During its May Business After Hours networking event, the Ocean Pines Chamber of Commerce, in coordination with the Ocean City Chamber of Commerce, held a ribbon cutting ceremony for Coastal Coffee Roasting at its Route 50 location. Photo by Jeanette Deskiewicz
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Peninsula Regional Health System and Peninsula Regional Medical Center President/CEO Steve Leonard and PRMC Board Chairman Herb Geary honored seven employees from Worcester County at an employee recognition banquet held recently as a part of National Hospital Week activities. They included 40-year honoree, Joyce Feetham of Snow Hill; 35-year honorees Patrice Aversa of Berlin, Dinette Cottingham of Berlin, Betty Lewis of Snow Hill and Peggy Reister-Morris of Berlin; and 30-year honorees Anthony Tull of
Pocomoke City and Evelyn Whaley of Whaleyville. Submitted Photo
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Housing Market Update
BERLIN – The second quarter of 2018 kicked off with increased housing inventory, according to the latest numbers from the Coastal Association of REALTORS® (Coastal).
A snapshot of key indicators is shown for the month of April. Submitted Image
April 2018 saw an overall 4.6 percent increase in residential listings, compared to the same time last year in Somerset, Wicomico, and Worcester counties. Individually, single family home listings increased by 3.4 percent in Wicomico and by 3.6 percent in Somerset, but decreased by 5.8 percent in Worcester. Condominium listings increased by 11.5 percent in Worcester and by 66.7 percent in Wicomico, but were down by 50 percent in Somerset.
Contract starts were also up, showing a 2.5 percent increase in April throughout the tri-county area. Individually, single family home contracts remained the same in Worcester, and increased by 2.9 percent in Wicomico and by 86.7 percent in Somerset. Condominium contracts increased by 36.4 percent in Wicomico and by 100 percent in Somerset, but decreased by 8.7 percent in Worcester.
Settlements were down overall by 23.4 percent in all three counties. Individually, single family home settlements were down by 43.8 percent in Worcester, by 16.2 percent in Wicomico, and by 18.7 percent in Somerset. Condominium settlements were down by 18.1 percent in Worcester and up by 100 percent (from five to 10 settlements) in Wicomico. There were no condominium settlements last month in Somerset.
Days on market decreased overall by 38.3 percent. Listing prices decreased by two percent and sale prices decreased by 2.2 percent.
“April’s settlement numbers may not show it, but our members are so incredibly busy right now,” said Coastal President Joel Maher. “They are listing and showing properties, drafting contracts, making connections and so much more. I would not be in the least bit surprised if those settlement numbers saw a drastic increase this month, as more deals are closed, and more buyers take that final leap into homeownership here on the Eastern Shore.”
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Office Top Producer Named
OCEAN CITY – Timothy Meadowcroft, a sales associate with Long & Foster Real Estate in Ocean City, has been named a top agent for 2017. At an awards breakfast held earlier this month, he was presented with an award naming him Office Top Producer for Settled Units in 2017.
“We are proud to present this well-deserved award to Tim,” said Gary Scott, president of Long & Foster Real Estate. “Tim is a notable example of Long & Foster’s highly-trained professionals who go to great lengths to best serve clients seeking the total real estate experience.”
A real estate professional for over 15 years, Meadowcroft prides himself on his professionalism, knowledge of the Maryland and Delaware real estate market and the personalized service he strives to provide to his clients.
“Tim has consistently proven to be high achieving since entering the real estate field and has been cited as a top real estate producer for the past 7 years” said Stan Zaremba, manager of the Ocean City office.
He is a member of the prestigious Founders Club of the Long & Foster Gold Team and was named an Eastern Shore Regional Top Producer for settled units, competing with over 225 agents.
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Bank Promotions
BERLIN – Calvin B. Taylor Bank President and Chief Executive Officer Raymond M. Thompson has announced two promotions.
Hanna Ford
Hanna Ford has been promoted to Senior Customer Service Associate. She began her employment with the bank in September of 2013. She serves on the marketing and training committees, is a participant in the professional development group and trains new CSA’s. Hanna will also enter the bank’s management trainee program later this year. She currently works at the 20th Street, Ocean City branch location.
Sarah Matthews
Sarah Matthews has been promoted to Senior Customer Service Associate. Sarah began her employment with the bank in September of 2011. She serves on the bank’s Fiscally Fit and training committees and is a participant in the professional development group. She currently works at the Ocean View, Del. branch location.
“Hanna and Sarah have distinguished themselves as talented leaders within our company, and proven to be an invaluable asset for our customers, stockholders, and our communities. We congratulate each of them on their well-deserved promotions, and thank them for their hard work and dedication to their careers at Taylor Bank,” said Thompson.
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Distillery Awarded
OCEAN CITY – Seacrets Distilling Company was named Maryland Rum Distillery Of The Year at the 9th Annual New York International Spirits Competition.
Close to 600 spirits from around the world competed in a blind tasting where top spirits buyers from around the New York metropolitan area judged the products by their category and price.
In addition to Maryland Rum Distillery Of The Year, Seacrets Spirits was also awarded three medals — Seacrets White Rum, Gold Medal; Seacrets Spiced Rum, Bronze Medal; and Seacrets Lemon Drop Vodka, Bronze Medal.
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Recognition Earned
OCEAN CITY — Nancy Reither with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Ocean City’s 120th Street office recently earned The Institute for Luxury Home Marketing’s Million Dollar GUILD™ recognition for experience, knowledge and expertise in million-dollar and above residential properties.
Reither is a Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialist™ (CLHMS), an exclusive group of real estate professionals who have completed The Institute’s training and have a proven performance in the upper-tier market.
“Agents who have earned the CLHMS designation are performing at the highest level in their community,” said Diane Hartley, president of The Institute. “It takes a superior level of service to be successful and consistently close sales at or above one million dollars. We want to recognize this performance, and give these elite professionals the earned distinction that they are the agent of choice for affluent buyers and sellers.”
The specialized training and ongoing membership with The Institute provide Reither with the knowledge and tools to better serve affluent clients. The GUILD recognition provides evidence of the successful commitment to service at the highest level.
“I’m able to acess additional resources to reach affluent buyers to help my seller’s sell their luxury properties faster,” said Reither, who has been in real estate since 2006 and specializes in resort properties.
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Practice Adds Doctor
SALISBURY — Eastern Shore OB/GYN, a Division of Chesapeake Health Care, announced the addition of Dr. Michael E. Lantz, board-certified maternal and fetal medicine specialist. Lantz will be joining our team of providers in July.
Lantz was born in Cambridge and graduated from the University of Maryland School of Medicine in 1989. Lantz completed an internship at Greater Baltimore Medical Center, and a residency at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He furthered his education with a fellowship in Maternal-Fetal Medicine at the University of South Florida College of Medicine in Tampa.
As a board-certified obstetrician-gynecologist specializing in Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Lantz will be joining Chesapeake Health Care in our OB/GYN office to provide specialized testing, ongoing monitoring, and will perform necessary procedures for high-risk pregnancies. High-risk pregnancy factors include diabetes, hypertension, multiple gestations, advanced maternal age, etc. Genetic evaluations will also be available.
“The addition of a maternal-fetal medicine specialist further enhances the comprehensive range of services we provide to the women on the Eastern Shore,” said Susanne Gray, CEO/COO of Chesapeake Health Care. “Following the continuum of care throughout a woman’s life cycle is vital to the health of our patients.”