This is a very interesting question and I believe that the opinion of the person being asked has a lot to do with their age. Have you ever paid close attention to a group of teenagers as they are sitting together and talking? It’s more of a “text fest” and less of a social gathering in my opinion.  Just the other day I noticed a small group of 5 or 6 teenagers sitting together in the mall. They were talking together but every one of them was texting at the same time. Not one of them was looking at anyone else in the group. Is this how we socialize now?  Some people will argue that social media and advances in electronics have brought people more closely together than ever before. I strongly disagree. We no longer talk to people, we talk at them. How easy it is to say something rude or i... 09/03/2015

OK, we’ve all seen some pretty bad pictures of homes for sale at some time in our career. I’m guilty of taking a few of them myself in the past but nothing can compare to the following 10 pictures! I can’t even begin to imagine how (or why) anyone would use these pictures when marketing a home but I can assure you that these are legit.  I didn't bother to place any captions for the pictures because they really are self explanatory. I must say that the picture of the stairs leading down to the basement is just plain creepy but what about the one with the floating couch? I'd love to know the story behind that one. Enjoy!                                                                      http://www.sellcvilleandrvahomes.com/ 09/02/2015

Want to learn more about homes in Windsor on the James? Considering buying or selling a home in Windsor on the James? Well, you've come to the right spot! So read on ... For those of you that don't know much about this neighborhood, especially those of you that might be new to Richmond, Windsor on the James is a magnificent neighborhood that is located off of River Road in Henrico County.  You are just a few miles over the City/County line and close to the University of Richmond and the River Road Shopping Center. This is one of the newer neighborhoods off the River Road corridor, with most of the homes being built in the 90's. You'll find that most of the homes are estate-like, with some of largest homes that you'll find in this area.  As you enter the neighborhood you'll notice a pris... 09/01/2015

Have you heard of the book “Missing 411”? I’m not here to sell you a book but the mystery surrounding this publication is unbelievable. Today for the most part people scoff at the idea of UFO’s, ghosts, demons, bigfoot and other so called “supernatural” occurrences and this is completely understandable. But there is a new mystery that is not so easily dismissed; it is the unexplained disappearance of people in our national parks throughout the U.S. You may be thinking what I was thinking when I first heard of this “phenomena”, “Of course people go missing in the wilderness, it’s easily explainable”. This is one of the reasons why this topic has not received a lot of publicity. It seems normal for people to go missing considering the location but when you find out the facts it’s not that... 09/01/2015

Both HUD (the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development) as well as the U.S. Census Bureau reported that housing starts in July were at a very healthy 782,000 as compared to June’s 693,000. This is an increase of 12.8% and that is very good news for the housing industry and the economy in general. Although this is great news for our industry as a whole, there is additional good news for mortgage brokers as well. The percentage of cash sales has gone down and more buyers are seeking the more traditional route of financing their new home via a mortgage. According to CoreLogic, cash sales in May (the latest statistics) comprised 31.9% of total home sales but May also marked the 29th consecutive month that cash sales were on the decline. Prior to the “bubble burst” in 2008 cash sales ... 08/31/2015

Where you live has a lot to do with how long it takes to have a home built. According to the Census Bureau’s 2014 Survey of Construction the average time that it takes to build a single family residence is about 7 months but if you take into consideration the 25 days to obtain permits and so on the actual building time is around 6 months. But this is an average and varies depending upon what part of the country you reside in.  In the Mountain region of the U.S. one can expect an average construction time of only about 5 ½ months while in the Mid-Atlantic area build time is 8 ½ months for the average home. It’s also interesting to note that eager home buyers can expect to wait an additional 2 months for their completed home in non-metropolitan areas as compared to homes being built withi... 08/28/2015

 Do you remember this toy? Well, maybe it wasn’t so much a toy as it was a project but it was loads of fun! I suspect that maybe this interested boys more than girls but I’m sure that many of us little ladies also had fun with this exciting and interesting kit, even if it was our brother’s! Most of us that had one of these when we were little probably forgot all about it by now but I think this type of gift is much more interesting (and educational) than just about anything we can buy today. Gone are the days of visiting the local Radio Shack with dad on Saturday to buy a new tube for our broken TV but the memories still remain.  If you would like to buy something similar today there is a company called Elenco that offers these types of kits to educate children in the field of electroni... 08/27/2015

Support the Pittsburgh Steelers hiring of Michael VickRecently right after the Pittsburgh Steelers hired Michael Vick, a petition was made on change.org against Mr. Vick because of past dog fighting charges. This petition is for support of Michael Vick as a quarterback as a Pittsburgh Steelers.Michael Vick has done his time in prison, been born again in church, and rededicated himself to his Lord and Savior. He's also done community service and has been charitable to the community and to various organizations. Michael has grown up and he has become a stand up guy and a real man to God, his family, and now to the Pittsburgh Steelers organization.Now that we got these facts out if the way, let me tell you about the player. This is the best second-string quarterback we have had in 20 years... 08/26/2015

With all of the crazy violent senseless crimes happening across America and especially in Virginia today. I have been thinking about becoming a registered gun owner. I'm thinking about carrying my lockbox key, cell phone, tablet and a small 22 caliber hand gun with me to all my appointments.        My questions to my colleagues are:1)  Do you carry a gun when showing houses and at listing appointments?2) Are you a registered gun owner?3) Do you conceal or do you show your gun when working out in the field?I've never carried a gun but I'm thinking I would like to be prepared if something happens to me or one of my clients while I'm showing a house. Maybe my E & O insurance would go down in price. Your feedback would be greatly appreciated.     Marcus E. Rice Principal Broker & Owner, CDP... 08/26/2015

Did you know that depression is the leading cause of suicide in the U.S.? Approximately 34,000 people each year die from suicide each year in our country. As an average that’s 680 people in each state or almost 2 people a day, each day, every day. Maybe that doesn’t sound like a lot to you but most of these deaths are completely preventable if only family and friends of the victim knew how to recognize the warning signs in time. The recent death of Robin Williams has brought attention to this topic and all around the globe healthcare professionals are seeking to educate the public as to the dangers of severe depression. The truth is that there are many misconceptions about this illness and most people think that depression is something that will eventually go away on its own. This simpl... 08/26/2015

Have you ever met anyone that seems to live in the past? Chances are that you have a friend or family member that is forever talking about the “good ole’ days” and how great it was before. While it’s normal to reminisce about times gone by, there is a difference between remembering the past and actually living in it. People choose to stay in the past because it is comfortable, predictable but if it keeps one from moving forward or enjoying the present than it can become a serious problem. The truth is that this type of behavior is nothing more than a form of avoidance. It’s much more pleasant to think about your high school sweetheart than it is to deal with the problems you are having in your marriage today. Remembering your glory days playing football is certainly much more fun than t... 08/25/2015

UCI Road World Championships Richmond 2015This is the crown jewel of cycling events around the world and it's coming to Richmond Virginia! It starts on September 19th and ends on the 27th. The USA has not hosted this event since 1986. It has been hosted in cities around the world including Madrid, Copenhagen, and Melbourne. Being selected to host this event is an honor and needless to say, a very big deal. The anticipation of this race has everyone in RVA excited, not just fans of the event but residents and especially local business owners. This race is going to bring people from around the globe. Local businesses will reap the rewards during this 9 day event with millions of dollars being spent by locals and visitors alike. This will be a great opportunity for the world to see Richmon... 08/24/2015

Do you know the biggest drawback to all of our fancy phones today? It is the screen size! Yes, we can watch the latest YouTube videos or even our favorite TV series at any given moment but only on a 2 ½ inch screen. We couldn’t even think of showing a presentation to a client in this way but what if we could use our phone to display a much larger image to view?  Well, the day is coming soon (or is it?) that your handheld phone will be able to display an image as large as a 50 inch flat screen with the push of a button! That would almost entirely negate the use of notebooks and laptops for many people and the convenience of carrying a “mini theatre” in your pocket (or purse) would be unheralded. Microvision has invented a tiny projector that is no larger than an Andes thin mint and can e... 08/18/2015

Actually, the title may be a little misleading. The list is not about the most expensive or most famous zip codes in America; it is about how quickly homes sell in a given area and how often buyers view homes for sale in that particular zip code. This is very interesting information for those of us that work in the world of real estate. It is also useful for homebuyers because properties in these areas are almost assured of maintaining (or increasing) their value for years to come. According to Jonathan Smoke, the chief economist for realtor.com “Each locale on this list is emblematic of the key trends driving housing this year—healthy local economics, job opportunities and affordability. For first-time homebuyers, these communities provide great opportunities to enter the housing marke... 08/17/2015

Equity First Realty opens second office location in Fredricksburg, Virginia! Equity First Realty is also now is a proud member of the Fredericksburg Area Association of Realtors. The additional areas we now service are the City of Fredericksburg and the counties of Stafford, Spotsylvania, King George, and Caroline. We also work in the surrounding counties of Westmoreland, Louisa, Orange, Prince William, and in Northern Virginia.The new office is located at 1320 Central Park Blvd. Suite 200, Fredericksburg, VA 22401. If you're thinking about buying or selling, let Equity First Realty maximize your savings with our Sell For Free Program or with our Cash Back Rebate with your next purchase. We look forward to servicing your needs.                   .    The Marcus Rice Team specializes in ... 08/13/2015

 HOT HOT HOTRichmond VA Real Estate is still hot but how long can it keep up the pace? Home values have went up 4 years straight in RVA. If we take a look at home sales over the last month, the average days on market in the 200-300k range is 46 days in Henrico county. Compare that to 56 days for homes sold back in April and May. My guess is that first time home buyers are coming off the fence and shopping with more urgency then they were in the Spring. Even homes in the 400-500k price range are averaging 33 days on the market. How many of these 400-500k buyers do you think have moved up from their 300k dollar homes? Could we be seeing a domino effect? I'll have to write another blog and really dive into that theory some other time. WHY IS IT SO HOT?So why is Richmond real estate so hot?... 08/13/2015

If you have children I’m sure that you’ve told them many times about the dangers of strangers on the internet. The truth is that no matter how many times you remind them of this fact, MOST CHILDREN DO NOT BELIEVE IT. If you are like me you are positive that your child would never meet a complete stranger at the park or get into their car but the odds are you are wrong. We all have faith in our children and believe that if we tell them something enough times they will listen to our advice but young people do not think the way that we do. I am sorry to tell you that the faith you have in your children to do the right thing is often unfounded and given the opportunity they will take risks that you cannot imagine.  The link here is to a YouTube video of a social experiment designed to “test... 08/13/2015

I don’t know anyone that doesn’t enjoy a good laugh from time to time. In fact, we could all probably use a bit more fun in our lives and watching a great comedian is one way to forget about everything for a while. I recently found an interesting article on the internet that named the top 10 comedians of all time. Actually I found a lot of articles like this and each one was different. This started me thinking, “Who is the greatest comedian ever?” I have seen a lot of funny comedians over the years and the truth is I can’t decide which is the “best of the best” but I do have some personal favorites that I enjoy watching.  Below is one of the top ten lists that I found but there are many to choose from if you spend a few moments researching the idea. Personally, I guess I’d have to say t... 08/12/2015

This is one topic that everyone has an opinion on. It seems that just about everybody has at least one ghost story that cannot be explained but do ghosts really exist? About 10 years ago Gallup did a study that asked how many Americans believed in ghosts and it showed that the overwhelming majority of us do believe that ghosts are real. There is nothing new in this belief. It has been around since the beginning of recorded history including Shakespearean plays, ancient writings and even the Bible. If we take for granted that ghosts do actually exist, the next question would be “What are they?” Most people feel that a ghost is the earth bound soul of a person that has died and remains here for some unknown reason. Others feel that a ghost is a “trick” being perpetrated upon us by demons ... 08/11/2015

3 Things I Plan To Implement In My Business Trimming the Fat and Getting Rid of Dead Weight1) Getting Healthier - My health is the number one resource that needs to be taken care of when it comes to my business. ·         I plan on going to the gym 4 days a week.·         Stop eating so much processed foods, sugar and salt.·         Get more sleep.·         Take my vitamins/supplements everyday.You are your biggest resource. If your healthy you can make more money. Take care of yourself and you young realtors out there, you need to take it easy as well, the human body can only take so much if you know what I mean.2) Buy a new updated Canon/Nikon camera and stop calling that pricey photographer for every listing.  I spent over $3,000 in video and with pictures with my listings this year.... 08/10/2015