process of learning to eat healthy.

I have tried the shake process before when attempting weight loss and the one thing I found was that like most healthy things, those shakes might have been good for you but they sure did not taste very good. When my associate introduced me to another shake, I did not have very high expectations but the trial was free so I made the plunge. My first shake was a banana chochlate and it was great. After listening to the herbalife lady tell us about the product, I immediately signed up for the Ultimate plan and things have improved ever since.

The ultimate pland was a shake meal plan with protein, and 5 vitamins three times a day. You drink a meal shake for two meals a day and then eat a healthy meal with good nutritional foods. During the first week, I lost 6 pounds so you can imagine my delight. I also noticed that the vitamin regiment also gave me more energy and I started walking4-5 times a week at 30-60 minutes a go. This is not something I planned, but was something I just felt like doing and I have been feeling better each and every day. I have also watched the kind of food that I eat, I am not successful 100% of the time, but I am striving for good food 90% of the time.

I know this is not real estate related but I just wanted to let the world know of my new found knowledge and maybe inspire someone else to start down the path of a healthy life.

Gary Nelson, Harford County MD, 410-459-6920

3077 Raking Leaf Drive, Abingdon, MD. 21009

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 16:35:37 -0700

Gary and Mary Nelson | Long and Foster Bel Air North | (410) 459-4158

3077 Raking Leaf Drive, Abingdon, MD

Almost new townhouse, great price and in great condition.

3BR/2+1BA Townhouse

offered at $209,000

Year Built	2008
Sq Footage	1,680
Bedrooms	3
Bathrooms	2 full, 1 partial
Floors	3
Parking	2
Lot Size	.05 acres
HOA/Maint	$22 per month

DESCRIPTION

This is a well maintained townhouse that is being sold as a short sale, partially finished basement, close to shoping areas and major commuter routes.

see additional photos below

PROPERTY FEATURES

- Central A/C	- Central heat	- Living room
- Dishwasher	- Refrigerator	- Stove/Oven
- Basement	- Washer	- Dryer
- Balcony, Deck, or Patio	- Yard

OTHER SPECIAL FEATURES

- Assigned parking

ADDITIONAL PHOTOS

Front View

Contact info:

Gary and Mary Nelson

Long and Foster Bel Air North

(410) 459-4158

For sale by agent/broker

Equal Opportunity Housing

Posted: Aug 19, 2011, 11:24am PDT

100 Avondale Court, Abingdon MD. 21009

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 13:19:52 -0700

Gary and Mary Nelson | Long and Foster Bel Air North | gnelson@harfordcountyhomes.net | (410) 459-6920

100 Avondale Court, Abingdon, MD

What a steal at this price, short sale that has bank approval in
regards to price.

4BR/2+2BA Single Family House

offered at $274,000

Year Built	1989
Sq Footage	2,132
Bedrooms	4
Bathrooms	2 full, 2 partial
Floors	3
Parking	2 Car garage
Lot Size	.28 acres
HOA/Maint	$35 per month

DESCRIPTION

This Home is Very Well Kept Single Family home with 4 Bedrooms and 2.5 Bathrooms, County Kitchen that goes out to a nice Deck; Fence in fully back Yard, Family room with fireplace and hard wood floors, Living/dining room with hardwood floors. ** BANK APPROVAL AT LISTING PRICE ** Settlement 60 days or less from date of contract acceptance!! Has a large yard.

see additional photos below

PROPERTY FEATURES

- Central A/C	- Central heat	- Fireplace
- Living room	- Dishwasher	- Refrigerator
- Stove/Oven	- Microwave	- Basement
- Washer	- Dryer	- Yard

COMMUNITY FEATURES

- Garage parking

ADDITIONAL PHOTOS

Front View

Contact info:

Gary and Mary Nelson

Long and Foster Bel Air North

gnelson@harfordcountyhomes.net

(410) 459-6920

For sale by agent/broker

Equal Opportunity Housing

Posted: Aug 19, 2011, 6:31am PDT

Health Insurance: To have nor Not to have?

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 10:09:12 -0700

This will be a year that I will be so happy to finally see come to an end. Nope, it has nothing to do with real estate or the market; it has to do with something that has happened in my own personal life. In March, I was admitted to the hospital for chest pains and this started several months of very stressful ups and downs in my life. Many real estate professionals have spouses or other family members who have medical insurance coverage, but both my spouse and I are both full time real estate agents in Harford County Maryland and of course thought that we did not need health insurance. After a four day stay, I was released and when all the bills started piling in, we were $38,000 in debt with medical bills.

The first thing I did was started investigating health plans that would be affordable and we were fortunate enough to get one where we were able to afford the monthly premiums. The deductible was considered a high deductible premium, but I quickly took care of my share of the premium and Mary soon followed suit. About this time, Mary had gone out and somehow tore some ligaments that were going to require some costly physical therapy and a surgery. This is where I found out the value of health insurance.

I know that there are many real estate professionals out there playing the Russian Roulette with not having a health insurance plan, take it from a team that knows, it is a necessary evil, don’t count on the government to pay your way.

Four and a Half months to go to 2012!

Coming back to Active Rain

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 14:23:24 -0700

Hello Everyone,

I can remember signing up for Active Rain many years ago, and at first; I came here a lot of times to read the posts and see what others are doing. Then, the real estate market hit a bump in the road and I had to spend tons of time working in the "business" just to make ends meet and get everything done. The one thing that I am proud to say is that Mary and I are still full time real estate professionals and have taken what was just the two of us and added others to our team. We now have two buyer’s agents and one listing coordinator.

When the market went in the same direction that geese do every fall, we continued trying to work along as we always did, regular resales with helping buyers and sellers to buy homes. The problem we ran into was that many buyers had left the market and taken a hiatus and sellers were losing value on their homes faster than the speed of light. Pretty soon, we saw that working in real estate was not going to be business as usual, but that we will need to change in order to survive. By this time, I have seen many of our friends leave the business for greener pastures that had a regular paycheck and this did not particularly look enticing to us.

About this time, we had a client come to us who had a life changing event that had to sell their home and unfortunately, their home wasn’t worth what they paid for it. We call this “upside down” in homeowner speak and it is not a good place to be. This was our introduction to what was to become a household phrase called “Short Sale”. After muddling our way through this transaction, Mary and I felt that there had to be a better way to do this process and heard about a class called Certified Distressed Property Expert otherwise known as CDPE. Mary took this class first and it gave her the knowledge to work with short sales and get them done in a very fast time frame compared to how long it took other agents. Later, I also took the course so that we can both have the knowledge and understand the process to help clients who are in trouble.

Today, our team works somewhat like a well oiled machine, I work with the listings and work on marketing, Mary facilitates the short sale between the home seller and the lender, we have two buyer agents that work with buyers in helping them find their dream homes, and finally a listing coordinator that helps with marketing and servicing the listings. Can things be better, most certainly but we will continue to improve our team so that our clients will get the best possible service in the Harford County Maryland area.

And remember, if you or someone you know is looking for an agent in this market area, we are always available for your referrals.

It is a great life!

Gary and Mary Nelson, REALTOR, CDPE, CIAS

Harford County Maryland Real Estate Professionals

Home Buyer Expectation

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 10:51:49 -0700

Buyer Expectations

It is amazing of how the market has changed from a sellers market to now a buyers market and the expectations of seller and especially buyers. Just 2-3 years ago, a person selling their home was able to demand the list price, and in many cases; a price above the list. There was then a change to where buyers were very hard to find and sellers had to come to the realization that they will be lucky to get the list price for their home. Recent statistics show that the seller now should expect only about 91% of the list price for their home. (MRIS market report)

Buyers now expect that the seller should take less than the list price and also to get closing help on top of the reduction. I recently had a buyer that made an offer 24% less than list plus wanting an additional 5000.00 of seller help. This was against my recommendation but as their agent, I diligently tried to negotiate this price. After this offer was rejected, and suprisingly the sellers did counter, it died a terrible death. When asked, the buyers told me that they came up with that price from a segment on CNN.

Folks, CNN are not real estate professionals, and their reporting is a nationwide view of the real estate market. Ask any real estate agent and they will tell you that the local conditions are what matters and that your real estate professional is the person that you should be listening too.

Bottom line is that sellers are willing to help with closing in most cases, but they will not just give their property away. Discuss your offer with your agent, give a reasonable offer based on supportable facts from a market stand point, and chances are that every one will have a win-win situation.

Good luck on that next offer.

Gary and Mary Nelson, REALTOR®

Harford County, Maryland

Private Setting in Street Maryland

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 10:10:57 -0800

Gary and Mary Nelson | Long and Foster Bel Air North | 410-459-4158 O: 410-879-8080

1331 Macton Road, Street, MD

PRIVATE SETTING, LOTS OF SCENERY, LOTS OF ROOM!

5 Bdrm Single Family House

offered at $979,000

Year Built	1987
Sq Footage	3,800
Bedrooms	5
Bathrooms	4 full, 0 partial
Floors	3
Parking	4+ Car garage
Lot Size	11.12 acres
HOA/Maint	$0 per month

DESCRIPTION

Walk in your large living room from an enclosed porch, where you will find hardwood floors, built in bookcases, and large window with a view. Of to the right is the large country kitchen and family room w/ fireplace and another sun room. The wrap around deck has a lovely view of the 11+ acres of rolling hills and beautiful scenic view. This is a must see home for someone who will love the privacy.

see additional photos below

PROPERTY FEATURES

Central A/C	Central heat	Fireplace
Walk-in closet	Hardwood floor	Family room
Living room	Bonus/Rec room	Dishwasher
Refrigerator	Stove/Oven	Basement
Washer	Dryer	Balcony, Deck, or Patio
Yard	Swimming pool

COMMUNITY FEATURES

Garage parking

Storage space(s)

OTHER SPECIAL FEATURES

Private setting

Scenic View

ADDITIONAL PHOTOS

Seller contact info:

Gary and Mary Nelson

Long and Foster Bel Air North

410-459-4158 O: 410-879-8080

For sale by agent/broker

Equal Opportunity Housing

Posted: Nov 27, 2007, 5:38am PST

Joppa Maryand Market Report - September 8, 2007

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Fri, 07 Sep 2007 16:09:55 -0700

The following is the market report for Joppa Maryland in the last 7 days of activity:

Total Active Properties: 124

Total properties under contract: 20

Total Properties sold in last 30 days: 4

This small community is showing lots of activity, inventory is low and we noticed a decrease in active homes from the beginning of August. Lets hope that this continues in September.

Gary and Mary Nelson, REALTOR

Long and Foster Real Estate, Inc.

Direct Line: 410-459-6920 Office: 410-879-8080 ext: 6026

http://www.harfordcountyhomes.net/

Abingdon Market Report - September 8, 2007

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Fri, 07 Sep 2007 16:03:47 -0700

The following is the market report for Abingdon Maryland in the last 7 days of activity:

Total Active Properties: 260

Total properties under contract: 45

Total Properties sold in last 30 days: 10

The first week in September shows Abingdon with lots of active properties. Being that this is a townhome community, a majority of these will take some time to sell. It is hoped that now that the holidays are past, that buyers will begin to be serious in searching for the home of their dreams.

Gary and Mary Nelson, REALTOR

Long and Foster Real Estate, Inc.

Direct Line: 410-459-6920 Office: 410-879-8080 ext: 6026

http://www.harfordcountyhomes.net/

Edgewood Market Report - September 8, 2007

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Fri, 07 Sep 2007 15:58:35 -0700

The following is the market report for Edgewood Maryland in the last 7 days of activity:

Total Active Properties: 219

Total properties under contract: 39

Total Properties sold in last 30 days: 11

The first week in September looked good in Edgewood, with 11 properties closing the last week. Active properties remain constant and total under contract changed very little. With the holiday past, I am forcasting that Edgewood will start seeing an increase in closing for the rest of the month.

Gary and Mary Nelson, REALTOR

Long and Foster Real Estate, Inc.

Direct Line: 410-459-6920 Office: 410-879-8080 ext: 6026

http://www.harfordcountyhomes.net/

Dive Report - Washingtonian

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Tue, 04 Sep 2007 19:44:50 -0700

A little off the subject, but thought that some of you might like to hear about something other than mortgage company's, real estate, or what is usually talked about here. This is a dive report for a wreck dive we did on Sunday.

Myself and 5 others made the trip to Indian River, DE. to catch the dive boat "To Dive For". We had chartered the boat and decided to dive on the Washingtonian. This ship was sunk in a collision with the Elizabeth Palmer back in 1915 and is laying in 90 feet of water off Ocean City Maryland about 15 miles of the coast. It took us a hour and 15 minutes to make it to the site, the ocean was with us by being smooth with very little wave action. We anchored in without any problems and made it down to our first dive. Things might have been good on the surface, but at depth; it was pretty lousy. Visibility was at around 10 feet if we were lucky and there was a slight current on the bottom. My first dive was a collection of things not to do on a dive. Within a few minutes, I lost my dive buddy on the wreck and so did most of the dive without anyone around me. DUMB. Then when it was time to surface, I got turned around and found myself at the wrong end of the wreck and had to do a free accent without the anchor line. Suffice it to say that I am kind of embarrassed with my actions...

The above are two photos I took on my first dive. As I said before, visibility was really bad so I didnt get to many good photos. The left side was some star fish I had seen, the right was a fuzz ball I thought was interesting.

So, on the second dive of the day; I took the lessons from the first dive and did a text book dive, down the anchor line, used wreck reel to keep from getting lost again, stayed with buddy, up anchor chain and did deco stops. Both dives were enjoyable even with the issues. Maybe next time, I can get some decent photos of the wreck itself.

Hope you enjoyed the dive report.

Gary Nelson

Long and Foster Real Estate

Direct: 410-459-6920 Office: 410-879-8080

www.HarfordCountyHomes.net

Harford County Market Report - August 2007

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Tue, 04 Sep 2007 13:14:03 -0700

The following are the housing statistics for the month of August 2007 in Harford County:

Total Active: 1884 (Holding steady compared to July 2007)

Total under contract: 131

Total Sold: 273

Total Withdrawn/Expired: 260

The total under contract drastically reduced in numbers for August compared to July, probably due to the fact that folks are getting that last little vacation in and getting the kids ready for school. The total active is holding fairly steady, total sold was slightly up from 254 for July and withdrawn/expired is pretty much the same as July. I would expect things to start picking back up in mid-September.

Gary and Mary Nelson, REALTORS

Long and Foster Real Estate, Inc. http://www.harfordcountyhomes.net/ 410-515-6026 o: 410-879-8080

501 Catalpa Lane, Edgewood MD. 21040 $224,900

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Thu, 30 Aug 2007 09:38:45 -0700

Gary and Mary Nelson | Long and Foster Bel Air North | D:410-459-4158 O: 410-879-8080

501 Catalpa Lane, Edgewood, MD

Needs some updating, but a great price!

3 Bdrm Single Family House

offered at $224,900

Year Built	1962
Sq Footage	1,001
Bedrooms	3
Bathrooms	1 full, 1 partial
Floors	2
Parking	Unspecified
Lot Size	10,112 sqft
HOA/Maint	$0 per month

DESCRIPTION

Your Chance to own a SFH for the price of a townhome! Features 3 BR, 1.5 BA, hardwood floors throughout, large rear yard, 1 car garage, located at the end of the cul de sac. Kitchen/bathrooms with recently installed flooring, windows, hot water heater also recently installed. This home is close to all major highways leading to Baltimore and Delaware and close to Flying Point Park where you can enjoy a day with the family. Don't wait to see this gem with a history, call today to get your private showing.

see additional photos below

PROPERTY FEATURES

Central A/C	Central heat	Hardwood floor
Living room	Dining room	Stove/Oven
Basement	Washer	Dryer
Yard

OTHER SPECIAL FEATURES

Lovely older neighborhood

Close to shopping

ADDITIONAL PHOTOS

Seller contact info:

Gary and Mary Nelson

Long and Foster Bel Air North

D:410-459-4158 O: 410-879-8080

For sale by agent/broker

Equal Opportunity Housing

Posted: Aug 30, 2007, 8:42am PDT

Edgewood Maryland Market Report

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Tue, 28 Aug 2007 10:23:07 -0700

The following is the market report for Edgewood Maryland in the last 7 days of activity:

Total Active Properties: 221

Total properties under contract: 41

Total Properties sold in last 30 days: 2

August continues to be slow, which historically; normal for this time of the year. We are hoping that after the holiday, things will be back to a steady pace.

Gary and Mary Nelson, REALTOR

Long and Foster Real Estate, Inc.

Direct Line: 410-459-6920 Office: 410-879-8080 ext: 6026

http://www.harfordcountyhomes.net/

4406 Greenwich Ct. Belcamp Maryland 21017 Harford County

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Fri, 24 Aug 2007 11:21:40 -0700

Gary and Mary Nelson | Long and Foster Bel Air North | 410-459-4158 O: 410-879-8080

4406 Greenwich Ct., Belcamp, MD

You have to see this to believe it! Well maintained...

4 Bdrm Townhouse

offered at $243,900

Year Built	1996
Sq Footage	1,508
Bedrooms	4
Bathrooms	3 full, 0 partial
Floors	3
Parking	None
Lot Size	2,000 sqft
HOA/Maint	$45 per month

DESCRIPTION

This home has had some remarkable updates, you will need to see it in order to appreciate the fine landscaping in the rear yard, the additional bedroom located in the basement, the full bath rooms that were completely remodeled, just to much to continue. The Kitchen is amazing. A quiet area, yet close to shopping and entrance to I-95, this home has more living space than many single family homes.

see additional photos below

PROPERTY FEATURES

Central A/C	Family room	Living room
Dining room	Dishwasher	Stove/Oven
Attic	Basement

COMMUNITY FEATURES

Playground

ADDITIONAL PHOTOS

Seller contact info:

Gary and Mary Nelson

Long and Foster Bel Air North

410-459-4158 O: 410-879-8080

For sale by agent/broker

Equal Opportunity Housing

Posted: Aug 24, 2007, 10:16am PDT

420 Oakton Way, Abingdon Maryland, Harford County Real Estate

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Fri, 24 Aug 2007 11:06:25 -0700

Gary and Mary Nelson | Long and Foster Bel Air North | 410-459-4158

420 Oakton Way, Abingdon, MD

Immaculant is the only words that come to mind when I think of this home

3 Bdrm Townhouse

offered at $234,900

Year Built	1993
Sq Footage	1,294
Bedrooms	3
Bathrooms	3 full, 0 partial
Floors	3
Parking	None
Lot Size	2,000 sqft
HOA/Maint	$40 per month

DESCRIPTION

This very well maintained home is ready for the new owners. Close to the major transportation routes, shopping, and public transportation, you will find all the amenities that you could ask for. With 3 bedrooms and 3 baths, a family room with fireplace, and large living room/dining room with country kitchen, this could be your home for years to come. Call for a showing today!

see additional photos below

PROPERTY FEATURES

Central A/C	Central heat	Fireplace
Family room	Living room	Stove/Oven
Basement	Yard

OTHER SPECIAL FEATURES

Close to shopping center

Close to Highways and MARC train

ADDITIONAL PHOTOS

Seller contact info:

Gary and Mary Nelson

Long and Foster Bel Air North

410-459-4158 Office: 410-879-8080

For sale by agent/broker

Equal Opportunity Housing

Posted: Aug 24, 2007, 10:04am PDT

Harford County Public Schools Open August 27th

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Fri, 24 Aug 2007 10:21:22 -0700

On August 27th, the Harford County Public School System will open its doors for the 2007-2008 school year. Please keep this date in mind and drive accordingly to keep our kids safe. Keep the following in mind when driving around the neighborhoods starting next week:

Watch out for school buses, it is state law to stop when they are picking up or discharging students.
Drive slower around school zones, this makes it safer for students and cheaper on your wallet.
Watch out for kids crossing the streets, lots of times, they fail to pay attention.
Watch out around public library's, kids will be using them now for research.

Remember, the kids are our future.

Gary and Mary Nelson, REALTORS

Long and Foster Real Estate, Inc.

Direct: 410-459-6920 Office: 410-879-8080

www.HarfordCountyHomes.net

Mariner Point Park-Joppa (Harford County) Maryland

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Fri, 24 Aug 2007 09:17:22 -0700

I recently wrote a blog on Flying Point Park, for this article; I want to tell you about Mariner Point Park. Mariner Point Park is located in Joppa, Maryland in beutiful Harford County near the Baltimore County Line. It's address is 100 Kearney Drive and the entrance is guarded by the "Old man of the Sea". As you can see from this photo, the Old Man of the Sea is very vigulant in making sure your safe in Mariner Point Park. In front of the statue you will find an old anchor laying on its side.

As you enter the park, you will see on the right a boat launch capable of launching 3 boats at one time. On weekends, you can imagine that this is a very crowded place. I found that if I did not make it here by 7:00 am, I would not have a parking place and would have to wait until someone came back before launching. On the left is where we would park after launching the boat. Again, my biggest complaint here is there is not that many parking spaces.

Continuing past the boat launch area, you will find another area where you can launch your canoes or kayaks. When you launch here, you are entering a channel that will lead out to the Gunpowder River and eventually out to the Chesapeake Bay. Boaters have to be real careful, some areas don't have that much depth which could cause you to bottom out the boat or engine.

Another prominent market you will see at the entrance is this welcome sign to the park. It is located of to the right of the Old Man of the Sea.

The Park is 37.7 acres of waterfront land that is found on the penninsula of the Taylors and Fosters Branch Creek. You will find lots of woodland, and what I like most; lots of places to relax and fish at.

People living in the area are lucky that such a place exists in such a short distance, and I hope that family's take advantage of what our parks have to offer.

This is a sign that is presently at the park as of this blog, showing what the recreation council is doing to improve the park itself. There seems to be a lot of dredging going on that will allowing deeper draft boats to use the channel that leads to the Chesapeake.

They say that this project will take 2-4 years, but as with any government organization, we should probably double that. What they do seem to be doing is minimizing the interuption of use of the park.

The above photos show the pavillion and a relaxing bench near the channel where I will occassionally fish at. There are also about 2 miles of nature trails inside the park where you can get some excercise or just take the kids on an easy stroll.

420 Oakton Way, Abingdon Maryland

Gary Nelson, REALTOR®, CRS, CDPE, e-Pro, GRI (RE\MAX Components) — Thu, 23 Aug 2007 12:33:05 -0700

Located in Harford County Maryland

This very well maintained home is ready for the new owners. Close to the major transportation routes, shopping, and public transportation, you will find all the amenities that you could ask for. With 3 bedrooms including a master bath and 3 full baths, a family room with fireplace, and large living room/dining room with country kitchen, this could be your home for years to come. Call for a showing today!

With a brick front, this townhome is ready for the new owners to move right into. With barely the minimum of customization, you won't be sorry that you took the time to view this lovely home.

Gary and Mary Nelson, REALTORS

Long and Foster Real Estate, Inc.

Direct: 410-459-4158 Office: 410-879-8080