Feature

Just Listed in Arlington

By ARLnow.com Sponsor

Just Listed highlights Arlington properties that just came on the market within the past week. This feature is written and sponsored by Andors Real Estate Group.

It was a blockbuster week in Arlington real estate, and we continue our upward trend of increased activity!

Sellers listed some 86 properties for sale this week while buyers ratified 72 contracts. 44 of the ratified contracts were on homes that had been on the market one week or less. What a crazy metric — over half of brand-new entrants to the market went under contract in less than seven days and yes, it’s correct that many of those received multiple offers!

I’m continuing to watch the numbers in Arlington go up week over week, and we’re close to eclipsing what we were doing this time last year in many metrics. The unsatisfied demand of buyers throughout the spring is about to explode! Add another new low in mortgage rates, now below 3% in many instances, and we’re heading into a very busy summer for Arlington.

Traditionally, things slow just a bit from the highs of the spring, but this year will be much different. Plans were put on hold during the pandemic, but as restrictions continue to ease, expect to see more real estate signs and open house visitors.

Consumer confidence is coming back quickly, though to be honest it barely left the Arlington housing market at all. Internet traffic, showings, mortgage applications and closings are all on the rise. If you’re considering selling a home, give me a call at (703) 203-1117 so we can position you in the best way possible for success in Arlington. The Andors Real Estate Group has almost three decades of experience in Arlington and has sold hundreds of millions worth of Arlington real estate. You can count on us to get the job done right, every time.

PICK OF THE WEEK — The Andors Real Estate Group is proud to have JUST LISTED 2655 S. Walter Reed Drive #C, Arlington, VA 22206 — $379,900. This secluded 2-bedroom condo is sited in a park-like setting backing to nothing but trees. Freshly painted top to bottom, brand new flooring throughout and new appliances — not to mention the wood-burning fireplace and large balcony — look no further because this one is move-in ready!

There are currently 288 homes for sale in Arlington, 10 more than last week. 135 are detached homes, 23 are townhouses/semi-detached, and 130 are condos. Average days on market (DOM) is 44 and median DOM is 30.

The median list price of currently available properties is $1,005,000, while the average is $1,155,840. Last year for the same week, sellers listed 72 homes and buyers ratified 64 contracts.

Click here to search currently available Arlington real estate. Call the Andors Real Estate Group today at (703) 203-1117 to talk more about buying or selling Arlington real estate. Below are eight homes that are new this week that I think you might like to check out.

Boring Title: Remote Online Notarization

By ARLnow.com Sponsor

Title insurance is boring, but Allied Title & Escrow is here to decode the jargon and make it (somewhat) more interesting. This biweekly feature will explore the mundane (but very necessary!) world of title insurance while sharing interesting stories of two friends’ entrepreneurial careers.

There has been a lot of talk recently about Remote Online Notarization, which is the ability to close your real estate transaction completely online. To understand exactly how it works, here is a great commercial from our partner Notarize.

Check it out: 

Have questions related to title insurance? Email Latane and Matt at [email protected]. Want to use Allied Title & Escrow when you buy a home? Tell your agent when you buy a house to write in Allied Title & Escrow as your settlement company!

Arlington Pet of the Week: Bumble

By ARLnow.com
1/4

Meet the newest Arlington Pet of the Week, Bumble, a clumsy Sapsali who loves to play with other dogs.

Here is what Bumble’s owner had to say about his life here in Arlington:

Much like Santa’s Little Helper from “The Simpson’s”, Bumble arrived as a surprise for the winter holidays, and after charming our family with his lovably klutzy ways, he wound up staying. Discovered as a stray under a farmer’s cart on the outskirts of a Korean village, he was brought to the US by the local dog rescue group Band For Animal, and we volunteered to foster him.

Based on the picture we had seen (not the cart one), we were expecting a smallish terrier pup that would tussle a bit with our other dog, Bitey, and go on to find a loving family.  Instead, we got a fluffy, clumsy, and much-larger-than-anticipated Sapsali furball who falls down stairs, falls up stairs, and falls into anything and everything that his big fat paws and big jug head can collide with.  He is oafish, he is blunderous, and he is incredibly loveable.  As a result, we decided to foster him forever.

Bumble is playful with dogs, gentle with kids, and prefers to greet adults by standing on his hind legs and hugging them. He has taught the whole family the importance of not leaving food on counters, and we are still trying to teach him to not to tackle us with excitement when we come home. He appreciates his dog bed, but prefers to lay stretched out perpendicularly on ours.  And when given a summer haircut, he gets very embarrassed that people may be looking at his butt.

All in all, he’s a very, very good boy.

Small Biz Focus: Arlington Announces Small Business Emergency GRANT Recipients

By ARLnow.com Sponsor
1/4

This column is sponsored by BizLaunch, a division of Arlington Economic Development.

The GRANT provides immediate financial assistance to Arlington’s small businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Arlington County today announced 394 businesses are receiving the Small Business Emergency GRANT (Giving Resiliency Assets Near Term).

The GRANT program provides financial assistance to Arlington’s small businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The GRANT funds were designed to bridge the gap to provide near-term relief for businesses and nonprofits, some of whom have experienced delays or limitations with federal relief initiatives.

Businesses and nonprofits considered for the GRANT had to be located in Arlington County, have fewer than 50 employees, and demonstrate revenue losses of 35 percent or more as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The GRANT is being made on behalf of Arlington County, the Arlington Industrial Development Authority and the Ballston, Crystal City and Rosslyn Business Improvement Districts (BID). The GRANT will provide a total of $2.8 million in funding.

This amount includes an increase of $1.6 million from CARES Act funding that the Arlington County Board approved yesterday — more than doubling the funding available for applicants. Based on the available funding, 394 businesses (53 percent of eligible applicants) will receive a financial grant. Businesses across the County, in a wide variety of industry sectors and geographic locations, received grants.

Award amounts varied, up to $10,000 per business. More than 37 percent are restaurant and food service businesses and nearly 26 percent are personal service businesses, approximately 10% are health and medical businesses and 10 percent are retail businesses. Recommended grantees are concentrated along the major commercial corridors. Nearly 44% of awarded businesses are in the Rosslyn-Ballston Corridor (Zip Codes 22201, 22203 and 22209) and 20% are along the Route 1 Corridor (Zip Code 22202). Approximately 13% are in the Columbia Pike Zip Code area.

“With our small businesses among those most affected by the pandemic, the Board thought it was important to provide more funding for GRANT,” Arlington County Board Chair Libby Garvey said. “This new funding will make it possible to provide much-needed funding to more than 50 percent of the eligible applicants. For those that do not receive funding, we still offer business and financial planning assistance. We hope that our small businesses will seek our advice if they would like, and will continue to pursue other avenues of support. We want all our businesses to be able to recover and thrive again as we continue our phased reopening.”

“Throughout the pandemic, we heard over and over again that financial assistance was what our business community needed most,” said Telly Tucker, Director of Arlington Economic Development. “And we’ve kept in constant contact with all our businesses to provide a variety of resources to help, from these GRANT funds to individual meetings to sessions on how to effectively pivot operations in order to continue through the last few months. As we now look forward and begin to reopen, we’re hopeful these GRANT funds will help those businesses hit the hardest — those that would be unable to continue operations without this financial aid.”

Applications were evaluated through a competitive process. More than 1,100 applications were received for consideration. Applications were evaluated based on criteria that considers the impact to employees, business operations and the Arlington business community.

GRANT funds must be used for employee salary and benefits and other business capital and operating expenses directly related to the immediate impacts of COVID-19. Recipients are required to submit a final report to Arlington Economic Development and provide documentation of grant use.

A list of the GRANT recipients is available on the Arlington Economic Development website.

Just Reduced Properties in Arlington

By ARLnow.com Sponsor

Each week, “Just Reduced” spotlights properties in Arlington County whose price have been cut over the previous week. The market summary is crafted by Arlington Realty, Inc. Maximize your real estate investment with the team by visiting www.arlingtonrealtyinc.com or calling 703-836-6000 today!

Please note: While Arlington Realty, Inc. provides this information for the community, it may not be the listing company of these homes.

And just like that, spring 2020 is officially in the books.

This Saturday, June 20, marks the first day of summer. Hopefully amid the COVID-19 lockdown, you’ve been able to enjoy some of the springtime temps while they’ve lasted?

If not, it looks like we’re hovering in the 70s for a couple days here before hitting the 90s (eeeek!) this weekend.

Speaking of cranking it up, now is the time to optimize your AC system for the sweltering days ahead, if you haven’t already. In addition to an annual tune-up, make sure to change your air filter if it’s been a few months, check your door and window sealings to ensure AC isn’t seeping out and take a look at your lightbulbs to see if there are cooler/more sustainable options.

Stay cool out there, friends. And, if your summer journey calls for a real estate pit stop, the team at Arlington Realty, Inc. is here for you.

Now, on to this week’s Just Reduced figures.

As of June 15, there are 161 detached homes, 29 townhouses and 139 condos for sale throughout Arlington County. In total, 19 homes experienced a price reduction in the past week:

Please note that this is solely a selection of Just Reduced properties available in Arlington County. For a complete list of properties within your target budget and specifications, contact Arlington Realty, Inc.

Ask Eli: COVID-19 Market Impact Update

By ARLnow.com Sponsor

This regularly-scheduled sponsored Q&A column is written by Eli Tucker, Arlington-based Realtor and Arlington resident. Please submit your questions to him via email for response in future columns. Enjoy!

Question: What impact is Coronavirus having on the regional and local real estate market?

Answer: COVID-19 has had a similar impact on new listings in Arlington as it has across Northern Virginia and the D.C. metro area with each market dealing with a ~30-35% year-over-year drop in April and May. However, demand in Arlington has tapered off from 2019 highs, while demand in Northern Virginia and the D.C. metro area is steadily increasing, despite everything we’ve gone through with Coronavirus.

The tapering of Arlington demand, which is still very strong relative to historical numbers, is bringing the Arlington market more in-line with supply/demand readings of the Northern Virginia and D.C. metro markets.

The below chart shows Months of Supply (a good supply/demand ratio) for each market. Months of Supply calculates how long it would take for the existing housing inventory to sell out, if no additional inventory was supplied.

Prices Up Regionally

Year-over-year prices for May sales and year-to-date sales are up significantly across the region. Across all of the counties/regions listed below, Arlington’s year-over-year growth is the lowest, which is almost certainly due to the significant appreciation in Arlington last year, after the Amazon announcement.

Keep in mind that sales data lags actual market activity because it usually takes 30-45 days for a property to close, so May sales are more reflective of March and April activity than what we’re currently seeing. This is particularly interesting because March and April were the peak of Coronavirus concerns/lockdowns. Barring any major shifts in the D.C. area economy, I expect year-over-year prices to show even more growth as we get further into the year and sales reflect an even stronger buyer market.

Arlington New Listings Down

We’re used to seeing new listing supply peak from March-June, after November-February lows, with April and May almost always exceeding March’s supply. Unfortunately for many home buyers, new inventory tumbled in April and continued dropping further in May.

The May 2020 drop in new inventory represents a 32.1% decline compared to May 2019, which is particularly concerning when you consider that new inventory in May 2019 was already down 21.3% from May 2018, giving us a 47% decline in new inventory from May 2018 to May 2020.

The decline in new inventory was distributed pretty evenly across property type (single-family vs condo) and price point.

(more…)

Digital Footage Service Video Jaguar Thrives During Pandemic

By Vernon Miles

Sponsored by Monday Properties and written by ARLnow, Startup Monday is a weekly column that profiles Arlington-based startups and their founders, plus other local technology happenings. Monday Properties remains firmly committed to the health, safety and well-being of its employees, tenants and community. This week, Monday Properties is proudly featuring 1000 and 1100 Wilson (The Rosslyn Towers).

Video Jaguar may be based out of Arlington, but CEO Tim Sumer said having an almost entirely digital service has helped it thrive while many other businesses struggle during the pandemic.

The company bills itself as “the world’s easiest video ad maker for businesses and agencies.”

“Video Jaguar is a cloud-based video maker designed to help business owners easily create professional video ads, real estate videos, and more in five minutes and a few clicks,” Sumer explained. “Video Jaguar allows anyone, on any budget, to create professional marketing videos with no technical skills needed. Users can create unlimited videos that they can use to promote their business or sell to other businesses for any price they like and keep 100% of the profits.”

Like Storyblocks, another Arlington-based video footage company, Video Jaguar has seen an uptick in sales as companies unable to send people out to capture original video turn to online services.

“We have actually seen an increase in sales, of around 20-25%, during the pandemic,” Sumer said. “I believe this is because many businesses are cutting back on costs by switching to digital solutions, especially now since more people are online. With Video Jaguar, businesses can automate their marketing by being able to create videos and then scheduling them to post on all social media channels; eliminating the need to outsource these tasks or hiring someone.”

The video service also allows users to automatically post videos across seven video hosting platforms, including TikTok.

“Every month we add new video templates to the template bank, which already has over 550 premium video templates to choose from,” Sumer said. “Other software upgrades and new features are automatically applied every month as well.”

Sumer also said operating out of Arlington has been helpful for making contacts that have helped the company weather the pandemic.

“Being in Arlington has many benefits, such as the close proximity to the nation’s capital, and the number of tech companies popping up in Arlington is constantly growing,” Sumer said. “This area is filled with many businesses that we can easily connect and collaborate with.”

Photo via Video Jaguar/Facebook

Legal Insider: Employers and Employees Prepare for COVID-19 Lawsuits

By ARLnow.com Sponsor

This is a sponsored column by attorneys John Berry and Kimberly Berry of Berry & Berry, PLLC, an employment and labor law firm located in Northern Virginia that specializes in federal employee, security clearance, retirement and private sector employee matters.

By John V. Berry, Esq.

Given the pandemic, and the current state of the economy, many employment lawyers for businesses and employees are preparing for a number of lawsuits related to COVID-19. There are many different types of potential employee civil claims that will ultimately arise as a result of the pandemic, the economy, layoffs and terminations.

The following are just a few examples of the type of litigation that may be on the horizon.

Negligence Claims Against Employers

One of the first types of claims that we expect to see in the near future are lawsuits filed by employees related to them getting sick from COVID-19.

It is likely that we will see some employees claim that they were subjected to work-related risks and were infected by COVID-19 as a result. It is too early to see whether or not Virginia, different states or the federal government will enact legislation limiting liability for these employers. Some of these claims may likely be based on employers that did not follow the letter of Executive Orders from the Governor or other relevant government medical authorities.

Some states may decide to make employers immune from such liability by expanding workers’ compensation coverage to make it easier to claim injuries without proof that it occurred at work. This would essentially shift liability from businesses to the state or create a hybrid solution. Businesses are likely to need this type of relief from the state.

Discrimination Claims Against Employers

One of the other types of claims that we are likely to see by employees involves discrimination claims with respect to pandemic-related terminations and layoffs. These are likely to be claims arguing that some employees were retained or terminated in a discriminatory fashion. For instance, we may see arguments that retention of employees was illegally based on race or sex.

Claims for Unpaid Wages

Another area that we are likely to see employee lawsuits filed over involve unpaid wage claims related to the pandemic.  Many employers have been adversely affected and became insolvent immediately, unable to pay employees. Other employers may have thought that they could delay payment of wages to employees during the pandemic, which is illegal.  In either case, a number of employees are likely to file such claims in the coming weeks and months.

Contact Us

It is too soon to tell all the ways in which the pandemic will affect employer-employee claims, but they are likely coming in the near future. If you are in need of employment law representation or advice, please contact our office at 703-668-0070 or through our contact page to schedule a consultation. Please also visit and like us on Facebook or Twitter.

Rethink Energy: June Virtual Solar Co-Op Info Sessions

By ARLnow.com Sponsor

This regularly-scheduled sponsored column is written by the Arlington Initiative to Rethink Energy team (AIRE). This county program helps you make smart energy decisions that save you money and leaves a lighter footprint on the environment.

As we move into Phase 2 opening, we will continue our virtual solar and electric vehicle (EV) co-op sessions.

More than 200 homeowners have already installed solar panels as part of our Solar and Electric Vehicle Charger Co-op.

This spring, we’ve already had more than 280 homeowners attend virtual co-op sessions. Sixty-nine families have already had their roofs screened, verified as viable for solar, and they have joined the Co-op.

This June, we’ll continue with 3 additional information sessions. Please RSVP and join us to learn more:

  • June 23 — 6 p.m. Info Session link
  • June 26 — 12 p.m. Info Session link
  • June 30 — 12 p.m. Battery Storage 101 link

For those who  may not be familiar, the Co-op  helps Arlingtonians buy solar panels and EV chargers at a discounted price through bulk purchasing. The Co-op also provides support to participants to make the purchasing process easy. This year we will also provide information about storing your solar power at home in battery systems.

You can also take advantage of one of the last big federal solar tax credits. This year the solar tax credit will be 26 percent. In 2021, it will be 22 percent and in 2022 and beyond, it won’t be available for homeowners at all.

As you quarantine at home, use this opportunity to learn more about solar power, electric vehicle charging and solar battery storage. Take action today to help our community be carbon neutral by 2050.

Open Houses in Arlington This Weekend

By ARLnow.com Sponsor

Looking for a home? There are plenty of houses and condos open for viewing this weekend.

Check out the Arlington Realty website for a full list of homes for sale and open houses in Arlington. Here are a few highlights:

1313 N. Herndon Street
7 BD/7 BA single-family home
Agent: William G. Buck & Associates, Inc.
Listed: $2,478,000
Open: Virtual Tour/Sunday 1-4 p.m.

 

3114 N. Pershing Drive
5 BD/5 BA, 1 half bath single-family home
Agent: Re/Max Allegiance
Listed: $1,499,000
Open: Virtual Tour/Sunday 1-4 p.m.

 

3405 N. Peary Street
4 BD/3 BA single-family home
Agent: Re/Max Allegiance
Listed: $1,150,000
Open: Virtual Tour/Sunday 1-5 p.m.

 

1207 N. Livingston Street
3 BD/3 BA single-family home
Agent: McEnearney Associates, Inc.
Listed: $889,900
Open: Virtual Tour

 

1101 S. Arlington Ridge Road #309
2 BD/2 BA, 1 half bath condo
Agent: Samson Properties
Listed: $735,000
Open: Virtual Tour/Saturday 1-3 p.m.

 

3625 10th Street N. #203
2 BD/1 BA condo
Agent: Keller Williams Realty
Listed: $615,000
Open: Sunday 2-4 p.m.

 

1016 S. Wayne Street #612
2 BD/ 2 BA, 1 half bath condo
Agent: Compass
Listed: $499,900
Open: Virtual Tour/Sunday 1-4 p.m.

Just Listed in Arlington

By ARLnow.com Sponsor

Just Listed highlights Arlington properties that just came on the market within the past week. This feature is written and sponsored by Andors Real Estate Group.

Another week of ramped up activity in Arlington!

Sellers are listing homes at a faster pace than buyers can ratify contracts despite strong showings, fantastic interest rates and beautiful weather. Buyers are still doing their part, with pending sales increasing for the past three weeks.

We’ve been hearing questions and concerns about local protests and how that may be impacting Arlington’s real estate market. We haven’t seen any direct impact on housing thus far but are closely watching current events as always.

Buyers — I encourage you to take a second look at properties that have been sitting on the market a little longer. Some of these are likely contemplating a price reduction and getting to them before that happens can spell huge opportunity. We’ve heard plenty of talk about how frequently price escalations occur — but they almost exclusively occur on newly listed homes, rarely on properties on the market for 2-3 weeks or longer.

There are currently 278 homes for sale in Arlington (256 last week). 137 are detached homes, 26 are townhouses/semi-detached, and 115 are condos.

Average days on market (DOM) is 41 and median DOM is 30. Average DOM dropped 19 days! This was helped by a number of properties going under contract that were listed many months ago as well as others being taken off market.

Sellers listed some 81 properties for sale this week. Buyers ratified 58 contracts, 30 of which were homes that had been on the market one week or less. Average DOM for ratified contracts this week was 16, and median 6!

The median list price of available properties is $1,087,000, while the average is $1,184,691. Last year for the same week, sellers listed 91 homes and buyers ratified 78 contracts. This was a huge drop last year from the previous week, and now we have the first time in many months that our 2020 activity is stronger than the 2019 data.

Click here to search currently available Arlington real estate. Call the Andors Real Estate Group today at (703) 203-1117 to talk more about buying or selling Arlington real estate. Below are eight homes that are new this week that I think you might like to check out.

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