Michael Johnson

Spring Time is Here!!

With the arrival of spring it is a great time to get the kids and yourselves out of the house. Kinder Farm Park in Millersville is a great place to go. The park borders the city of Severna Park and the several communities.

Kinder Farm Park is a part of the Anne Arundel Parks and Recreations so if you have a park's pass it is free to get in. Kinder Park hosts a variety of activities for the young and old alike. There are trails both paved and dirt for hiking, bicycling and even horseback riding. A huge playground in located at the parks center and the farm offers many different animals that the kids love to look at.

For those of you who love gardening, Kinder Park Farm offers community gardens for rent. It is a great place to come and try your hand at growing some of your favorite vegetables or flowers.

Kinder Farm Park also has a 4-H Livestock Club. Children can join between the ages of 8-18.

Living around Kinder Farm Park gives you a wonderful opportunity to enjoy the park throughout the year. Communities in Severna Park and Millersville have many entrance points to access the park.

Communities such as Chartwell and Kilmarnock and Brittingham border the park. As of March 2009 the average sales price of Severna Park homes were $464,328. Home prices have steadily declined in recent months and are beginning to show signs of stabilizing in this Spring market.

For more information on Kinder Farm visit their website at http://www.aacounty.org/RecParks/parks/kinderfarm/livestock.cfm

For real estate information on Severna Park and Millersville please contact:

RE/MAX Summit Realty

We are pounded constantly by advertising and marketing and occasionally a good scam. I can recall a couple of years ago a beautiful vintage Fender Stratocaster that I nearly fell for that fell in the category of "too good to be true." Thankfully I woke up once I read the phrase "Western Union" the money. I recently placed a rental listing of mine on CraigsList for a fantastic historic row home in the Little Italy section of Baltimore. Cute as can be! Let me introduce you to a fine Englishman, Paul Resch...

Paul asked for me information on the property as his company based in the UK was to be opening an office in Baltimore. Checking out the company, it did match the location of where he currently lived. Knowing that a review of a credit report from one of our bureau's, I asked him for the information on his landlord. His landlord replied with a modest testimonial about our dear friend Paul (paulresch80@gmail.com).

Here was one of his first replies:

I want the 12 month lease to start on the 15th of April 2009, I also want to notify you that I have in the mean time arrange with an interior decorator (Agent) who will be handling the purchase of furniture's, entertainment system and other appliances that I will need in the property, they will as well be in charge of moving down my luggage's down to the states. So the check of $7,500 will be sent over to you which is a relocation grant by my employer. All you need do is to deduct the deposit $3,350 and forward the difference to my Decorators so I can have the place prepared before my arrival. All applications and lease will be signed as soon as I arrive. Also for familiarization I am Paul Resch, I am 31 yrs of age, a British citizen, married to a lovely lady, with a daughter (Family staying over in the UK), I work with ( Kingsbridge Risk Solutions (UK) Ivy house,8 - 10 High Street,Twyford,READING,RG10 9AE), as a loss adjuster agent, I am a Christian, reserved in Nature, Non smoker also i don't keep pets.

I look forward to meeting you and hope to have a good relationship as a tenant with you. I await the details. You can reach my at this number +44702 402 3794 Below is my present landlords information for reference :

Dr.Joseph Williams.

4 Dorville Crescent. London W6 0HJ

UNITED KINGDOM

EMAIL:josephwilliams2xxp@live.com

Regards.

Paul Resch

Once I notified Paul that we would not accept a check for $7,500, almost double the amount of rent and deposit, our communication began to lag. The sounds too god to be true Stratocaster began to pop up in my head once again. You see Paul or whatever his name is solely looking for opportunities to rent a home from afar, send a phony check, and as it sits in limbo and never clears- attempt to earn the difference for his "interior decorator."

While I was optimistic the transaction would work, in hindsight, it simply didn't add up. So beware of Paul and scammers that attempt to secure your properties from afar with a hefty check coming straight from his company's relocation department!

Have You Ever Done a Transcation With This Agent?

We know who these agents are, $100 Gazillion in sales last year, Lifetime Achievement Award, Hall of Fame, blah, blah, blah blah blah! How is it that agents like these are still kissing themselves in the mirror attempting to convince the public how great they are?

In difficult markets like the one that we are currently in, we must remember to do business with other agents in the same manner we would like to be treated. Return phone calls, emails, offer showing feedback when asked, and carry a transaction through as "time is of the essence."

Here's to a fantastic Spring!

It seems no matter where you turn, the downturn of the global economy has been blamed on the collapse of the credit and real estate markets. Certainly lending did get out of hand and homes were used as ATM's for far too long. However, the link to gas prices and the collapse of the financial markets is rarely discussed.

Prior to Hurricane Katrina in the fall of 2005, the supply of gas suddenly diminished. Naturally, unrest in the Middle East and two wars were real causes for concern. Any wrinkle in the delivery and shipping of oil has a near immediate cause and effect reaction on the cost of crude oil. We can all remember the painful images and stories from the devastation of the Category 5 hurricane. In the midst of that tragedy, the entire world would soon see the price of gas and heating oil begin an up and sometimes down roller coaster for the next 3 years.

Lets face it, all markets are run by supply and demand. Whether it is a stock, commodity or real estate, prices are dependent on demand. While credit was easy to obtain and real estate prices seemed to have no ceiling, nothing stays the same forever. Once the concern turned to basic needs like being able to afford to drive to work, the flow of money slowed. Sure there were congressional meetings with CEO's being grilled, questions of speculation in oil but lets face it the reward of investing in real estate was now purely risk! Buyers and investors of homes fled.

While the cost of gas is now hovering at approximately $2 per gallon or roughly half of where it recently was, it is no longer in the headlines. In fact, the cost of gas is barely news-worthy. However, in the back of almost every consumers mind is the financial pain we all experienced over a three year time period and most feel that $2 gas is a temporary reprieve. It is only logical that big expenditures are now put. Is there a fix no, but a nice honest explanation of what happened and a realistic assessment of where prices are heading would certainly help people budget for their future.

I have to admit, I am skeptical! I am the type to sit on the sidelines until I understand something before jumping in with two feet. And with this skepticism comes my first blog post on Active Rain. Yes, I have known about the site and service for quite some time and have turned to it in the past for advice from fellow agents on short sales, foreclosures and broker price opinions. And as an independent contractor I've also thought, "sharing my practices and strategies only threatens my livelihood." But the possibility of helping the greater good is far too valuable to not share a very simple concept that literally anyone can and should implement into their business.

Before I dive in, here are a couple of questions to consider: when people ask you:

• How's the market?
• Do you know any great deals out there?
• What do rates look like?

While sometimes our closer clients really do care about us as individuals and our businesses, these questions are typically self serving. We have run into people that are looking for the deal of century no matter who brings it to them. Most of us have also been midway into a transaction only to learn that our client is working with two lenders compromising closing on time or at all. But wait, aren't we guilty of the same? As agents we are constantly looking for the next lead, the next contact, the next prospect. As we know, without prospecting, our business slowly shrinks and dies.

Bringing this full circle is the idea of focusing on something larger than ourselves for a change. Focusing on a way to give back to a cause that you are passionate about. Aligning yourself with an organization or illness that has touched you in one way or another. You see when we stop thinking about the next transaction, the next listing or prospect, good things tend to happen.

In the Annapolis, MD area, 13 years ago started the Polar Bear Plunge. This event has grown from its infancy to this January hosting more than 13,000 Plungers. All Plungers raised a minimum of $50 per person, top plungers raised more than $10,000! The event will raise more than $2.5 million all benefits the athletes of the Special Olympics of Maryland. This is a top-notch organization dedicated to helping disabled youth compete at a high level. When I was introduced to a top staff person there nearly four years ago, I walked away that day knowing I wanted to contribute in some way.

While jumping into 34 degree water in January may not be for you, I encourage you to think outside of yourself to find what is important to you. Individually your efforts can be big or small, but taking the first step is nothing short of inspiring. When contacting your friends and clients, few will care about your million dollar producer status yet they will be energized by your participation in the Breast Cancer Walk or Relay For Life. Real estate as we know is a contact sport: the more contact, the more results!

Throughout this blog, I will update you with volunteering and fundraising events we have participated in the past to provide you with some thought provoking ideas about how you can either get started or continue making a difference in your community. By doing good things for others, good things happen to you.

How about you? Let's hear about some of things you are active and passionate about? See you next January in the water!