Sewer Scopes are Good (in Charlottesville)
A sewer scope runs about $350, and it’s cheap insurance compared to what I’ve seen go wrong. At least once or twice a year, I run into a client whose sewer line has roots choking it, or a pipe that’s broken or crushed — the kind of damage that costs thousands to fix. I just had two properties scoped: one came back clean, the other had root intrusion that needed addressing before closing. I’d rather my clients pay for the scope now than call me after closing because sewage is backing up into their house. Client tears are bad tears.
When Should Buyers Pull their Credit (when buying a home)?
I asked Matt Hodges with Gray Fox Mortgage a couple simple questions a lot of my buyer clients have, and thought you'd find the answers useful. When should buyers let their lender pull their credit? Regardless of when a buyer wants to purchase, if they…
8 Helpful Stories for First Time Homebuyers in Charlottesville
As happens often, I was writing an email. The question posed by the new-to-Charlottesville buyer was, "I'm getting ready to buy a home in Charlottesville; where do I start?" Start here Lender Advice for Buyers Targeting Home Buying in 2016 (still relevant for 2024) Some…
Scratching An Itch (as a Searching Home Buyer)
Scratching that itch An idiom defined as: seeing a house that I’ve wanted to see for a long time (and probably won’t like but need to see it anyway so that I can cease thinking about it because if I don’t see it, I’ll always…
FHA and Condos in Charlottesville – Are they Eligible?
Guest post from Matt Hodges with Presidential Mortgage*: Condominiums are a challenge to finance through FHA. Condominiums had a brief period when lenders overlooked eligibility and approved every loan, as long as the borrower was qualified – that period ended some four years ago. Today,…
Difference Between Clients and Customers
Question: What's the difference between a real estate client and a real estate customer? Answer: Quite a bit. I was with a a customer a few weeks ago and and we had an interesting conversation about the differences between a customer and a client. Some…
Did You Notice? Search the Charlottesville MLS on your Phone
The MLS search provider for RealCentralVA.com (and thousands of others around the country) recently released a mobile search option for those of you driving around searching for homes in Charlottesville. It's simple: go to my search for homes page and you should be given the…
Read those HOA Docs – They Might Give Others Right to Trespass
Finding conversion between two distant stories with one major point: Lesson #1: Read the HOA Docs and any neighborhood Covenants and Restrictions before you buy a home. Lesson #2: an awful lot could be solved and avoided if people would just talk to each other.…
Looking for School Information in Charlottesville or Albemarle (or beyond)?
Mmmmm .... data. ProPublica has released/aggregated a lot of information on Central Virginia schools. Oddly, neither Greene County nor Nelson County are listed. - Charlottesville City Schools - Albemarle County Schools - Fluvanna County Schools - Louisa County Schools Further, if you have something to…
Top 5 Questions Home buyers ask
.. And why Realtors can't answer most of them. Riffing off of the WSJ's timely article this morning: 1- Are there kids in this neighborhood? Look for balls, bikes and playground sets. Despite the fact that most families with kids want to live in neighborhoods…