Reston Dirt
Basement or No Basement?
August 19th, 2008 Categories: Alexandria Dirt, Arlington Dirt, Falls Church Dirt, McLean Dirt, Northern Virginia Home Buying, Northern Virginia Real Estate Dirt, Reston Dirt
I just received an interesting question from a reader – he has found a house that he really likes and it is built on a crawl space (the 3 ways homes are built are on a concrete slab, on a crawl space or on a basement - or some combination). He’s been advised by a family member who is out of state to be leary of any home that’s not built on a full basement. The reasoning was that it’s less than a full house. So he asked me what my thoughts are.
My initial words of wisdom to him were just to be sure he’s comfortable knowing what he’s getting into. A lot of people WANT that basement as overflow space – rec rooms, play rooms, home office, guest rooms, etc… Some want it for just storage – in which case, an attic or a well built shed would suffice. Also it depends on the area – for example in an area where half of the homes are basement and half are basement, it might not matter. But it’s not something that can EVER be added – so what you get is what you get.
I decided to do a little research. We know anecdotally that here in Northern Virginia most homes do have basements – so I took a look through the active listings for detached single family homes in the various surrounding counties to get a sense of what percentages have basements vs. not… Here are some statistics on homes WITHOUT basements compared with the total available home market (at least as of today).
So, this is just good info to keep in mind in terms of market expectations. There is a home buyer for EVERY home – a lot depends on what the market conditions are at the time of trying to re-sell. But that’s a topic for another day.
If you’d like to see homes with OR without basements, I’d love to hear from you. I’m experienced either way!
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! Fall is right around the corner!
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What Were They Thinking??
August 18th, 2008 Categories: Alexandria Dirt, Arlington Dirt, Falls Church Dirt, McLean Dirt, Northern Virginia Real Estate Dirt, Northern Virginia Real Estate Finance, Reston Dirt
Lately, I’ve been showing a lot of property that was foreclosed upon and is now bank owned. I’ve seen bank owned properties in all sorts of locations, neighborhoods, buildings, etc… even in the “luxury” market. In considering making an offer on one, I called the listing agent to ask my usual barrage of questions:
“When can we expect a reply from this bank?”
“Are there any other offers on this property?”
“How quickly can we settle?”
“Is the bank willing to pay closing costs”
“Is the bank willing to allow for home inspection repairs?”
“Can we settle with our own real estate attorney?”
“Can we hold the earnest money deposit?”
…. the list goes on ….
Certain banks (and agents, unfortunately) have earned unfortunate reputations of being difficult to work with. It makes me wonder how we’ll ever get out of this situation unless the banks (and the agents) realize that they have to be at least somewhat agreeable, approachable, responsive, etc…
So here I sit - wondering “How did we get here?” Don’t misunderstand, I know HOW we got here, but I wish I could know who was responsible, don’t you? Which lenders? Which ORIGINATORS? It dawns on me that just 
because Bank of America (JUST AN EXAMPLE) holds a loan now, they may not have originated that loan. They may have just made a bad business investment decision. So I wish there was some report that indicated WHO took these risks? WHO was writing B paper loans? WHO was ignoring (or turning a blind eye) to underwriting guidelines with respect to debt ratios? WHO was outright lying? I wish I knew.
I’m glad our credit restrictions have tightened up. I hope that my buyers who are buying now are well qualified and prepared to be homeowners for the foreseeable future!
If you need a good lender, give me a call – I know several who are excellent and in whose hands you’d be well taken care of!
Happy Monday!
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! Fall is right around the corner!
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What Can a SELLER do to help their Home Sell?
June 19th, 2008 Categories: Alexandria Dirt, Arlington Dirt, Falls Church Dirt, McLean Dirt, Northern Virginia Home Selling, Northern Virginia Real Estate Dirt, Real Estate 101, Reston Dirt
Let’s face it – what sells a home is the right person walking through the door at the right time. The process is a balance between a competent real estate agent and a client, in most cases. The agent comes to the table with a plan for how to cast the widest net to catch potential buyers. This might include hosting an open house, online advertising, etc…
However, there are definitely two sides to the partnership and if the seller doesn’t truly get their head in the game, you could find yourself with a lopsided partnership - even the best marketing can’t sell a house that really isn’t prepared properly to sell. So let’s examine what the home sellers can, and should, do!
FIRST – PRICE THE HOME TO SELL
I hear this a lot on listing appointments, “Jennifer, we think your pricing strategy is right on - but we’d like to start high in order to test the waters 
to see if we can get a better offer and also, we want to give ourselves some negotiating room.”
While I agree with the sentiment, buyers KNOW when a home is priced right and while there are some knuckleheads out there who may try a lowball offer, when you’ve hit the right price, easily justified, my experience is that sellers don’t need to be braced to have to give away the farm. The negotiation process can be quite even handed and civilized!
Pricing, in my opinion, is the #1 thing a seller can do to influence the reception in the market and to get their home sold quickly. There are certainly challenges, not every home is easy to price, not every buyer will be willing to pay extra for those special inlay hardwood floors, not every home has good comps. But with good homework and a meeting of the minds, GET THE HOME PRICED RIGHT out of the gate - you won’t regret it!
SECOND – PRESENT IT WELL
What does this mean? Well, first, any obvious repairs should be done – re-caulking old icky bathroom tile; perhaps a leak was fixed but the re-painting was never done? Carpets dirty? A good cleaning can do a world of good. (See my previous article on carpet cleaning) Look around through fresh eyes if possible. Remember, when your agent makes suggestions, take them seriously. Try not to have your feelings hurt when they suggest that you remove the 1980’s curtains to freshen and brighten everything up a bit. Appearances are everything and some buyers cannot look past some 
of those “personal touches.”
The clutter and anything excess (furniture, clothing, towels, sheets, food, etc…) should be removed – yes REMOVED. Do whatever it takes. If you need to get a storage unit and it costs you $250 but nets you $10,000 more on your home because it appears to have adequate space and storage – would you be upset? NO - so go to it. Clear it out, clean it out, purge, pack it up, etc…
The exterior should be well maintained – this includes the windows looking to the exterior – clean and sparkly! Lawns should be kept tidy, toys, tools, etc should be kept put away. Garages should be cleaned out and purged just as described above. If any decks or siding require power washing, rent a power washer - it’s easy - even I can do it!
And lastly, CLEAN CLEAN CLEAN. There’s nothing worse than thinking of how much cleaning a place would require before moving in. Bleach might just become your best friend! But it’s true, a neat, tidy, bright, clean house will sell 10 times before the same house without taking those steps to prepare.
I believe that pricing and preparation are 80% of the game. However, there are a few other things that sellers should keep in mind:
1. Be Available. Have your home as available as possible to be shown. This might not always be convenient - but hey, you’re trying to sell your home. Make it as easy as possible, especially as it relates to pets, alarms, children, etc…
2. Communication. Be sure that your agent is on the ball - returning phone calls from prospective buyer agents; returning phone calls to prospective buyers from signs or Internet ads. Be sure that YOU are communicating with your agent about showings and that THEY are communicating relevant feedback to you.
3. Remain Flexible. Flexible with showings, flexible with settlement dates, flexible with finding creative solutions to help your home be more attractive to an “almost fit” buyer. Be flexible and pro-active.
It’s not always easy being a home seller in this market. Most Arlington home sellers are doing ok – I hear once you get a little further out even to communities like Vienna and Reston, the sales are farther and fewer between. However, having your home ready to go ensures that when that buyer does come along, you’ll be the best looking property in their price range!
Good luck, and if you’re thinking of becoming a home seller, give me a call!
Happy Thursday
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! No time like the present!
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Reston Hosts Taste of the Town - Saturday June 14, 2008
June 11th, 2008 Categories: Local Events, Northern Virginia Real Estate Dirt, Reston Dirt
Thinking of how to spend your Saturday? Consider attending Taste of the ![DC1[1]](http://www.thearlingtondirt.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/06/dc11-small.jpg)
Town in Reston this Saturday. With 40,000 expected attendees (which is double the size of past years), there will be plenty to see and do. You can sample fare from the 40 great restaurants represented; there will be 3 stages each hosting different live entertainment throughout the day and evening; and you can also expect an entire block dubbed “kiddie korner” with special activities for the kids.
The event will go from noon until 11pm - so plan to hang out and enjoy the day! Maybe I’ll see you there –
Happy Wednesday
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 HERE!
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Bank Owned vs. Short Sale - What’s the Difference?
June 2nd, 2008 Categories: Alexandria Dirt, Arlington Dirt, Falls Church Dirt, McLean Dirt, Northern Virginia Home Buying, Northern Virginia Real Estate Dirt, Reston Dirt
I’ve been looking at a lot of bank owned property lately. Why? you ask? Well, for one thing, there are A LOT more of them these days. We don’t really have a way in our MLS system to differentiate between Bank Owned, Short Sale or regular, old fashioned sellers - I hear that some of my peers in other parts of the country can do that. Anyway, as I’ve written before about short sales, I generally try to stay away from those types of sales feeling that it really isn’t the best situation in which to represent a buyer.
Short Sales in a Nutshell
So, back on target, what’s the difference? Short sale is the process a homeowner attempts to go through to prevent foreclosure. It’s where they ask the lender to forgive the debt and allows them to sell the property for less than what is owed. The sale is approved by the lender (or lenders if there are two), thus you’ll often see the phrase “subject to 3rd party approval” in the listing.
In these situations, the property owners are still living in the property - they’re not always happy about their situation and they can sometimes take out their frustration on the property. When purchasing a short sale, you accept it in the condition it’s in AS OF SETTLEMENT. Along with the other shortcomings listed out in my previous post, it just boils down to a huge amount of risk and time on the buyer’s part.
REO – Real Estate Owned
How about REO - what is that? REO stands for Real Estate Owned. These are properties that have already been foreclosed on, so the bank is now the owner/seller. The occupants are somehow removed from the picture, but sometimes they leave their stuff behind - sometimes LOTS of stuff. The bank now wants to sell the property hoping for fair market value. However, sometimes, due to the behavior described above, the properties are distressed and there are deals to be made.
Generally when purchasing REO, you still give up many of your rights as a buyer, but it’s a much faster process and the property condition/situation is more controlled. Generally they will allow an inspection but are less interested in dealing with credits or any repairs.
Here are some photos from an REO property I saw last night with a client. It’s so sad to see some of these properties and the condition they’ve deteriorated to.
This is a shed that was to be built out back – the washer/dryer are in there although I’d bet they are not working. Next to them is a sink base w/cabinets. It’s funny that there is a door on the structure, but sad.
This is what the rest of the back yard looks like - furniture, trash, clothing, food, construction materials, etc… What a mess.
So, sometimes REO can be a good deal IF the bank is aware of what they’ve got and if the buyer is prepared to deal with it!
Call to chat!
Happy Monday!
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 HERE!
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Happy Memorial Day
May 26th, 2008 Categories: Alexandria Dirt, Arlington Dirt, Falls Church Dirt, McLean Dirt, Northern Virginia Real Estate Dirt, Reston Dirt
As we wind down Memorial Day 2008 I hope we’ve all taken a moment, whether silent or otherwise, to thank and appreciate the servicemen and women who protect our freedom; and to remember those who have given their lives for our country.
Arlington National Cemetery is a beautiful place I encourage everyone to visit at least once in their lifetime!
Jennifer
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The Dating Game… Finding, Meeting and Getting to know your REALTOR
May 22nd, 2008 Categories: Alexandria Dirt, Arlington Dirt, Falls Church Dirt, McLean Dirt, Northern Virginia Real Estate Dirt, Reston Dirt
Finding and working with a REALTOR is often a lot like dating! “HUH?” you say? Well, think about the ways that we meet…
Internet Dating
Many times, I will receive an email from a blog reader or someone who has found me on my static web page. They like what they see and send me an email. Sometimes they live in far away places, like Rome or Seattle or even Leesburg (that’s a joke for you Loudoun County readers! 
) We might correspond for months via email before we actually meet. By the time we meet, we know a lot about each other, due to our long “courting” period. It’s an excellent way to get to know someone - their response times, their knowledge and even their sense of humor!
The Blind Date
I recently received a referral from a Keller Williams agent in southern Virginia – he was trying to help his daughter find an agent to work with here in the Arlington area. So she initiated contact via email. (so really, it’s like Internet Dating, too!) We set a time to meet and described ourselves to each other so we’d recognize each other in the wild! She exclaimed that it was a lot like a blind date, which in fact it was, but as I pointed out, a lot less scary! By the way, we had a great time getting to know each other at Starbucks last night!
The Set-Up
Many times a past client will call me to set an appointment for me to meet with one of their friends. Sometimes we all meet together, but more often, as referenced above, we end up describing ourselves to each other to meet on our own.
![The_Dating_Game[1]](http://www.thearlingtondirt.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/05/the-dating-game1-small.jpg)
I’ve never actually participated in a setup like “The Dating Game” where 3 REALTORs are lined up and asked the same questions… “If you were a fruit, which fruit would you be and why?” I’m not sure how that might go over, but it’s an interesting thought!
I welcome all of your calls and questions any time! Things are great – it’s a nice balanced real estate market right now and I would be delighted to discuss it with you at your convenience!
Happy Thursday!
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 HERE!
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Preparedness Tax Holiday THIS WEEKEND May 25-31
May 21st, 2008 Categories: Alexandria Dirt, Arlington Dirt, Falls Church Dirt, Local News, McLean Dirt, Northern Virginia Real Estate Dirt, Reston Dirt
Just wanted to get this community reminder out – this weekend begins the first ever tax holiday for certain emergency supplies and equipment to help all of us to be better prepared for weather emergencies. This year a “well above average” cyclone season is projected for the Atlantic Basin and to help us all be better prepared, we are being given a tax holiday from May 25–31 for the purchase of the following supplies:
batteries
flashlights
water storage containers
radios (weather radios, 2–way radios, etc…)
first aid kits
duct tape
bottled water
certain generators and power inverters under $1,000
For a complete list of the tax exempt items, click here. You will find that many useful items are included in the tax holiday and it’s a nice reminder that if you find yourself without power, you will be grateful to have an emergency kit all put together thanks to the reminder you got from your friendly, neighborhood realtor! (That would be me!)
Happy Wednesday
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 HERE!
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Is it Time to Buy? How ’bout NOW? Is NOW Finally Here?
May 16th, 2008 Categories: Alexandria Dirt, Arlington Dirt, Falls Church Dirt, McLean Dirt, Northern Virginia Home Buying, Northern Virginia Home Selling, Northern Virginia Real Estate Dirt, Northern Virginia Real Estate Finance, Reston Dirt
For the past few years, this has probably been the most asked question of 
every real estate professional across the US. With the media leading the charge, the news has been all gloom and doom with a few regional exceptions and, just like a run on the bank in days gone by, the public has largely bought into the concept that the sky is falling in.
Well, we’re still standing. Yes, we have a credit crisis of enormous proportion that will likely take years to recover from. But guess what… houses are selling! Prices are somewhat steady! There are plenty of happy buyers and sellers at least here in our region, that are actually experiencing pleasant transactions!
But here’s the greatest news of all. Finally, we’re getting some great reports from national media sources that perhaps the crisis is over! Yes, you heard me correctly, the headline of an article in The Wall Street Journal on May 6, 2008 reads, “The Housing Crisis Is Over.”
The article begins by reminding us that we’ve been on a downward trend for 3 years already – hard to believe, but I guess it was 2005 when we started to see buyers push back from rapidly rising prices. It goes on to look at certain economic indicators that have been present in past housing corrections and comparing that with our current outlook.
Bottom line is that perhaps the worst is behind us. Here in the Northern Virginia area we have been seeing more activity, relatively stable prices and buyers finally coming around to believing that they can now make a good investment. However, like everything, it’s a giant pendulum. Perhaps now is an EXCELLENT time to be either a buyer or seller while that pendulum is essentially hanging in an almost weightless state before swinging the other direction. Remember the days of multiple contract? Waiving home inspection? Waiving appraisal? Let’s do some business!
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 HERE!
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5 Important Characteristics of a Great Home Seller
May 10th, 2008 Categories: Alexandria Dirt, Arlington Dirt, Falls Church Dirt, McLean Dirt, Northern Virginia Home Selling, Northern Virginia Real Estate Dirt, Reston Dirt
Yep, that’s what I said, characteristics of a seller. There is definitely more to being a seller than someone who thinks they want to sell their home. There are characteristics that as an agent, I look for on any listing appointment – and if I sense that one or more of these characteristics are missing, I have to seriously evaluate MY ability to have a successful outcome.
A seller must be REALISTIC
Some say this is the agent’s job - and to some extent it is. But c’mon, nobody’s under a rock, at least I don’t think they are. The news media has gone crazy over diminishing values, foreclosures, etc… for a seller to actually think they can price their home 10% over the last sale is completely unrealistic. Yes, it is most definitely our job as agents to provide as much information on recent sales, length of time on the market, structure of deals (e.g., are there subsidies in that neighborhood? or do most of the buyers have money for closing costs?), etc… but the seller must be realistic about their expectations!
A seller must be OPEN MINDED
What does that mean exactly? Hard to define, but when we put a home on the market we can look in excruciating detail at other sales, comps, patterns, our marketing, etc… but until an offer comes in, you just never know what to expect. So I look for sellers who are open minded – sellers who understand that the market is what the market is - there’s nothing we can do to change it and that there may be benefits to taking a slightly lower offer, such as a quick settlement or fewer contingencies that can help a seller feel more confident about that sale actually happening.
A seller must be FLEXIBLE
Someone might put forth an offer or a tradeoff that hadn’t even crossed our minds before. We might sit on the market for weeks and weeks, at which point we begin looking at options – price drop vs. other alterations that may have been suggested by feedback. The market is often a moving target, and if the seller is flexible enough to react to new information, there is a better chance of a positive outcome.
A seller must be PREPARED
Prepared to accept a lower offer; prepared to take a lower net; prepared to make repairs; prepared to make other concessions (convey that chandelier or butcher block or front porch furniture) in order to make the transaction happen. Sometimes it’s just a matter of knowing how much something might cost. If you are trying to sell your home and you have a cobalt blue dining room, it might behoove you to get a quote from a painter to re-paint that room. This way, you, the seller, are prepared and armed with the knowledge of how much that exposure really is and is in a better position to make an informed decision.
A seller must be AVAILABLE
Yep, available. Imagine being a buyer and asking a few questions… as the listing agent, I am encouraged that someone is taking the time to ask and alas, I cannot find my seller. They won’t return calls, emails or texts… what gives? We could easily lose that interested buyer because they are now making assumptions on how the entire transaction experience might be. When there are plenty of other properties to buy, it is imperative that sellers are available to answer questions, respond to offers, etc…
Now, having said all of this, please understand that I’m in no way suggesting that sellers need be raked over the coals. It may be a market that favors the buyer, but it’s in no way a solid buyer’s market, at least inside the beltway and in other close in locations. However, it is important to each side conduct itself with the seriousness and dedication that this process deserves.
I’d be delighted to talk with you about the sale of your property – or if you’re thinking of buying, we can handle that, too!
Happy Saturday and be thankful for this oh so brief reprieve from the rain!
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 HERE!
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