GAITHERSBURG, MD- Real Estate Agents and staff with RE/MAX Realty Group and RE/MAX Realty Group donated 245 Build-A-Bears during the 97.1 FM WASH for Kids Radiothon. The bears, which were each sponsored by agents and staff with every donation of $10, were delivered to patients at Children’s National Medical Center on Friday, December 16, the final day of the radiothon.

RE/MAX Realty Group Real Estate Agent Candy Meyers hosted her first Build-A-Bear fundraiser about six years ago. She has been hosting the fundraiser every year since then in conjunction with the 97.1 FM WASH for Kids Radiothon. This is the first year RE/MAX Realty Group and RE/MAX Realty Group have collaborated with Meyers in the fundraiser. Agents and staff went above and beyond to support the cause, raising enough money to donate over six times more Build-A-Bears than were donated last year.

Broker/Owner Ken Crowley expressed his gratitude to agents and staff for their generosity.

“The support and generosity of all the agents and staff members with our brokerage throughout the Build-A-Bear fundraiser exceeded expectations,” said Broker/Owner Ken Crowley. “We continued to get calls from agents and staff up until the very last moment wanting not only to sponsor one bear, but multiple bears.”

Several agents and staff members from RE/MAX Realty Group and RE/MAX Realty Group also expressed their support by volunteering their time to assist with the delivery of the bears and participate in the radiothon.

RE/MAX Realty Group and RE/MAX Realty Group is a locally owned and operated full-service real estate brokerage with offices located throughout Maryland and Northern Virginia. The brokerage has over 400 Realtors® and specializes in Residential and Commercial real estate. RE/MAX Realty Group and RE/MAX Realty Group is a proud supporter of Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals® and other charities. To learn more, please visit www.ournexthouse.com.

(RE/MAX Blog)

1. Patience
MONOPOLY: So your family has decided to play Monopoly? Refill your beverage, grab a snack and change into comfortable clothes. You’re going to be there a while.

LESSON: Buying real estate is a process. There’s pre-approval for a loan, interviewing agents, searching for homes, submitting an offer, maybe submitting another offer, the home inspection, the appraisal, and final loan processing before you get the keys. Needless to say, buying a home can take some time. Instead of getting frustrated, focus on all of the great reasons you decided buying  a home was right for you. Staying in close communication with your agent throughout the process will help, too.

2. Neighborhood matters
MONOPOLY: Everyone starts the game with one corner in mind: Boardwalk and Park Place. The highly priced properties have the best returns on investments, and the players who snag them first tend to do well in the game.

LESSON: Location is often a major consideration in real life as well. Home values, your lifestyle and so much more are factors in your neighborhood choice. Work with your agent to learn all you can about the neighborhoods that pique your interest.

3. Keep an open mind
MONOPOLY: Baltic and Mediterranean Avenue have a bad reputation because they’re the cheapest properties on the board, but they also present opportunity. Add a few houses and hotels and your return could be bigger than the one on nearby Connecticut Avenue.

LESSON: Keep an open mind when shopping for a home. An up-and-coming neighborhood may have appeal you didn’t see before, and more value for your budget.

4. Be prepared
MONOPOLY: You’re a Monopoly mogul! You have a handful of desirable properties and a steady stream of income from your houses and hotels. Then comes the Chance card: “Make general repairs on your property – for each house pay $25, for each hotel pay $100.”

LESSON: You never know what card you’re going to draw. But unlike Monopoly, the real world has home insurance available to help you prepare for unexpected repairs and disasters. A variety of plans, customizable to any budget, are available. Some homebuyers also opt for warranties covering potential appliance issues after move-in.

5. How to win a bidding war
MONOPOLY: Trading properties keeps Monopoly exciting. And there are no strict rules as to how a seller determines to accept an offer. Sibling rivalry, bribes involving candy or even business sense can play into a player’s decision.

LESSON: Sellers don’t always accept the highest offer. Writing a letter about why you fell in love with their home can sometimes sway their decision in your favor.

6. The importance of strategy
MONOPOLY: Monopoly is a game of strategy, but few players are inclined to study ways to win. What if you had a coach sitting next to you, advising how much to bid for a property, where to look next, and whether or not mortgaging a utility to buy Boardwalk is a smart idea? You would be unstoppable!

LESSON: Buying a home is an infrequent occurrence; for some it happens only once in a lifetime. Wouldn’t it be helpful to have someone on your side who was up-to-speed on laws for your state, knew which neighborhoods would best fit your lifestyle and offered to help you navigate a bidding war? That’s the value an experienced agent provides.

Let us help you start your search for a new home today.

(RE/MAX Blog)- Looking for ways to give back this holiday season? Here are a few ideas.

1. Go for wags and wiggles

Local animal shelters always need an extra hand, whether it's for walking dogs, socializing cats or the critical daily chores required to save homeless pets.

2. Yes you can

Clear your cabinets of canned food and other non-perishable items – or fill a shopping cart at the store with items to donate – and drop them off at your local food bank.

3. Schmooze with seniors

Volunteer at a local senior center and spend time with an older person who might be feeling especially lonely around the holidays.

4. Give fun

The Marine Toys for Tots Foundation collects gifts for kids from needy families. Donation boxes can often be found at local businesses. You can also consider organizing your own collection. Learn more at www.toysfortots.org.

5. Swing a hammer

Santa's not the only one on the rooftops this time of year. The national nonprofit Habitat for Humanity always has projects going. See where you can help in your neighborhood at www.habitat.org.

6. Help the homeless

From helping to serve a holiday meal at a shelter to assisting with job training, check in with the National Coalition for the Homeless to find out how you can help.

(RE/MAX Blog)- The holidays are coming – is your home ready for overnight guests? Follow these suggestions to create the perfect guest room for friends and family.

1. Offer reading material

A pile of recent magazines or a shelf of assorted books offers guests a way to wind down before bed.

2. Add flowers

A simple flower arrangement adds class and color to any room.

3. Provide seating

Make sure there's somewhere cozy for guests to sit if they need some alone time during holiday chaos.

4. Make wi-fi connection easy

Leave a piece of paper with your internet server's name and password on the dresser so guests can easily access your wireless connection.

5. Did they forget something?

Fill a basket with sample-sized containers of essentials, like toothpaste, mouthwash and shampoo.

6. Add a luggage stand

Put out a folding luggage stand where guests can prop their suitcases to avoid having to squat all the way down to the floor every time they need something.

7. Make the closet functional

Be sure to stock the closet with empty hangers for guest's clothes.

8. Add charm with decorations

Create a welcoming, calm space for guests. Err on the side of generic. Remember, not everyone wants to sleep surrounded by Star Wars-themed decorations or your horror movie poster collection.

9. A picture perfect welcome

Place a framed photo of you and your guest on the nightstand.

Is your "guest room" your living room sofa? Maybe it's time to look for a larger space. Start the search for your new home with RE/MAX Realty Group/100 today.

(RE/MAX Blog)- According to the National Association of Realtors, 42 percent of homebuyers start their home search online, and 92 percent use the Web during the home search process. While the Internet can be a good place to start looking, there are things real estate agents know about the process of buying and selling a home that can't be found in any Web browser.

Here are a few.

1. How to price a home

When setting a listing price, agents consider scores of factors, from local and national market trends and neighborhood development activity to the latest buyer preferences for kitchen appliances and landscaping. Every home is unique, and an agent with a track record of success knows how to price it attractively in the market.

The Internet isn't always much help when it comes to comparison shopping, either. Many of the same factors that help an agent set an appropriate listing price aren't available in an algorithm, so online estimators aren't always accurate – and could be costly if you purchase without consulting a real, live professional.

2. Marketing offline

While online marketing can certainly be valuable, agents have networks of contacts and years of experience to round out their marketing plans.

And, for buyers, agents often can tap into their network to learn about great properties before they hit the real estate websites or even the MLS.

3. Key points in the process

If you find a home you love online, the website won't be there to guide you through a mortgage application, find a home inspector or advise you what to do if an inspection reveals issues.

4. How to negotiate

Having an experienced, professional negotiator drive your transaction can be vital to reaching a fair price for the property you're buying or selling. A website can give you an estimate of how much a property should cost, but it can't evaluate whether that's a great price or not.

(RE/MAX Blog)- The day many tech lovers have been waiting for is here: Google Daydream View is now available in stores. The new virtual reality headset connects with a smartphone (specifically, Google Pixel) to immerse users in their favorite games, movies or even the latest news story. And at just $79, Daydream is making VR technology more accessible to consumers than ever before.

But the uses of virtual reality technology go beyond entertainment. Here are a few ways VR is making its way into real estate.

1. Open houses

Virtual reality headsets, about the size of a scuba mask, can provide 360-degree virtual reality property tours of homes. The headsets completely fill the user's field of vision with a view of the home, allowing them to look up, down and from side to side. Developers are working on adding more tactile features to the experience, so users can do things like see their own hand opening a door, reports the New York Times.They're even developing smells. One day Realtors might be able to add the smell of virtually baking cookies to their virtual open house.

2. Long-distance shopping

Virtual reality home tours give out-of-town buyers (and local buyers, too) another tool to help narrow down their choices of homes they'd like to physically visit in a limited amount of time.

3. Staging

More affordable than hiring a pro to stage your home, several virtual options allow you to add furniture and decorations to vacant rooms using computer technology. It can help buyers envision a property with different furniture and paint.

There's a lot more to a real estate transaction than VR goggles can replace. Ready to buy or sell your home? Start the process here.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, MD- RE/MAX Realty Group celebrated its 30^th Anniversary on Sunday, November 6, 2016. The brokerage, which serves real estate agents and clients in the Washington Metropolitan area, opened the doors to its first office in Montgomery County, Maryland in 1986. The office was only the third RE/MAX franchise in the county at the time and it quickly grew to become the largest single office in the RE/MAX system.

Today, RE/MAX Realty Group has two office locations in Montgomery County and 145 licensed agents. The RE/MAX Realty Group office locations are two of eight RE/MAX offices owned by Broker/Owner Ken Crowley. Crowley, which opened RE/MAX Realty Group with a former business partner, acquired RE/MAX Realty Group, its six offices and 275 agents in 2015. This brought the total for his company to 400-plus agents and nearly $1.5 billion in sales. The acquisition also made RE/MAX Realty Group and RE/MAX Realty Group the number one RE/MAX brokerage in Maryland and Northern Virginia, one of 120 largest brokerages in the United States and the seventh largest brokerage in the Washington Metropolitan area.

Broker/Owner Ken Crowley credits a combination of hard work and agent loyalty for the company’s success.

“When our first RE/MAX Realty Group Office opened, RE/MAX was fairly unknown in our marketplace,” said Broker/Owner Ken Crowley. “Yet, even with that against us, there were agents who believed in us and joined our team. It was because of those agents that Realty Group grew into what it is today. The loyalty of all the agents we have today is what continues to allow us to serve our local real estate community. I couldn’t be more grateful.”

RE/MAX Realty Group and RE/MAX Realty Group have been in business for 30 years and have the reputation of providing quality service to customers and a quality experience to their realtors by providing them with the tools they need to succeed.

Attn: Agents! Looking to take your Real Estate Career to the next level? Give us a call at any one of our office locations to speak to a manager and learn how we can help.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, MD- RE/MAX Realty Group Real Estate Agents Danielle Mannix and Melissa Bernstein both served as guest Real Estate Experts in October on the channel 9 segment "The Real Deal in Real Estate."

Mannix, who made her appearance on Thursday, October 20, 2016 on Great Day Washington, shared her expert advice for first-time homebuyers. She suggested they keep in mind their long term goals and consider the neighborhood, school district, neighborhood amenities and resale value when purchasing a home. Bernstein, who appeared on the show on Thursday, October 6, 2016, shared guidance on how to navigate the bidding process.

"The most important thing is picking the right agent," said Real Estate Agent Melissa Bernstein. "As a buyer, you want a buyer's agent who has experience in listings because they are going to know what a listings agent is looking for in an offer. Many home sellers are now pricing to attract competing offers."

"The Real Deal in Real Estate" airs every two weeks and features a Lender Expert, Title Expert and Real Estate Expert.

For more information on RE/MAX Realty Group and RE/MAX Realty Group, visit www.ournexthouse.com.

RE/MAX Realty Group and RE/MAX Realty Group have been in business for over 30 years and have the reputation of providing quality service to customers and a quality experience to their realtors by providing them with the tools they need to succeed.

(RE/MAX Blog)- Keeping your home looking like a furniture showroom for long stretches isn't easy. Here are a few tips to keep your house ready for showings while you're still living in it.

1. Attack the clutter
As you prepare your home for showing, start with a major decluttering. Throw out, recycle or give away things you don't use. Getting rid of junk will make your home more appealing to prospective buyers and free up space for you to neatly store things when it's time to tidy up for a showing.

2. Rent storage space
Keeping things neat is easier when you have less things. An off-site storage unit can help (and you can keep it as messy as you like).

3. Start packing
Packing most of your dishes and large baking and cooking items frees up cabinet space that you can use to stash items you use on a regular basis. It also gives you a head start on packing for your move.

4. Rope off a room – or two
If you can, temporarily rope off rooms or areas from the kids, pets or spouses to contain your mess in a smaller space while your house is listed. But remember to make those rooms look nice, too, before the showing!

5. Buy hiding spots
The home sections of discount stores are filled with attractive fabric boxes and fashionable bins that can simultaneously hide junk and match your décor.

6. If all else fails, stash it under the bed
Invest in a couple of under-the-bed bins that you can use to store everything from socks to kids' toys in when faced with a last-minute showing.

Begin the home selling process today with the number one RE/MAX brokerage in Maryland and Northern Virginia.