One of the great things about living in Laurel MD is the activities in the community. Today is Grandparents Day at Bond Mill Elementary School.  This is the day all grandparents of students at Bond Mill get to visit their grandchildren during the school day.  Sixth grade students greet all grandparents at the door and welcome them to the school.  The students and their grandchildren engage in several activities together. As usual, the day is well attended by the grandparents. And if you don't have a local grandparent, someone else who is close to you may visit the school.  This year a local friend of ours will be our daughters' grandparent.  Both of them are excited about today. Oh, don't forget the annual Spring Egg Hunt at West Laurel Community Center tomorrow at 10:00 A.M. sharp.  Th... 04/03/2009

The Laurel Museum is located at 817 Main Street in Laurel Maryland.  It is right next to the Laurel pool.  The museum is run by the Laurel Historical Society. The Laurel Museum currently has a 1950s exhibit going on right now.  During the month of April there will be three classic films from the 1950s, including, Invasion Of The Body Snatchers.  You can see the movies at the Laurel Pool club room on Saturdays at 2 pm.  The first movie, Funny Face, is on April 11th.  Admission is free, donations are appreciated. On Sundays the Laurel Museum has activites for small children.  Below is a copy of the email with details about the Moonlight Over Laurel Gala: As an Old Town resident, I just want to make sure you knew it's not too late....and we wouldn't want you to miss a really neat event.   ... 03/31/2009

Laurel Maryland has plenty of good choices for eating out.  Here in Laurel we have the Silver Diner, Fridays, Olive Garden, Appleby's.  Just to name a few. Friday night I was in the mood for seafood, the wife and I went to The Bay and Surf Seafood for dinner. The Bay and Surf Seafood restaurant is located at 9590 North Laurel Rd in Laurel Maryland.   The resaurant sits in between Route One North and South bound.  The Bay and Surf is a casual seafood restaurant with a bar located on the premises.  Two people could eat there for about $50.  The resaurant adds a 15% gratuity to all checks. As I said, the Bay and Surf is a causual place.  You almost feel like you are in a cafeteria.  My wife and I were put in a table right next to the men's room.  Later as we were dining, an employee of the... 03/28/2009

My daughter is in the sixth grade at Bond Mill Elementary School in Laurel Maryland.  She is going to graduate this June. I can't believe my little girl is about to end her time at Bond Mill Elementary.  Her first couple of years at Bond Mill, I would walk her to the corner and wave goodbye as she headed down Sherwood.  I remember she rode her bike for awhile.  Then she became a sixth grader and no longer walked her to school.  She was a patrol.....just like her dad was at her age. Now I said little girl above, but now she is five foot six!  In third grade she was as tall as most sixth graders.  Now she is taller than some of her teachers!  She is changing into a woman.  Yikes! When my daughter leaves Bond Mill, so will I.  I have been showing up for numerous Honor Roll presentations, S... 03/27/2009

Laurel real estate continues to be a stronger housing market than Prince Georges County Maryland on the whole. As of today the absorption rate for Prince Georges County is at eighteen percent.  This means that 18% percent of the inventory of homes are selling every thirty days.  However, in Laurel Maryland 20707, twentyone percent of homes are selling every month.  Even more impressive, Laurel Maryland 20708, twentyeight percent of homes are selling every month. Laurel Maryland 20708 is consistent with Montgomery County Maryland at a 28% absorptioin rate.  This supports the theory that the Baltimore Washington D.C. area housing market is in better shape than most of the country. For more information on the Baltimore Washington D.C. housing market, visit Maryland real estate. 03/25/2009

Home sellers in Laurel Maryland take heart.  The bottom is on the horizon. I have always told my buyers and sellers that when first time home buyers can afford a decent home on a $50,000 a year salary, that is when the market will have bottomed out.  An article in the Wall Street Journal has confirmed my theory.  The article stated that existing home sales increased over five percent in February.  The reason for the increase were first time home buyers. Ok lets review again why now is the bets time to buy. low interest rates housing inventory shrinking government incentives to buy homes some mortgages now below some rents for comparable homes homes are more affordable If you haven't jumped into the pool yet, what the heck are you waiting for? For more information about Laurel Maryland, ... 03/24/2009

My wife loves to work on our yard in West Laurel Maryland.  I love to watch her work on the yard.  Now that Spring is here my wife is busy planing and shopping for what she wants to do to the yard.  One of her favorite places to look for plants is Fehr's Nursery and Garden Center in Burtonsville. My wife and I were at Fehr's Nursery yesterday looking for lettuce we plan to plant and eventually eat this Spring.  Fehr's Nursery and Garden Center located at 4340 Sandy Spring Road (Route 198) in Burtonsville is just short distance from Laurel Maryland.  While we were at Fehr's Nursery, we had a chance to chat with Walter Fehr and his son Brian.  The Fehr's were offering advice when would be a good time to buy the lettuce.  They should know what they are talking about.  The Fehrs have been i... 03/22/2009

Well those of us in Laurel Maryland have been riding high the last couple of weeks.  We have enjoyed the impression showing of the University of Maryland's mens basketball team in the ACC Tournament. After that the Terps impressive win in the first game of the NCAA Tournament. However, that good feeling for fans of the Terripans in Laurel Maryland came to an abrupt end yesterday.  The University of Memphis Tigers ended the Terps season with an 89 to 70 thrashing.  The Maryland Terripans lost to a better team. The Tigers deserve recognition for being a great team. The Maryland mens basketball team had a great year and we all should be proud of them.  I am already excited for next year.  Next year the Maryland Terripans will welcome two new recruits who are both 6'10"! Now that is somethi... 03/22/2009

For years, I enjoyed getting my hair cut at Hair At Michael's on Route One in Laurel Maryland.  A couple of the woman at Michaels have done a fantastic job with my hair.  I enjoy the shampoo before the haircut.  Overall, it is a great place to get your hair worked on. Then I grew a beard. Within three weeks, my bead was out of control on my face.  My wife requested that I get it trimmed and groomed.  The person who cut my hair at Michael,s didn't do beards. Then I remembered a barber shop I saw at Laurel Center Mall, also off of Route One..  Bart's Barber Shop is an old school place.  It has the old fashioned baber poll that swirls around outside it's front door.  You walk in and see all the barber chairs on the left and the customer seats on the right. A barber leads you to their chair... 03/21/2009

I was reading my Laurel Gazette when I noticied the latest article about slots in Laurel Maryland.  As you recall, the Laurel Racing Association (LRA) lost in its bid for the Ann Arundel county slot machines.  The LRA intended to have slot machines at the Laurel race track.  Strangely, the LRA did not get outbid, but rather lost out because they did not follow the required procedures of the bidding process.  Specifically, they did not submit over 28 million dollars with their bid.  No money, no bid.  According to the Laurel Gazette,  another company did follow proper bidding procedures for the Ann Arundel county machines and are being considered.  This second company wants to put the machines at the Arundel Mills Mall.  The Arundel Mills Mall location would not be in Laurel and would ef... 03/19/2009

Did you see that in the news?  Housing starts are up and the stock market is up as well. This is good news right?  The economy is turning around and things will get better real soon. Wait a minute.....how the heck could housing starts increase?  Why are people building homes with all these foreclosures avaiable?  This dosn't seem right. Well, I read an article about he increased housing starts in February.  The people who analyise these things were "surprised" at this increase. I continued to read the rest of the articel and found the doom and gloom paragraphs a little further into the story. The article quoted several people about how this is a temporary "jump".  Supposedly the bad winter made it hard to build during the winter.  Now that he weather is getting better they can catch up ... 03/18/2009

Laurel Maryland is just about 20 minutes away from the University of Maryland College Park campus.  Many of us in Laurel are big Terripan fans.  Lately, we have big reasons to celebrate. The men's basketball team just earned a bid to NCAA college basketball playoffs.  Many people refer to this as "the dance".  This is Maryland mens second qualification in the last three years.  The University of Maryland men's basketball won the entire thing in 2002. The Maryland women's basketball team is not only in "the dance", but is a number one seed.  The women's basketball team has been good for several years now and actually won the title a couple of years ago themselves. Congratulations to both University of Maryland teams and good luck in March Madness. All of us in Laurel Maryland are proud o... 03/17/2009

These kids who live in Laurel Maryland are something special. As some of you know, I have a daughter at Bond Mill Elementary school in West Laurel Maryland.  On Satuday night I watched her in one of the lead rolls in the schools production of Nifty Fiftys.  She and all the other kids did a great job.  There were a little over 30 students in the play and they all worked hard to give us parents a great show.  Christian Ruiz did a heck of job putting it all together.  Numerous parents helped out as well. But thats the kind of school Bond Mill Elementary is.  Some of these kids have some real talent. It was a joy to watch all the singing and dancing. However, Bond Mill is not the only elementary school in Laurel Maryland.  This morning I grab my Laurel Leader and read about the great succes... 03/16/2009

Well it looks like those of us who own Laurel real estate in zip code 20708 are experiencing a better than normal housing market. Total Sold Dollar Volume: $ 2,506,490 $ 2,441,989 2.64 % Average Sold Price: $ 313,311 $ 348,856 - 10.19 % Median Sold Price: $ 308,500 $ 299,999 2.83 % Total Units Sold: 8 7 14.29 % Average Days on Market: 198 152 30.26 % Average List Price for Solds: $ 352,025 $ 391,956 - 10.19 % Avg Sale Price as a percentage of Avg List Price: 89.00 % 89.00 % The above numbers show several increases in real estate activity in Laurel Maryland 20708 from  February 2008 as compared to February 2009.   In several catagories there has been a slight increase.  Total dollar volume is up slightly at 2.64%.  The median sold price has increased as well.  The average sale price as a... 03/13/2009

Most of Laurel real estate is located in Prince Georges County Maryland.  Prince Georges County is very much a buyer's market.  Average sale prices and medium sale prices are down since last year. But to me what is most surprising is that their is evidence, strong evidence, that buyer's are pressing their advantage.  One of the biggest telling statistics is the average sale price as a percentage of listing price.  This number is at about 84%!  This means if a home is listed at $300,000 when it comes on the market, it eventually sells at $252,000.  That is almost a $50K price drop. Two reasons for this are foreclosures and short-sales.  Prince Georges County has one of the highest foreclosure rates in Maryland.  Many foreclosures are in bad shape and sit for a long time on the market.  B... 03/12/2009

I know that most you know who said that.  FDR was a great president and those words were very accurate. That quote still applies today.  Buyer confidence plays a crucial role in the housing market.  People are worried about their jobs.  In addition to that, many buyers don't want to buy a home and watch it go down in value after they buy it. These kind of fears not only impact Laurel Maryland real estate, but all of Maryland as well. A couple things to consider to consider about this market.  First, the real estate market in Laurel is doing what it always does.  The market goes up and it goes down.  Check the history.  Second, don't think of the current down market as a terrible event, but more as a healthy correction.  The market is taking care of itself.  The market is self-correcting... 03/06/2009

Despite what the Washington Post says all is not gloom and doom.  In Laurel Maryland it appears life goes on.  According to the Laurel Leader,  bids are being accepted on the new Laurel Police Station.  This building will be built where the old First Baptist School was located on 5th Street in Laurel.  Wonder how many jobs that will bring to Laurel.  Maybe I should ask the Washington Post where the city of Laurel Maryland got the money to build a new police station? Oh yea, what happend to the old Baptist school?  Did they go bankrupt?  Did they shrink and move to smaller location?  Nope!  The Baptist school built a beautiful new campus in.....Laurel Maryland!  This new campus is located off of Cherry Lane.  Among its buildings is a very state-of-the-art auditorium.  Where did they get ... 03/06/2009

Prince Georges County Councelman Tom Dernoga's term is mandated to end next year.  One of the communities Dernoga serves is West Laurel Maryland. Tom Dernoga is very familier to all of us in West Laurel.  He is often seen at community events in the area.  I have personally been impressed with his quick action on problems arising in the community.  You can often seen Tom Dernoga commenting and responding to issues raised  on the West Laurel list serve. Tom is celebrating his 50th birthday this Saturday from 3 to 6 at the Branchville Volunteer Fire Department in College Park.  The Firehouse is located at 4905 Branchville Rd.  This party will also give residents an opportunity to contribute to Tom Dernoga's efforts to continue to serve us in Laurel Maryland.  Please feel free to bring a co... 03/04/2009

Those of us own own real estate in Laurel Maryland can take hart.  Homes in Laurel Maryland Prince Georges County are selling faster than the county as a whole. In Laurel Maryland zip code 20707 homes 15% are selling in the first thirty days.  However, in Laurel zip code 20708 30% of homes are selling in the first thirty days.   Between the two zip codes that is an average of 22.5% of homes selling in the first 30 days.  That is 13% better than the overall Prince Georges County rate of 17%. Laurel Maryland is one of the most diserable places to live in Prince Georges County. For further info on Laurel Maryland real estate, visit Maryland real estate. 03/03/2009

If you are like me, you were furious hearing that Prince Georges County Excutive Jack Johnson was going to raise our property taxes.  How could he think of doing this in the current real estate market?  I was speaking to one of my clients the other day and she said she may not buy in Laurel Maryland because of the proposed tax hike. Well now it looks like that tax hike is not going to happen.  The state of Maryland has decided to use some common sense and help out Prince Georges County.  Apparently, the Maryland National Capital Park and Planning Commission has an excess of funds.  The Planning Commission will give these excess funds of some 60 Million to the state who will in turn give them to Prince Georges County. This helping hand will go a long way to eliminating the Prince Georges... 03/02/2009