Janik

The house was a sprawling rancher in the Manchester area of Carroll County, with a sauna, in-ground pool and 3,500 square feet of living space. But it took a skillful agent more than a year to sell the property.Why did the custom house present such a tough marketing job? Because it had an unusual feature. All its rooms -- except bathrooms -- were equipped with sliding doors of smoke-colored tinted glass. The doors were a curiosity but not something with which most prospects felt comfortable.

Six players from Maryland and a Boston College transfer highlight Towson's 20-man football recruiting class. Tigers coach Rob Ambrose announced the signings Wednesday of the following local players: Calvert Hall defensive end Stefan Janik, Old Mill linebacker Joe McCargo, Calvert Hall offensive lineman Spencer Sutton and Northwestern running back Terrance West. Largo defensive end Olatungie Coker and Damascus quarterback Connor Frazier rounded out Towson's in-state class. "This recruiting class is going to be a special one," Ambrose said in a news release.

The Otterbein woman is worried. A starter home she bought in California three years ago as an investment is languishing. Apparently the property can be neither rented nor sold. And with house payments of $1,000 a month, she can't afford to carry it much longer."I'm afraid I'm going to end up in the almshouse. I'm very scared. It feels like it's completely out of my control. I never want my name on a mortgage again," she says.Actually, the Long Beach home didn't seem like such a bad purchase when the young woman bought it in 1988.

Are you planning to have a new home constructed? Then don't be surprised if your builder asks you to sign a 12-page contract laden with arcane legal phraseology.Such an elaborate document -- known in the trade as a "builder's contract" because it favors his interests -- was once used solely by big-tract builders. Now, with lawsuits against builders on the rise, such one-sided contracts are also becoming prevalent among small- and midsized builders."People throughout society are becoming more concerned about legal issues, and homebuilders are no exception," explains William Young, director of consumer affairs for the National Association of Home Builders.

It's a delightful Sunday afternoon. You'd like nothing better than to sip coffee, stretch out with the Sunday papers and then putter in your garden. But you're attempting to sell your house, and, regrettably, your realty agent has you scheduled for an open house.Instead of spending a relaxing afternoon, you're hurriedly cleaning and stowing valuables. Shoes tossed in the closet must be neatly lined up. Jewelry and watches must be hidden. That pesky carpet spot must be scrubbed. Worst of all, your agent makes it obvious that your presence during the open house wouldn't be appreciated.

WASHINGTON--If the head of the country's largest group o real estate brokers has his way, home sellers in every state will be required to disclose all defects they know about their property in advance of sale.Harley E. Rouda, 1991 president of the National Association of Realtors is leading lobbying campaign to encourage passage of state laws requiring seller disclosures. Although the 800,000-member Realtor association has not adopted Rouda's plan as its own policy to date, it may do so later this year.

A vacant home sells more slowly and for 5 to 10 percent less than a well-furnished property, said Kay Deitz, who sells homes through the Harford County office of Coldwell Banker Grempler Realty."

Until now, most homebuyers walked into a realty agent's office asking for a big house on a quiet street. They still want the big house and the quiet street -- but, more and more, they're also asking about the commute."

The Cedarcroft townhouse was full of upgrades: an enormous deck, recessed lighting fixtures and a club room with lots of built-ins. So, owners of the two-bedroom home expected their agent to find a buyer who would pay as much as three-bedroom properties in the neighborhood had commanded.It didn't happen."We can't perform miracles. They had overly high expectations," says John Strand, the agent engaged to sell the house.All too often, real estate specialists say, sellers believe that an agent can work miracles to sell an over-priced house, to obtain contracts for a rundown house, or to hasten a sale in a slow market.

Once upon a time there was a couple with a little house in the valley. They wanted to sell their house to buy a grander one on the hillside. But every Saturday, overwhelmed at the thought of all the painting, cleaning and organizing needed to sell, the couple sighed and said "Not this weekend."The result: The couple never sold their little house in the valley, and their dream of the grander house faded forever.A fairy tale? Not really. Procrastination keeps many Americans from fulfilling their housing hopes, realty experts say."