MD Homestead Tax Credit Application Deadline Tip!

Last day to mail in your application for the MD Homestead Tax Credit.  Your application must be postmarked today.  Tip: you can go to the main post office in Columbia and print postage there with the date on it if you use a credit card to buy postage for the envelope from the postage machine in the lobby up to whenever the mail post office doors close.....I do not know if they stay open up to midnight.  I have used this when mail was due for college applications etc. and needed to be postmarked by a certain date and the counter was either closed or the mail for the day had already gone out and what they were accepting after 5 pm or so would be postmarked the following day. FYI.

Winter Energy Saving Tips

Borrowed from an email to Baltimore Gas and Electric Company customers(me):

Colder temperatures make your heating system work harder to keep your home feeling comfortable. Now is the time to make a WinterReady checklist, with the following energy-saving improvements that can make a difference in your winter heating bill. Schedule a Quick Home Energy Check-up with an energy-efficiency professional. Have your heating system tuned up, and save with rebates from approved participating contractors. Lower the temperature on your water heater, and conserve hot water when you can. Install efficient-flow faucets and showerheads to reduce water heating costs year-around. Seal holes and seams in your ductwork. Caulk and seal gaps around doors, windows and even electrical outlets. Save an average of 2 percent on your energy bill for every degree you lower your thermostat.

End of Year Thoughts

I hope you are enjoying your holidays and that you are planning for a happy 2013!

According to the RBI Stats provided to me by the Metropolitan Regional Information Systems, Inc.(MRIS), the system we agents use to input, update and advertise property listings, data is showing that home values are beginning to hold steady if not rise slightly when averaged together in our area, it continues to take a little less time to sell a well priced home relative to its condition and both the sales volume and the total dollar value have risen considerably over the previous year and the previous month. This is good news for November statistics.  December is seeing some of the usual seasonal slowdown as our attention has been on holidays and family which is appropriate.  Continued low interest rates and lower volume of homes on the market combined with rising rents is putting some pressure on home values:

 

November 2012 Real Estate Market Statistics for

Howard County, MD

Statistic	Values	YoY	MoM
Total Sold Dollar Volume	$99,090,795	+30.14%	+22.51%
Closed Sales	244	+19.61%	+15.09%
Median Sold Price	$375,500	+9.07%	+7.29%
Avg Sold Price	$406,110	+8.81%	+6.44%
Avg Days on Market	80 days	-11.11%	-2.44%
Avg Sold to Orig List Ratio	94.4%	+1.55%	+0.19%

10 Useful Tips Using Baking Soda

Baking Soda, or bicarbonate of soda is a product found in every home. Baking soda is a naturally found substance used for cleaning, baking and deodorizing.  Since it will not harm the environment it is the perfect "green" cleaner.

1. For stomach indigestion put 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda into 1/2 cup of water then drnk for an effective antacid.
2. Sprinkle baking soda on minor oil and grease spills on a garage floor or driveway. Scrub with a wet brush.
3. For deodorizing food containers, mix 1/4 cup of baking soda with one quart water. Pour solution in food containers, and soak overnight, then rinse clean.
4. Substitute as a deoderant by dusting baking soda under your arms to absorb body odor.
5. Sprinkle baking soda on burnt casseroles and roasting pans and let sit for five minutes. Lightly scrub and rinse.
6. Brush teeth with a paste of baking soda and water.
7. Baking soda can be used to fight class-B fires (flammable liquids, such as gasoline, oil and grease).
8. Remove build-up from hair conditioner and styling gel by washing hair once a week with a tablespoon of baking soda mixed with your regular shampoo and rinse thoroughly.
9. Sprinkle baking soda on a damp sponge to erase crayon, pencil, ink, and furniture scuffs from painted surfaces and then rub the mark clean, and rinse.
10. Wash your face, then make an exfoliatng scrub made of three parts baking soda and one part water and apply with a circular motion massaging gently. Avoid getting it in your eyes; then rinse with water.

Happy Holidays And Homestead Tax Credit Deadline!

Happy Hanukkah to my friends who celebrate this week and best wishes to all who are still shopping for Hanukkah and Christmas presents!  While you are enjoying your holiday festivities, please take a moment to check on www.sdat.org and see if you remembered to send in your application.  About 30% of the streets and communities I have checked have not applied.  That might mean that one third of the homes in our communities are rental properties, but that is not the case.  You may have remembered but did your neighbor, son or daughter?  That nice lady or man up the street who lives alone?  Maybe if you looked to see if a few people you know have already applied, you might do a good deed this season and help someone else get the application in before the December 31, 2012 deadline for Homestead Tax Credit Applications.  Investors who rent properties are not entitled to the credit and the only benefit you receive is that when and if home values rise more than 5% per year, yours is capped at 5% per year.  True, values are just now beginning to show an upward trend and prices are still considerably lower than they were at the unrealistic peek of about 7 years ago, give or take a year depending on the area in which you live, but in the event prices were to rise again suddenly as they have done on a number of occassions in the past, if you live in your home as your primary residence, this gives a modicum of protection from sudden large tax increases from one year to the next in the future, but only if you qualify and only if you get your application postmarked by the 31st of December.  Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everyone!

The market has turned stats begin to show.

Since September 2011 I have been referring to the "Soggy Bottom" as where our real estate market has been here in Howard County and the surrounding Maryland suburbs and Baltimore City.  Some areas were finding firm footing for housing prices to stabilize and begin to rise.  Enough distressed homes have been renovated and resold or moved into which has brought up home values in some areas and some homes still await that sort of tender loving care(TLC).  Rents have continued to rise, seemingly unaffected by the economy in recent years, so it is still a fabulous time to buy or sell if you have good credit, reasonable debt(according to the lenders) and some money saved to put into the transaction. Check out stats of foreclosures in Maryland below:

http://www.realtytrac.com/MarketTrends/NewsLetter.aspx?guid=4ccf0aed-574c-479c-982c-d0d6e3e05c26

Go to www.sdat.org to check and see if you remembered to apply for the Homestead Tax Credit already.  If not, get with it!  The deadline to apply is December 31, 2012.  After that, no guarantee you can apply.  The purpose is to limit your tax liability should home values rise more than 5% a year in the future.  Right now that doesn't seem like a concern, but I saw recently that in some areas of Baltimore City, home values have risen more than 20% over the previous year. It is a rather safe than sorry proposition and only applies for your primary residence in Maryland. Call me if you have questions about this.

Happy Holidays everyone!