June 2023 Real Estate Guide

Real Estate

THE COASTAL REAL ESTATE RESOURCE Coastal Association of Realtors/Ocean City Today

Published by Ocean City Today for the Coastal Association of Realtors. Advertising in this publication is limited to members and affiliated members of the Association.

The COASTAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (CAR) is a trade organization for real estate professionals in Wicomico, Worcester and Somerset Counties on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. Its membership consists of more than 1,000 REALTORs® and affiliate members serving the home-buying and home-selling needs of the public since 1957.

The term REALTOR® is a registered collective membership mark, which may be used only by real estate professionals who are members of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® and subscribe to its strict Code of Ethics.

The COASTAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS is located at 314 Franklin Avenue, Suite 106 • Berlin, MD 21811. Phone: 410-641-4409. On the Web: www.coastalrealtor.org

OCEAN CITY TODAY is the leading newspaper publisher on the Maryland coast, with Ocean City Today publishing weekly on Friday, Bayside Gazette and Ocean City Digest publishing on Thursdays and Real Estate, the Coastal Real Estate Resource publishing key weekends throughout the year. On the Web: www.oceancitytoday.com

Editor .........................................................................Stewart Dobson

Managing Editor............................................................... Lisa Capitelli

Account Managers....................... Mary Cooper, Vicki Shrier, Renée Kelly

Classifieds/Legals/Production Manager .................... Nancy MacCubbin

Senior Designer .............................................................. Susan Parks

Graphic Artist ................................................................... Kelly Brown

Publisher..................................................................... Christine Brown Admin. Assistant................................................................... Gini Tufts

410-641-0039 WWW.OCEANCITYTODAY.COM

• 5BR/6BA + 3-Car Garage: raised storage area & small kitchen area

• Direct Bayfront, 7898 Sqft

• Expansive paved decking, custom paved driveway, multiple balconies

• Infinity swimming pool, Integrated hot tub w/lighted pier, boat lift & 2 PWC lifts

• Sweeping staircases, formal & casual living areas, 2 fireplaces

• Custom chef’s kitchen w/2 dishwashers, enormous refrigerator, granite counter tops & wood cabinets

• Formal dining area & sunny relaxed family area

• Fully equipped Theatre Room & Billiard Room

• Elevator

• Summer kitchen (2021) equipped w/large screen TV, kegerator, small refrigerator, tandoor, ice maker, 2 grills, approx. 168 SQFT.

• Energy efficient solar panels

• Across Sinepuxent Bay to Assateague Island

443-880-3471

LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION!

Michael Kowalski

Cell: 301-807-6454 bigmike@lnf.com

Charles Rappa

Cell: 610-405-9621

charles.rappa@ longandfoster.com

59 WOOD DUCK DRIVE, BERLIN

Large contemporary 0.38acre corner lot. Extra wide large canal, no houses directly behind it. Open view of Ocean City Skyline, close to open bay & boat ride to open ocean. Home needs some TLC. Wonderfully laid out. Private dock & new bulkhead. Extra-wide water frontage. Constructed to be energy officiant, geo-thermal heat & passive solar application. Utility bills (under $150 a month per owner). Large Solarium has 2 drains for watering plants with garden hose. Home construction used much indigenous wood. Solarium & Bar area (Approx. 840 sq. ft.) not included in square footage.

CEDAR AVE

POCOMOKE, MD

OCEANFRONT

$239,900

North Ocean City beach retreat. Jockey Beach Club Condominium split-level on a canal front community. Upper-level sizable BR, Ample closet space, & Large bathroom. Main level Open floor plan.! Kitchen breakfast bar. Washer & dryer. Close to the bay & 2 blocks from the beach, shopping, dining, amusement parks & entertainment! Enjoy ALL that ocean city has to offer! Live the good life right here!

ELEGANT

WATERFRONT 2BR / 2 BA

615 SALT SPRAY ROAD UNIT 1C • OCEAN CITY, MD

A new, lower price for your place at the shore! Come to Ocean City this weekend and see what the beach has to offer! This bright, clean waterfront property just had carpet installed. Look out over your wide canal from your bedroom, living room or inviting rear porch. You are just steps away from your own boat slip, and a quick boat ride to the back bay. You have your own off-street assigned parking space. Stores, restaurants, and the beach are all nearby. Now is the time to buy your own waterfront escape!

Existing home sales in April drop nationally

WASHINGTON – Existing-home sales decreased in April, according to the National Association of Realtors. All four major U.S. regions registered monthover-month and year-over-year sales declines.

Total existing-home sales – completed transactions that include singlefamily homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops – slid 3.4 percent from March to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.28 million in April. Yearover-year, sales slumped 23.2 percent (down from 5.57 million in April 2022).

“Home sales are bouncing back and

forth but remain above recent cyclical lows,” said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. “The combination of job gains, limited inventory and fluctuating mortgage rates over the last several months have created an environment of push-pull housing demand.”

Total housing inventory registered at the end of April was 1.04 million units, up 7.2 percent from March and 1.0 percent from one year ago (1.03 million). Unsold inventory sits at a 2.9-month supply at the current sales pace, up from 2.6 months in March and 2.2 months in April 2022.

The median existing-home price for

all housing types in April was $388,800, a decline of 1.7 percent from April 2022 ($395,500). Prices rose in the Northeast and Midwest but retreated in the South and West.

“Roughly half of the country is experiencing price gains,” Yun noted. “Even in markets with lower prices, primarily the expensive West region, multiple-offer situations have returned in the spring buying season following the calmer winter market. Distressed and forced property sales are virtually nonexistent.”

Properties typically remained on the market for 22 days in April, down from

29 days in March but up from 17 days in April 2022. Seventy-three percent of homes sold in April were on the market for less than a month.

First-time buyers were responsible for 29 percent of sales in April, up from 28 percent in both March 2023 and April 2022. NAR’s 2022 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers – released in November 2022 – found that the annual share of first-time buyers was 26 percent, the lowest since NAR began tracking the data.

All-cash sales accounted for 28 percent of transactions in April, up from 27

Continued on Page 10

RealtoR®, GRI licensed in MD 410-430-0587

STRAY FOX WATERFRONT LOT with a private boat pier offering stunning waterviews and access to Newport, Sinepuxent, and Chincoteague Bays! Peaceful, well-kept community with oversized lots and low fees. Close to Ocean City, Assateague Island, Historic Berlin, and many more attractions! Ready for you to build the home you've always wanted! $489,900

LOCATION LOCATION - BAYSIDE WATERFRONT TOWNHOME

Neighbors Serving Neighbors

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Stunning Waterfront Home

Perfect beach home! “Resort Homes” stickbuilt 3 BA/2 BA waterfront home. Deeded boat slip (#8) to access bay! Tankless water heater (installed in 2010), newer roof & HVAC. Tons of storage. House-wide intercom system & speakers. Monthly co-op fee of only $356 covers real estate property taxes (County, State & City) as well as public water & sewer fees.

PLEASE NOTE: There is NO ground rent. Additional information available about co-ops & what they entail.

Warren's Park’s amenities: Private boat ramp, fish cleaning stand with running water, private piers with steps into the bay for swimming, fishing, crab pots, Boat slip has water and electricity.

Second-home sales steady

Continued from Page 8

percent in March and 26 percent the previous year.

Individual investors or second-home buyers, who make up many cash sales, purchased 17 percent of homes in April, identical to March and one year ago.

Distressed sales – foreclosures and short sales – represented 1 percent of sales in April, unchanged from last month and the prior year.

According to Freddie Mac, the 30year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.35 percent as of May 11. That’s down from 6.39 percent the previous week but up from 5.30 percent one year ago.

Single-family and Condo/Co-op Sales

Single-family home sales waned to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.85 million in April, down 3.5 percent from 3.99 million in March and 22.4 percent from the previous year. The median existing single-family home price was $393,300 in April, down 2.1 percent from April 2022.

Existing condominium and co-op sales were recorded at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 430,000 units in April, down 2.3 percent from March and 29.5 percent from one year ago. The me-

dian existing condo price was $348,000 in April, an annual increase of 0.7 percent.

Regional Breakdown

Existing-home sales in the Northeast receded 1.9 percent from March to an annual rate of 510,000 in April, down 23.9 percent from April 2022. The median price in the Northeast was $422,700, up 2.8 percent from the previous year.

In the Midwest, existing-home sales declined 1.9 percent from one month ago to an annual rate of 1.02 million in April, dropping 21.5 percent from the prior year. The median price in the Midwest was $287,300, up 1.8 percent from April 2022.

Existing-home sales in the South decreased 3.4 percent from March to an annual rate of 1.98 million in April, a 20.2 percent decline from one year ago. The median price in the South was $357,900, down 0.6 percent from April 2022.

In the West, existing-home sales slipped 6.1 percent from the previous month to an annual rate of 770,000 in April, down 31.3 percent from the previous year. The median price in the West was $578,200, down 8.0 percent from April 2022.

Energy-efficient homes save owners plenty on power bill

(APRIL 2023) Consumer efforts to be more eco-conscious are more and more noticeable. For proof of that, one need look no further than the increase in vehicle charging stations. Such stations are more accessible than ever and illustrate that consumer preference is increasingly leaning toward products that leave as small a carbon footprint as possible.

Another indicator of a growing interest in eco-friendly products is the popularity in energy-efficient homes. In fact, a recent survey from the National Association of Home Builders found that energy-efficient features are among the most soughtafter “must-haves” among homebuyers.

Among those surveyed, 83 percent desired Energy Star-rated windows, 81 percent wanted Energy Star-rated appliances and 80 percent preferred energyefficient lighting.

Though eco-conscious sensibilities compel millions of homeowners to make their homes more energy-efficient, that’s not the only reason to upgrade your home. The following are a handful of the many benefits of energy-efficient homes.

• Save money: Inflation was one of the biggest stories of 2022, as the cost of living rose dramatically in the wake of world events. According to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, inflation led to an overall 6.5 percent increase in prices. But that increase was dwarfed by the cost of electricity, which increased by 14.3 percent in 2022. Energy-efficient appliances can help homeowners overcome that spike, as the U.S. Department of Energy

indicates upgrading to such products can help homeowners reduce their energy costs by as much as 30 percent.

• Improve resale value: As the NAHB survey indicates, modern homebuyers want energy-efficient homes. They’re also willing to pay more for such homes. Research from the mortgage lender Freddie Mac found that homes with energy-efficient ratings sold for nearly 3 percent more on average than homes without such ratings.

• Live healthier: The benefits of energy-efficient homes aren’t just economic, though health-related benefits certainly produce an economic incentive as well. According to the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, insulation and air sealing protect individuals from heat waves and other ripple effects of climate change. The ACEEE notes that weatherization can improve indoor air quality and comfort, a notable benefit for asthma sufferers and seniors. In fact, the ACEEE estimates that integrating energy efficiency programs in homes could reduce seniors’ risk for falls in their homes, potentially saving $2 billion in fall-related health care costs over the next decade, and improve asthma outcomes, which could reduce health care costs by as much as half a billion dollars.

Energy-efficient products and practices pay numerous dividends, making them a worthy expenditure for any homeowners looking to upgrade their homes.

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These are the organizations we have supported.

These are the organizations we have supported.

AGH Forensic Nurse Examiners (FENS)

Art League of Ocean City

Asbury Child Development Center

Atlantic Club

Atlantic General Hospital Foundation

-Campaign for the Future

Beyond Your Walls, Inc.

Brooke Mulford Foundation

Chesapeake Housing Mission

Coastal Hospice: The Macky and Pam Stansell House

Community Players of Salisbury

Cricket Center

Crisfield Arts and Entertainment District

Crisfield Smith Island Cultural Alliance

Crisfield Volunteer Fire Department

Diakonia

Eastern Shore Alzheimer's Association

Eastern Shore Pregnancy Center

Eastern Shore Running Club Scholarship Fund

Epoch Dream Center

GOC Chamber of Commerce Foundation

Grace Center

Habitat for Humanity of Wicomico County

Habitat for Humanity of Worcester County

Help and Outreach Point of Entry (HOPE)

Hope 4 Recovery

Hope And Life Outreach (HALO)

Humane Society of Wicomico County

Humane Society of Worcester County

Junior Acheivement of the Eastern Shore

Life Crisis Center

Lower Shore Land Trust

Maryland Food Bank of the Eastern Shore

Mid-Atlantic Symphony Orchestra

Most Blessed Sacrament School

Ocean City Power Squadron

Parsonsburg Volunteer Fire Department

Rackliffe House

Salisbury Christian School

Salisbury Neighborhood Housing

Smith Island United

Tim Kennard River Run

United Needs & Abilities

United Way of the Lower Eastern Shore

Unstoppable Joy

Village of Hope

Wall that Heals (Veterans Memorial)

Wicomico Child Advocacy Center (CAC)

Wicomico County Parks & Rec/CFES

Wicomico Environmental Trust

Wicomico Grows Kindness

Wicomico Libraries Reader Van

Worcester County Veterans Memorial at Ocean Pines

Worcester Goes Purple

Worcester GOLD

Worcester Youth and Family Counseling Services

Wyatt's Warriors Foundation

Young Life Salisbury

Applications for the next round of funding due June 15, 2023.

your Coastal member to apply for your non-profit grant.