Choosing the right home, neighborhood, part of Charlottesville or Albemarle area can be hard, time-consuming, and challenging. As I tell my clients, "you're making a decision that will affect the rest of your lives (and your kids' too, if you have them). My advice: take your time. So far this year, I have represented three or four buyers who started the search process between three and five years ago. Time and patience are key. For example I have clients who planned to move to the Charlottesville area from a larger, transient area to be in … [Read more...]
Is the Charlottesville Real Estate Market Turning?
Q: Is the Charlottesville Real Estate Market Turning? A: I don't know. Yet. I've been saying for months that a turn may be coming, and noted it in the July monthly note. And, I've been saying for years that I'll tell you in 18 months what today's market is actually doing. Hindsight is key; reading current indicators is critical. Housing Inventory Tracking "Watching existing home "for sale" inventory is very helpful. As an example, the increase in inventory in late 2005 helped me call the top for housing. ... … [Read more...]
Mid-2018 Crozet Real Estate Market Update
I live in Crozet; it's easy and natural to focus on that micro-market. https://youtu.be/jeVedaR0Ess The first half of 2018 is behind us, and we talked about resales vs new construction, home prices, where in Crozet homes are selling, what happened with home inventory over the past few years. Note that this is a longer video than typical; we covered a lot. Thanks to the Rooftop for letting us use their ... Rooftop. (Greg and I are getting accustomed to doing these videos together ... we will get better) Transcript … [Read more...]
Describing Charlottesville & Crozet to a Friend – Part 2
A friend shared with me his description of the Charlottesville area that he'd sent to a friend. This is part two; part one is here, and it's quite useful and good. Reading this has been interesting for me; I look at Charlottesville through the lens of a (relatively) very long-term resident, and as a (relatively) long-term real estate agent. A few things Realtor.com and Zillow are quite useful with their price and tax histories, sales history, which firm brokered a sale, etc. I don't often look at the home search/research process through … [Read more...]
Buying a House that’s “Good Enough”
There comes a time in every home search process (and often the home selling process) where one says "this is good enough." Arriving the point of whatever you want to call it - concession, compromise, acquiescence, acceptance, or, to use a positively-connoted descriptor - satisfied - is hard. The home search process can be hard, even if you're looking at new construction in the Charlottesville area market, as you're seeking a home where you and your family will live for, usually, at least seven to ten years. Coming to the conclusion of, … [Read more...]
Charlottesville Land Use – A Brief History
Jim's preface: Affordable housing in Charlottesville + Albemarle (and America) is at, or nearing, crisis stage. I love this post because I learned a lot from it. I hope you do, too. The housing crisis isn’t just about affordability—it’s about economic mobility, too Community land trusts take aim at rising rents Thomas Jefferson Community Land Trust Affordable Housing At Critical Stage The Global Housing Crisis What we are doing locally to address affordable housing is not working. I'm grateful for a community of very … [Read more...]
Big AirBnB Changes Coming to Albemarle County?
Alison Wrabel at the DP reports: After three work sessions, the Planning Commission on Tuesday recommended to allow whole-house rental, where no owner is present, only in the rural area and for no more than seven days in a month and no more than 45 overnight stays per year. Whole-house rental was not recommended for the development area. The panel also backed allowing up to two guest rooms for homestays in townhouses and attached units with owner or manager present during rental. Commissioners also endorsed requiring the owners of … [Read more...]
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