Bethesda, MD

Your offer has been accepted... So, now what? Part IX (Homeowners Insurance)

Now that you are a homeowner, you need homeowners insurance. This is true for single family homes as well as condos, co-ops and townhomes (the latter three will likely have partial policies in place already- though you'll need a supplementary policy to cover all the rest). If you are taking out a loan on your new property the banks will insist upon it.

Who: Check with family and friends to see if they have a favorite insurance agent. If not, I can recommend a number of agents.

What: You need to get enough insurance so that your home can be replaced. Most basic policies will provide coverage for damages caused by fire, smoke, theft, frozen pipes, ice and snow. Additional items (swimming pools, jewelry and art, etc.) will cost you more.

When: The policy will need to be in place at settlement or your loan won't go through. If you are the type that likes to shop around, start the process early. And do shop around! The Internet is a goldmine in terms of comparing prices and services. Use it to your advantage. Once you've narrowed your search, get a few quotes in writing and pick a company.

Save money by raising your deductible. I like to think of homeowners insurance as something you use for really big ticket items. Therefore, a really low deductible is silly. The savings can be significant- so be sure to ask about various deductibles and their price difference. If you choose to use the same company for both homeowners and auto insurance (for example), you can save up to 5-15% by purchasing multiple policies. One more thing... don't confuse what you paid for your house with the replacement cost. Determine the cost to rebuild the structure(s) only and base your insurance premium on this amount. Lastly, don't forget to ask the agent what steps you can take toward saving some money. They can be pretty darned helpful and creative.

Speaking of small claims. I made the mistake of putting in a claim once when my pipes sprung pinhole leaks (a common occurrence in the area a while back). I paid for that mistake for years. For the measly $1,500 I got back from the insurance company I was promptly rewarded with significantly higher premiums. And it carried over to the purchase of a new home, as well. Furthermore, any claim goes on your "record" and gets shared with other insurers. End of my rant. Homeowners insurance...save it for the big stuff.

Part I of "Your offer has been accepted... So, now what?" tackles home inspections and how they might play out in your home purchase scenario.

• Part II discusses financing and what to expect.
• Part III deals with settlement attorneys, and
• Part IV covers title insurance.
• Part V takes a closer look at home warranties.
• Part VI talks about the final walk through.
• Part VII tackles condo docs, and
• Part VIII looks at termite inspections.

Coming soon... Be on the lookout for "Your offer has been accepted... So, now what? Part X" which will discuss your good faith deposit.

East Bethesda's Lynbrook Elementary School:

During the first week of March in 1940, the Board of Education advertised its intention to buy three acres of land between Maple and Chase Avenues at $3,500 per acre and take an option on seven additional acres at a slightly higher price. The land was in the area where a small, red plane had crashed the previous spring as the pilot dipped his wings to a friend on Highland Avenue.

In June, the school board accepted the Morrison Brothers bid of $37,100 for the first unit of the school and work began almost immediately on a one-story brick building containing five classrooms with removable partitions. The PTA for the (at the time) unnamed school serving the area north of East West Highway and east of Wisconsin Avenue organized even before the excavation began.

Today the old school serves as a day-care center, administrative offices for the school district, and the land surrounding it is a true anchor for East Bethesda activities and events.

Information found in "Bethesda, A Social History" by William Offutt.

For more information on Bethesda, specifically East Bethesda, check out http://ebca.org for up-to-date information and neighborhood happenings.

What a day. Woke up to god knows how many inches of the fluffy stuff. And spent the day watching more and more and MORE of it come down from the skies. It's now 5pm and I think it just might be done snowing. Is that a bit of sun I see? I hope so. I do admit to feeling a bit depleted when the weatherman described this storm's snow as the kind that would "turn to concrete" if not immediately shoveled. Ergh.

Yesterday at about 4pm:

Today at about 11am:

What a beautiful day. We managed to get some of the future concrete off of the driveway. I'm choosing to ignore the rumors that we might not get plowed out until Wednesday.

I'm feeling like I've earned my glass of wine tonight! Happy snow everyone.

A little bit late... but here is the market analysis for 20816:

Bethesda, 20816 -Single Family Homes

Much like the rest of Montgomery County, inventory remained extremely low in December in Bethesda 20816 with a total of 9 new listings (four of which still remain active on the market).

8 homes went under contract in December in Bethesda 20816, while 16 homes settled and 34 listings remain on the market. Only four more units came on the market this December as compared to 2008 but with that small difference there was a noticeable change in over volume sold (up 56.97%). Now as exciting as it is to see such a jump in overall volume sold - keep in mind that in our market all it takes is one really expensive home to throw these numbers off.

Sellers - why wait until the Spring of 2010 to sell when every one is selling? Stand out from the crowd and sell your house now while the inventory remains low and your competition is limited.

Below is a break down of the activity separated by 4 different ranges in price.

Real Estate Activity in Bethesda, MD 20816:

Active

Homes for sale under $500,000 = 1

Homes for sale from $500,001 to $800,000 = 8

Homes for sale from $800,001 to $1,500,000 = 17

Homes for sale from $1,500,001 and up = 8

Under Contract

Homes Under contract with a list price under $500,000 = 0

Homes Under contract from $500,001 to $800,000 = 4

Homes Under contract from $800,001 to $1,500,000 = 3

Homes Under contract from $1,500,001 and up = 1

Sold

Settled Homes list price under 500,000 = 0

Settled Homes list price from $500,001 to $800,000 = 3

Settled Homes list price from $800,001 to $1,500,000 = 10

Settled Homes list price from $1,500,001 and up = 3

Email me at cara@lnf.com for a FREE monthly email market update for your specific property.

See what's available now in 20816 by clicking here.

Spies in East Bethesda...

Some of you may know Sandy Spagnolo (EBCA's social chairperson and professional organizer), a fiery redhead who has lived on Chestnut Street all her life. But with all the newcomers in the neighborhood, not many of you remember her grandfather, Art Lundahl.

Art was born in Chicago in 1915. He worked for the CIA, and was the founding father of NPIC, the National Photographic Interpretation Center, formed in 1961. It combined CIA, Army, Navy and Air Force assets to solve national intelligence problems. It was the NPIC that first identified the basing of missiles in Cuba in 1962. By analyzing images from U-2 flights over Cuba (Art also had a hand in designing the once super secret U-2), Art Lundahl was instrumental in identifying the missiles by studying images of tarps, trucks, and mud tracks. His findings, which he reported to President Kennedy at the White House, contradicted the thinking of political and military analysts. This information led Kennedy to impose a blockade on Cuba to cut off further arms shipments. The Soviet Union eventually withdrew the missiles.

So, how does this figure into East Bethesda lore? Well, the Lundahls have been in the neighborhood since 1945, when they purchased a new cape cod home on Chestnut Street. The government later installed a bomb shelter in the basement, along with a separate and direct line to the CIA (his daughter was a teenager at the time, and the CIA could never get through on the phone!).

Sir Arthur C. Lundahl was the 11th American to be knighted by the Queen of England. A movie was made about him (ok, ok, about the Cuban missile crisis). Check out "Thirteen Days" - Art is portrayed by Dakin Matthews. He's the one smoking a pipe. There's also an old Discovery episode about him, in the Discovery Spy series. Art lived until 1992.

If you‘ve got some East Bethesda history to share, please give me a call. You can also check out other East Bethesda lore on my blog: www.BethesdaHouseHunter.com

For more information on Bethesda, specifically East Bethesda, check out ://ebca.org for up-to-date information and neighborhood happenings.http://ebca.org://ebca.org