One of the most important benefits an experienced real estate agent brings to the table is the ability to recommend an "asking price" to a home seller. Unlike cars, each home is totally unique depending on condition, how it sits on the lot, location, and many other important factors. Has the Northern Virginia real estate market stabilized? The Continue Reading
Yes, Reviews are Relevant
After a few real estate clients found me online, I asked how they stumbled across me or my Northern Virginia Real Estate Blog. Often it was a top Google result when they asked a question or one of my home listings showed up on one of the 10,548 "home search/IDX" sites that are out there. And when they drilled down, they found that my real estate Continue Reading
My Opinion on the 2010 Real Estate Statistics
Trying to pick up trends in the real estate business is a challenge because national stats don't always sync with what I see on the streets of Vienna or McLean, VA. Yes, I am talking about the mean streets, places where multiple buyers are still anxiously awaiting new listings even as 2011 arrives. Those two areas are still highly sought after Continue Reading
Building the Metro to Dulles
UPDATE: Watch the Silver Line run in Tysons ~ Vienna real estate values increase Yes, back in 2010 I was giving my clients advice that the Metro was going to add significant value to their homes especially in Vienna and Reston. The number of properties being torn down and replaced with homes now (in 2014) priced above $1.3 million is evidence of Continue Reading
Things You Should Know Before Moving to Northern Virginia
Relocating here? Well, when I started Things You Should Know Before Moving to Northern Virginia (updated in 2019), I had to force myself to stop at fourteen "things". Over the years I have heard myself giving these tips over and over to clients who are relocating here, so, I thought that I should put down my observations for the world to Continue Reading
My Buyer’s Agent Tip of the Week | Luxury Homes
Negotiation strategies vary depending on the price range and condition of the house, but the final months of 2010 may be the best time to negotiate on a luxury home thanks, in part, to the capital gains rate going back up on January 1, 2011. Yes, I am going to encourage you to set in motion an action plan that really is a "win-win" negotiating Continue Reading
Should We Refinance the Mortgage?
I don't usually ask for your comments right in the first sentence, but I have been talking to many clients, friends and neighbors about refinancing their home mortgage these days. And the stories have been fascinating especially since fixed rates are near 4.0% or less. When I originally wrote the post about Virginia's recordation tax exeption Continue Reading
McLean VA Home Sales Stats | Hyper Local January 2010
The national home sale data that has come out recently, like the Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, and local data have been all over the place giving a confusing picture of the local real estate market. Here, I am going to look at the McLean, Virginia zip codes 22101 and 22102 real estate sales for January 2010. Although our memories aren't Continue Reading
