Feature

Ask Eli: Are Appraisal Values Keeping Up With Sale Prices?

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: Given the recent appreciation in real estate values, are you seeing more homes appraise for less than the sale price?

Answer: As we saw in last week’s column, the Arlington real estate market has appreciated rapidly over the last six months which increases the chances that an Appraiser cannot find past sales to support the price the buyer and seller have agreed to, thus increasing the amount of low appraisals in Arlington over the last six months (unfortunately there’s no data to back that up so it’s based on what I’ve seen and heard in the market).

Generally, appraisal values lag behind actual market appreciation by a few months.

Banks Often Require Appraisals

If a buyer is getting a mortgage, the bank almost always requires a third-party appraisal to assess the property’s market value. While one can easily make the argument that the price the buyer and seller have agreed to is the market value, banks don’t look at it that way, hence the third-party appraisal.

Appraisals are largely based on comparable home sales over the last six months. It’s a common myth that Appraisers can only use sales from the last six months, but more recent sales are given more weight than sales 6+ months ago. Ultimately, it’s the Appraisers job to determine the market value of a home using the best available information.

Impact Of A Low Appraisal

If the appraised value comes in at or above the purchase price, all is good in the eyes of the bank so things continue as planned (note: a higher appraised value has no impact on your assessed value for tax purposes).

If the appraised value is lower than the purchase price, the bank usually requires you to negotiate a reduced sale price to match the appraised value or put more money down to cover the difference between the sale price and appraised value, multiplied by your loan-to-value (LTV) ratio. In some cases, you can also change the type of loan you’re using to satisfy the bank.

The easiest way to calculate LTV is subtract your down payment percentage from 100%. In other words, if you’re putting 20% down, your LTV is 80%. If there’s a $10,000 difference between the sale price and appraised value, you’ll usually be required to bring an extra $8,000 ($10,000*.8) to the table.

All of this can change depending on your loan program and down payment, so it’s important to understand the impact a low appraisal will have on your deal prior to making an offer.

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‘Coding Dojo’ Moves from Tysons to Rosslyn

By Vernon Miles

Sponsored by Monday Properties and written by ARLnow.com, Startup Monday is a weekly column that profiles Arlington-based startups and their founders, plus other local technology happenings. The Ground Floor, Monday’s office space for young companies in Rosslyn, is now open. The Metro-accessible space features a 5,000-square-foot common area that includes a kitchen, lounge area, collaborative meeting spaces, and a stage for formal presentations.

There is no actual karate on the grounds of Coding Dojo, but the program does hope to help coders learn to chop through digital obstacles.

Coding Dojo is a boot camp for teaching coding with locations set up across the country. Bobby Bethea, Program Success Manager for Coding Dojo, said its new D.C. area location at Eastern Foundry coworking space (1100 Wilson Blvd) in Rosslyn is a relocation of an original location in Tysons.

“Arlington has always been on our radar,” Bethea said. “The idea to relocate the campus to Arlington was determined after a former student, now a staff member, developed an API which pulled the zip codes from existing applications submitted to Coding Dojo. Once pulled, the zip codes were organized to display a heat map.”

Bethea said the heat map showed that most of the applications were coming from Arlington, so when the lease expired, the school moved closer to the students.

Bethea also said the announcement of Amazon’s move to Arlington also played a role in the move; opening up a new market for Coding Dojo alumni.

“It did factor into our decision to move to Arlington because at the end of the day, our ability to help graduates find jobs is the most important aspect of our business,” Bethea said.

The Arlington location, like the others, teaches Python, MEAN, and C#/.NET. Bethea said the program is designed to be beginner-friendly and to fit with developers of various experience levels.

The 14-week program costs $13,495, though the company offers various payment plans, financing, and scholarships.

“Our dynamic curriculum was first developed in 2008 as an internal training program for small software engineering teams — the first in the industry,” Bethea said. “Ever since, we’ve constantly refined the curriculum and have trained thousands of students to either become developers or refine their skill sets. Today, we provide students with a veteran curriculum, that is proven to work as the most effective approach to training both experienced developers and students new to coding.”

Photo via Facebook/Coding Dojo

Take Taco Tuesday to New Heights at Don Tito — A Classic Cantina With a Killer View

By ARLnow.com Sponsor

This content was written and sponsored by The Keri Shull Team, Arlington’s top producing residential real estate team.

If you’re a Taco Tuesday fan, then you need to check out Don Tito’s.

This three-story Clarendon gem specializes in tacos, tequila and having a good time. The Keri Shull Team’s Chris Clark recently sat down with Don Tito’s owner Scott Parker to talk tacos, tequila and what it’s like to party with the Stanley Cup!

Elevating Taco Tuesday… Literally

Don Tito is serious about tacos. From classics like pollo asado to their own unique creations like the fried chicken BLT or surf and turf, there’s a taco for every taste! And since their menu is particularly taco-centric, it’s no wonder that Taco Tuesday is a big deal!

The third floor rooftop bar at Don Tito is the perfect Taco Tuesday environment, and they take the day to new heights with a DJ, free cotton candy and popcorn, deals on tacos and tequila, and even hookah! Of course, it doesn’t have to be Tuesday for you to get the most out of your Don Tito’s experience. 

With three stories to explore, Don Tito has something for everyone. Their first floor has open access to the bustling street via large open windows and doors. The second floor has an electrifying dance party scene. And the rooftop bar is the perfect open-air space to hang out and get a great view of Clarendon.

Let’s Taco ’bout the Stanley Cup

Fun fact: the first place that the Washington Capitals went after winning the Stanley cup wasn’t in D.C., it was Don Tito! The team has long picked Don Tito’s for events like their preseason dinners, but it was a shock to Scott Parker when he got a call that the first spot on the Stanley Cup’s tour was his bar!

If you’re looking for a great place with amazing tacos that’s Cap’s approved, there’s no place better than Don Tito.

Want to live in a Clarendon or other incredible Arlington neighborhoods, surrounded by amazing spots like this? Contact The Keri Shull Team at 703-952-7653 or [email protected] and we’ll help you find your next new home!

Your Beermonger: Embracing Your Inner Seasonal Creep

By ARLnow.com Sponsor

This sponsored column is written by Nick Anderson, beermonger at Arrowine (4508 Lee Highway). Sign up for Nick’s email newsletter and also receive exclusive discounts and offers.

Can it be that time already? Oh, it can, dear reader, and it is. I’ve already received some fall seasonal beers and the flood gates are about to open in earnest.

I’ve written about the concept of seasonal creep before, but the older I get, the less I seem to care about it. Is it a little absurd that I have two Oktoberfests in stock and one Pumpkin Ale already offered by the third week of July?

Sure, a little. But at the end of the day my policy is “Drink what you want when you want,” so I’m not sweating it too much. Except for that Pumpkin Ale; you’ll find it out there already, but too soon, man. Too soon.

What I’m doing today is giving a quick rundown of fall beers to keep an eye on, both those available now and ones on the way that I think are notable. Let’s start with what you can find on shelves right now: Sierra Nevada’s Oktoberfest landed in Virginia last week, and I’ll take any version of that anytime they want to offer it.

Every year of Sierra Oktoberfest has seen it pair up with a different German brewery to offer a different take on the style; this year, it’s Bitburger, which brought its house yeast and proprietary hop blend out of its brewery for the first time ever for the occasion. The result is a tick sharper than last year’s (made with Weihenstephaner), but very tasty and as good now as it’ll be when the weather turns.

Also in stock now is the Oktoberfest from Von Trapp Brewing in Vermont. Von Trapp’s Lagers are excellent across the board, so it’s no surprise this is tasty. What I like is the judicious use of darker malts, contributing to a color that is coppery rather than brown, along with a lovely caramel note.

I don’t like to play the FOMO card, but if you’re a Von Trapp fan, the word around the campfire is that the run of Oktoberfest that just hit Virginia is the only one we’ll see for the year. Purchase accordingly.

What’s on the way? Admitting a bias up front, I’ve always loved Port City Oktoberfest, which releases tonight at the brewery before hitting the market early next week. Around the middle of August we’ll see Atlas’ Festbier arrive. Lighter in color and body and using a blend of German and American hops, it’s definitely built for a more American audience but should be as fun and show as well as our favorites from the DC brewery.

Around the end of August/beginning of September, we should see the return of one of my old favorites — the Hofstetten Original Hochzeitzbier von 1810. This brew aspires to revive the style of Märzen that would’ve been served during the days of festivities surrounding Crown Prince Ludwig II’s wedding in 1810 — the first Oktoberfest. The best part? We’re getting cans of it this year!

What fall beers are you looking forward to? Let me hear it in the comments; you always do (he said, smiling).

Until next time.

Upcoming Events at Arrowine:

Saturday, 8/10, 1-4 p.m. — ANXO Cidery
Friday, 8/16, 5-7 p.m. — Rafael Mendoza of Hardywood Brewing Company
Friday, 8/23, 5-7 p.m. — Richard Hartogs of Rocket Frog Brewing Company
Saturday, 8/24, 3-6 p.m. — Frankie Quinton of Atlas Brewing Company
Friday, 8/30, 5-7 p.m. — Stephanie Boles from Old Ox Brewing
Saturday, 9/21, 1-4 p.m. — Devon Callan of Reason Beer Company

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:

2320 N. Vernon Street
5 BD/4 BA, 1 half bath single-family home
Agent: Mcenearney Associates, Inc
Listed: $1,850,000
Open: Sunday 1-4 p.m.

 

1408 N. Abingdon Street
5 BD/3 BA single-family home
Agent: KW Metro Center
Listed: $1,319,000
Open: Saturday 2-4 p.m.

 

6001 1st Street N.
5 BD/3 BA, 1 half bath single-family home
Agent: Weichert Realtors
Listed: $949,000
Open: Sunday 1-4 p.m.

 

1053 N. Stafford Street #18B
3 BD/2 BA condo
Agent: Keller Williams Realty
Listed: $767,000
Open: Sunday 1-4 p.m.

 

3800 Fairfax Drive #314
2 BD/2 BA condo
Agent: Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage
Listed $ 638,000
Open: Sunday 2-4 p.m.

 

3023 S. Buchanan Street
1 BD/ 2 BA condo
Agent: Berkshire Hathaway Homeservices Penfed Realty
Listed: $499,000
Open: Sunday 1-4 p.m.

 

2607 Arlington Boulevard #49
2 BD/ 1 BA condo
Agent: Long & Foster Real Estate, Inc
Listed: $309,500
Open: Sunday 1-3 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 Team Cathell, “Your Orange Line Specialists.”

Like the weather, Arlington’s real estate market remains hot hot hot with buyers ratifying 57 contracts this week.

Sellers were busy taking a siesta and listed only 41 homes. Shame on them. We need more inventory!

Don’t get excited about the Federal Reserve cutting its short-term bank rate on Wednesday by a quarter point. That doesn’t effect mortgage rates. The Fed move signals its perception that the economy is slowing and the cut is intended to stimulate the economy.

U.S. gross domestic product dropped from 3.1% in the first quarter to 2.1% in the second quarter. The Fed cited a general global economic slowdown and the effects of the U.S.-China trade war on our economy. Our mortgage rates have remained virtually unchanged with the 30-yr fixed rate currently at 3.875% with no points.

Condo owners should be thrilled to learn that the average sales price of a condo in North Arlington increased 10.7% in July over the same month last year. The average price of a condo went from $488,555 to $541,171.

Single family homes didn’t fare as well. The average price of a detached home in North Arlington increased about 2.8% over last July. The average price of a detached home in North Arlington is now $1,076,613.

We discussed trees last week, and it’s important to know your rights regarding trees that sit on a property line. If any part of a tree trunk straddles a property line between homes, an owner must obtain written permission from their neighbor before cutting it down. You can trim branches on your side but can’t cut the entire tree down without your neighbor’s permission.

Of course, if the entire tree trunk is on your side of the property line, you have the full right to cut it down unless it has been designated by you or a previous owner as a county certified heritage or memorial tree.

Click to see all the fresh new inventory in MRIS and call Team Cathell (703-975-2500) when you find a home you like.

Boring Title: Close With Mike and You’ll Never Be Madigan

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.

For this week’s edition of Boring Title we’re switching things up. Instead of our usual interview with a real estate professional, we are excited to introduce our new video series featuring our sales & marketing specialist at Allied Title & Escrow — Mike Madigan.

We wanted to mimic our company culture of being different, innovative, & fun. We hope you enjoy the video, and stay tuned… it only gets better! #CloseWithMikeAndYoullNeverBeMadigan!

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: Roux

By ARLnow.com
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This week’s Arlington Pet of the Week is Roux.

Here’s what Roux has to say about having a new home here in Arlington:

There was a horrible flood in spring of 2017 in my hometown of Iberia Parish, Louisiana, and someone found me in the floodwater as a kitten. I was taken to the pound and was about to be put down when my forever family found me and took me home with them to Arlington, VA. 

They didn’t know at the time that I would try to impress them with my fluffy bottlebrush tail, nightly jailbreaks into the apartment building hallway, munching on the houseplants, and constant purrs and snuggles. I even like to show off my parkour skills and try to open the apartment door by jumping on it! I also enjoy chasing fake rats around the house in my cat castle and bothering my brother and sister as they try to nap on the couch. 

My family named me Roux as an homage to my Louisiana roots, but my aunt would often ask if I was being a “muffin” (sweet) or a “puffin” (feisty) on any given day. So most who meet me today call me Puffin!

Keep up with me on instagram by following @MuffinOrPuffin!

Want your pet to be considered for the Arlington Pet of the Week? Email [email protected] with a 2-3 paragraph bio and at least 3-4 horizontally-oriented photos of your pet. Please don’t send vertical photos, they don’t fit in our photo galleries!

Each week’s winner receives a sample of dog or cat treats from our sponsor, Becky’s Pet Care, along with $100 in Becky’s Bucks. Becky’s Pet Care is the winner of eight consecutive Angie’s List Super Service Awards, the National Association of Professional Pet Sitters’ 2013 Business of the Year and a proud supporter of the Arlington County Pawsitively Prepared Campaign.

Becky’s Pet Care provides professional dog walking and pet sitting in Arlington and all of Northern Virginia, as well as PetPrep training courses for Pet Care, CPR and emergency preparedness.

Arts Focus: County and Local University Showcase Arlington Artists in Open-Call Exhibit

By ARLnow.com Sponsor
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This column is written and sponsored by Arlington Arts / Arlington Cultural Affairs, a division of Arlington Economic Development.

Arlington artists Emma Cregan and Johab Silva were selected to be showcased in the Arlington Open Call 2019 Exhibition, opening Friday, September 6 (reception: 6-8 p.m.) through Saturday, November 2 at Cody Gallery at Marymount University, 1000 North Glebe Road, 2nd Floor, Arlington, Virginia, 22201

The all Arlington juried exhibition continues as a tradition that Arlington Cultural Affairs Division started over 20 years ago.  In collaboration with Marymount’s Cody Gallery, Arlington Arts invited artists who live, work or have a studio in Arlington to apply.

Each of the two selected artists will each receive a $500 honorarium. This exhibition was juried by: Meaghan Kent, Director of Cody Gallery, Marymount University; Cynthia Connolly, Special Projects Curator, Arlington, Virginia and Dawne Langford, independent curator, artist and filmmaker from the Washington, D.C. area.

The work of Cregan and Silva intersect at various points visually and conceptually. Emma Cregan’s stop motion videos “Escaping Blade,” “Escaping Soil” and “Escaping Surface” are experimentations of long shutter speeds. The images are captured fragments re-interpreted with the use of light, allowing our perception of the environment and reality to become abstracted.

Johab Silva’s paintings on panel are inspired from his travels to the Amazon rainforest and the impact of human presence and the environment. The artist will also create a site specific installation in the University stairwell with lightweight plastic materials. Together, the work of these artists allow us to slow down and re-interpret the environment around us.

Emma Cregan’s work explores the space between the digital and intangible. Cregan studied animation at Virginia Commonwealth University’s Kinetic Imaging program, where she created several short films using puppets and other stop-motion techniques. Her animations focused on family history led to an internship at the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage.

While working at the Smithsonian, she created short videos and wrote articles about the importance of culture and how traditional knowledge remains relevant in the 21st century. Her interest in cultural heritage led to an internship with The Maa Trust, a non-profit in the Maasai Mara working to establish harmony between community development and environmental conservation. Cregan created short video pieces showcasing their efforts to economically empower Maasai women.

Her experiences with the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage and The Maa Trust inspired her to create art focused on intangibility. She is drawn to animation because it is an exaggeration and distortion of reality. The visuals created are simultaneously familiar and alien, opening the audience’s mind to see the world from a different perspective. Through the distortion of the world created by animation, we can better understand unique perceptions of reality.

Johab Silva is a native Brazilian who has lived and worked in Washington, D.C. since 2008. He holds a Masters’ Degree in Art Education from Corcoran College of Art and Design. Silva’s ongoing research explores themes of appropriation, materiality, space and environmental issues.

His work has been exhibited nationally and internationally including The Corcoran Gallery of Art, Transformer Gallery, Miami Art Palace and the Santo Andre Museum of Art. His work has been published in The Washington Post, Art in America and Sculpture Magazine.

Arlington Cultural Affairs, a division of Arlington Economic Development, which delivers public activities and programs as Arlington Arts. Our mission is to create, support and promote the arts, connecting artists and community to reflect the diversity of Arlington.

We do this by: providing material support to artists and arts organizations in the form of grants, facilities and theater technology; integrating award-winning public art into our built environment; and presenting high quality performing, literary, visual and new media programs across the County.

Cody Gallery is a contemporary art space created as a platform to support the arts and strengthen the arts community at Marymount University and the greater Washington DC area. Exhibitions present work by local, regional and international artists in order to provide groundbreaking and thought-provoking work for the community to experience.

Events, including artist talks and lectures, are available for students at Marymount University and the general public at large.

For more info on the exhibit, visit www.marymount.edu/codygallery, or www.arlingtonarts.org.

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 licensed broker Aaron Seekford of Arlington Realty, Inc. GET MORE out of your real estate investment with Aaron and his team by visiting www.arlingtonrealtyinc.com or calling 703-836-6116 today!

Please note: While Aaron Seekford provides this information for the community, he may not be the listing agent of these homes.

Well here we are, parents: The end of July is upon us.

Before we all know it, the kiddos will be back to school. For Arlington County Public Schools, the first day of school is September 3. So, you’ve got a little more than a month left. For many families, a summer goal is to settle into a new home before the school year starts. And, while time is certainly ticking on Summer 2019, there is still time to achieve that goal.

While our market is absolutely booming (thanks in large part to its historical stability and the recent Amazon HQ2 news), there are folks out there looking to sell as quickly as you may be looking to buy.

When you are ready to get moving (and get moving quickly!) — whether it’s ahead of the school year or not — our team is always ready to help you GET MORE out of your transaction.

As of July 29, there are 133 detached homes, 15 townhouses and 93 condos for sale throughout Arlington County. In total, 21 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 Aaron Seekford.

Ask Eli: Mid-Year Arlington Real Estate 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: How did the Arlington real estate market perform in the first half of 2019?

Answer: I am excited to announce the first of many collaborations with Jeannette Chapman, Deputy Director and Senior Research Associate, at the Stephen S. Fuller Institute at George Mason University to bring you deeper, more insightful analysis of the Arlington housing market.

The Fuller Institute conducts incredible research and analysis on the Greater Washington regional economy and I’d encourage you to subscribe to their monthly Washington Economy Watch reports. Jeannette is an Arlingtonian and housing data junkie, which means even better market insights for ARLnow/Ask Eli readers!

Inventory Down, Prices Up

Amazon announced they were moving their second headquarters to Arlington in November 2018 and there has been year-over-year double-digit decreases in homes listed for sale in each of the seven months from December through June, topping out with a 29.5% drop in April 2019 compared to April 2018. I think this is due to owners deciding to hold out for more gains once Amazon employees start showing up.

The shortage in housing inventory forced buyers to compete for homes, resulting in 46.1% of homes selling for more than the asking price in the first half of 2019, compared to an average of 26.5% going over ask during the previous five years.

Less inventory combined with shifts in demand (buyers moving their timelines up and new investors entering the market) led to price increases across Arlington in the first half of 2019, compared to the first half of 2018, by an average of 4.6% and median 8.8%.

This does not mean that all homes in Arlington are worth 5-9% more than they were this time last year — some sub-markets are up more while others haven’t experienced the “Amazon-effect” yet.

To get a more accurate picture of what’s happening in our housing market, we separated the data into smaller sub-markets. Townhomes aren’t included because there’s not enough volume to produce good data and we left out the 22202 zip code, which makes up the Crystal City/Pentagon City area (aka most of National Landing), because it’s a very different market than the rest of the County and requires its own analysis in a future column.

We chose to remove new construction, age-restricted housing and Cooperatives. Finally, the time period is based on when a property actually went under contract instead of when it closed.

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