real estate

New Homes in Arlington: December 13

By ARLnow.com Sponsor

Welcome to New Homes, a biweekly column highlighting the new construction real estate market, written by Conor Sullivan and Dave Moya of Three Stones Residential at Keller Williams Realty. We are here to share our experience and expertise in lot acquisition, financing and construction of custom homes. 

It has been 13 months since Amazon made their announcement that they had selected Arlington as the location for its second headquarters, or HQ2. The impact that this has had on Arlington County and Northern Virginia as a whole has been felt by all in the housing market.

In a recent article, Realtor.com reported that the median listing price in Arlington County reached $863,000 in October, up almost 33% year over year. While listing prices increase, the number of Active listings is falling, down 49% year over year in October. Some of this is likely due to homeowners holding out on selling their home in anticipation that prices will only continue to rise, contributing to the low inventory issues.

Additionally, we are seeing the days on market timelines drop, making it difficult for potential buyers to even get in line to get their offer in. October’s average days on market in Arlington was around 19, down almost 39% from October 2018.

We live in one of the nation’s hottest and competitive housing markets right now. Investors have already and continue to swoop in to purchase homes quickly, putting local potential buyers in a tough position, especially first-time home buyers. So what does this mean for you if you’re looking to buy or sell a home in Arlington or the surrounding counties? We are here to help! Contact us today for a free buyer consultation or to set up a listing appointment, 571-429-7670 or [email protected].

Below is a list of new homes in the Arlington area:

Want to learn more about financing a New Home build? McLean Mortgage (NMLS ID: 99665) can handle all of your construction financing needs. You can build your new home with as little as 5% down. Contact construction loan expert Troy Toureau (NMLS ID: 5618) at 301-440-4261 or AnyHomeLoans.com to learn more.

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:

314 N. Barton Street
4 BD/3 BA, 1 half bath single-family home
Agent: D.S.A. Properties & Investments Llc
Listed: $1,399,000
Open: Sunday 1-4 p.m.

 

5702 7th Street N.
5 BD/3 BA, 1 half bath single-family home
Agent: Kw Metro Center
Listed: $1,275,000
Open: Saturday 1-3 p.m.

 

1501 23rd Street S.
4 BD/3 BA single-family home
Agent: Real Living Reserve Realtors
Listed: $975,000
Open: Sunday 2-4 p.m.

 

5720 3rd Street S.
5 BD/3 BA single-family home
Agent:Kw Metro Center
Listed: $795,000
Open: Saturday 1-3 p.m.

 

3600 S. Glebe Road, 223W
2 BD/2 BA condo
Agent: Compass
Listed: $649,990
Open: Saturday 1-3 p.m.

 

1024 N. Utah Street, #721
2 BD/2 BA condo
Agent: Kw Metro Center
Listed: $550,000
Open: Saturday 1-3 p.m.

 

3800 Lee Highway, #206
1 BD/1 BA condo
Agent: Samson Properties
Listed: $434,900
Open: Sunday1-4 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 Team Cathell, “Your Orange Line Specialists.”

You know it’s holiday shopping season when there’s total gridlock on the roads within five miles of any shopping center.

Us consumers are doing our part to keep the economy humming along. Buying and selling homes is not typically a priority for most people this time of year. But homes must be on their shopping list.

Buyers ratified an amazing 44 contracts this week, and sellers listed 33 homes. Those are good numbers this close to the holidays.

Not to put any pressure on you buyers out there, but the spring real estate market starts the second week of January. Check the calendar. That’s only three weeks away. That means you have a window of opportunity of just three weeks to find the right home, negotiate relatively aggressively and ratify a contract. In three weeks, buyers will be out in volume with limited inventory and the battles will begin. So quickly finish your holiday shopping and find the right house.

Realtor.com just issued its housing market forecast for 2020, and it’s mostly not good. Here are some key projections:

  • A relatively stagnant market with 1.8% fewer sales of existing home
  • A national median price increase of only 0.8%
  • 25 of 100 top US cities will experience a drop in average home prices
  • Weakened buyer affordability, and even lower inventory levels than today
  • Millennials will account for over 50% of home purchases for the first time ever
  • Gen Xers will follow with 38% of purchases, trailed by Boomers at 17%
  • About the only good news is mortgage rates will remain steady peaking at 3.85%

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

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Home Sale Prices Near HQ2 Drop — “Home prices in the neighborhoods where Amazon.com Inc. is setting up its second headquarters dipped to below pre-HQ2 prices for the first time since the company made the announcement just over a year ago. The median sale price for [the 22202 ZIP code] was $507,500 — a 12% drop from median prices in November 2018.” [Washington Business Journal, Twitter]

HQ2 May Help Balance Local Dating Scene — “For every 100 single, college-educated individuals in the Washington area, women outnumber men 53-47. And single women with college degrees are coming here at a faster clip than men in the same demographic, census data show… could Amazon’s expansion into Arlington import enough men to give some local women a statistically better shot at love?” [WAMU]

Big Emergency Response in Pentagon City — From Arlington County Police, regarding a large emergency response outside the Pentagon City mall around 8 p.m. last night: “Police responded to the report of a fight. One victim suffered minor injuries.” [Twitter, Twitter]

New Art Installation on ART Buses — “The latest Art on the ART Bus exhibit is up! The exhibit features seven letter-pressed placards that honor Arlington’s 60th anniversary of the seven lunch counter sit-ins from June 9 to June 22, 1960. The sit-ins were peaceful protests to challenge widespread segregation policies.” [Arlington Transit]

Nearby: Alexandria Also Ends Glass Recycling — “Alexandria will no longer collect glass curbside for recycling… Starting Jan. 15, if you’re hoping to get your glass recycled rather than just tossed out with the trash, you’ll have to take it down to the purple bins at one of four facilities in southern Alexandria.” [ALXnow]

Photo courtesy Dave Statter

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Lessons Learned from Amazon in Seattle — A local real estate agent traveled to Seattle to learn what Arlington can expect from Amazon’s arrival. Among the things Arlington might see, as Seattle did: a “restaurant boom” with lots of new eateries opening, and big property price increases over the course of several years. [NBC 4]

County May Extend Signature’s Annex Lease — The Arlington County Board this weekend is set to consider renewing Signature Theatre’s lease for the county-owned building at 3806 S. Four Mile Run Drive through 2032. The theater uses the building “for set, costume, and prop fabrication and storage and for general office purposes in connection with Signature’s stage productions at 4200 Campbell Avenue in Shirlington Village.” [Arlington County]

Arlington Chamber Has New Logo — “Introducing the Chamber’s NEW LOGO! We updated our logo this past year to better match the mission of our organization. The new design is intended to increase the prominence of Arlington & give the logo a more modern feel.” [Twitter]

Beyer on Impeachment, Trade Deal — Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) says the impending vote on impeaching President Donald Trump “is a sad moment for our country, and a solemn one.” Also, of the US-Mexico-Canada trade deal, Beyer said yesterday: “I will have the best interests of my constituents in mind as I evaluate the text of this agreement in days to come.” [Press Release, Press Release]

AWLA Recreates Viral Moment With Bunny — ” Days after Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan’s duct-taped banana artwork went viral with a whopping $120,000 sale price, a cute Arlington bunny has come along to give him a run for his money. Her latest masterpiece involves a tasty carrot duct-taped to a tiled wall.” [Patch]

Hope Named Chair of Public Safety Committee — “Del. Patrick Hope (D-Arlington) has been named chairman of the House Committee on Militia, Police and Public Safety… Hope, the most senior member of the Arlington delegation to the House of Delegates, was the only one of the four-member Arlington delegation to be tapped for a committee chairmanship.” [InsideNova]

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.

Count this as your official two-week heads-up… Christmas will be here in two weeks, y’all!

So, how is that shopping coming along?

More specifically, how many Nintendo Switches have you purchased? Any Instant Pots for the stragglers that didn’t get on board last year? Or, perhaps a Razor scooter or two (P.S., those were super-cool like a decade ago, too)?

Regardless, our team wishes you the best of luck with your holiday-related endeavors.

And, if a real estate gift is at the top of your wish list this year — whether buying or selling — we’re ready to jump into action on your behalf. While we’re certainly on the homestretch of 2019, it’s never too late to achieve those goals of yours.

And now, on to this week’s Just Reduced figures.

As of December 9, there are 112 detached homes, 22 townhouses and 78 condos for sale throughout Arlington County. In total, 10 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: Tips to Start Your Home Search

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: We are looking forward to buying our first home in 2020. Do you have any recommendations on how we should start the home buying process?

Answer: Google “home buyer tips” or “what to know before buying a home” and you’ll find plenty of advice on the topic, so I’ll include some suggestions I don’t see on most of those lists and also put my own spin on others that you have heard before.

Weighted Criteria

It’s easy to come up with 3-5 things that are most important to you, but challenge yourself early to come up with 12-15 things that are important to you. Then give yourself 100 points and allocate points to each based on how important they are to you and you’ll end up with a weighted criteria list to help you focus your search and objectively compare properties.

If you want to take it to the next level, bring your weighted criteria list with you on showings and score each house out of the total points allocated to it.

Length of Ownership

This is one of the most important conversations to have with yourself/your partner. You should focus on the following:

  1. Likely length of ownership
  2. Difference in criteria for a 3-5 year house vs a 10-12+ year house
  3. Difference in budget requirements for a 3-5 year house vs a 10-12+ year house

Appreciation is not guaranteed and difficult to predict, but the value of longer ownership periods is undisputed. One way longer ownership adds value is the potential for eliminating one or more real estate transactions, and the associated costs (fees, taxes, moving expenses, new furniture, etc) and stress that comes with moving, over the course of your lifetime.

If you have an opportunity to significantly increase your length of ownership by stretching your budget, it’s often justifiable. On the other hand, if your budget or future plans restrict you to housing that’s likely to be suitable for just 3-4 years (and buying now still makes sense), it’s generally better to stay under budget.

Influencers (not the Instagram ones)

Family, friends, colleagues… they’re all happy to offer opinions and contribute to your home buying process, but the input can be overwhelming and unproductive if you don’t set boundaries. Try to determine up-front who you want involved in the process and how you’d like them to be involved.

Think about how you’ve made other major decisions in life — what college to attend, what kind of car to buy, where to get married, whether to change jobs — and if you’re the type of person who likes input from your friends and family, you’ll likely do the same when buying a house. Plan ahead with those influencers so their input is productive.

(more…)

Neighborhood Spotlight: The Top Places to Live in Clarendon

By ARLnow.com Sponsor

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

Have you seen the heights of luxury living in Arlington? Let us show you the top places to live in Clarendon!

All of these condos offer the unique blend of urban and suburban living that comes with living in the D.C. area — it’s truly an environment unlike any other!

When you’re looking for a home, what are your “must-haves”? We’d love to hear from you, so let us know in the comments below!

Want to learn more about the best places to eat, play and live in Arlington? Check out the Keri Shull Team on YouTube to get the latest neighborhood guides!

Are you interested in moving to Clarendon, or any other unique neighborhood in D.C., Maryland, or Virginia? Contact The Keri Shull Team today to learn how we can help you find and win your dream home — for a price that you’ll love!

Do you know anyone looking to buy or sell a home in the DMV? We’d love for you to introduce us! Click here to contact us today.

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:

3612 N. Potomac Street
5 BD/4 BA, 1 half bath single-family home
Agent: Long & Foster Real Estate, Inc
Listed: $1,899,000
Open: Sunday 1-4 p.m.

 

1311 N. Highland Street
3 BD/2 BA single-family home
Agent: Optime Realty
Listed: $1,299,900
Open: Sunday 2-4 p.m.

 

4322 N. Old Glebe Road
3 BD/2 BA, 1 half bath single-family home
Agent: Buchanan & Groom Real Estate And Investment
Listed: $975,000
Open: Sunday 1-4 p.m.

 

3355 Kemper Road
3 BD/3 BA, 1 half bath villa/townhouse
Agent: Ttr Sotheby’s International Realty
Listed: $865,000
Open: Sunday 1-4 p.m.

 

5608 1st Street S.
4 BD/1 BA, 1 half bath single-family home
Agent: Long & Foster Real Estate, Inc
Listed: $749,999
Open: Sunday 1-3 p.m.

 

3200 13th Street S.
5 BD/3 BA single-family home
Agent: Weichert Realtors
Listed: $659,000
Open: Sunday 1-4 p.m.

 

4175 S. Four Mile Run Drive, A
3 BD/2 BA, 1 half bath condo
Agent: McEnearney Associates, Inc
Listed: $525,000
Open: 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 Team Cathell, “Your Orange Line Specialists.”

What a difference a year makes. While Arlington’s real estate market is still healthy, it’s not robust. With so much demand for housing in Arlington, you’d think buyers would be more active ratifying contracts. But they’re not, and it’s puzzling as to why.

Let’s put it in perspective. This week, buyers ratified only 26 contracts while sellers listed 36 homes. There are currently only 211 homes actively for sale. Mortgage interest rates are steady at 3.75% for a 30-yr fixed rate.

However a year ago this same week, buyers ratified 68 contracts, sellers listed just 24 homes, there were 350 homes for sale, and mortgage rates were 4.75%, a full one percent higher. Granted, buyers and investors may have been motivated by Amazon’s announcement two weeks earlier that it selected Arlington for its HQ2.

But with interest rates so low today, why aren’t more buyers out there ratifying contracts? Economists point to chronic low inventory, and certainly that’s a factor, but I don’t think that explains current buyer behavior. It may take a few more months of data for other factors to be detected.

The outlook is bleak. If we think the low inventory situation is bad now, economist point to worsening conditions over the next 20 years as our population grows and ages, and housing demand spikes. The current rate of home builders delivering more supply will lag far behind growing demand creating an even greater crisis for available housing. So these may be the good times right now. It’s hard to imagine that.

My advice to buyers: Get purposeful, make home buying a priority, select an assertive professional agent to help you not just FIND the home, but more importantly win the bidding war, and don’t be discouraged by failure. If you don’t focus on your mission, you will forever be a home shopper, and never a home buyer.

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

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.

How is that holiday shopping going?

With Thanksgiving officially in the books and the calendar reading “December,” it’s time to wrap up any outstanding shopping you have left. (Unless, of course, you’re one of those big-time procrastinators, then continue to do your thing.)

Amid shopping for your loved ones, now is not a horrible time to be thinking about bargains for your home as well.

If you’re in the market for a new TV or small appliances, your favorite uncle doesn’t have to be the only one getting a cool Christmas gift this year. Now is one of the best times of the year to purchase TVs, toaster ovens, blenders and seemingly everything in between.

For the handy folks out there, of course a new screwdriver set makes a great gift. But, you can probably use a new tool or two yourself for your handy work and December is a great time for saving some dough.

If all that remains on your holiday shopping list is a top-notch real estate team, Arlington Realty Inc. is ready to help you mark that one off the list when you’re ready, too.

And now on to this week’s numbers:

As of December 2, there are 117 detached homes, 24 townhouses and 75 condos for sale throughout Arlington County. In total, 12 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.

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