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Ask Eli: SNO-My God! I’m Selling My House in Two Feet of Snow!

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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: I just listed my home for sale and now it’s covered in two feet of snow. How bad is this?

It’s certainly not going to make selling your home easier and if you’re in the first 30 days of your listing (the most likely window to get a full offer), it’s a tough break, but hope is not totally lost. While showing activity and chances of receiving an offer will be low, internet search activity will be up. If your Realtor brought in a great photographer for some eye-catching pictures, this storm may actually help you sell your home by attracting extra attention online.

Tips:

  • Shovel walkways and parking. Make sure there are at least two clearly visible places to park.
  • If vacant, keep the heat running so your home is a pleasant place to escape the cold. This is good winterization practice to prevent pipes from bursting too.
  • Add a weather mat, shoe rack/mat, and a basket of shoe slipcovers to prevent dirt and water being tracked through your home.
  • If you’re taking listing photos now, don’t use an exterior photo with snow everywhere as your first picture unless it really works. Open with another appealing photo and consider taking new exterior photos once the snow melts.
  • Follow-up immediately with anybody who sees your property over the next week. Only the most serious, interested buyers are trekking out to properties right now.

During Snowmagedon Feb 5-6 2010, we got about 18 inches of snow. Here’s a look at the number of homes that went under contract before, during, and after that period. It took about 2 weeks for activity to pick back up to “normal” levels.

Homes Under Contract (Snowmageddon 2010)

On average, sellers took a 3.3% reduction from list price (including seller credits) on the 89 contracts from 2/5-2/20.

If you have the flexibility to wait another week to put your home on the market, it’s in your best interest to do so. You can consult your Realtor about using the Coming Soon feature for now, which allows you a limited listing without accruing days on market (key metric to maximize sale price).

Remember, you’re not the only house for sale in Arlington dealing with the impact of the blizzard, so the competitive playing field is (mostly) level. Good luck and stay strong. 45+ degree weather and sun are around the corner!

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 http://www.RealtyDCMetro.com.

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.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Snowy scene in Arlington (photo courtesy Bryanna Lansing)

Snowy Scenes in Arlington Make National TV — A number of national television outlets have used video of snowy streets and outdoor activities in Arlington during their coverage of the East Coast blizzard. [ABC News, Weather Channel]

Local TV Stations Cover Resident Complaints — Some Arlington residents have taken their complaints about the pace of snow removal on residential streets to the local TV stations. [Fox 5 DC, WUSA 9]

Groundhog Day at Aurora Hills Library — The 1993 Bill Murray classic Groundhog Day will be played “over and over again” at the Aurora Hills library branch on Tuesday, Feb. 2, starting at 1 p.m. [Arlington Public Library]

APS: Please Clear Your Sidewalks — In a letter to parents, Arlington Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Patrick Murphy urges Arlingtonians to clear sidewalks and bus stops in their neighborhood so that students can go back to school safely. APS is closed through at least Wednesday. Students have Monday off due to a regularly-scheduled grade preparation day. [Arlington Public Schools]

Photo courtesy Bryanna Lansing

Dominion Hills Neighbors Shovel Their Own Street

By ARLnow.com
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Tired of waiting for county plows to show up in their no-outlet residential street, a group of neighbors in Dominion Hills took matters into their own hands.

We’re told that neighbors banded together to shovel off N. Arlington Mill Drive, near Bon Air Park, all the way to Wilson Blvd.

As of early Tuesday morning, county snow crews had plowed 30 percent of residential streets, with a focus on especially hilly roads and streets near schools.

Clear Sailing on Local Highways This Morning

By ARLnow.com

Clear sailing on I-395 on 1/26/16If you have to drive to work today, your commute will at least be smooth once you get on the local highways.

Traffic volume on I-395, I-66 and Route 50 was relatively light this morning. Some delays were reported on I-395 at King Street earlier, possibly the result of snow clearing operations.

Every Metrorail line is running every 12 minutes except the Silver Line, which remains closed. WMATA was unable to open aboveground service on the Orange Line between East Falls Church and Vienna this morning, so Ballston is the Virginia end of the line.

Metrobuses are operating on a “severe snow plan” with half hour delays, while Arlington Transit service is operating on a Sunday schedule between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. with “severe service” detours. Only the ART 41, 42, 45, 51, 55 and 87 lines are running.

Arlington County snow removal crews, meanwhile, are making slow but steady progress on clearing neighborhood streets. Arlington’s Dept. of Environmental Services said this morning that 30 percent of residential streets had been plowed.

Federal Gov’t Closed Tuesday, County Gov’t to Open at Noon

By ARLnow.com

"Climbing snowy Mt. Clarendon" (photo courtesy James Mahony)Federal employees will get another day off Tuesday, but Arlington County government employees will be heading back to work.

The Office of Personnel Management announced Monday night that federal offices would remain closed Tuesday, though “emergency and telework-ready employees required to work must follow their agency’s policies.”

Arlington County government offices, facilities and courts — with the exception of General District Court — are scheduled to reopen at noon on Tuesday.

“Unscheduled leave and telework options are encouraged for County employees, with supervisor’s approval,” the county noted in a press release.

Arlington public libraries will open at noon on Tuesday, but children’s programs are cancelled. Many Arlington parks and recreation programs are also cancelled. Schools remain closed.

Trash and recycling collection, meanwhile, is also still suspended, but may resume on Wednesday.

County snow crews and contractors are continuing to work around the clock to clear snow and ice from local streets.

“County crews are now deep into Phase 3 of snow cleanup operations, focusing on residential streets,” the press release said. “In many areas, crews have had to bring in heavy construction equipment to break through snow/ice banks at the ends of streets so plows can get in.”

“The goal is to get to all neighborhood streets by Tuesday night but it may take until Wednesday, Jan. 27, to reach some sections given the amount of snowfall and related conditions, including buried parked cars,” the press release continues. “County officials are asking residents for continued patience as enormous amounts of snow are removed from roadways and, in many cases, transported miles away.”

The county’s snow removal ordinance remains suspended “because of the massive amounts of snow that fell on area sidewalks.”

“No citations will be issued during the cleanup,” the county said. “However, the goals behind the ordinance remain… so all efforts to clear sidewalks for the community are appreciated.”

Arlington’s Office of Emergency Management warned that an overnight refreeze could make for treacherous driving early Tuesday morning. “Please use extra caution,” OEM urged in an Arlington Alert.

Among the county officials getting back to work on Tuesday will be members of the Arlington County Board.

“The Arlington County Board will convene as scheduled Tuesday, Jan. 26, at 3 p.m.,” said the county press release. “It will defer consideration of both the January Consent and Regular Agendas to the Recessed Meeting now scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 28.”

Photo courtesy James Mahony

Some Stores Still Awaiting Shipments of Fresh Food Following Blizzard

By Tim Regan
1/3

Though the blizzard is long gone, some area grocery stores are still awaiting fresh shipments of milk, eggs, bread and meat to restock shelves stripped bare before and during the storm.

Shelves normally stocked with milk, eggs and bread were empty earlier this afternoon at the Safeway and Target stores on Wilson Boulevard in Rosslyn. Though employees at both stores declined to say much, they did say it may take another day before they can restock.

An employee at the Whole Foods at 2700 Wilson Boulevard said the store had just four cartons of eggs left, and a worker at Mom’s Organic Market (1901 N Veitch Street) said milk supplies were running low.

Some residents also have reported shortages of certain items at the Clarendon Trader Joe’s (1109 N Highland Street). Joe Flinchum, a supervisor at that location, said his store hasn’t received a delivery since last week.

“Our warehouse is really far away,” Flinchum said. “They’ve obviously been impacted by the weather just as we have. We may get a perishable food delivery tentatively tomorrow morning.”

But not every store in the area is out of fresh food.  An employee at the customer service desk of the Harris Teeter at 600 N Glebe Road said the store has everything except snow shovels and salt.

Arlington Public Schools to Remain Closed Wednesday

By ARLnow.com

Snowy school bus in January 2015Arlington Public Schools will remain closed Wednesday, the school system announced this afternoon.

Students last attended classes this past Wednesday, Jan. 20, before schools were closed on Thursday due to Wednesday night’s snowfall and traffic disaster. Schools remained closed Friday, in anticipation of the weekend blizzard, and have remained closed since.

School offices will be closed Tuesday, but may reopen Wednesday, APS said.

“Essential employees should report as scheduled,” the school system said. “School officials will announce the status of operations for buildings and offices on Tuesday afternoon.”

Here’s the Story Behind ACFD’s Snow-Shoveling T-Rex

By Tim Regan

As the snow piled up on Saturday, a video from the Arlington County Fire Department took off.

The video, tweeted out by the fire department around noon that day, showed a T-Rex clearing clearing snow from around a fire hydrant. The message was clear: If a predatory dinosaur with useless little arms can shovel snow, so can you.

But here’s a secret: that wasn’t a real T-Rex. And the video wasn’t filmed around here.

“The actual video was not filmed in Arlington,” said Jamie Jill, the Arlington firefighter who originally shared the clip. “It was at my sister’s home in Bethesda.”

And it was Jill’s nine-year-old niece Janelle who played the role of the “civically minded” lizard, he added.

“When she first went out in the suit, there were neighbors out shoveling their cars and everyone started laughing and taking pictures,” Jill said. “She actually didn’t want to do it because she was embarrassed. I had to bribe her with a present.”

Janelle wasn’t as embarrassed when she found out she made the news, Jill said.

“When I showed her the news reports, she said she was going to tell everyone at school,” he added.

Will we see more of the tiny T-Rex in the future? That all depends on whether Janelle will don the dinosaur suit again, Jill said. And if she won’t, he added that he “might have to get the fire department to purchase one.”

Morning Notes

By Tim Regan

Quincy park snowball fight

County Board Takes a Rare Snow Day — The Arlington County Board cancelled its Jan. 23 meeting due to the snow. Government officials can’t remember the last time a monthly meeting was called off on account of the weather. [InsideNova]

Snowfall Covers Graves at Arlington National Cemetery — Accumulating snow covered headstones at Arlington National Cemetery on Saturday. Army sentinels continued to guard the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier despite whiteout conditions. [Richmond Times-Dispatch]

Florida Teens Stuck in ‘Snowzilla’ — The monster blizzard stranded a group of Florida teenagers in Arlington all weekend. For many of them, it was their first real experience with snow. [WJLA]

Falls Church to Emulate Arlington’s Student Decal Competition —  The treasurer of Falls Church will copy Arlington’s student vehicle decal competition. Falls Church students stand to win $750, with lesser prizes for second, third and fourth place. [InsideNova]

Digging Out — From walking to work to dealing with limited Metro service, here’s how the D.C. area has coped with the remnants of the snow. [Washington Post]

Quincy Park snowball fight photo courtesy of John Kua

Major Roads Passable as County Enters ‘Phase 3’ of Snow Removal

By Tim Regan

snow plow jan. 24(Updated at 8:40 a.m.) Primary roads across Arlington County have been plowed and are at least somewhat clear of snow, the county announced last night.

The county has begun “phase three” of its snow removal process, during which workers will clear snow-covered neighborhood streets. Crews may take until Tuesday night to reach every street, the county said.

Though some major roads remain treacherous due to patches of ice, most traffic across the area appeared to be light or moderate with no major backups or road closures reported as of 8 a.m. this morning.

Want to know which streets are clear? Arlington’s snow plow map keeps track of where road crews have and haven’t been. And starting at noon today, residents can use the county’s snow reporting form to “identify snow issues that need attention.” Residents can also report issues by calling the streets hotline at 703-228-6485.

Federal Government Closed Monday, Flights Resuming at Local Airports

By ARLnow.com

Snow traffic cam Jan. 23(Updated at 7:55 p.m.) The federal government will be closed Monday, the Office of Personnel Management announced Sunday evening.

The feds join Arlington County government and public schools in closing Monday due to poor road conditions. Many neighborhood streets remain treacherous, covered with snow and ice that plows have yet to remove.

Arlington County trash and recycling collection service has been cancelled Monday and Tuesday.

ART bus service will be running sporadically Monday. The transit service says ART 41, 51, and 55 routes will run every 30 minutes from noon to 5 p.m. Monday. Other routes will remain suspended.

Reagan National and Dulles International airports, meanwhile, are reopening Monday, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority said Sunday night.

The National Park Service announced Sunday that the northbound GW Parkway would remain closed between Spout Run and the Beltway until at least noon on Monday.

The full Monday closure message, from OPM:

*FEDERAL OFFICES* in the Washington, DC area are *CLOSED*. Emergency and telework-ready employees required to work must follow their agency’s policies, including written telework agreements.

/*Non-emergency employees*/ will be granted excused absence (administrative leave) for the number of hours they were scheduled to work unless they are:

* required to telework,
* on official travel outside of the Washington, DC area,
* on pre-approved leave (including leave without pay), or
* on an alternative work schedule (AWS) day off.

/*Telework-Ready Employees*/ who are scheduled to perform telework on the effective day of the announcement or who are required to perform telework on a day when Federal offices are closed must telework the entire workday or request leave, or a combination of both, in accordance with their agency’s policies and procedures, subject to any applicable collective bargaining requirements (as consistent with law).

/*Emergency Employees*/ are expected to report to their worksite unless otherwise directed by their agencies.

The press release from MWAA:

Reagan National and Dulles International will each have at least one runway open for flight operations beginning Monday morning, January 25.

We expect airlines to operate limited flight schedules at both airports throughout the day on Monday. Passengers should check with their airlines for information about their specific flights.

Snow crews at both Reagan National and Dulles International continue to work around the clock to clear runways, taxiways, roadways and parking lots in anticipation of the resumption of flights on Monday. Our priority is the safety of passengers and employees traveling to and from the airports. Travelers are encouraged to use caution when driving to the airports and plan extra time, as larger than normal crowds are possible.

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