August 2010 - RealCentralVA.com

YAT – Yet Another Study in Albemarle

in sideblog on August 31, 2010 August 31, 2010

From today’s C-Ville : When the Albemarle County Planning Commission unanimously approved the 54-acre rezoning of UVAâ€™s Fontaine Research Park in July, it did so without specifically including the most scrutinized piece of park property: a plot of land reserved for the Sunset/Fontaine Connector.

…â€œWeâ€™re looking forward to the Board of Supervisors meeting on September 8 as a final step,â€ says Fred Missel, UVA Foundationâ€™s Director of Design and Development, of the parkâ€™s rezoning. But while the UVA Foundation is committed to building the connector, a route between Fontaine and Sunset avenuesâ€”first recommended in 2004 in a study produced by the city, county and UVAâ€”is yet to be finalized. Now, a new study by the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission will examine the UVA Foundationâ€™s preferred path, along Stribling Avenue, as well as other routes that might lower costs to the county.

Charlottesville is “Super Brainy”

in Charlottesville on August 31, 2010 August 31, 2010

With all the lists that Charlottesville* gets put on, I think I like this one the most. … We’re #9 , in fact. The Atlantic notes : Last Friday, my list of America’s Brainiest Cities ran over at The Daily Beast. Boulder topped the list, which comprised a mix of larger knowledge-intensive metros like Washington, D.C., Boston, Silicon Valley, San Francisco, Austin, and Seattle, and college towns like Ithaca, Charlottesville, Madison, Iowa City, and Durham, North Carolina, among others. * “Charlottesville” may mean “Charlottesville, Albemarle, Fluvanna, Greene” but in this case may in fact mean “The City of Charlottesville.”

What’s That Fuzzy-Looking Thing? Addition to Nest’s Signs – Trying Something New

in Marketing on August 30, 2010 August 30, 2010

It’s been a while since we’ve played with the design, other than refinements here and there.

…Real estate signs matter . If you have an iPhone, these are some QR Code readers ; for you Android users, these are a few . … I’ve had questions over the years asking what I do besides write a kick-butt Charlottesville real estate blog. I’m a Charlottesville Realtor with a writing problem , and a pretty good one at that.

Three Common Questions Homebuyers Ask – About Homeowner’s Insurance – Part Two

in General Real Estate on August 30, 2010 August 30, 2010

Any time there is a new purchase, an insurance company will run what is called a â€œloss reportâ€ to see if the buyers have had any previous claims, and to see if the home they are buying has had any losses. … For many companies, this is not the case, but a buyer would want to know if there were any prior repaired losses on the home they are buying. If the buyer knows that there was a loss before the inspection occurs, he/she can instruct the inspector to make sure that the necessary repairs were done and there is no hidden damage. Since the buyer cannot order a loss report on a home they do not own, itâ€™s important to have the insurance company involved early on in the process.

More Fiber in Coming to Charlottesville?

in sideblog on August 26, 2010 August 26, 2010

The completely underground fiber optic network will use enhanced fiber for lower latency and provide a diverse route to companies in Charlottesville seeking mission critical, high capacity optical transport to the greater Washington D.C. area. The network will be directly connected to FiberLightâ€™s vast multi-ringed 500+ mile network linking the high-density government and enterprise corridor encompassing Northern Virginia, Washington D.C. and greater Baltimore, all 100% underground. … As one of the nationâ€™s leading providers of mission critical, high performance fiber optic networks, FiberLight is building on its successful initiative started in 2009, when it constructed a self-funded 136-mile diversely routed fiber network connecting to the NAP of the Capital Region in Culpeper, Virginia. The new network is in response to demand by government and enterprise customers seeking high-bandwidth transport for the purposes of data replication, data security and low latency transport of voice, video and data to offsite locations.

Proof that Price Matters

in Market statistics on August 26, 2010 February 16, 2017

Now, Redfin provides statistical proof . Damn, it’s easy for me to say, “price your home right,” when I’m not the one faced with the life decisions that you or my clients are. But that’s what sellers in the Charlottesville area and virtually every other market in the country are facing – life decisions . … It’s easy to tell my clients “I know you bought for $400k, but if you want to sell and move on, you need to put your house on the market at $335k in order to 1) beat the competition and 2) be priced for the market” – two similar but different dynamics – but it’s much harder to act on this advice. … All I can do as a Realtor is advise my clients and potential clients of where the market is and how they fit into it.

National Housing Numbers Mean What for the Charlottesville Real Estate Market?

in Market statistics on August 25, 2010 August 25, 2010

I was saving this post and data for Friday, but the release of the national housing data spurred me to publish today. … * Charlottesville and Albemarle Attached home sales – June and July for the past decade : Charlottesville and Albemarle Single Family home sales – June and July for the past decade : Charlottesville MSA Attached Home Sales – July for the past decade : Charlottesville MSA – Single Family Home Sales – June and July for the past decade : So … what are home prices doing in the Charlottesville MLS**? – The moving median price for the past 200 days shows stability . – The moving median price for the past 90 days shows what may be a coming decline. – The moving median price for the past 200 days shows stability . – The moving median price for the past 7 days shows that the Charlottesville real estate market has transactional volume sufficient to be swayed by even a few transactions. Looking at the moving median home price for the Charlottesville MLS for the past year,we see the spike attributable to the housing tax credit and either what could be the bottom or the first dip. And now for the past five years: And really, if you’re surprised by this drop, you haven’t been paying attention ; we’ve been seeing these trends in the Charlottesville housing data for quite some time . ” But no matter when one thinks summer ends, itâ€™s already way past obvious that the Obama administrationâ€™s â€œRecovery Summerâ€ has been and will end up being a big, fat, embarrassing failure. … Related News: Housing: No Longer A Sure-Fire Wealth Builder – The Big Picture The Impact Housing Inventory Has on Prices – Keeping Matters Current Housing Market Insight â€“ Week of August 23rd – Bigger Pockets Blog Housing: Still Widely Misunderstood – The Big Picture Existing Home Sales Plummet 27& – The Big Picture Existing Home Inventory decreases 1.9% Year-over-Year – Calculated Risk Existing Home Sales lowest since 1996, 12.5 months of supply – Calculated Risk * You won’t find this data anywhere else.:) ** Charlottesville MLS = Charlottesville, Albemarle, Fluvanna, Greene, Nelson, Louisa …