Monthly Archives: October 2009
Have $100 Million to Spend? (in Albemarle)
Have a look at Patricia Kluge’s estate in Southern Albemarle County.
From the Wall Street Journal:
Virginia winemaker and philanthropist Patricia Kluge is offering her 300-acre English country estate in Charlottesville, Va., for $100 million, one of the most expensive listings in the U.S.
…
The property includes a pool, pool house, log cabin, a greenhouse and several staff cottages. There are three stocked ponds, gardens, and a croquet lawn. The front grounds can be converted to an 18-hole golf course, for which designs by Arnold Palmer exist. Ms. Kluge also runs a Virginia winery that bears her name.
Friday Chart – Homes Under Contract in October
Homes placed under Contract in Charlottesville and Albemarle in the month of October:
These numbers do not reflect much new construction or properties that will not proceed to closing for any number of reasons, such as home inspection negotiations not coming to terms, financing issues, etc.
As I mentioned last week, we may be seeing a blip of hope.
(in light of the anticipated wave of foreclosures and short sales, combined with Charlottesville area unemployment numbers, take this blip with a grain of salt. But it’s a glimmer nonetheless.)… Continue reading…
Google, Garmin and Realtors
Re-purposing a post from my posterous:
If Google announcing their GPS did this to Garmin’s and Tom Tom’s stocks,
Google announced a big real estate move about two hours ago: listings can now be viewed on any Google Map by clicking on the “More” button, a position heretofore reserved for photos, transit information and other overlays.
Being able to successfully represent clients will define the future of this profession. There is much online competition
Homebuyer Tax Credit (May Be) Extended
It looks like the homebuyer tax credit will (likely) be extended. Maybe.
Via Calculated Risk and Bloomberg:
- Income eligibility for home buyers increases to $125,000 for individuals and $225,000 for couples.
- The tax credit for first-time home buyers (anyone who has not owned in the last 3 years) will be the lesser of $8,000 or 10% of the purchase price.
- For move-up buyers – “who have lived in their current home for at least five years” – the credit would be limited to $6,500.
- The credit runs from Dec. 1, 2009 to April
Print Media is …
In 2006, I was a few years early in my prediction.
There’s a place for print media, and advertising homes for sale in Charlottesville ain’t it.
Branding a brand – or brokerage – consistently in print gives readers the impression (and illusion as the case may be) that a brokerage is viable and successful.
“Have you heard of Google? Search “Gourmet”! There’s a ton of sh*t.
For those unfamiliar with Gary Vaynerchuk:
But in less than three years, Vaynerchuk has built an audience of 80,000 for his daily podcasts on wines good, bad and mediocre. That’s enough people
Charlottesville and Albemarle – Real Estate Anecdotes and Anomalies
There’s more to the Charlottesville real estate market than data – it’s crucial to look beyond the numbers.
Transcription:
Jim Duncan from RealCentralVA.com here. It’s Monday morning and I’m nursing a sore throat.
But I wanted to talk about how the Charlottesville and Albemarle real estate markets are full of anomalies and anecdotes that can clarify and confuse.
Here are two examples that are not reflected when you look at any of the market data out there, even the in-depth analysis provided my reports and by the next reports. There a house that’s been on the market in Albemarle … Continue reading…
On Villages in Charlottesville and Albemarle
Charlottesville architect/developer Bill Atwood in Brandon Shulleeta’s story in today’s Daily Progress:
Atwood said that in the retail world, “the longer you can get people to stay, the better the pay. In other words, if you have somebody who’s actually going to stay and eat at dinner and actually walk around, you’ll be viable faster. … Having people live there is the ultimate.”
Atwood said that young residents are “more apt to want to be in town and places where you can socialize, buy a dog and buy a cup of coffee. … I think that the idea of
Google Street View in Crozet
The Google folks drove through Crozet – likely just before Memorial Day weekend this year.
View Larger Map… Continue reading…
