October 2010 Tysons Construction Map

UPDATE October 15th: Route 123 in Tysons Corner is closed again to demolish a beltway overpass. It is scheduled to last until Monday at 5:00 a.m.

New Press Release

Original post

Just in case you missed the press release, Route 123 between McLean and Vienna VA will be closed June 12 and 13 as they demolish a 495 (The Capital Beltway) overpass. Yes sir, 123 will be blocked off with no realistic notice as to what your options are for detours.

This VDOT map of a detour plan looks like a nightmare to me, so here is where my local Vienna and McLean driving experience can help you.

Two Tysons Corner Detour Options

• Take International Drive in Tyson’s Corner which turns into Spring Hill Road, then turn right on Lewinsville Road.
• Take Route 7 and turn on Magarity Road to Great Falls Street.

When I am with some real estate clients this weekend, I think we will avoid the whole Tysons Corner area or at least give it a wide berth.

Like I have said, living in Northern Virginia requires you to have a driving strategy.

Any thoughts on this project? Leave a comment!

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Nielson's Frozen Custard on Church Street

Last weekend, a RE/MAX Presidential team colleague put a 1960’s Town of Vienna home on the market at $539,900 and had seven (7) offers! Yes, even without the “home buyer tax rebate program”, people know that living in Vienna is valuable. Obviously the schools are good and commute times are decent, but the unique sense of community is the key with the W&OD Bike Trail, Concerts on The Town Green, The Vienna Farmers’ Market, and Memorial Day Weekend’s Viva Vienna festival!

Maybe it’s Nielson’s Frozen Custard Shop?

On the other hand, people wanting to move to Vienna in the $1,000,000 price range have ninety four (yes, 94) homes for sail sale to look at! And having represented some buyers in this price range recently, I know that there is negotiating room. If you want to talk about the real estate market then send me an e-mail or call me. See some of the stats that I posted recently for a couple of Vienna zip codes on the Vienna Home Blog.

This sharp contrast between the two price ranges is a pattern that I have seen over the past year. Higher-end buyers were impacted by the lack of credit available for loans in the “Super Jumbo” category last year, but mortgage guys that I know (from reputable banks) can now get these loans done up to $2,000,000.

That’s what I love about the real estate business!

When you are going into “battle” against six other real estate offers then you will need one negotiation strategy, and if you are in the higher end market then you will need another. If I didn’t like the competition involved in this business, then I wouldn’t still be doing it after 19 years.

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Doug's Southern Hawthorne Tree

The 40th Earth Day arrived today and the weather is truly spectacular in Northern Virginia. This year the focus across the board is on energy efficiency and replacing older appliances with Energy Star qualified appliances like A/C or heating systems, hot water heaters or refrigerators. Like I wrote last week, the Commonwealth of Virginia has started a rebate program and there may also be tax credits available to you.

Invasive Plants | Vienna’s Northside Park

This Sunday morning I will be helping the Northeast Vienna Citizens Association’s (NEVCA) project in Northside Park removing invasive plant species and replacing them with native plants. NEVCA received a grant from Fairfax County and volunteers are encourage to participate as this is the second phase of the project.

When I have selected plantings for my home, I have selected native species that would thrive in our climate plus show their natural beauty. I selected the Southern Hawthorne Trees in my front yard and have always had compliments. Their foliage is dense so they create privacy, they bloom with wonderful white flowers in the spring, turn wonderful colors in the fall, and display bright red berries until January or until the birds pick the trees clean. Overall a nice selection as mature trees add value to real estate resale values.

Town of Vienna VA Green Expo is tonight (4/21/2011)

The Town of Vienna, VA is a member of the Arbor Day Foundation’s Tree City USA program and is celebrating Earth Day and Arbor Day with an evening activity at the Vienna Community Center on Park Street. There will be a tree planting at 6:00 p.m.

Hope to see you there, and please say hi!

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March came roaring in like a lion in the real estate market as buyers literally surged in once the snow melted and the sun started to shine making our world green again, so next month’s numbers will be impressive.

The driving part of the surge was buyers at the lower end buying homes that allowed people to move up to larger homes in these zip codes. The $8,000 first time buyer credit pushed the move-up buyer who could get a credit up to $6,500 when they entered into a contract by April 30th and settle by the end of June.

But please know that this information is reported from MRIS which is not guaranteed to be 100% accurate but should be considered pretty darn close.

Keep in mind, mortgage rates were still super low (around 5%).

Home sales numbers for 22182 in March 2010:

Spring did arrive early in March this year!.

Home sale numbers for the Town of Vienna, 22180, March 2010

Like my friend Heather out in Loudoun County VA, I see plenty of homes in my day-in, day-out job as a real estate agent. But, when the property is listed by another firm then I am not allowed to advertise it because it isn’t my listing.

The amazing thing about this year (2010) has been the homes that I knew were coming on the market for sale that were along the W&OD Bike Trail in Vienna, were walk-to-town or to the Vienna Farmers Market. The most recent gem of a Vienna home coming up will give the buyer the first right of refusal to join Cardinal Hill Swim and Racquet Club in Vienna. Now, that 2 car garage, 5 bedroom colonial feeds into Westbriar Elementary School and is on a cul-de-sac location (approx $699k)…  note that there is currently a 7-year wait list to join Cardinal Hill. A pool membership in the hot summers of Northern Virginia is gold!

Talk about a home buyer competitive edge!

Today is April 10th, 2010 and if you were my buyer client looking in Vienna VA then you would be first in line before the wave of Vienna home buyers who are likely to pounce next week on this home. Yes, insider knowledge is legal.

Last spring some buyer clients told me that they wanted to stay in the neighborhood that they had been renting in for a couple of years. The inventory was at 0 listings in that school district, that neighborhood and that price range. But using a little bit of my almost 20 years experience selling Northern Virginia real estate, I found the house they bought… and you can read the blog post of that experience.

So, I can’t advertise those great opportunities but you need to know the advantage that I bring to my client’s kitchen table!

Maybe we should talk? If you want to start your search first then take a look here.

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Image via Wikipedia

We had a bright and sunny weekend here in Northern Virginia, and a surge of home buyers were out looking at the homes for sale that had popped up late Thursday afternoon and Friday morning. A little marketing tip is to put a home into the MLS database Thursday to feed all the IDX sites out there that send e-mails to registered home buyers.  Our MLS, actually the Metropolitan Regional Information System (MRIS), is the #1 source and they pump out the data you see on Trulia, Zillow, Frankly MLS, Roost, Redfin or Sawbuck. They have their own “ad-free” site for you called Homesdatabase.com which is excellent.

So I showed some townhomes in Fairfax around $350,000 and the newest listing was swamped with buyer agents and their eager clients. At one house there was a guy with an Alexander Ovechkin jersey who looked like he would fight us for it!

I tried to show a home in Vienna priced at $599,900 in my neighborhood but the agent, who I know well, told me she had two offers on Friday. One offer was so good that it was accepted by the home sellers… before the scheduled open house!

Vienna, VA Home Buyers can’t wait for the Sunday Open House

I also showed a home in Vienna around the corner priced at $699,900 and again I knew that agent well. She was holding an “open house” and there were three families there at the same instant, all looking quietly and wondering if they would be in a bidding war over this classic 1970′s colonial? It seemed like it was the house du jour…

Residential real estate is the ground floor barometer for the economy and, mark my words, the economists will be talking about this in five weeks. Again, I am seeing a frantic home buyer surge as they are trying to find a home, and get a contract accepted to get the $6,500 or $8,000 home buyer credit before the deadline… and lock in a low mortgage interest rate (currently below 5%).

Real estate in Vienna, VA is fueled by the location to employment centers like Tysons Corner or Reston  (some people like the W&OD Bike Trail) and Fairfax is fueled by price where many homes have dipped significantly but have great locations or neighborhoods.

This is the time, home buyers of Northern Virginia, to have a buyer agent or ABR working for you!

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Image by SharkeyinColo via Flickr

A significant number of the homes in Northern Virginia were built in the 1950′s, 1960′s, and 1970′s. Yes, a lot has been built since then, but the building booms in those times constructed significantly smaller homes and much faster.The total number of homes built in the 1970′s alone outpaces the most recent boom time.

Best of all, they were pinker, yellower and bluer too.

We have all seen the color scheme and it typically raises the eyebrows of first time home buyers. In fact, most of the sellers probably intended to remodel those baths too when they bought the house years ago. But these bathrooms were built to last, and they still work so they won’t be getting a HGTV overhaul in our game plan because there won’t be a significant ROI.  So, they stay.

Home buyers will overlook the pinks, blues or yellows if the location is right

But often these homes have oak hardwood floors hiding under wall-to-wall carpet, and there have been a series of good updates (and not so good updates) that buyers will appreciate like central heating or AC systems, roofs and gutters, or window and door replacements. Deep down, most of these homes have good bones and are now in great locations.

So sellers need to start thinking like buyers, and who those buyers of their home might be? Today’s home buyers are unique and been trained by HGTV programs like House Hunters or Property Virgins. Open the Washington Post and see if those shows are on tonight and take a peek… it may be an eye opener listening to the comments of the on-camera home buyers.

The hardest concept for home sellers to grasp: It isn’t your house anymore!

A home seller’s starter checklist:

• Paint walls with a modern color with a “flat enamel” finish… it looks richer and conceals imperfections
• Trim should be ultra white for the best, cleanest contrast
• Paint your ceilings “ceiling white”… it will make those lower ceilings look higher
• Light fixtures will need replacing all over the house… think brighter!
• Some carpets may be in good condition or almost new, so have them professionally cleaned
• Expose those hardwood floors hiding under the living room floor… brighten them with a mop or refinish
• Update old kitchen appliances… the Sunday paper may have a “package” deal
• Set a date with a charity or trash removal company to get rid of some of your old stuff
• Clean everything including your windows… a local maid service may do the trick!
• Remove 50% of the clothes, coats, or supplies in your closets…
• Consider renting a storage unit or contacting a “POD” storage service
• In Northern Virginia, there are professionals to do almost any job… so hire them to do the lifting!

No home is perfect, and your goal as a home seller is to help create a series of “wow moments” when a buyer sees your home online, pulls up at the curb, and then walks in your front door.

Isn’t gravity cool?

If you are planning to climb a ladder to pull out the ice, then bring up some table salt. Kosher salt is also effective in breaking up the ice. Making some room for sunlight to hit the area is also essential because you want that to help get the water moving down the downspout and away from your home.

Like any sort of operation involving a ladder, have a friend close by to help move it (and to call 911 if you fall). Take your time and use a tool like a garden hoe to pull off some extra snow.

Use Table or Kosher Salt in to break up ice

It is important to understand that your down spouts need to be clear so that they can drain any water and allow fresh air to reach the top easily. In a post in December after a snow storm dumped 20″+ on Vienna, Virginia,  I mentioned the same issues when preparing for winter storms and the rapid melting that takes place.

I removed this section of the downspout that was clogged and about 15 feet of perfect ice came down in sections. I used a mallet to break up the sections but was amazed at the extent of the blockage in the downspout.

Most professional roofers, if you can reach them, can’t do too much right now to save your home. But they will tell you to make sure the gutter drains are clear, use table or kosher salt to break up the ice, flush with hot water if possible, be extremely careful climbing any ladders, and understand that an insurance claim may be in order after everything has melted.

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You have probably seen how a reservoir gets filled when the dam is closed, well, this is the same type of event except that the water backs up and into your house.

Vienna Real Estate Guy to the Rescue

Over the past two days I have had two friends in Vienna, Virginia call me about leaks inside their homes. One was at a bay window below a soffit vent, and the other was from the roof on a three story colonial. That leak flowed all the way downstairs in the family room. And in both cases, little can be done right now because the ice in the down spouts needs to melt and allow the water to drain properly.

Ice dams are uncommon in Northern Virginia and this year (2010) is unique because we are setting a historic record for annual snowfall. At my home in Vienna, VA, we measured 24″ of fresh snow on Saturday afternoon and another 8″ of snow on Wednesday afternoon. Combine that with below freezing temperatures since last weekend(at 3:38 P.M., it is only 20°)  and there really hasn’t been any natural melting.

Homeowner’s insurance was intended to cover ice dams

One of the tell-tail signs of a potential problem is when icicles form from your gutters. The ice is now firmly in place and any melting snow is now flowing right over the gutter. The melting is fine as it flows over the gutter, but when the flow backs up is when it can come through the house.

At this point,  I personally have to trust the fact that my builder and roofer did everything possible six years ago to protect my home from an ice dam.

Yes, there is a “Part 2” to this damn ice ice dam story!

When your roof gets repaired one day in the future, make sure there is a drip edge and sufficient roof flashing is installed to prevent water penetration. If you have really had it with asphalt roofs, then maybe you should consider a metal roof where snow slides off much more easily. A friend in Vienna had a metal roof installed recently so I will get that name for this post.

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Image via Wikipedia

If you are looking to buy or sell a home, I’m sure you have used  Google to do most of your research. In a recent conversation with a REALTOR colleague in Falls Church, Virginia, she shared how home buyers walking into her Sunday open-house already knowing the tax assessment, local school scores, neighborhood comparables and much more. They were well versed in the subject matter (buying a home in that neighborhood) and had brought their A-game. Agents love buyers who are willing to make decisions quickly because our real estate market remains one of the most active in the country.

Home sellers have always reviewed recent comps…

now home buyers are getting well prepped

This change is good and going to get better. But there is something all the Google-ing can’t answer, and that is where a talented agent is going to shine. Knowing the Walkability Score, the school test scores, the Zestimate or the impact the power lines may have will not help understand the true motivations of the decision makers.

Here are some of my musings as I drive through the Wendover Community in Vienna, VA along Lawyers Road between Vienna and Reston.

Please contact me if you are interested in confidentially discussing your home buying options. Many of my clients are senior level technology people, established professionals, and transferees from around the country.

My e-mail address is doug@dougfrancis.com

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