Buy Alexandria Real Estate: April 2010

There are many reasons why you should hire a local experienced real estate professional to list and sell your home.  You can probably think up some of these reasons on your own.

Here's Reason #19:  They will make sure your home gets maximum exposure on the market by ensuring that other local agents can access your property.

Let me explain. 

But first let me preface the explanation with this:  I am not a ranter and a raver.  I rarely if ever complain about another agent.  It takes a lot to get me upset, frustrated, or angry.  And I have never nor would I ever call out somebody publicly.  Thus the guilty agent's name has been withheld to protect his/her... ahem... guilt.

The saga began this afternoon.  I was scheduling some condo showings in Alexandria, Virginia for a client who wants (and needs) to buy a condo (and soon).  On one particular property, the showing instructions required calling a showing service (these companies, such as Accushow, have become more popular as of late). 

I was told that showing the property was no problem at the desired time, but that I would need to have Maryland lockbox access. 

Wait a second!  This condo is in Alexandria -- at least a good 8 mile, 20 minute drive across the Potomac River from Maryland.  I mentioned this to the showing service and they suggested that I call the listing agent for access to the property.

Next, I called the listing agent hours before the showing.  Left a voicemail.  Never heard back.  Called again hours later and found the agent's voicemail full.

At 3:30 p.m., I met my client and showed them several condos in the same area.  Then we went to try and see the condo in question.  Sure enough, my Virginia lockbox card did not open the lockbox.  This is the condo that my client is most interested in possibly purchasing (and before the tax credit expires on Friday).  Again I tried calling the listing agent to no avail.

This condo has been on the market for 17 days.  Though that's not a long time in this market, there's no question why.  Other agents cannot show the condo!  Most buyers and agents for this particular condo will be in Virginia and licensed in Virginia and they may or may not have Maryland lockbox access.  It's an easy fix that the listing agent can perform to make this lockbox Virginia compatible, but in 17 days on the market they have not done so!

By the way, I looked up this agent, and out of a total of 29 sales (listings and buyer representation) over several years, they've only sold 2 in Virginia -- all the rest are in Maryland.

Now, imagine for the moment that you've hired this listing agent.  They put your home on the market, priced it pretty well and advertised it.  17 days have gone by and not a single agent or buyer has seen your home!  Why?  Because the agent does not permit access to those who want to see it.

Ready to sell your Northern Virginia home?  I've just given you reason #19 to hire a local experienced listing agent to sell your home.  Contact me and we can discuss reasons 1 through 18!

Here's a carrot on a stick:

The carrot, of course, is the $8000 First Time Homebuyer Tax Credit.  This tax credit is expiring in T Minus 100 or so Hours.  That's right, in order to take advantage of the tax credit, it is necessary to find and have a ratified contract on a house by 11:59:59 p.m. on April 30th.

That's no trick.  And after all, you're no silly rabbit,

If you were going to buy a Northern Virginia home anyways, the tax credit is a nice bonus.  If you were thinking about buying a home, perhaps the tax credit expiration lit a small fire under your bottom and got you off the proverbial fence.

However, if you were not planning on a buying a home in Northern Virginia, or were not quite ready, this tax credit and its expiration has little meaning to you.  You will buy a home when you are ready -- not because there's a little bit of free money available in the form of a tax credit.

People will not stop buying homes and sellers will not remove their homes from the market on May 1st after the tax credit expires.  I can assure you of that.

To get started on your Northern Virginia home search with or without the tax credit, give me a call at 703-626-0715 or send me an e-mail at brian@brianblock.com

Take a look at this chart which shows the price distribution of available homes in McLean, Virginia:

There's a few things apparent:

1.  Almost half of the available homes in McLean are priced between $1-$3 million.

2.  There are more McLean homes priced above $4 million than there are in any single price range under $1 million!

3.  It costs some money to buy a home in McLean.  That may be the biggest understatement of the day!

4.  There are still some McLean homes available priced under $500K.  However, those are all condominiums.  Okay.  That part may not be apparent from this chart, but I'm telling you so.

5.  I've got a penchant for using rainbow colors for my graphs depicting the real estate market.

If you're ready to buy a home in McLean, Virginia, I'm here to help.  I'm the Managing Broker of our RE/MAX Allegiance office here in McLean.  Please feel free to contact me any time with your questions about the McLean real estate market.

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 an average of just over 6 weeks on the market. 

•·     Average Sales Price/Original Listing Price:  96.54%.  There's still some negotiating room on home sales in Arlington Virginia.

Interesting Notes: 

The most expensive Arlington Virginia home on the market is listed for sale at $7,950,000.  This home has been marketed for over 3 years.

The least expensive Arlington home is a studio condo in South Arlington for $88,900.

There are eight Arlington homes on the market with 7 bedrooms.

The Arlington real estate market remains hot!

** Find a Home in Arlington**

Contact Brian Block, Managing Broker, RE/MAX Allegiance, McLean:
Licensed in Virginia & Washington D.C.  703-626-0715.
If you are interested in purchasing or selling a property in Arlington or elsewhere in Northern Virginia or Washington D.C., contact Brian today.

Here's a typical row of Historic townhouses in Old Town Alexandria.  Notice the vibrant colors, American flag, and oval historic plaque.  Just several of the things that I love about Old Town Alexandria.

So, what's happening today in the Alexandria, Virginia Real Estate Market?

Here's a snapshot of Alexandria Virginia home sales in the last 30 days from late March through now:

ALEXANDRIA VIRGINIA HOME SALES:

• Active homes for sale:  648 -- 309 of those or almost half have just come on the market within the last 30 days!
  
  
• Alexandria Homes sold in the last 30 days:  143
  
  
• Average Sales Price:   $423,496
  
  
• Median Sales Price:     $415,524
  
  
• Average Days on Market:    43 -- Alexandria homes continue to sell very quickly. 
  
  
• Average Sales Price/Original Listing Price:  95.89%.  There's still some negotiating room on home sales in Alexandria Virginia.

Interesting Notes: 

There are currently 74 Alexandria homes on the market for under $200,000 and 66 Alexandria homes for over $1 million. 

The Alexandria real estate market remains hot!

** Find a Home in Alexandria**

Contact Brian Block, Managing Broker, RE/MAX Allegiance, McLean:
Licensed in Virginia & Washington D.C. 703-626-0715.
If you are interested in purchasing or selling a property in Alexandria or elsewhere in Northern Virginia or Washington D.C., contact Brian today.

Run... don't walk to this charming Falls Church townhouse -- especially if you want to take advantage of the soon to be evaporating $8000 First Time Homebuyer Tax Credit!

Welcome to 2853 Great Oak Court, Falls Church, VA 22042

Professionally presented by Brian Block, RE/MAX Allegiance

Competitively and perfectly priced at just $399,500

Since it just hit the market yesterday, you can be one of the first to see this sun-drencehed end unit nestled in a relatively small enclave of charming townhomes, less than 1.5 miles from the East Falls Church Metro stop.

1,280 square feet of living space on 2 finished levels provides 3 bedrooms and 2.5 bathrooms, beautiful landscaping, warm hardwood floors, updated kitchens and baths, and an abundance of windows.  This home is special!

The main level includes a spacious living room accented by a large picture window; a family room with a cozy raised hearth brick fireplace, and a dining room boasting updated lighting and access to the large patio and fenced-in backyard -- the perfect place to relax or to entertain guests with plenty of room for barbecuing, outdoor seating, and gardening.

The updated galley style kitchen features gleaming granite countertops, 42" cabinets, a built-in microwave, and white appliances.

Hardwood floors continue to the upper level's landing and into the generously-sized master bedroom with a private bath.  Two additional bright and cheerful bedrooms and another full bath updated with a new vanity, lighting, and ceramic tile floor complete this level.

This great townhouse is just a few blocks to great shopping and fine dining in Falls Church City and only 1.4 miles to the East Falls Church Metro.

It's the perfect home, in a spectacular location, at the right price.

View More Photos of 2853 Great Oak Court

Contact me today at 703-626-0715 for more information or a private showing.

Unlike the 1990s television show "Northern Exposure," when searching for a home, most homebuyers want their home to have Southern Exposure.

Why?

In the Northern Hemisphere (where we all live & where I sell real estate), the sun comes from the South and thus a home that faces South is able to take more advantage of solar energy.  Solar panels on roofs should be placed on the south side of the roof.  Plants and flowers that require lots of sunlight grow best with southern exposure.

When I first bought an iPhone, I wondered why there was a compass function built in to the phone.  After all, how many of you walk around with a compass everywhere you go?  However, I've learned just how valuable it can be.  Especially since many clients want to know which way their home or a window faces.

Whether you're searching for a house that faces North, South, East, or West,

in Northern Virginia real estate, you can search with me.  (I'll have my trusty iPhone compass with me)

This afternoon I spent some time reviewing the 2010 Power Broker Report.  This report is produced by RISMedia and is the 22nd Annual Power Broker Survey looking at the top 300 real estate brokerages in the United States.  It's published this month in RISMedia's REAL ESTATE magazine.

Being the numbers and statistics junkie that I am, I did a little figuring.

And this is what I figured out about my company, RE/MAX Allegiance:

Nobody Sells as Much Real Estate with as Few Agents as RE/MAX Allegiance!  Nobody.

Here's the scoop:

RE/MAX Allegiance is ranked #22 in the country by total sales volume with sales of $2,598,955,784.

RE/MAX Allegiance transacted this volume of sales with a total of just 657 agents in 23 offices.  We're not a small company by any measure, but let's look at some other numbers.

Every single brokerage that sold more real estate than RE/MAX Allegiance had more agents.  The next smallest company ranking ahead of ours in sales volume had over 1,100 agents.

Sure, some of the companies ranked ahead of us in sales volume had mega amounts of sales, but consider the following.

Long & Foster Real Estate had a sales voume of $21,779,927,000.  That's over 8X as much volume as RE/MAX Allegiance.  However, Long & Foster has almost 19X as many agents at 12,405 total agents.

That means the average Long & Foster agent sold $1,755,737 of real estate in 2009 while the average RE/MAX Allegiance agent sold $3,955,792.

And, since I know you were wondering... the top Keller Williams brokerage on this list -- Keller Williams Realty in Dallas with 12 offices and 1,578 agents -- sold a total of $2,129,074,428 in sales volume or an average of $1,349,223.

BOTTOM LINE:  With almost $4 million in sales for 2009, the average RE/MAX Allegiance agent
is anything but average!

All of this shows the truth in two of the RE/MAX slogans:

Nobody Sells More Real Estate than RE/MAX!

and

Outstanding Agents, Outstanding Results.

We're always looking for a few more good agents here in my office in McLean and throughout all our RE/MAX Allegiance offices.  Watch the video below and give me a call at 703-626-0715 to confidentially discuss growing your real estate career.

Real estate, like any other market, is all about supply and demand.

So, how's the supply and demand in McLean Virginia real estate these days?

SUPPLY:  As of April 12, 2010, there are 207 homes on the market in McLean, Virginia

DEMAND:  In the last 30 days, 37 homes sold in the McLean.  At this pace, there'd be 6.9 months of inventory of McLean homes.  This is a bit higher than surrounding jurisdictions, primarily because the homes are more expensive in McLean.

Here are the details about the housing inventory in McLean-- if you're thinking about buying a home in McLean or elsewhere in Northern Virginia, you might want to take advantage of the beautiful weather and head for a drive around town or at least to your local McLean RE/MAX office! 

McLean Virginia Single Family Homes 

144 Single Family Homes are on the market in McLean at an average price of $2,437,475.  The prices range from $499,000 up to $17,500,000.  The average price is a bit skewed by the upper price ranges.  If you remove the 10 highest priced homes from the equation, the average price in McLean drops to $1,962,775.

There are 117 McLean homes priced at one million dollars or more with 63 of those over $2 million.  However, you can still find 9 single family homes in McLean for under $800,000.

Inventory in some popular McLean neighborhoods:

Chesterbrook -- 10 homes available -- Average price $1,001,500

Franklin Park -- 6 homes available -- Average price $1,440,417

The Reserve -- 4 homes available -- Average price $3,147,500

Woodside Estates -- 7 homes available -- Average price $2,058,400

CLICK HERE TO FIND A SINGLE FAMILY HOME IN MCLEAN

McLean Virginia Townhouses 

15 Townhouses are on the market in McLean at an average listing price of $875,243.  The range in prices for McLean townhouses is between $545,000 and $1,695,000.

The highest concentration of townhouses are in the following McLean communities:

Kings Manor -- 3 townhouses -- Average price $654,667

McLean Place -- 3 townhouses -- Average price $863,267

McLean Condominiums

Around 50 condos are on the market in McLean:

16 Garden Style condos (1-4 floors) at an Average price of $308,453

3 Mid-Rise condos (5-8 floors) at an Average price of $749,333

28 High-Rise condos (9+ floors) at an Average price of $506,891

FIND A MCLEAN CONDO 

This video from RE/MAX International came out last year but is just as relevant today. 

There's only 20 days left to find a house, agree on a price and terms with the seller(s), and get a contract in place in order to take advantage of the Homebuyer Tax Credit.  Remember that you must have a ratified contract (all terms signed off on by buyers and sellers) by April 30, 2010 to qualify for this tax credit of up to $8,000 for first time homebuyers and up to $6,500 for move-up buyers.

One more thing: you must close and settle on the house by June 30, 2010.

Don't Kick Yourself for Missing Out on the Homebuyer Tax Credit

(or else I'll have to film you for the follow-up video!)

Call me soon.  Here's the number: 703-626-0715 

I'm taking appointments and can help you find a place to live.  20 days is more time than you think.  I've helped many buyers find homes in much less time.

To accomodate the high volumes of Northern Virginia home buyers seeking to take advantage of the client, I've opened up additional daytime, evening and weekend hours. 

Call me anytime.  Just not after mid-night EST.