Home Selling
Addicted to HGTV? Wanna Sell your Arlington Home?
May 27th, 2010 Categories: Home Selling
Yep, you guessed it, HGTV is looking for energetic FIRST TIME HOME SELLERS for their hit tv show My First Sale! They are casting now and will be throughout the summer.
I had a few different producers call me earlier this week because they found my blog (just like you did) and were intrigued by my reach. If you’ve been reading for a while, you know I’ve been at this for over 3 years now – but enough about me…
So if you live close in – I’d say Arlington, Alexandria, Falls Church, or DC and you’re thinking of selling soon – give me a call – I can get you an application and I can even apply for the job of your listing agent! (I sell a lot of homes, you know) Now you don’t have to use me, you can choose your own agent but if you’ve always imagined yourself on one of these shows – now’s your chance! They want to film from as early on in the process as possible – so if selling is on your radar anytime this summer or fall – your timing could be perfect!!
So whatever type of property you live in, condo, townhome, row house, bungalow, cape, whatever… give me a call or drop me a note!
Happy Thursday!
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A Look to our Neighbor, McLean Virginia
March 11th, 2010 Categories: Home Buying, Home Selling, Market Stats, McLean Dirt
So most folks come here to read about Arlington – yet sometimes I get asked “why is your office in McLean and you write about Arlington.” Well, I have a long history with McLean, having grown up in McLean, graduated from Langley High School a few years back (define a few, I dare you!), and it’s always felt like a natural place to hang my real estate license. However, as many of you know, when we came back to the area, we settled in Arlington, but VERY close to the McLean/Fairfax County border – so I sort of feel like I have TWO homes.
Because my office is there, I do tend to get a lot of questions about McLean, but the 2 I seem to get more than others are:
1. Can I afford to live there?
and:
2. Are there ANY types of homes besides MANSIONS?
Let’s begin with the 2nd question – McLean is home to all sorts of property types, from condos to townhomes, from starter homes to TRUE mansions. There are fabulous contemporaries, wonderful statuesque colonials; there are craftsman new construction and even a bungalow thrown in here and there. The condos range from affordable garden style buildings through the luxurious Palladium which was completed a few years ago. Similarly there are a variety of townhome communities from starter to the very high end and we see those same broad spectrum options in the single family home market too.
As for affordability – McLean is certainly home to many many MANY multi-million dollar homes. However, with the upper market affected by tumbling values, there can be some great deals! So here are the ranges:
In the condo market over the last year, we saw a 1bedroom/1 bath sell for as little as $150,000 and it was NOT a foreclosure or short sale! On the other end of the spectrum, 2009 saw the sale of a 3br/3.5ba 2000+ square foot unit for $1,425,000.
As far as townhomes go, on the low end, we had sales that ranged from $460K for a bank owned townhome in the heart of McLean to $1,275,000.
Now, single family homes – HUGE spread from a low of $325,000 which was basically a lot right on Rt 123 to a whopping $8,250,000 cash deal for a beautiful, one-of-a-kind piece of history.
So affordable? I would say: yes? no? maybe? Could you find something to buy that fits your budget? We’d have to discuss whether your wants/needs line up with what’s available, but one thing’s for sure, I know McLean and there are plenty of opportunities. Give me a buzz and we can explore it together.
Happy Thursday
Jennifer
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How’s 2010 Looking in Arlington Virginia?
March 9th, 2010 Categories: Arlington Dirt, Home Selling
As you know, I believe monitoring ratified contracts is as close as you can get to understanding the moment-by-moment market tempo. And as always, I’ve been closely watching to see how 2010 has been shaping up. Check out this chart:
And we all know what happened during weeks 6 & 7 (approximately) of 2010 – Snowmageddon! Snowpocalypse! and look – we were still averaging in the 40-50 contracts per week!! It’s great to see that 2010 has started off with a bang – what we need to remember is it’s not a be-all/end-all statement. last year obviously started out a little slower than 2008, but quickly picked up steam in the spring and never looked back. We ended last year with a 20% increase over 2008 – so I guess anything can happen but so far, I’m seeing market activity.
On another note – as I peruse the MRIS, (our local MLS) I am also seeing agents putting comments in that are indicating receipt of multiple offers. But, per my post last week or the week before, prices are still staying moderate due to the financing situation we’re in. We’ll see how that works itself out.
If you’d like to see more, or perhaps you’d like some research done on your neighborhood please feel free to give me a call. Remember, this is only for Arlington -
Happy Tuesday!
Jennifer
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Multiple Offers, 2010 Style…
March 2nd, 2010 Categories: Home Buying, Home Selling, Northern Virginia Basics
Were you around in the real estate world in 2004 here in Northern Virginia? Whether you were a buyer, a seller, a real estate agent, a lender or even
friend of someone in the market then, you were well familiar with the woes (from a buyer) or thrills (from a seller) of multiple offers! We heard stories back then of properties receiving FIFTY offers – can you believe it? FIFTY!!! That’s a lot – how did one distinguish themselves from another? Well, back then it was price and terms.
The Escalation Addendum was born… it was a lot like proxy bidding on eBay! In it, a buyer would indicate the highest price they were willing to pay in some increment they determined (it was largely a made up number – often catchy… the house address was a clever gimmick – so for 123 Main Street they may offer $123) over the next higher offer. That’s obviously an oversimplification, but that’s how it worked.
The second factor was terms. Buyers would waive home inspection, waive radon inspections, no financing contingencies, waive appraisal and waive even their right to cancel under the Property Owners or Condominium Association acts. It was NUTS… and if you were really lucky (although in retrospect, I’m not sure if luck is the phrase I would use…) you would be the winning bidder at some ridiculous price – but even in that hairy scary world, the market was setting the price in it’s odd way.
Flash forward to 2010 – we find ourselves in a low inventory situation and
once again, and since history does have a way of repeating itself, I’m seeing multiple offers crop up once again. I just had a listing where we had multiple offers after just 3 days on the market. One of the buyer agents asked me about the escalation addendum and how I felt about it. What did I say? ”I LOVE escalation addenda but c’mon – these days they aren’t worth the paper they’re written on” (this is assuming that price is right to begin with AT or as close to market value as you can get and that all bids are already at asking price)
You see, if a property is priced well, and the market responds with multiple offers, the seller and the listing agent are well aware that they still have a MAJOR hurdle to jump over to get to settlement – it’s the bank! It HAS to appraise. Very few people in this day and age are willing to waive ANYTHING much less their appraisal contingency. So we find ourselves with banks artificially suppressing home values. You see – the market determines the price for a house – you know that, right? Not the seller, not even the buyer really – but a negotiated outcome between what the buyer is willing to pay and the seller is willing to accept. If the “market” is increasing the value because of a housing shortage and increased affordability due to low interest rates – guess what – prices CANNOT rise because the banks control the appraisals and thus the pricing.
So the bottom line is this: if you find yourself in a multiple offer situation here in 2010 you will HAVE to get creative to set yourself apart from the competition. It’s likely that offers will be largely identical with a few places for deviance… so get creative, make sure your agent is a go-getter, well schooled in creative offer writing and presentation. If you’re a seller, you may likely have all of your wishes come true (oh, except for a higher price).
If you’re thinking of jumping in, give me a call – I have the experience and creativity to guide buyers through the process. If you’re a seller, I can help position your property in the best way for the best possible outcome!
Happy Tuesday
Jennifer
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