real estate

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Lidl Opens Store at Arlington HQ — “Arlington finally has its first Lidl grocery store — it just happens to be pint-sized… the company took a little more than 1,000 square feet it was using as storage on the ground floor of its HQ to open Lidl Express, a convenience-sized store with a variety of convenience store staples and fresh food.” [Washington Business Journal]

Lee Highway Group Wants More Funding — “The Lee Highway Alliance is seeking what its president calls a modest increase in funding from the county government. But the budget proposed by County Manager Mark Schwartz is heading in the other direction.” [InsideNova]

Crystal City Condo Aiming for Record Sale — “With Amazon’s HQ2 on the way, the seller of Penthouse 3S at the Crystal Gateway Condominiums believes the time is right to go for a record… While $2 million might sound like a hefty number, DeHart stresses that inside DC limits, buyers pay nearly twice as much for Potomac views.” [Washingtonian]

Former ACPD Captain in the News — “The former police chief of Portsmouth, Va.” — Tonya Chapman, a former Arlington County Police captain and the first black woman to lead a municipal police department in Virginia — “says she was forced out by city leaders over resistance to her attempts to overhaul a department riven by racial tension.” [Washington Post]

Instagrammable Arlington Spots — Arlington tourism booster StayArlington has compiled a list of Instagram-friendly locations in the county. [StayArlington]

Nearby: Halal Butchery Approved — “A retail halal butcher shop that slaughters chickens on-site will be allowed to open in a small industrial area of Alexandria, despite strong opposition from nearby business owners and their patrons.” [Washington Post, Patch]

Flickr pool photo by Erinn Shirley

Listing of the Day: 1613 N. Harrison Street

By ARLnow.com Sponsor
1/6

Address: 1613 N. Harrison Street
Neighborhood: Tara/Leeway Heights
Listed: $975,000
Open: Saturday, March 30 and Sunday, March 31 from 1-4 p.m.

Walk to Westover Village from classic colonial nestled on an 8,500 square foot lot in the popular Tara neighborhood.

With the dining room open to both the kitchen and sunroom, the home provides excellent flow for daily living and entertaining. Doors from the sunroom lead to the private yard and patio while the carport is accessed from the kitchen door. The well-designed, renovated kitchen provides abundant storage in the cream colored cabinets and stainless appliances.

Just off the kitchen is a den with a bathroom that is ideal for guests. Upstairs there are three unusually large bedrooms and two renovated bathrooms. Wood floors on both levels enhance the warmth and character of the home. The focal point of the living room is the gas fireplace, flanked by windows and the room accommodates several seating areas.

The lower level rec room has a tile floor and is brightened by recessed lighting. A full bathroom on this level allows the room to double as guest space or a spot for sleepovers. Schools are McKinley Elementary, Swanson Middle School and Yorktown High School.

The location is ideal for commuting and many destinations are nearby. The bike path is a block away as is the large Lacey Woods Park and Walnut Hill Park. At Westover, the library, farmers market, shops and restaurants are very popular. The larger Lee-Harrison Center is also within walking distance and has two grocery stores, and a variety of shops and services.

Easy access to Crystal and Pentagon Cities, airport, Pentagon, Rosslyn-Ballston Business Corridor, Fort Myer and Foreign Service Institute. Back road access to Tysons is a plus.

The home has a recent roof, renovated kitchen and baths, fresh paint and even the ducts have been cleaned. The home is in pristine condition and awaits a savvy new owner.

Listed by:
Betsy Twigg
Associate Broker, Licensed in Virginia
McEnearney Associates
4720 Lee Highway
Arlington, Va 22207
703-967-4391
[email protected]
betsytwigg.com

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.

This year sure is flying by, isn’t it?

This marks our last Just Reduced column of March and, bam, April will be here in no time. Speaking of April, it’s an awesome month for some home-related bargains. In addition to typically boasting stellar weather for home viewings, a few household items typically reduced this time of year include:

  • Snow shovels and snow maintenance equipment. The snow is gone (hopefully) and now is the time for winter-related bargains!
  • Cleaning supplies. That’s right, it’s “spring cleaning time” and now is the time to load up on the cleaning supplies for the season (and beyond).
  • Easter-themed items. Easter is April 21 this year and shortly thereafter get ready for related items to be discounted upwards of 80 to 90 percent. Sure, you may not want to hang an Easter bunny all year round, but there may be some nice, non-super-Easter-y things you can snag for a steal.

And, of course, when you’re ready to find your home bargain, our team is always ready to help you GET MORE out of your transaction.

As of March 25, there are 152 detached homes, 19 townhouses and 91 condos for sale throughout Arlington County. In total, 7 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: National Home Ownership Up, Renting Down

By ARLnow.com Sponsor

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

Question: Is it true that more people are choosing to rent than buy a home?

Answer: I’ve certainly been hearing this theory for a while now too — people are foregoing the American Dream of owning their own home for the ease and flexibility they get from renting. That’s usually paired with some scary data about how Millennials only rent and are ruining everything (see my August 2018 column about this topic). While that trend was true for most of the last 10-12 years, it’s proven false over the last two years.

Home Ownership Way Up, Renting Slightly Down

On a National level, the US Census Bureau is reporting a third straight year in increased home ownership with 2018 being by far the largest growth we’ve had in home ownership since 2004. The numbers of renters dropped for a second year in a row, the first drop in National rental rates since 2004.

Why The Sudden Change?

I believe there are two main reasons why the trends have reversed course over the last two years.

First, the majority of Millennials are finally of home-buying and settling down age and have had some time to build up a savings after taking on historically high amounts of student debt and graduating into a recessions/slow economy. I always laughed when I heard “experts” claim Millennials would never buy homes while most of them were under 30 and financially unprepared for a mortgage.

The second reason is the strong economy we’ve witnessed over the last few years that has finally led to higher income. Better pay and more job security will always lead to higher rates of home ownership.

What About Arlington?

As of 2016, the home ownership rate in Arlington was just 44.2%; well below the National (63.6%), Virginia (65.8%) and Greater Metro Area (63%) average ownership rate. Arlington home ownership has only increased by .3% since then.

I recently heard that 20% of Arlington’s population moves every year (most in the Country) so you can expect such a transient population to favor renting over ownership when compared to the rest of the country.

Given how expensive it is to live in Arlington, I don’t see the ownership rate increasing much over the next five years, which is a good thing because there’s already nowhere near enough homes for sale to support the current ownership rate.

If you’d like a question answered in my weekly column, please send an email to [email protected]. To read any of my older posts, visit the blog section of my website at www.EliResidential.com. Call me directly at (703) 539-2529.

Eli Tucker is a licensed Realtor in Virginia, Washington DC, and Maryland with Real Living At Home, 2420 Wilson Blvd #101 Arlington, VA 22201, (202) 518-8781.

Graphic via the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA)

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:

3116 N. Nelson Street
7 BR/6 BA, 1 half bath single-family home
Agent: Mcenearney Associates
Listed: $2,649,333
Open: Saturday 12-1 p.m.

 

1956 N. Vermont Street
5 BR/4 BA, 1 half bath single-family home
Agent: Washington Fine Properties, Llc
Listed: $1,450,000
Open: Sunday 2-4 p.m.

 

2550 Washington Boulevard
4 BR/3 BA single-family home
Agent: Xrealty.Net Llc
Listed: $935,000
Open: Sunday 2-4 p.m.

 

2800 1st Place S.
4 BR/2 BA, 1 half bath single-family home
Agent: Fairfax Realty Select
Listed: $779,100
Open: Sunday 1-4 p.m.

 

1530 Key Boulevard #131
2 BR/1 BA condo
Agent: Keller Williams Realty
Listed: $529,000
Open: Saturday 1-3 p.m.

 

2301 25th Street S. 4-105
2 BR/2 BA single-family home
Agent: Redfin Corporation
Listed: $423,000
Open: Sunday 1-4 p.m.

 

4614-B 28th Road S. B
2 BR/1 BA single-family home
Agent: Exp Realty, Llc
Listed: $349,900
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.”

WooHoo! Let the games begin.

The Spring Equinox has ushered in a frenzy of spring activity with 80 fresh new listings and 70 ratified contracts. A full half of those, 35 exactly, sold within seven days on the market.

That should make both buyers and sellers very happy, although there are many stories of bidding wars and sad buyers who missed out. The craziest story, outside of Arlington, was 61 offers on a fixer-upper townhouse in Dumfries.

The Federal Reserve announced good news for buyers. It won’t raise its short term rate for the foreseeable future. The Fed views the economy as slowing down slightly and doesn’t want to impede growth with rate hikes. That move immediately sent mortgage interest rates lower a full 1/8%. So now a 30-yr fixed rate tops out at 4.375%.

It’s a great time to buy, and to sell.

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

Real Estate Near Crystal City is Hot — “In the 22202 ZIP code — which comprises Crystal City, Pentagon City, Aurora Hills, Aurora Highlands and Arlington Ridge — there are only 11 homes for sale right now, according to Realtor.com. Only three are single-family homes. The rest are condos.” [Washington Business Journal]

Escape Room Nearing Opening — Bond’s Escape Room in Clarendon says it will open in about two months. “I’m happy with the way it’s coming along!” said founder Egor Bondarev. [Instagram]

Circulator Bus Now Free — Rides on the D.C. Circulator bus are now free indefinitely, Mayor Muriel Bowser announced Monday. The bus line has a stop in Rosslyn. [Fox 5]

Transportation Partners Honored — “On March 19, the Arlington County Board honored 31 local businesses and properties for their dedication to sustainable transportation for employees and tenants, as part of Arlington Transportation Partners’ (ATP) Champions program.” [Arlington County]

Seven Freed From Stuck Metro Station Elevator — “Firefighters freed seven people trapped in an elevator at the Crystal City Metro station Wednesday morning, according to a report.” [Patch, Twitter]

Politico Owner Launching New Tech Site — “Robert Allbritton, the executive chairman of private equity firm Perpetual Capital and publisher of [Rosslyn-based] Politico, is preparing to launch a global technology news site, the latest sign of growing investment in tech coverage across American journalism.” [NBC News]

Nearby: Halal Butchery Opposed in Alexandria — “Though city staff and Alexandria’s planning commission recommended approving DC Poultry Market’s application, dog lovers showed up to the Alexandria City Council’s March 16 meeting to object on olfactory grounds (‘My dog can smell when there’s a cookie down the block,’ one resident said) and on proximity to poultricide (‘Knowing that my dogs may be walked by a business that holds chickens in a windowless room before their throats are slit while fully conscious does not make me feel that my dogs are in a safe environment,’ another said).” [Washingtonian]

Flickr pool photo (originally published in 2016) by Kevin Wolf

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!

What happens at 5:58 p.m. today?

It’s springtime! Adios Old Man Winter and hello to one of my favorite seasons of the year here in Arlington. Okay, so it looks like we’ll be easing into the spring season with temps in the mid-50s, but still. There are warm and sunny days ahead.

Speaking of sunny days ahead, we’re seeing some significantly discounted homes for this week’s edition of Just Reduced, including a couple options reduced more than $100,000. It looks like some homeowners are starting their spring cleaning a bit early and are looking to sell quickly.

If something catches your fancy or if there is a property you’ve had your eye on for some time, let’s get rolling and GET MORE out of your transaction. Before we know it, the pleasant temps will be gone, the kids will be out of school and a good chunk of folks will be looking for a new home before the next school year.

As of March 18, there are 142 detached homes, 22 townhouses and 94 condos for sale throughout Arlington County. In total, 15 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: Amazon Housing Impact Check-in

By ARLnow.com Sponsor

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

Question: Has there been an increase in the number of homeowners putting their home on the market after Amazon’s decision to move to Arlington?

Answer: For me, this was the big unknown — would the announcement of Amazon HQ2 cause homeowners to quickly put their homes up for sale to take advantage of a higher resale value or would those owners decide to hold on for the mid/long run, hoping for a much greater return 5-10+ years from now? The early data in Arlington and Alexandria suggests a preference for the latter.

New Listings Way Down

The easiest way to answer the question is to look at the Year-over-Year change in the number of new listings to hit the market each month. Over the last three months, the YoY difference in new listings in Arlington has been -11%, -18.4% and -13.9%. The City of Alexandria has followed a similar pattern.

Months of Supply… Also Way Down

Months of Supply is a supply/demand reading that tells you how many months it would take for all the homes currently on the market (supply) to sell, given the current rate of sales (demand). Economists generally consider six months of supply to represent a well-balanced real estate market for both buyers and sellers.

Arlington and the City of Alexandria have hovered around 2-3 months of supply for most of the past 6-7 years, having never dropped below the one-month mark for 10+ years… until December 2018, when the two combined to average about .75 months of supply each of the last three months.

What Does This Mean For Northern Virginia?

You can shield the Seven Kingdoms from White Walkers by stacking up all of the frustrated buyers searching in Arlington and Alexandria.

Some may decide to pass on buying a home and continue renting, find a way to make their existing homes work, or move out of the area altogether, but many others will start to look further west for value (it’s there, trust me). Expect to see an immediate spillover into Annandale, Falls Church and Springfield; that shift has already started with many of our clients.

If you’d like a question answered in my weekly column, please send an email to [email protected]. To read any of my older posts, visit the blog section of my website at www.EliResidential.com. Call me directly at (703) 539-2529.

Eli Tucker is a licensed Realtor in Virginia, Washington DC, and Maryland with Real Living At Home, 2420 Wilson Blvd #101 Arlington, VA 22201, (202) 518-8781.

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:

3810 N. Randolph Court
4 BR/3 BA, 1 half bath villa/townhouse
Agent: Washington Fine Properties, Llc
Listed: $1,749,000
Open: Sunday 2-4 p.m.

 

4012 Nelly Custis Drive
4 BR/3 BA single-family home
Agent: Avery-Hess Realtors
Listed: $1,149,000
Open: Sunday 2-4 p.m.

 

1821 N. Quesada Street
3 BR/3 BA single-family home
Agent: Washington Fine Properties, Llc
Listed: $934,000
Open: Sunday 2-4 p.m.

 

3232 13th Street S.
2 BR/2 BA single-family home
Agent: Re/Max Premier
Listed: $825,000
Open: Saturday 12-2 p.m.

 

1633 N. Colonial Terrace #204
2 BR/2 BA, 1 half bath condo
Agent: Long & Foster Real Estate, Inc
Listed: $649,900
Open: Sunday 1-3 p.m.

 

3362 S. Wakefield Street A
2 BR/2 BA condo
Agent: Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage
Listed: $499,000
Open: Sunday 1-4 p.m.

 

1050 N. Taylor Street 1-311
1 BR/1 BA condo
Agent: Century 21 Redwood Realty
Listed: $385,000
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.”

Right on cue, the inventory floodgates opened this week.

It must be mid-March. That’s when traditional wisdom says it’s time to list your home, the spring market is here, and the buyers are out shopping.

This week sellers listed 70 homes giving buyers the most amount of choices so far this year. And buyers stepped up and ratified 57 contracts, some 19 of those were on homes that were listed for seven days or less. Arlington currently has only 239 homes actively for sale.

At this pace of absorption, that is only one month of inventory meaning if no more homes came on the market, all homes would be sold in one month. It’s also known as an extreme sellers’ market.

Here’s the craziest story heard this week: a $185,000 townhouse in Lorton listed “As Is” attracted 55 offers! It was on the market for five days.

This kind of market attracts every kind of buyer, and we are especially seeing more investors and flippers than usual. They are attracted to homes in need of much work and TLC, the kind of homes that scare away first-time home buyers and are too much work for end users who want fully updated conditions, even in vintage 1920’s-30’s homes. Whatever kind of buyer you may be, prepare for battle. The competition is brutal.

Mortgage rates continued to be kind to buyers this week with no major changes. The 30-yr fixed rate remains at 4.375%-4.5%. Helping to drive buyer activity is available credit. Lenders are flush with cash. So, there is a wide variety of liberal loan programs for all types of buyers enabling much lower down payments than we’ve seen in over 10 years.

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

View More Stories