The Washington DC Real Estate Blog

If you are looking to purchase a stunning townhouse in Montgomery County the members of themarylandrealestateexpert.com will be holding an Open house on Sunday October 23rd from 1 to 4 Pm at 18046 Ohara Circle in Olney Maryland.   This ready to move in townhouse is completely updated with hard wood flooring throughout the main level as well brand new appliances which will be installed this week.  This beautiful townhouse is conveniently located in the heart of Olney just walking distance to   Shops Restaurants and public transportation.  In addition to its convenient location the community also offers a  Tot Lot, Tennis Courts, and a Pool.  If you would like more information on this gem of a townhouse please feel free to email Jason Rosenthal at Jason.Rosenthal@yahoo.com.
Directions to 18046 Ohara Circle, Olney Maryland
If you are coming from the Beltway (495), you will head North on Georgia Avenue till you hit Spartan Road.  Turn right on Spartan Road continue till Ohara Circle where you will turn right.  Then arrive at 18046 Ohara Circle.  Please Park your cars in spots that have no numbers on them these are all the visitor spots in the development.  We look forward to seeing you on Sunday October 23rd.

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If you are looking to purchase a single family home in Laurel Maryland, then go no further!!   The members of the marylandrealestateexpert.com team have just listed a beautiful single family home on Carriage Hill Drive.  This single family detached Maryland home located at 7119 Carriage Carriage Hill Drive features 4 bedrooms and 3 full bathrooms as well as a finished walkout basement and an attached one car garage.  This home is currently the least expensive home in the Carriage Hill neighborhood, and is a great opportunity for a first time home buyer, a seasoned home buyer, or an investor.  The house will be held open on Sunday September 3rd between 1 and 4; please feel free to come by and view this gem of a home.
Directions to this home
Take 495 to interstate 95 North towards Baltimore.  You will exit 95 at exit 33A which will put you on to MD-198 E also known as Sandy Spring Road.  You want to make sure you are traveling towards Laurel.  You will the proceed to make a left on Van Dusen Road, and then another left on to Old Sandy Spring Rd which turns into Sandy Spring Road.  From Sandy Spring road you will turn right onto Carriage Hill DR, and you will see our listing at 7119 Carriage Hill Drive.

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Those living in Montogmery County home in Silver Spring should know that in the month of June of 2011 there was an allocation of over half of the U.S. General Service Administration budget to go towards consolidating the Food and Drug Administration on its White Oak campus.  This will amount to GSA allocating $44 million of its granted $82 million construction budget to go towards this project.  An interesting fact to note about this new project is that the FDA for years has been trying to replace it offices that are spread across the D.C. Metro area with a centralized campus located off New Hampshire Avenue in the White Oak’s area of Silver Spring.  Maryland Senators have been fighting to help  the FDA since April and now in June it was announced that they were successful.
With the allocation of over half  of the U.S. General Services Administration construction budget being used for this project, it will allow the new modern campus to have the most up to date scientific equipment needed in order to protect the health and safety of all. By bringing a majority of the FDA staff together at a headquarters, it will allow for more effective use of resources, efficient document management, and a reduction of travel time between offices.
Another interesting fact about this FDA consolidation is that it began as early as April of 2001 with 10 buildings opening and facilitating 5,496 employees on the campus.  Currently there are 6 buildings that are predicted to open on the campus by 2015 as long as they receive congressional funding.  As it currently stands when everything is complete with this project it will amount to 1 million square feet of office space that will be used by roughly 9,000 employees.

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If you live in a home in Montgomery County and have read my blog in the past you may have seen that the county was considering putting a tax on both plastic and paper shopping bags.  Well this proposal has passed so whether you live in a home in Montgomery County, Maryland or shop within the county, you may want to invest in reusable shopping bags. This new shopping bag tax will take into effect in January.   The charge will be issued for grocery bags, department store bags, as well as bags at convenience stores.  The tax will be a nickel per bag.  An interesting fact to note about this decision is that it was opposed by only one member of the council and was supported by environmental groups, with hopes that it will reduce the use of plastic and paper bags.

Those of you who have lived in the DC metro area may know that this tax that Montgomery County is about to enact is modeled after the bag tax that is enforced in Washington DC.  The tax that began in Washington DC has actually has raised $2 million less than the predicted $3.5 million.  Another very interesting fact to note about this tax that Montgomery County will be enacting is that they are the first county in the state of Maryland to put into effect a bag tax.  It is predicted that this tax will raise $560,000 in fiscal 2012, which starts on July first.  Out of this $560,000 that will be raised by the new tax, $234,000 will go to administrative costs, roughly $300,000 will be applied to public education as well as outreach efforts , and about $28,000 will be dedicated to the county’s Water Quality Protection Fund.

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Those living in Montgomery county Maryland homes in the town of Gaithersburg should be extremely happy to find out that the city does not plan on increasing the property tax for the area till 2012.  These Maryland homeowners may be wondering what this means for services but as it currently stands the preliminary budget calls for an increase in the services offered by the city.   If everything goes as planned the tax rate for Gaithersburg Maryland homes will remain at $.262 per every $100.00 of assessed value.  Another interesting fact to note about the Gaithersburg taxes is that the personal property tax rate paid by businesses will remain at $.53 per $100 of assessed value.
If you owned a Gaithersburg Maryland home last year you saw an increase of tax rate on your property by 20% in July.  This was the first time the city increased its property tax since 1984.

Some interesting facts about the town of Gaithersburg operating expenses

• the 2012 operating budget  increases the city’s operating expense  to $41,745,362 from 40,270,362 in fiscal 2011
• the target amount was just short of what was predicted  in the 2010 operating budget of $41,972,403
• local taxes and city service charges are expected to decrease slightly in 2012, while at the same time other revenue sources including  intergovernmental revenue and income from licenses and permits are expected to increase
• city is planning on dedicating $5.2 million to capital improvements
• public hearing on city’s budget is schedule for May 2, 2011, and the full preliminary budget will be posted on the city’s website by April 11th.

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If you are looking to purchase an Anne Arundel County home in the town of Pasadena please come by 225th 12 Street, Pasadena, MD 21122 on Sunday between 11: 00 AM and 2:00 PM.  One of the members of themarylandrealestateexpert.com from EcoFirst Realty will be holding an open house.    This quaint Maryland home is a rare opportunity in the Chelsea Beach subdivision due to it sitting on 6 lots of land, which amounts to .79 of an acre.  Making this great opportunity whether you are a first time home buyer, a seasoned home buyer, or an investor.  Some interesting facts to note about this Maryland real estate is that it is being sold as part of an estate sale, and it features new siding, windows and doors that all have transferable warranties.  This Pasadena Maryland home also features a handicap accessible deck as well as a very spacious unfinished basement with rough-ins for you to add an extra bathroom.

If you are wondering how to get to this open house you take Interstate 495 East to exit 27 and merge on to Interstate 95 towards Baltimore.  From there you will get off at exit 43 A and merge onto Maryland 100 East towards Glen Burnie.  You will then proceed on Maryland 100 East until you get to Magothy Bridge Road where you turn right.  Continue on Magothy Bridge road and turn left on to Woods Road.  Remain on Woods road till you see 11th street where you will turn right.  From there you will make a left on C street and a right on 10 12th street.  If you have any questions please feel free to contact any of the members of www.themarylandrealestateexpert team at EcoFirst Realty.

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If you reside in a Montgomery County home in the town of Rockville you should be aware that the police station in the area is moving.  On March 28th the Mayor of Rockville along with his council members will be holding a ground breaking ceremony for the new Headquarters of the Rockville City Police Department.  The new police department will be located where the old post office location was at 2 West Montgomery Avenue.  Currently the Mayor as well as the council has authorized City staff to award roughly $6.4 million dollars to construction in order to convert this Montgomery county Maryland real estate into a new police station.

The firm that was chosen to complete this construction is Costello Construction which is based out of Columbia Maryland.    The construction along with the renovations needed to convert this building into a police station is predicted to take anywhere from 16 to 18 months.   Currently the Rockville police department is located in the basement of city hall in a space that they have already outgrown.    The old post office which will soon become the new police station is a historic building that stands at a whopping 11,415 square feet.

As it currently stands the city of Rockville is expecting to receive a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency in the amount of $224,000.  This money will be put to the cost of installing an emergency generator that will provide electricity to the police station during power outages.   The state of Maryland is providing grants in the amount of $319,875 to support this project.  A very interesting fact for tax payers to note about this project is that the building was deeded to the city by the federal government at no cost as long as the building  permanent use will always be for Homeland Security purposes.

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If you are considering investing in either Commercial or in multi-family, residential real estate in Montgomery County Maryland you should be aware that the county launched a rebate program for energy efficient projects.  As you all know energy efficient projects are a major goal in our country and here in Montgomery County.  This new incentive hopes to help revitalize our county and encourage “greener building”.
The county is hoping that businesses, non-profit organizations, faith-based organizations as well as multifamily communities will apply for funding through this program.  This new program is being funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment act of 2009 (ARRA), and the Conservation Block Grant Program.
This project will jump start energy efficient projects by helping subsidize the costs of the improvements by either $75,000 or by 50% of the cost whichever costs less.  The way this program will determine how much subsidies each project receives will be based on the energy saving potential as well as other merits of each project completed.  As it currently stands there are a total $1.7 million in subsidies available for all the projects that qualify.  Some examples of the projects that will qualify for these funds include efficient lighting, insulation, heating venting, and AC upgrades, as well as high efficient shower heads and faucets, and replacing windows as well as doors.
If interested the deadline to apply for these funds is April 15th of this year for the first round of projects, and May 15th for the second round.   It is predicted that roughly 1/2 the funds will be distributed in the first round and the remaining funds in the 2nd round of projects.

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If you live in a home in Washington DC, and shop in grocery stores in the District then you are aware that there has been a tax on both your plastic and paper bags.  Now if you live in a home in Montgomery County you should know that a similar proposition has been made for the area.  County Executive Isiah Leggett has proposed that Stores in Montgomery County should charge its customers a $.05 per bag tax whether it be a plastic or paper shopping bag.  An interesting fact to note about Leggett’s proposal is that this bag fee will not only affect those who live in Montgomery county Maryland homes and go to the grocery store, but it would also affect all who shop in retail establishments as well.  This includes all grocery, department, and convenient stores.

If this new proposal goes through, it is predicted to generate roughly $1.5 million for the county.  As it currently stands all the money generated through this proposal would go to cleaning up the county’s rivers and streams.  According to County Executive Isiah Leggett roughly 33% of waste in the county’s streams come from plastic shopping bags.  If this proposal is approved it would be put into effect during the beginning of January, 2012.

In my opinion, I understand that the county is trying to help the environment by reducing the amount of plastic bags and litter generated by them, but I think instead of taxing people that use plastic and paper bags, they should reward those who use reusable bags.  This way those who don’t use reusable bags are not punished, those who do are rewarded, and in theory more people may end up using reusable bags in the long run.

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