Archive for March, 2008
10 Things to Look for when Choosing YOUR Next Real Estate Professional
March 25th, 2008 Categories: Alexandria Dirt, Arlington Dirt, Falls Church Dirt, First Time Buyers Club, McLean Dirt, Northern Virginia Home Buying, Northern Virginia Home Selling, Northern Virginia Real Estate Dirt, Reston Dirt
Choosing who will represent you on the purchase or sale of your home (or investment property) is a big deal! It’s probably 
one of the single largest purchases or sales you will make in your entire life and unless you’re a big investor, probably something you will only do a handful of times in your life. So when the time comes for your to choose that special person that will guide you through this process, it’s important to look for the qualities that are most important to YOU.
I started out thinking I would do a “Top 10 List” of sorts, a la David Letterman. But I quickly realized that the list will be different for everybody! What’s important to you may not be as important to your co-worker, stock broker or college roommate who has recommended an agent to you. Don’t get me wrong, a personal referral is an excellent source, but make sure they are the right person for YOU and your needs.
Here is MY list of what I would look for in a real estate professional (and remember they are in NO particular order - just train of thought):
1. Experience - While I don’t feel it’s necessary to have 30 years in the business (can’t hurt though) I think it’s best to have an agent with a proven track record of success – if they are less experienced, ask how they intend to best represent your interests - what is their plan? And this brings me to #2…
2. Resources - what types of resources do they have available to them? Are they being mentored? Do they have a broker that will assist them? Do they have other resources to lean on in busy times? Perhaps they are part of a team? How will that work? As long as it works for YOU, there is no wrong answer here.
3. Ethics - This is a biggie – and no real way to ask someone how ethical they are – as Realtors, we are required to abide by our Code of Ethics. It’s much more stringent than our local licensing bureau requires – so always be sure you are represented by a real estate professional who proudly understands and abides by the Code.
4. Education – How has your prospective agent kept up with the industry? Have they earned any of the recognized designations? For example, I have earned the GRI designation – I am a Graduate of the Realtor Institute. It took me a year to earn it – I went to classes once a month for an entire day in subjects like Ethics, Agency Law, Real Estate Finance, etc… I attend Continuing Education courses all the time to stay on top of the changes in my industry… ask a few questions as it relates to Education!
5. Market Knowledge – Look, we can’t all be perfect and we can’t know every statistic for every condo building, neighborhood, townhouse complex, etc… in EVERY city, town, nook, cranny that we service – but we CAN have a knowledge of where the market is, where it’s been, where it’s headed. We can understand some basic economic forces that drive it – some basic economic indicators that could give us a clue where things are headed?
6. Online Savvy – I think this one is HUGE. The world is online - if you’re reading this now, you’re reading a blog. Some don’t even know what a blog is – but whether your agent is representing you as a buyer or a seller, it’s important for them to understand how to market online, how to reach potential buyers ONLINE and frankly, how to communicate with YOU. It’s a different world now than it was even 10 years ago. Be sure your agent has kept up with the times!
7. Communication – Another biggie! And something that will mean something different to different individuals. Find out how your agent intends to communicate with you – and how often. If you need updates once a week or once a day, make sure your agent understands your needs and can accommodate them. Do you prefer email? Or a true voice-to-voice conversation? It’s important to understand? Or what about text messaging?
8. Empathy – This is a tough process. While it’s a business for us as agents, you are real people, with real emotions involved in a potentially stressful situation. It’s nice if your agent can be empathetic.
9. Area Knowledge – How familiar is your agent with the area your home is in if you’re a seller or the area you’re looking if you’re a buyer. As I said earlier, nobody can be a neighborhood EXPERT in every neighborhood, and I don’t believe your agent must be an expert in that neighborhood to provide excellent representation, but they must be willing to learn – to familiarize themselves with your immediate area, market trends, schools, demographics, other listings, etc… the list goes on. (ps I’m a local! 
)
10. And last but certainly not least, I believe a Sense of Humor is vital. It all gets a little serious, and it is. But it can be fun, enjoyable and you can make a new friend along the way.
Remember, these are unique individuals and you’re trying to find the best match possible. Trust your referrals, your references, your research; but in the end, trust your gut… oh, and give me a call!
Have a wonderful Tuesday!
Jennifer
Serving all of your real estate needs in Arlington, McLean and the entire Northern Virginia Region!
Contact me today for a free home valuation or buyer counseling session! Spring is right around the corner!
| Discussion: 6 Comments »
Sacrificial Peeps — Happy Easter
March 22nd, 2008 Categories: Alexandria Dirt, Arlington Dirt, Falls Church Dirt, Friday Fun, McLean Dirt, Reston Dirt
…or Happy March 23rd if you are not an Easter celebrator.
Last week as I was reading the blog of one of my best cyber gal-pals, Teresa Boardman up in St. Paul Minnesota, I was inspired by her photo essay on peeps – her photos were hilarious and I threatened to have a little fun of my own. Now I can’t hold a candle to her talents behind the camera, BUT…. read on…
I will tell you that my children were THRILLED to take part in this experiment with me - it involved exploding peeps in the microwave. I took it one step further and decided to eat mine! Good choice on my part!
Here they are all lined up prior to the big event:
The first thing you might notice is that mine had no eyes… guess where the eyes of my reject-peeps were – in the backs of their heads…
silly silly peeps – I guess this way they couldn’t see what was coming - good thing, I guess. Their fate awaits…
In he went – the spinning probably helped to Dis-orient him before…
Oh, man…
In his final pose, he stared at me… right before I ate him! ha ha ha
Here’s what happened to a buddy of his:
He was very brave…
but again, delicious!!
So, thanks to Teresa for a fabulous inspiration – we had a fun dessert tonight on what my daughter refers to as Easter Eve. Have a wonderful day tomorrow.
Jennifer
Oh, and if you’d like to talk real estate, the phone lines are open!
| Discussion: 3 Comments »
Shirlington… A Great HIP Spot!
March 16th, 2008 Categories: Arlington Condos, Arlington Dirt, Neighborhoods
I had an opportunity to eat someplace new the other day - always great fun for me! A colleague and fellow blogger asked if I would join her for lunch at one of her favorite spots, Busboys and Poets! What a cool place - it’s part book store, part cafe, part restaurant, part bar… very casual, great atmosphere and great food, too.
Shirlington has really turned out to be a great place to hang out. The movies there are always playing some great off-beat shows – fun restaurants for every taste - a brand new Harris Teeter and a really nice, brand new Arlington County Public Library – Shirlington Branch.
There are a lot of places to live around Shirlington, too! The very well known Fairlington is just up the hill. They offer condos and townhomes and it’s a great community! There’s also the new community of Shirlington 
Village. Currently there is only 1 1bed/1ba unit on the market for $359K and 1 2bed/2ba unit on the market for just under $500K. It’s certainly conveniently located and surrounded by amenities!
If you’d like to check out Shirlington or any other area, give me a jingle.
I’m off to an open house – enjoy the Sunday!
Jennifer
Serving all of your real estate needs in Arlington, McLean and the entire Northern Virginia Region!
Contact me today for a free home valuation or buyer counseling session! Spring is right around the corner!
| Discussion: 1 Comment »
McLean Sales Figures for February 2008
March 14th, 2008 Categories: Market Stats, McLean Dirt
February was not a stellar month for home sales in McLean neighborhoods. While there are still quite a few buyers out there, we are hearing that many of them remain on the fence – trying to game the market as to whether we’ve seen the bottom or not. It’s really anyone’s guess. We’re hoping to see activity pick up a bit as it has in it’s neighboring community of Arlington!
So here’s how February stacked up:
In the single family market, there were more contracts written in February than in January by a 40% margin and hopefully that will translate to sales in the coming months. Open House traffic is good – but few buyers are willing to take the plunge at this time.
As far as absorption rates, they are as follows:
It sure would be nice to see some activity picking up in 22102!
If you’d like to chat - you know where to find me! 703–593–0877
Happy Friday
Jennifer
Serving all of your real estate needs in Arlington, McLean and the entire Northern Virginia Region!
Contact me today for a free home valuation or buyer counseling session! Spring is right around the corner!
| Discussion: No Comments »
February Sales Numbers are in for Arlington - Early Spring?
March 8th, 2008 Categories: Arlington Condos, Arlington Dirt, Market Stats, Northern Virginia Real Estate Dirt
Well, as expected we are seeing quite an improvement over January when everyone is hibernating! Yes, things are still volatile in the world of real estate right now, but we are seeing signs pointing to a typical spring market around these parts! Good activity, especially in the contract writing segment. Take a look…
“Sold” units have doubled for single family homes since January and contract writing is up about 25%. I’m fascinated by trends, so once again, I think it’s wise to look at these numbers as they’ve trended for almost the past year:
More contracts for single family homes were ratified in February than in any single month since last July. That’s big! Similar numbers posted for condos. Lastly, let’s look at absorption rates:
Looking pretty good and very consistent. These are only interesting to a point - they rely on the sales numbers for this month to determine how long it will take to sell through our inventory at THAT rate… so it’s different every month. But any way you slice it, single digit numbers are good to see here.
So, I will leave you with a few comments. I worked an open house last weekend and had over 50 sets of guests! FIFTY!!! That’s HUGE. There’s definitely activity picking up in the market and that’s exciting to see.
On the financial front, with the new conforming loan limits, some are nervous about where that will push interest rates; however, a jobless report came out which may help temper them and we might find ourselves in a nice little pocket for now. Stay tuned.
If you’re considering buying or selling – give me a call to discuss. As you can see, the spring market is shaping up nicely and I’d be happy to be YOUR go-to resource for all of your real estate needs!
Happy (rainy) Saturday!
Jennifer
Serving all of your real estate needs in Arlington, McLean and the entire Northern Virginia Region!
Contact me today for a free home valuation or buyer counseling session! The Time is NOW!
| Discussion: 1 Comment »
A HUGE Win for Virginia Sellers
March 4th, 2008 Categories: Alexandria Dirt, Arlington Dirt, Falls Church Dirt, Local News, McLean Dirt, Northern Virginia Home Selling, Northern Virginia Real Estate Dirt, Reston Dirt
As many of you know, whether you’re a seller or just “in the know” last year the Authority was granted to the Virginia Transportation Authority to impose an additional $4/$1000 to the Virginia Grantor’s Tax. This was a 400% increase over our previous tax of $1/$1000 bringing the new total tax to $5/$1000… HUGE difference to a seller!
Well, as we suspected (and as I’ve previously written about), it was ruled by the Virginia Supreme Court to be unconstitutional to enable a non-elected body to impose taxes. What does this mean? It’s unclear. One thing that IS clear is that they will have to come up with another way to pay for the road improvements here in Northern Virginia as well as in the Hampton Roads area, which is the other locality affected by this tax. The second thing that’s crystal clear is that they will have to figure out some way to refund those who have already paid this tax since January 1, 2008.
Meanwhile, I suspect they’ll go back to the drawing board - whether it means gas taxes, increased local taxes, bond money, etc… we need the money from somewhere to relieve congestion – I’m glad this time it won’t be paid for by those selling their homes!
If you have any questions about this, and/or if you were a seller who paid these higher taxes from January 1, 2008 through the present, please contact your settlement agent about what the refund process might look like, how long it might take, etc… then, REJOICE!
Happy Tuesday!
Jennifer
Serving all of your real estate needs in Arlington, McLean and the entire Northern Virginia Region!
Contact me today for a free home valuation or buyer counseling session! The Time is NOW!
| Discussion: 2 Comments »
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