Movewithmarci, Marci Yankelov Realtor, Baltimore Real Estate and Life

Its called sweat equity not kick back and relax equity!

Marci Yankelov (REMAX Sails) — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 09:10:40 -0700

Got Cash for Real Estate Investing? As a foreclosure buyers agent I come across tons of investors and want to be investors. Here are some of the things I have learned. There really are no short cuts. In order to stay in real estate long term, you need cash reserves. Buying real estate nothing down is easy; handling negative cash flow, repairs, and other expenses in the meantime is the trick. In fact, if you can handle the bad times, you will always come out on top. Lack of cash reserves puts unnecessary pressure on you to do substandard repairs, accept less than qualified tenants, and give into tenants' demands for fear of vacancy. When you have a sufficient cash reserve, you act rationally. You can hold out for a higher sales price. You can hold out for a qualified tenant. You can leave properties vacant rather than accepting unqualified tenants. You can call a tenant's bluff when they threaten to leave. You can take care of necessary repairs and improvements on your properties. Real Estate Investing is a Business. Its been my experience that people are lured to real estate because of the quick buck it promises. Don't hold your breath--you won't get rich quick. An "overnight sensation" usually takes about five years. More than 90% of the people who take a real estate seminar quit after three months. Why the high fallout rate? Lack of action and unrealistic expectations. Investing should be treated with the seriousness of a career. It takes months, even years for a business to cultivate customers and have a life of its own. You need to treat real estate like any other business. When you first start you are going to do a lot of grunt work and things that you might not like doing. Hire licensed people for the things that require it but step up to the plate for the unskilled stuff. It will save you money and every business needs to save money. Its called sweat equity not kick back and relax equity!

Empty Mayonnaise Jars and Real Estate

Marci Yankelov (REMAX Sails) — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 06:15:03 -0700

I was driving home from my brothers in PA on Fathers Day Night and had the best Lightening Bug experience. If you are lucky enough to live east of Kansas you know summer is here when its gets humid enough for the Lightening Bugs to come out. I was passing large areas of farmland and the fields looked like they were strung with tiny flashing lights. It was amazing. For the record the Lightening Bugs are also called Fireflies. As a child some of my fondest memories are filling an empty mayonnaise jar with Fireflies. We would polish the glass so it was clear as could and then punch holes in the lid. If you caught enough of the little glowing bugs you could read by the light they produced! How does this relate to real estate? I have a client who relocated from the West Coast. This past winter she saw snow falling for the first time. Of course she had seen snow before but to see it falling and catch flakes in your mouth is quite an experience. Keeping that in mind, I waited patiently for the Fireflies to come. When the flower beds at my park started glowing I called my client and explained the whole lightening bug thing. She gathered her kids, some blankets and empty mayonnaise jars. They caught a handful then laid in the dark watching their first Lightening Bugs. I was so excited that I could introduce her to those little bugs that brought so much joy to my childhood and still amaze me. When people move to my area, I become their lifetime concierge. Whether it's sharing my passion for my city, telling them about the great places they would not know about unless they lived here, the place where the locals go for steamed crabs, recommending the best place for guests to stay when they visit, , things for kids, a great dry cleaner in their neighborhood, what movies are showing in the park , the cheapest happy hour or where to go to see the Lightening Bugs! As Realtors and experts in our areas we have the perfect opportunity to stay in touch by sharing information and introducing people to the "great stuff and places they would not know about unless they lived here". I love playing concierge. Every once in a while my phone will ring or buzz with a text from a client asking "We have friends coming in town and want to eat Indian, where's the best place to go?" I love it and part of my blog will now focus on "great stuff and places you would not know about unless you lived here". What are some the great things and places in your area that you only know about if you live there? Tell me just in case I visit your town!

Sorry We're Closed for Business

Marci Yankelov (REMAX Sails) — Wed, 12 May 2010 06:18:27 -0700

I am sure there have been posts about this subject but I felt compelled to share my story. I have a buyer who lives out of state who wants to buy a second home in my area. Her daughter and son in law live here and are expecting their first child, her first grandchild. She has cash and wants to buy a place of her own to stay in when she visits. Last Friday she came in town for her second house hunting visit to the area. She's looking for a condo and there a lot of condos on the market in her price range. There were 11 properties we wanted to see, several were in the same buildings. I called several days in advance to schedule showings. Some were through a showing service CSS (which I love), some I had to schedule with the listing agent directly. Here is what happened, 2 agents NEVER called me back, 2 sellers declined because it "was not a good time for them", 1 had showing restrictions that said it could only been shown on the weekends between 10 and 5, and 1 a tenant declined the showing. The only one I will let slide is the tenant occupied property because of tenant rights in my area the seller is not in complete control. 6 of the 11 properties thats 54% of the properties my buyer wanted to see were closed for business! Not a good time for them? A good time for a showing is anytime a buyer wants to schedule a showing. With the exception of the ridiculous like 6am or 11pm (unless it's vacant). It gets better. One of the properties we were scheduled to see had a key that did not work. As the buyer's agent in this scenario it was slightly embarrassing when my buyer asked "How can all this happen? Don't these people want to sell their place? I called the listing brokerage and the person who answered the phone said that several agents had called saying the key was not working. Why were they still scheduling appointments? How about taking my info and calling me when the problem is fixed? When I take a listing I always use a showing service so agents never have to play phone tag with me to make an appointment. It's just a cost of doing business like installing a sign on the yard. My sellers are told up front they are not to decline a showing unless they are gravely ill or some other tragedy has happened. If they are in the bathtub they need to get out, put on a robe and drive around the block. If a seller declines a showing I get a text, email and phone call from the showing service. I immediately call my seller and the buyer's agent to figure out a time to get their buyer in the property. If I have to go meet them or send another agent I make it happen. I understand that keys go missing and locks break, mistakes happen and tenants make things difficult. The 2 agents that never called back have NEVER called, NEVER emailed, NEVER sent smoke signals. One of the agents for a seller declined showing called but it was the next day and my buyer had already left town. The non-working key agent never contacted me. There is a winner and a loser and some that never make it to the starting line. My buyer wrote a cash offer on a property we called the same day, last minute with less than an hours notice to schedule an appointment. I reason I did not call several days prior was that it was not on the orginal list of properties she wanted to see. I do not make a habit of last minute calling if I can help it. Did I mention I had a ready, able and willing buyer who could not see 54% of the properties she wanted to see on a Friday afternoon in a buyers market? What do you think?

How One Email Pushed Me Over The Edge And Into The Pouring Rain

Marci Yankelov (REMAX Sails) — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 03:38:16 -0800

Phenomenal, adjective: exceedingly or unbelievably great I got my first email about RainCamp in early December. It was from Douglas Ching VP of technical Training, it was titled "Are You Available January 12th?" January 12th was over a month away and I'm a busy agent, I had no idea what I was doing on January 12th! I was pretty sure I was not going to go to New York City to an all day seminar where the promoters would try and sell me stuff that would turn me into a $20 million dollar agent in 30 days or less! Don't get me wrong, I've been to plenty of those type of events and believe if you learn one new thing its never a waste of time. However, New York City is not walking distance from Baltimore. I did know that my 2010 Business Plan included capitalizing on social media and starting and maintaining a blog. Prior to real estate I spent 15 years in corporate marketing much of that for start-up companies in the telecomm and high tech industries. I think that gives me an edge that many people cannot devise for themselves but I know there is always more to learn. I got more emails over the next few weeks telling me about RainCamp. I read them, even clicked through to all of the info about the "Shift" book but was pretty sure I was not traveling to New York. I did enough research to know that RainCamp was coming to Washington, DC in May and thought I'll just go then. Then came the email that pushed me over the edge, it was from Bob Stewart and it was titled, " It's Not Like You Have Anything Better to Do", it was an hour-by-hour, play-by-play of an imaginary day as follows(Bob please forgive me if I have broken some copy right law) From: Bob Stewart-Active Rain Subject: Its not Like You have Anything better To Do To: ME Date: Thursday, January 7, 2010, 8:05AM OK, maybe you do have something better to do. If you have a client you meeting or a closing that is taking place on this Tuesday, January 12th then then you have something better to do. If you don't, I can't possibly imagine why you would miss RainCamp in New York City. Well, maybe I can imagine.....it must go something like this: 7:00am- You wake up, stretch, yawn and roll over to hit the snooze. 7:15am- You wake up again, wipe the drool on your pillow, yawn and sit up in bed. 7:21am-Your prospects for generating a new client today are weighing on you like a ton of bricks, you won't stop racking your brain until you think of where your next client will come from. 7:32am- The computer is fired up and the coffee is done. now its time to really get to business. You answer a few emails (not nearly as many business ones as you had hoped, mostly chain-letters, spam and a few Facebook messages from your Mom, can you believe your MOM is on Facebook? I wonder if she is buying or selling in the next four weeks.) None are a potential new client. 7:55am- You read ESPN.com for the days sports news and remember to check to see if any business email might have hit your spam folder. Nope, nothing, nada, zilch. 8:25am- (yep, you just wasted a half hour on ESPN.com) You are dreading cold calling today. You decide to put it off until tomorrow. You do the same with door knocking and calling expired listings. 8:31- You call and back out of doing that Open House for the agent in your office. That last open house did'nt generate one lead. What a waste of four hours. 8:32- (you didn't get them on the phone, you left a message) Now its time to .....you don't know. You decide to watch the end of the Today Show, Al Roker is so funny! 9:05am- You check Facebook and Twitter...everyone is talking about RainCamp already. How could they be this excited? They are only five minutes into the thing? 9:05am-5pm- You are mesmerized as the 450 people attending-NONE OF WHICH ARE YOU-send out bits and pieces of what they are learning. You respond to as many tweets as you can, begging for additional explanations. Someone finally posted video, its only 3 minutes and you only catch 2 days of Ben's "Ten Days Of Pain" lead conversation method. The three minutes of video have about 90 seconds where you can actually hear what Ben is saying. 5:05pm- You curse yourself for missing RainCamp. You are convinced more than ever that your next potential client is that much further from your grasp because 450 OTHER PEOPLE just got a first rate education on online marketing. 8:05pm-"NO WAY!!!" You scream. Did her Facebook update just say that RainCamp was donation based and I could have paid any amount I could afford??? Register Today, as seats are limited and headed towards selling out. Don't be the guy(or gal) in this story. Come to RainCamp and we KNOW you will have something better to do every day in 2010. Bob Stewart ActiveRain 425.753.7340 bob@activerain.com (Before I go on let me note that this would never be one of my calender days. I work for one of the biggest REO/Foreclosures Listing Brokerages in MD and I am thankful that we are are very busy.) I called Bob, I figured his number is on the email, so I'll call it, I doubted he would answer but I dialed. Bob answered the phone! OMG he is a real person. I asked if he thought I would benefit from coming to NYC or if I should just wait until RainCamp came to Washington, DC in May. I already knew the answer, why would I wait until 5 months into 2010 to take actions to implement part of my plan. I went onto the Amtrak site, found the cheapest train ticket which I must add, required me to get up at 4am, drop my dog off at a friends and board a 4:45am train to NYC(the later train would have been more than twice as much). I then purchased a donation based Raincamp ticket for an undisclosed amount. Lets just say I was paying a lot to get there and based my donation on my budget for the day. I woke up at 4 am having flashbacks to college crew practice. if you or anyone you know has ever rowed crew you know what I am talking about. I boarded the train afraid that I would fall asleep, snore loudly and miss getting off in NYC and find myself in Canada. Thanks to the Conductor I got off in NYC at 7:20am. I put my makeup on in the train station bathroom. In the registration line I met an agent who had come from Washington, DC. We spent the day together. The bottom line, THIS WAS THE BEST OUT-OFFICE-DAY I HAVE SPENT. There was a lot I knew but so much more I did not. The presenters were energetic and more then will to share tons of information for FREE! The best part, by not waiting until May I got a head start on the agents in my area and was able to implement this part of my 2010 in the first month of the year. RainCamp was simply PHENOMENAL. You have to go....

Open Letter to First Time Home Buyers

Marci Yankelov (REMAX Sails) — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 05:28:23 -0700

This is great information!Dear Procrastinating First Time Home Buyers: I know you. I've seen you in the mall on December 23rd. I've watched you race through town en route to the airport; screeching up to the terminal just in time to prevent your mom from giving up and getting in the cab. I even saw you run over the neighbor's cat on your way to the post office on April 15th. (Actually, disregard that last one. I'm sure it was just a large stick). You excel when the stakes are high. You thrive on knowing you'll succeed where mere mortals would stumble. Your methods are a bit unorthodox, but you always come through at the buzzer. In most circles, I would be you. The significant difference here is that I own a house. For better or worse, I don't have a stake in the $8000 tax credit game. You do though. You have the opportunity to change your life for the better and you plan to do so. Tomorrow. My only concern is that tomorrow may not be when you think it is. By now, you know the tax credit expires December 1st. As this is month's away, I'm sure you've given little thought to actually looking for a house. There are far more pressing deadlines to be dealt with. I know you are busy, so I won't take up much more of your time. But, you need to know... December 1st is the wrong date. To be eligible for the credit, you have to take possession by December 1st. When everything was working well, it took around 30 days to close a loan. These days, things don't work well very often and it's not going to get better once you and your brethren leave the couch. Underwriters are scarce and banks aren't about to staff up for the onslaught knowing there is a going to be a huge void immediately afterwards. It will take at least 45 days to close. With that in mind, October 16th is the real drop-dead date. Reset your internal clock. NOW!! You'll Miss the $8000 Tax Credit After I'd tell you to start now, so you can take advantage of the best deals, but it would be a waste of breath. So, I'll just say,"Call me when you are ready." Sincerely, Erik * * * * * Erik Hitzelberger is a licensed REALTOR with RE/MAX Alliance in Louisville. If you need a Louisville Real Estate agent please email me or call 502.921.3989. I specialize in the following areas of the Metro Louisville Area: Prospect, Middletown, Jeffersontown (J-Town), Fern Creek, Okolona, Shepherdsville, Mt Washington, Hillview, Brooks and Pewee Valley. Click the following links to learn more about Louisville and Bullitt County Real Estate or to Search for Louisville Homes Get Updates in a Reader Get Louisville Real Estate News by Email

Another Great Foreclosure

Marci Yankelov (REMAX Sails) — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 07:21:24 -0700

Marci Yankelov | Mount Vernon Realty | 443-858-9113

5502 Kemper Road, Baltimore, MD

Roland Park**Bank Owned Single Family Home**Walk to Bryn Mawr and Gilman!

5BR/2.5BA Single Family House

offered at $299,900

Year Built	1954
Sq Footage	2,850
Bedrooms	5
Bathrooms	2 full, 1 partial
Floors	3
Parking	2 Car garage
Lot Size	.33 acres
HOA/Maint	$0 per month

DESCRIPTION

SF in Roland Park under $300k is a steal! Bank Owned. This home is a true 5 bedroom. Charming brick colonial with traditional floor plan. Expanded kitchen with sliders onto deck overlooking a garden with fishpond. Den on main level with separate entrance-ideal for home office. Bring your vision, ready for the latest and greatest in kitchen and bathroom design. Call or email to Marci to schedule a private showing. marci@movewithmarci.com

see additional photos below

PROPERTY FEATURES

Central A/C	Fireplace	Hardwood floor
Family room	Living room	Office/Den
Dining room	Dishwasher	Refrigerator
Stove/Oven	Microwave	Basement
Laundry area - inside	Balcony, Deck, or Patio	Yard

OTHER SPECIAL FEATURES

Bank Owned Foreclosure

House 2 doors down is listed for $529k

Main level with separate entrance-ideal for home office

True 5 Bedroom

ADDITIONAL PHOTOS

Photo 1

Contact info:

Marci Yankelov

Mount Vernon Realty

443-858-9113

For sale by agent/broker

Equal Opportunity Housing

Posted: May 31, 2009, 10:56am PDT

Will You Be Hogans Hero?

Marci Yankelov (REMAX Sails) — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 06:27:33 -0800

Will You Be Hogan's Hero? As Realtors out and about in neighborhoods, in and out of houses we have an ethical duty to report abuse of any kind. Here is a story that supports that belief.Meet Hogan. He's a gorgeous purebred German Shepherd Dog. We named him after "Hogan" of "Hogan's Heroes" because we were trying for "something German" and we thought "Klink" just didn't fit. Hogan needs a home! This is his story thus far:Over a month ago, Hogan was chained to a tree in his yard by his former owner when she moved away to Richmond, Virginia. I showed a neighboring house several times and kept seeing Hogan tied up at his house, which was also for sale. When ultimately it looked like Hogan's owner had actually moved away WITHOUT HIM, My friend Nicci and I inquired with the agent selling Hogan's house. The agent told me that Hogan's owner had indeed left him behind and was interested in finding him a new home. My friend Nicci spoke to the agent herself and he promised to give her number to the dog's owner, but the owner never called and the agent never returned her subsequent calls, either. Maybe someone informed her she had broken the law by abandoning her dog? Maybe she was afraid she'd get an earful from us? We wouldn't have bothered to waste our breath - we just wanted Hogan safe. Either way, enough is ENOUGH - it's cold outside and four weeks was certainly long enough for Hogan to be lonely.Two days later, Nicci and I went to "meet" Hogan. He was busy telling everybody who went past his yard, "Hey, come pay attention to me! Hey, go find my Mom! Hey, get me off this lead!" When we approached, however, he was interested, but a bit scared. That was quickly cured with some treats and a little baby talk.At this point, a neighbor came out of his home and asked if we had come to take Hogan to a new home. He said he hoped so, because Hogan cried all night each night outside alone and whomever was supposed to feed Hogan was not doing so with any regularity. The gentleman had been feeding Hogan himself - adding that he'd saved Hogan a whole lot of Thanksgiving dinner! (Yay! That made us happy for poor Hogan.)Since Hogan's yard's gates were locked (yes, Nicci and I hopped the fence to feed and meet Hogan), we contacted the Animal Police and a nice Officer came out to cut the lock and bring Hogan to "BARCS" which used to be the city shelter - and still is - but it has been made an independent non-profit http://www.baltimoreanimalshelter.org Hogan is a sweet boy! He gives nice kisses and does "sit" if you tell him. We haven't tried "down", though. He takes treats gently and I have had my fingers in his mouth and he does not bear down. He is also very SMART! It's obvious he will make a great companion as he brought Marci and me his football and invited us to play. His owner was a female, so he is good with the ladies and it seems that he's also fine with men. We'll know more about him as things progress.We have been in contact with Bill Myers at the Mid-Atlantic German Shepherd Rescue http://www.magsr.org who got Hogan out of the shelter and into the Shepherd rescue's system. He is being housed at the rescue's kennels - which isn't a bad place to be - but honestly, this poor doggie deserves a bed by a fireplace after being tied to a tree for 4+ weeks! But more than even a foster home, Hogan needs a "forever home" where he will be loved and appreciated and never left alone like that again.If you or anyone you know would like to adopt Hogan please contact The Mid-Atlantic German Shepherd Rescue at (410) 644-7763 or magsrmail@yahoo.com or hit the website www.magsr.org

2 Week Closings Becoming Common Place?

Marci Yankelov (REMAX Sails) — Thu, 16 Aug 2007 10:02:26 -0700

Last week a friend who is also a Realtor had a deal fall apart hours before closing. The loan was approved, they had COMMITTMENT and then underwriting did a final review and told the buyer that they needed 9 months of reserves in the bank. Yes, this was ALL the day closing was scheduled. THIS WAS NOT A SUB-PRIME LOAN. Dina ElBoghdady, staff writer for the Washington Post wrote "Approved Home Loans No Longer Done Deals" in today's Washington Post Approved Home Loans No Longer a Done Deal- washingtonpost.com . The article has some great suggestions including the 2-week closing. It also says that buyers stop shopping rate and start looking for the lenders who will still be in business when its time to close!Despite the gloom and doom we see in the paper everyday I am going into my 3rd year and I am busy. I go into the office, return phone calls and work my tail off. I laugh because agents who would not return my calls 2 years when I was one of 10 buyers agents writing on their listing are now calling and chasing me for feedback. The bottom line, people are still selling and people are still buying. This market will require us to know, remember or learn how to "SELL" real estate.What do you think?

Waiting for Foreclosures? Buying vs. Renting

Marci Yankelov (REMAX Sails) — Sun, 05 Aug 2007 09:03:33 -0700

I have quite a few buyers who are deciding to rent for another year. They are waiting for this huge hole in the market to open up and allow them to buy foreclosures at unbelievable prices. I am not so sure that is going to happen. The foreclosures we are going see are not going to be super "cheap", they were owned by people to paid top dollar with interest only loans that they ultimately could not afford. Want proof? I have buyers who just closed on a new house that they built in a development for less than a foreclosure is on the market for in the same development! I always say "Rent is a four letter word" altough landlords would disagree! So, the question is ...is it better to buy or rent? Here's my take:The market is ripe for buyers right now. Interest rates, although slightly higher than this time last year, are still at an all-time low, and the National Association of REALTORS® predicts that 2006 will be the third all-time best year in real estate. So naturally you should be telling your landlord goodbye and saying hello to your dream home, right? Not so fast. Certainly, owning your own home has its benefits. But, is the dream of homeownership really one you should pursue? It all depends on your circumstance and needs.Buying a home is such a large investment, possibly the largest purchase you'll make. So, careful deliberation should be made when deciding which is better for you: rent or buy.The advantages to being a renter is that your monthly costs are fixed. There's little to no responsibility for maintenance of the property. And, it's easier to pick up and move to another location. However, the disadvantages are your rent typically increases each year and there is no guarantee that your lease will be renewed. In addition, you don't earn any equity nor will you reap the tax advantages of owning. As a homeowner, you have the benefit of security and stability, as well as the freedom to decorate and remodel. Your property also builds equity and you get the tax benefit. However, when the central heating unit breaks or the roof needs replacing, the repairs are your financial responsibility. And, there is always the possibility of losing on your investment if property values go down.One tool you can use in your analysis is a Rent -vs- Buy calculator that you can find on Web sites such Prudential.com. These calculators allow you to compare the costs of renting and buying. In some cases the amount you spend in rent may be about the same or less than you would pay on a mortgage. However, the tax benefit from owning the home may provide significant savings.You also need to decide if can you really afford homeownership. If you are on a tight budget it may not be wise to have the added pressure of maintenance costs, property taxes, and insurance. If your credit rating is in need of repair, or you have a high debt to earnings ratio, now may not be the time to purchase a home. Although you may find a lender, your loan may be at a much higher interest rate using a sub-prime lender. You might be better off taking another year to build your credit score and decrease your debt.Besides costs, another factor to consider is how long you plan to reside in the home. When you purchase a home, there is a substantial initial investment including the down payment, closing costs, and renovations. It typically takes between five and seven years to recover your initial costs. And depending on your loan payments, it may take a few years before you begin to see a return on your investment.Your lifestyle also makes a difference for whether you should rent or buy. Will you be able to afford the type of property you want and continue to enjoy the lifestyle you have? Are you starting or changing careers or perhaps you are in a job that requires you to move frequently?Here is what I tell my buyers, although homeownership has its benefits, make sure it's the right fit for you depending on your financial and personal situation.