May 2009

Northern Virginia home appraisal X factor

You may think that you found the best rate for your home refinance, but there is an X-factor that may screw up the whole plan… and that is your appraisal! Also, see my response to a question on Trulia.

The “net price” of a real estate sale

After looking through some home sales data with a client in Oakton, it seemed like a good idea to clarify some of the determining factors when examining homes sales comparables that influence current pricing of homes.

Determining a net sales price for a home is impossible if you are looking at recent sales data published in the local newspaper. Newspapers publish only the sales price recorded at the county courthouse, and these numbers don’t reflect if there were seller credits to the buyer. And most real estate web sites take the same feed which leaves readers with less than complete information.

The easiest example would be if two very similar town homes sold in a subdivision, let’s call it Vienna Oaks. One sold for $530,000 and the other sold for $525,000 according to the Gazette, but when you are able to review the detailed sales data it shows that one of those sellers credited the buyer $12,000 toward their closing costs. And until you know where the numbers match up, you are in limbo.

There are at least twelve key factors that I review when determining value of a home in a neighborhood primarily because today’s appraisers are aggressively scrutinizing each home and each recent comparable that they are using in their written analysis. No longer are they going back six months like the have done for years, but they are using data no older than 90 days.

Understanding the current playing field will help get your home successfully sold.

Vienna, Virginia Home on MacArthur Avenue just BOUGHT

This 4-level split level features a unique basement found in less that 5% of all splits… so there is tons of room including 5 bedrooms. This is the home that I found with a secret buyer agent tactic mentioned in the blog that might help you find your home… of course you will need to be a client!

So this baby recently sold for $580,000.

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Figuring out the McLean home market… April 2009

With all you read about the housing market, buying a McLean home appears to be a roll of the dice right now. I just looked over resale data from MRIS of the McLean zip code ( 22101) for the month of April and noticed a big drop in the number of units sold.

• Total Units Sold in April 2009, 28 vs. 34 in 2008 (down 17.65%)
• Average Sold Price in April 2009, $861,659 vs. $1,113,396 in 2008 (down 22.61%)
• In the $700,000 to $799,999 range, 5 sold of 28 active listings
• In the $800,000 to $899,999 range, 0 sold of 26 active listings
• In the $900,000 to $999,999 range, 3 sold of 13 active listings
• In the $1,000,000 to $2,499,999, 8 sold of 131 active listings
• Average days on market in April 2009 is 150 vs. 148 in 2008
• The average sold price in 2009 was 91.04% of average list price

So this market remains highly competitive as we head further into the “Spring Market” with home sellers waiting anxiously for buyers to make offers. And with such a large inventory for sale in the 22101 average  price range, the home buyers remain in control of the housing market.

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