Real estate blog entries tagged with northern va real estate by Cindy Jones, Pentagon, Fort Belvoir & Quantico Real Estate News (Integrity Real Estate Group)

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northern va real estate: When is a Regular Sale Not A Regular Sale in Northern Virginia? - 07/20/10 03:01 PM

Over the last week my client (buyer) and I have been negotiating a cash purchase of a home in Fairfax County VA. The listing agent has been very helpful but the owner, who is out of the area has been slow in responding to our offer and working through the terms. Today we found out why.This "regular" sale is headed to the auction block on the Fairfax County Courthouse steps in a few weeks. What makes this even more interesting is the owner is not behind in their payments. That's right this it isn't a short sale but the property … (24 comments)

northern va real estate: Let the Northern Virginia "Normal" Market Begin - 05/01/10 05:45 AM

After extended tax incentives and great deal of media hype about the “best time” to buy a home, today is the time to celebrate the coming of a normal real estate market in Northern Virginia.
A quick check of the MRIS for our area showed that the last minute rush was on. The chart shows properties with a status of Cont/KO, Cont/NOKO or Contract dated April 30th.

These numbers may go up over the next few days as agents add their ratified contracts to the MLS over the weekend. Many will also wonder if it was only the “lower end” … (2 comments)

northern va real estate: Northern Virginia Buyers Are Turning to FHA & VA Loans in Droves - 06/22/09 01:46 PM

We see dozens of marketing reports posted every day about total sales and sales prices in Northern Virginia. We know sales prices are down. Recently we have been able to report that the total number of sales have increased from 2008-2009, brought on by lower prices and lower interest rates. One set of numbers that you don't see reported often is how are the home purchases being financed?Let's just say simply, FHA and VA rule!
A quick glance at a comparison between May 2008 and May 2009 shows just how significant the increase is.

There have been a … (2 comments)

northern va real estate: Making Your Home Standout in a Crowded Market - 04/27/09 11:10 AM

There are a number of ways to make your home stand out in today's market. One of them is to make it noticeable to everyone that drives by. Honestly every time I pass this home it makes me smile. I have no idea what the neighbors think but since it is on a street lined with eclectic homes I'm sure they don't even notice.If you are thinking of putting your home on the market in the near future you may want to forego the bright pink paint and consider instead some more traditional methods of getting your home ready to sell.
… (13 comments)

northern va real estate: Northern Virginia Buyers-Do You Have $8000 Burning a Hole in Your Pocket? - 02/19/09 08:30 AM

If you are a first time homebuyer then the answer could be YES. Thanks to the latest round of initiatives by the government some first time homebuyers have a nice tax credit headed their way.First let's not forget that there are some qualifications. The biggest one is that you must qualify for a loan. If you haven't already talked to a mortgage professional let me know and I'll give you the names of great local lenders to call. Next let's review some of the details of new tax credit.
1. Tax credit is good for home purchases between January 1 & December 31, … (14 comments)

northern va real estate: Forbes Names DC Top Area to Buy Real Estate in the World! - 02/11/09 09:01 AM

Wow that is a pretty big reputation to live up to. Most of us who have lived and worked through the up and down markets in our area know real estate in the DC and Northern Virginia areas has always recovered faster than other parts of the county. Now Forbes magazine has recognized the opportunities in our area as well.The news over the last few months has also been positive regarding new jobs coming to our area including Hilton Hotels moving its headquarters from Beverly Hills CA to Fairfax County, VA. In addition the Base Realignment and Closures (BRAC) movement is … (14 comments)

northern va real estate: Marketing a New Listing-It Doesn’t Happen Overnight - 12/28/08 08:20 AM

How fast can you put a home on the market? Can you do it in an hour? Can you do it in a day? On a recent listing appointment a seller indicated that a previous agent suggested if they signed the listing agreement right then they could have the house on the market tomorrow. Gasp!
Sure I can run home and put the basic data in the MLS. I don't have to fill in all the data fields or at least not correctly and certainly I don't care if you clean your house or we take any photos to give … (67 comments)

northern va real estate: Tips for Buying Real Estate in Today’s Market - 12/03/08 12:11 PM

There is a lot of negative information in both the local and national press that seems to be keeping potential buyers in rentals in Northern Virginia. This market is also a golden opportunity for buyers who have been waiting for the "right time" to buy a home. We have seen prices in some Northern Virginia areas drop as much as 50% and now interest rates are have dropped as well. The time to get off the fence may have arrived. Buying a home is NOT FOR EVERYONE and if you are looking a home purchase in today's market as a short term buy then you probably … (4 comments)

northern va real estate: Privacy, Tranquility and A Gem of a Home in Stafford County - 06/05/08 12:16 PM

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northern va real estate: It Had to Happen Sooner or Later - 05/06/08 11:34 PM

In the midst of all of the foreclosure listings my clients found a home. But not just any home a home with a real owner. An owner who could ratify a contract all by themselves without the phrases "as is" and "third party approval required" attached to the contract.Now if I could only remember what I was supposed to do with this strange and yet remotely familiar stack of papers.
… (25 comments)

northern va real estate: The Devil is in the Details - 04/30/08 01:26 AM

Real estate contracts are all about terms and conditions. Each paragraph represents an item that needs to be reviewed and understood by both parties to the transaction. In Virginia our contracts are long and complicated. Different localities in Virginia also have addendums to the contract which create and additional layer of complexity.As agents we need to make sure that we have dotted our i's and crossed our t's. We need to explain to our clients all of the various contingencies that the contract provides. The simplest of mistakes can cost clients thousands of dollars and perhaps even worse the home of … (11 comments)

northern va real estate: Listing Photos-Are you Turning Off Potential Buyers? - 04/29/08 03:20 AM

Buyers in today's market have a lot of choices among properties. It has been said over and over that a home needs photos in the MLS to help bring buyers to the door. We mentioned on numerous occassions that the endless photos of toliets (seat up) don't add any value to the photo array. However there are also those photos that you might not have thought of that will keep the prospective buyers away from your door as well. The photo of your pet. You may have a nice clean home and we could open the door and never know about your pet(s) espcecially if you took them out … (36 comments)

northern va real estate: Where is Northern Virginia Exactly? - 04/14/08 01:20 AM

It seemed like a crazy question and then I laughed. The buyer was headed to Fort Belvoir from Arizona they had checked and they couldn't find Northern Virginia anywhere on the map. It just wasn't there.
Oh well actually there isn't a Northern Virginia like there is a North or South Carolina it is just a local term. Why do you make the distinction?
Ahhhh we just do. It is more about a difference in economics and politics than anything. So where are the boundaries?
Hmmm, good question. Before housing developments pushed west to the Shenandoah Valley and south through … (27 comments)

northern va real estate: What Happened to the Slow Northern Virginia Real Estate Market? - 03/30/08 07:44 AM

The newspapers and TV continue to lament the state of the real estate market in the Northern Virginia area. It seems that the market is dead and houses are languishing on the market for months with no activity. I'm assuming this would explain why every home I have shown in the past week has a multiple agents coming and going within a few minutes of each other. Today while out with buyers to double check on their "first choice" and take a look at a few new homes we encountered agents either already in the home or waiting at the door … (5 comments)

northern va real estate: Don't Miss Your Opportunity for an All Brick Split Level Home at an Amazing Price - 03/01/08 11:40 PM

UNDER CONTRACT … (3 comments)

northern va real estate: Northern Virginia-Something To Take Away A Cloudy Day - 01/11/08 01:27 AM

This morning is one of those where you wake up with a list longer than your arm to complete and the weather just doesn't inspire you to get moving. So as I was doing some organizing of my various photo albums, Flickr, Picassa, disks and drives I came across some photos from last summer taken on a trip to Merrifield Garden Center in Fairfax Virginia. So today I’ll keep a little of summer on my screen to perk up the day.

Hope it helps anyone else who might be looking for a ray of sunshine in their day.

© Cindy Jones
All … (7 comments)

northern va real estate: Fairfax County Foreclosures Properties-Looking High and Low - 01/07/08 10:09 PM

It doesn’t matter what price range you are searching if you are looking for a foreclosure in Fairfax County you can find it. There are properties on the high end of the market and there are properties on the low end of the market.
If you are looking for a high end home and money is no object then perhaps one of the properties listed for over a million dollars might be your ticket.

Better yet if you are an investor looking for a property to use as rental property then perhaps you want to look on the lower end of … (3 comments)

northern va real estate: How Long Should A Remodeling Project Take? - 01/02/08 09:31 AM

Many Northern Virginia homeowners start out with the best intentions when they decide to remodel their home. Interviewing contractors, selecting materials, change orders it can all add up to time and money. On the other hand if you are handy then maybe you figure you can save a few dollars if you take on the project yourself. So how long does it take to remodel a house?
If you ask the neighbors of this homeowner they will tell you. Forever! Honestly it would be hard to come up with an answer to when this project actually started. Since the home is … (3 comments)

northern va real estate: Decades of Northern Virginia Real Estate Cycles - 01/01/08 10:59 AM

As everyone begins to review the numbers and the predictions from last years market it is hard to ignore the numbers. Though the “official” tally for 2007 is still a few weeks away it isn’t hard to see the trend. No one is going to argue that our average sales price in Northern Virginia has fallen but we are no where near “historic lows” as some would like to say. In fact if you look at trends over time in Northern Virginia you can see that our real estate market regularly goes through cycles.
Between 1990 and 1991 we had … (3 comments)

northern va real estate: Southern Style Cooking at Dixie Bones BBQ - 12/31/07 11:08 PM

When residents of Prince William County have a hankering for southern style cooking they don’t have to look any further than Dixie Bones BBQ in Woodbridge. You can smell the BBQ cooking as soon as you turn in the parking lot off of Occoquan Road.
Opened in Woodbridge in 1996 (previously they were in DC) Dixie Bones is not a fast food restaurant. Instead they focus on taking the time to make great home made food from SCRATCH even including the buns for your BBQ sandwich. As soon as you walk in the door you know why the restaurant is a … (3 comments)

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