North Arlington home sells in 24 hours. Are the listing agents geniuses?   Tom: I noticed that an "under contract" sign went up on 2005 Illinois Street N. on Saturday night. Didn't that house just come on the market on Friday? Jan: Yes Tom, this home came on the market Friday evening and we had a ratified contract put to bed at 9:30 Saturday evening. Tom: Are you guys real estate marketing geniuses?         Steve: No Tom we are not geniuses. Selling a home is a collaboration between the Realtor and the home owner. The sellers in this case, purchased the home in a desirable location, added a well done addition that gave the home a large family room, master bedroom suite, and the 2 extra full baths that most North Arlington colonials built in the late 1940s were missing. This home was als... 05/10/2010

  Sue: I want a 4 bedroom 3 full bath classic colonial style single family home in North Arlington under $750k.  Is that possible? Steve: As of this moment Sue there is only one. 2005 Illinois Street N. Check out the property website below. Click on all the buttons on the left hand side to get the whole picture on the home and the area.       There are a couple of smaller colonials on the market around town, but as you know finding one of these classics that has a two story addition with 4 real bedrooms upstairs with 2 full baths under $800k and buying it before someone else does is very difficult. Sue: Is there a full bath on the main level?       Steve: Yes Sue. The addition on the entry level has a huge family room, full bath and large closet. If you need a first floor master bedroo... 05/08/2010

One of the great things about this area are the Farmers Markets. Most operate year round but this is the time when the fresh produce starts coming in. We are fortunate to have wonderful farm communities within a two hour drive of our urban village. Much of the produce that is sold at our markets is organic and all of it is fresh, fresh, fresh. There are lots of berries this time of year, soon it will be greens and for you carnivores there is free range meat. Eggs from free range chickens too! Here are the Arlington Markets and days they operate Arlington Farmers Market: Saturday 8-12. 2100 Clarendon Blvd (Courthouse neighborhood) Ballston Farmers Market: Thursday 3-7PM 9th and Stewart Clarendon Market: wed 2-7 PM. Clarendon Metro Park (right at the top of the metro entrance) Columbia Pi... 05/08/2010

This chart below gives a snapshot of the Top 22 Arlington Virginia Real Estate home & condos for sale by neighborhood, snapshot taken 05-07-2010. The Report shows the Number of Listings, the Average List Price for the subdivision and the Average Days on Market. Just click on the link to your neighborhood for the complete list of MLS Listings. If you need any assistance with any of these communities, please contact The Earl of Real Estate Team. City / Area Number orListings Average ListPrice AverageDays onMarket River Place 29 193,592 66.5 Fairlington Vil 26 369,881 41 Clarendon 25 635,550 49.8 Berkshire Oakwood 22 1,024,187 53.3 Eclipse On Center Park 21 404,091 102.8 The Arlington 21 331,232 39.5 Turnberry Tower 17 1,944,471 17.3 West Vge At Shirlington 17 354,774 56.2 Aurora Hills 16... 05/07/2010

For the latest in real estate market activity for Northern Virginia, watch this informative video from the MRIS/multiple listing system. To watch the video, click here!   05/06/2010

There are many reasons to move to Arlington, Virginia.  I detailed many of them almost 3 years ago in a fictional letter that I wrote to Paris Hilton encouraging her to move across the country. Now, there's another reason: STRESS!   The Associated Press just released a report detailing the 20 most stressed and 20 least stressed counties in the United States with populations of over 25,000 people.  By stressed, their talking about economically stressed.   If you are currently living in California or Nevada, it's likely that your county is stressed.  Counties from these two states comprise 15 of the 20 most stressed counties.  The other counties are located in Michigan, New Mexico, and Illinois.   Most of the least stressed counties are in the MidWest.  However, the only East Coast county... 05/04/2010

So, I had two settlements last week. Yay! I was the buyer agent on both. One in Alexandria, Va and one in Arlington, Va.  Like all transactions these days there were issues that had to be resolved right up to the day of settlement. Both agents were great to work with and everything was professionally handled (so nice when this happens). One settlement was completed....business as usual with a long time agent. It wasn't until the day of the second settlement that I realized that, for this agent, it may have been their first transaction. She had handled everything professionally up to this point,  so..... what made me think she was new to this? She brought my client a small gift and even more interesting.....she brought me a small gift as well. It made me a little embarrased by the fact t... 04/21/2010

The Carlyle Grand Restaurant in the Shirlington area of Arlington, Virginia is a very popular eatery.  In fact, I took my wife there for her birthday luncheon a couple of weeks ago. What's Happening today in the Arlington, Virginia Real Estate Market? Here's a snapshot of Arlington Virginia home sales in the last 30 days from late March through now: ARLINGTON VIRGINIA HOME SALES: •·     Active homes for sale:  810 -- 393 of those or close to half have just come on the market within the last 30 days!  Spring is the top season for homeowners to put their homes on the market in Arlington. •·     Arlington Homes sold in the last 30 days:  192 •·     Average Sales Price:   $501,134 •·     Median Sales Price:     $441,463 •·     Average Days on Market:    44 -- Arlington homes are selling in... 04/20/2010

A Neighborhood in Arlington, Virginia: Country Club Hills At the western edge of Arlington County, bumped up next to McLean, Country Club Hills is the scene of large, impressive homes packed into its narrow streets.  About 500 homes in all, they were built in the 1920s-1940s and follow no type of general architectural pattern, which is a refreshing change from the typical, formulaic styles found in many modern Northern Virginia neighborhoods built in the last ten years. Country Club Hills i snear Marymount University, The Gulf Branch Nature Center, and the country club itself: Washington Golf & Country Club. 04/15/2010

Crescent Hills: A Neighborhood in Arlington Hugging the western edge of the Arlington County line, Crescent Hills, and the few other small neighborhoods along Williamsburg Road, comprises a market area undergoing a period of revitalization.  One need only drive through the neighborhood on a Saturday afternoon to see the multitude of construction crews building larger homes where smaller rambler-style houses once sat.The market area is bounded on the north and west by the Arlington County line, the east by Glebe Road, and the south by Lee Highway (Route 29).  Property values have been moving upwards, very slowly, over the past year.   [photo] - uploads not working atm... 04/13/2010

The pollen season is in full swing here in the Washington, DC and Arlington, Va. area. If you are a realtor it's hard to get excited about showing homes when you're sneezing and snifflin' all the time. I do have allergies so I thought I would share something that has helped alot. A Neti pot....yep, that's right. If you don't know what it is you may very well go ewwwww when you do a google search and check it out but it's a great thing. Definitely great for the sinuses. I will not go into details here since this is not really a real estate topic but you can find all kinds of info out on the internet or your local health food store.  If a Neti is to hard then you can try something a friend/client gave me. It's from a company called NeilMed. They are at http://www.neilmed.com. It's like a ... 04/13/2010

These are two testimonials/emails from a buyer and a seller. It warms the heart when you help people fulfill their dreams:   "Laura and I searched houses for a year. Jane was our third realtor in our search. We wish we went to her first. As first time home buyers Jane was very patient and professional. She thoroughly explained everything and never missed a detail. She would go out of her way to make sure our needs were met. Laura and I could not be happier with our new house in the neighborhood we wanted and at the right price and just in time for the tax credit. If we ever need a realtor again Jane will be our first call. Thank you Jane!!" Craig and LauraBought in City Park Homes of Falls Church, VA 03/30/10 ******************************************************************************... 04/12/2010

  Six Purchase Agreement Clauses  A better earnest money clause. You can put a small earnest money deposit down and still be taken seriously, if you include a clause like this: "$100 earnest money deposit, to be increased to $2,000 upon acceptance of this offer." You could also have it increased "when all contingencies are met." This way, if there's an argument about you backing out because the inspector found foundation damage, for example, you won't have your money tied up while this is being resolved.  Inspection contingencies. Ask an agent about the wording, but basically you want something like this in the purchase agreement: "Contingent upon a home inspection and buyer's approval of the results; inspection to be done at buyer's expense within ten days." Now you the right to have a... 04/08/2010

Learn about Home Buyer Tax Credit Arlington VA. - Time is running out The federal government's Home Buyer Tax Credit ends in 30 days. So, if you want to take advantage of the $8,000 for first-time home buyers tax credit or the $6,500 current homeowner tax credit you'll have to act fast. You need to have a signed sales contract by April 30 to qualify. That leaves only four weeks (and just four weekends to shop) to find a home and negotiate a sales contract. So it's time to get serious about your search. You should be aware that it is currently a seller’s market for properties in the $400,000 to $800,000 range that are 1) priced right, 2) in great move-in condition, and 3) close to Metro. First-time home buyers are eligible for an $8,000 First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit. You are considere... 03/31/2010

New lead paint rules go into effect April 22 by Ben Martin on March 25, 2010 According to NAR, new EPA rules about lead paint are set to go into effect on April 22, 2010. To help you comply with the new rules, your friends at NAR have set up a Lead Paint Renovation Rule Compliance Guide at REALTOR.org. Quoth NAR: This compliance guide provides information for REALTORS® on the EPA's new Renovation, Repair and Painting Rule. The guide describes the new lead-based paint safety practices established by the rule, and what steps real estate agents, brokers, and property managers need to take to comply with the new procedures. If the amount of information in this Lead Paint Renovation Rule Compliance Guide could be poured into a paint can, it would be enough to cover the earth, but here are t... 03/31/2010

A Hot Sellers Market for Arlington, VA, Courthouse Homes For Sale Priced Under $800,000. That's right, the market in Arlington, especially in Courthouse, Clarendon and along the Orange Line is hot. My listing for a townhouse for sale at 2312 Lee Highway, Arlington, VA, at Courthouse went under contract in just 6 days! This 3BR/3.5BA townhouse at Courthouse Square was listed for $739,000. This is the second Courthouse area property that I've listed that has sold after the initial open house. How did this home sell in just 6 days? Two reasons: The market and the marketing. The Market. The market is heating up for properties under $800,000 close in near Metro with many buyers out because of low mortgage interest rates, the Home Buyer Tax Credit and a low inventory of available homes for sa... 03/28/2010

The differences of Conventional and FHA type loans for Short Sales "FHA: If the homeowner does not occupy the property, no short sale will be approved.!”Question: What are the differences between a Conventional and an FHA loan short sale process? Answer: FHA is definitely the best one of both. .. why? because you know the rules before hand.  A conventional loan short sale may have the most flexibility, even if you are an investor your bank may approve a short sale but, an FHA has guidelines that are easy to follow assuring the short sale to be approved if you are within those guidelines. Another big difference between these two types of loans is that FHA  will not use a BPO. Instead they will require an FHA Certified Appraisal. In a conventional loan, the lender only requires a BPO tha... 03/22/2010

6419 28th Street N Arlington VA 22207 produced by Tamara Inzunza, CRS, ePRO on WellcomeMat 03/15/2010

Northern Virginia is experiencing an inventory shortage like nothing we've seen in years, at least in the past 6 years since I've been selling houses here.  The fully available inventory in all of Northern Virginia is 40.1% less than it was a year ago (end of February 10 to end of February 09).        For Arlington county alone:  Sixty two detached homes sold from January 1 to February 28, 2005 in the $500,000-$750,000 range.  Compare that to 2010 - only 39 homes sold in that same time period.  You may think these numbers make our market sluggish, but quite the contrary, buyers are out in droves drowning open houses and houses in this range are getting multiple contracts and the contracts are getting cleaner with fewer contingencies.   I wrote a previous blog in January on why this mar... 03/13/2010

6419 28th Street N Arlington VA 22207 | Arlington VA Open House Sunday March 14 1-4 PMWalk To East Falls Church Metro, Bike Trails, Parks Wouldn't it be great to sit and relax on the front porch of this beautiful Arlington VA home.  This detached renovated and expanded colonial at 6419 28th Street N is custom build for privacy, luxury, and entertaining. The detached garage here at 6419 28th Street N Arlington VA 22207 has a detached garage and addtional storage space on the upper level.  There is also storage space over the carport. Be sure to visit the Arlington VA Open House this Sunday March 14 from 1-4 PM.For more information and all PHOTOS, visit the Exclusive Property Website atwww.641928thStreetN.com ________________________________________________________________________________... 03/13/2010