The other day I was driving from my home in Fredericksburg Virginia to preview a home in Spotsylvania County.  I decided to drive through the Fredericksburg Battlefield.  I had driven through it several times in the past and every time I take the trip I it from a different perspective.It was a cool day (lower 30's) and there were joggers and cyclists sharing the road with me.  With the trees gone you can get a better view of the terrain; particularly noteworthy were the trenches which had been dug by the Confederate soldiers.The drive through the park terminates in a small parking lot which is at the place where 12 Confederate cannons fired on the Union soldiers who were crossing a massive open area.  Apparently, the area today is much the same as it was then because I could see several... 02/04/2007

For over 30 years I was a member of the United States Army.  Our family moved throughout the United States, Central America, and Europe.  Because of the frequent moves we were not able to associate with any community other than the Army.  We feared that the constant moving would have an adverse effect on our children but, to this point, it does not seem to be the case.Only recently, we have been able to become involved in community activities in the civilian sector.  Truthfully, it has been a very rewarding experience to us.Over a year ago, one of my loyal clients asked me if I would be interested in becoming a board member of the Rappahannock Area Council for Children and Parents (RACCAP).  Truthfully, I had never heard of the group prior to his call.  He described the organization and... 01/10/2007

Ever heard it said that the real estate market is always slow this time of the year?It there any truth to it?How do you determine if it is true?  What are the signs you look for?Well, since we are not up to our ears in showing and listing property right now, we thought that we might like to examine whether or not our market (City of Fredericksburg, Spotsylvania County, Stafford County, King George County, and Caroline County) in Virginia is typical for the holiday season this year.  Truthfully, we never knew whether or not it was always slow in November and December.  We think we know the answer now though.Since the actual sale of a property is the only basis upon which we can say it has been a good market, the best way to see if the market is slow during a given period of time is to de... 12/22/2006

A few minutes ago I read a very interesting blog posting by Sharon Simms of St Petersburg Florida.  Sharon had written a very short piece on the Kenwood neighborhood in her hometown.Sharon is a very clever writer and superior real estate professional.  She is also a caring and sharing lady.All of those nice words are not meant to offset the feelings she may have with my piggybacking on her innovative idea of describing a community/neighborhood in a blog.Fredericksburg Virginia is often thought of as a historic city on the east coast (which it is) and not one that has grown immensely over the past 20 years (which it has).One of the features of the recent growth is Idlewild.Developed from an old antebellum estate (Idlewyld), the community features many varying types of housing, an impress... 12/19/2006

There has been a great deal of talk in professional journals, national newspapers and on national TV about the state of the real estate market.Just today, one of my clients told me that her friend in Northern Virginia told her that the market was getting better!  My client asked me if the real estate market here was getting well.  My reply to her was that while there was a 1.44% improvement in the average sold price between October 2005 and November 2006, the number of total units sold for the month saw a 31.63% decrease.  If that is getting well . . . I definitely do not wish to be a purveyor of the "doom and gloom" state of the real estate market in Fredericksburg Virginia.  However, just in case some others think you are the only one suffering from a slow market, you might want to st... 12/15/2006

This past weekend the holiday festivities began in Historic Fredericksburg Virginia!An annual highlight is the Candlelight Tour of selected homes in downtown Fredericksburg.  This year the weekend included an added attraction.  The National Park Service had a commemoration of the 144th anniversary of the Battle of Fredericksburg.Entire blocks of downtown Fredericksburg were closed to traffic so that thousands of visitors could view homes featured in this year's tour.  Homeowners opened their doors to those who desired to view the homes that had been professionally decorated for the season.  This year the tour featured homes not far from downtown Fredericksburg.  The tours are arranged by the Historic Fredericksburg Foundation, Inc.The National Park Service's contribution took place on S... 12/15/2006

Yesterday, while making my daily check of our local MLS, a wonderful buy appeared on my update.A listing appeared for a home in one of the Fredericksburg Virginia area's nicest communities.  The price shown was $300,000 and homes there are selling for more than $500,000.  My first thought was that I would contact some of my good friends who could easily afford to purchase the home and "flip" it as soon as it was purchased.When I investigated the listing (which happened to be in Spotsylvania County - one of Virginia's fastest growing areas) I determined that the list price was the tax assessed value.  You see, this was a listing entered into the MLS because the listing agent is working with a local auctioneer and is entering homes that are about to go to auction.My question is this: "Why... 08/23/2006