Market Trends & Real Estate Tips

What Owners Should Know About Homeowners Insurance

2011-09-27T22:23:00.002-04:00

Virginia has not escaped the destructive and disruptive forces of natural disasters in 2011. In late August, Hurricane Irene,a category 1 hurricane and a 5.8 magnitude earthquake shook Virginia and Washington DC causing 1 million dollars in damage and 50 deaths.
During a 20 year period of 1990 to 2009, hurricanes and tropical storms account for nearly half the total U.S. catastrophic disaster losses according tot he Insurance Information Institute. Type of Disaster and Percentage of Losses: Hurricanes and tropical storms, 45%; Tornado, 29%; Winter Storm, 7%; Terrorism, 7%;Earthquakes,5%;Wind, hail, flood, 3%; Fire,2%, Other,1%
Hurricane Irene and an unusual earthquake should motivate homeowners in Virginia to review insurance coverage.

Chinese Drywall Crisis

2011-08-23T10:33:00.002-04:00

The 2009 Chinese Drywall Controversy is a health and safety issue involving defective drywall manufactured in China and imported tot he United States starting in 2001. The dry wall emits smells consistant with rooten eggts and has been found to be sulfurous gases. These gases worsen with humidity and heat causing cooper piping, wiring, air conditioning coils as well as silver to blacken and turn powdery. Homeowner assumptions include asthma attacks, chronic coughing, headaches and sinus issues.

Before buying a house - ask the neighbors if any homes have been identified using Chinese drywall, look for marking on the backside of drywall labeled "Made in China", ask the builder the source of the drywall or have a trained individual inspect the ground fault wire for corrosion.

The Long and Foster real estate contracts now include a addendum on Chinese drywall.

Cost Vs Value Renovations

2011-08-23T10:18:00.002-04:00

Home renovations are the order of the day in a slow economy. According to "Remodeling" magazine the best 10 remodeling projects with the best return on investment are as follows:
Adding an attic bedroom with sq footage and at an average cost of $50,000 gives 83.1 % return.
A wood deck addition is a less expensive investment at $10,000 +/- with an added return of 80/6%. Siding and window projects,a long with a mid range entry door replacement in 14 out of 80- cities averages a 128.9 % return on investment and generates a better then 100% return on investment in 48 out of 80 cities. Upgrading kitchens and baths is always a smart bet depending the the level of renovation. A mid range kitchen returns 72.1 % on investment and a mid range bathroom yielded 63.2 percent of money invested.
The top 10 Big- Impact Low -Cost Remodeling Projects include:
1.Tidy up kitchen cabinets, #2 Add or replace tile, #3 Add a breakfast bar, #4 Instal granite tile instead of slab, #5 Freshen up bathroom without retiling, #6 Freshen up basement, #7 Add a room, #8 Spruce up cabinetry, #9 replace light fixtures, #10 Tech up garage.

How the New Lead Based Paint Law Affects YOU!

2010-04-08T23:22:00.002-04:00

The Federal law requires that individuals recieve certain information before renovating six square feet or more of painted surfaces for interior projects or more than twenty square feet of painted surfaces for exterior projects in housing built before 1978.

Beginning April 2010, federal law requires contractors that disturb lead-based paint in homes built before 1978 be certified and follow specific work proactices to prevent lead contamination.

This will cost the consumer money. Case in point: windows vendors will charge more for each window due to the precaustions required by the Federal law. A recent quote for new windows for a client in a 1966 home priced the windows $200 more after April 22, 2010 due to the costs involved as required by the new law.

Selling A Business

2010-03-06T23:34:00.004-05:00

I have been recieving facinating information on selling or buying an estabilished business plus listings of businesses for sale from Mark Wood of VMW Business Brokers, Inc. If you are interested in his newsletters please contact him at http://www.vmwbusinessbrokers.com/. The following is a summary of his latest newsletter:

Five Basic Steps in the Sales Process
1. Analyze the Business and Determine Value - This is a fact finding stage whereby there is analysis of the business,often identifying areas for improvement that can add significant value to a transaction
2. Plan and Develop the Marketing Program - Determine value of property and package the company to properly present the opportunity to prospective buyers.
3. Activate the Buyer Search - Prospective buyers are screened and qualifies for their ability to purchase a business.
4. Negotiations and Due DIlligence - Most offers come in the form of Letter of Intent (LOI), which is a non-binding doument spelling out the basic terms of the transaction.
5. Close the Deal - Complete a business transfer.

America's Richest Counties by Forbes

2010-03-06T23:24:00.002-05:00

Apparently weath in our country radiates from the Capital!
The country has started it long haul back to economic recovery, as consumer spending increased slightly in January, and the counties with the greatest wealth isnt the inner city, but the high-end suburbs just outside the big-industry centers.
Loudoun County leads the list with a median income of $110,643 annually, followed by Fairfax County with a median income of $106,785 annually. Actually six of the weathiest households are tightly concentrated in the counties around the nation's capital to include: Fairfax County,Va., Arlington County, Va., Stafford County, Va.,, Prince Willian County, Va., Charles County, Md., and Alexandria City, Va.

For the entire atricle see the link

Homebuyer Tax Credit Changes

2010-02-13T10:39:00.002-05:00

Congress has extended and expanded the homebuyer tax credit!!!! As of November 2009:

First -time Buyer- amount of credit - $8000 - ($4000 married filing separately)( no interst in a property for the last 3 years)

Current Homeowner - Amount of Credit - $6500 ($3250 married filing separately) ( Must have used the home sold or selling as a principal residence for the last 5 of previous 8 years

Must be contracted prior to April 30, 2010, closing by July 1, 2010

Income limits: $75,000 single $150,000 married

Great Opportunities in Real Estate today - Prices are low, Interest rates are under 6% and there is a tax credit of $6500 - $8000!!!

Forbes Top 10 Cites where it's Smarter To Buy in next 5 years

2010-02-13T10:17:00.007-05:00

1. Boston- Cambridge- Quincy, Mass
2. Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, NC-SC
3. Chicago- Naperville- Joliet,Ill - Ind-Wis
4. Cincinnati-Middletown,Ohop-Ky-Ind
5. Denver-Aurora - Broomfield, Colo
6. Minneapolis- St Paul- Bloomington, Minn-Wis
7. Philadelphia - Camden - Wilmington, Pa- NJ-Del-Md
8. Portland-Vancourver-Beaverton, Ore-Wash
9. SanFrancisco-Oakland-Fremont, Calif
10. Washington-Arlington-Alexandria,Dc-Va-Md-WVA

The Washington Metro area has stabilized with slight increases in the average sales prices over the last three months. Inventory is very low and typically there are numerous offers within the first 2 weeks of a listing that is falling int he lower brackets ( under $450,000). The upper bracket homes remain slower. Anyone having lived in the metropolitian area over the last years know this is a great time to move up or buy investment properties, as the prices will, as they always do, rise significantly over the next 5 years.

Have We Reached Bottom?? 10 Factors to Consider

2009-07-02T22:24:00.003-04:00

Historically, the value of real estate goes through cycles. Many factors affect value of homes including the laws of suppy and demand. From he Appraisal Institute, here is a quick reference quide to some of the factors involved and advice on how to spot a turning point in the market:
1. A spike in local sales: A spike referes to a significant rise in the number of home sales in the local market area, generally measured month to month. a spike however doesn't indicate a continuation of growth.
2. Higher asking and selling prices vs appraisal value opinions for residential properties. Currently in our marketplace we are seeing multiple contracts, closer to full price sales prices and shorter days ont he market. The appraisers however are only just starting to recognize this trend, and to date we are still stuggling to get the appraised value at or higher than sale price.
3. More activitiy at open houses. We are seeing very busy open houses under $600,000 and better activity at the higher range.
4. Shorter marketing times. For a home properly staged and prices, time on the market is directly correlated to market conditons. A balanced market and properly staged and priced home shouldnt be on the market more than 3 months. We are in a changing marketplace, no longer a buyers market in the lower ranges, but still a buyers market in the higher ranges.
5. Reduced number of foreclosures and short sales. The lending institutions are releasing large inventories of distress sales in waves, causing fluctuations in the marketplace from soft to stabile to soft.
6. Stabilized employment. Stable or increasing employment rates provide the necessary consumer confidence for buyers to purchase property. The first time buyer market is on fire, the move-up market is just starting to move forward.
7. Fewer buyer incentives and seller concessions. Seller paid incentives and concessions are a sure sign of seller motivation. As supply lessens, demand increases, there are fewer give aways, incentivies and smaller seller concessions. This is very true in the lower priced marketplace.
8. New construction starts. Most builders stay very tuned to the marketplace and do not start construction without contracts. An increase in the number of building permits usually indicate an increase in demand. If new constructions is selling less than cost, it is prudent to buy a resale rather than a new one for a higher price. We are not seeing a lot of new construction starts at this point.
9. "Move-up buyers entering the marketplace. More buyers willing to move to a larger or superior quality home indicates a healthy market, A lack of buyers at the lower end of the price range will have a chain reaction through the marketplace. Often a lower price home has to sell in order for that buyer to buy a higher valued home. We are only just seeing this movement start.
10. Apartments advertising rental specials. Fewer renters int he market is an indication of renters buying instead of renting. Quality home rentals are moving quickly, apartments rentals are plentiful.