Yesterday on my blog in the Washington Post- “Should you make that low ball offer?  a commenter suggested “many agents will try to prod you into offering more than necessary in the hopes that the seller accepts and the agent can collect his/her commission that much sooner.” The comment made me think about how consumers…

  No this isn’t the piece of history you can buy.  This happens to be Gunston Hall the home of George Mason. Most of us know about George Mason from his famous words;  “That all men are born equally free and independent, and have certain inherent natural Rights… among which are the Enjoyment of Life…

First a disclaimer.  Mortgage rates vary by the type of loan you get, your credit, your down-payment amount and much more.  This is just a post to open your eyes a bit to what to ask your Northern Virginia mortgage professional when you look at interest rates. Somehow when the headlines announce new falling interest…

There is no lemon law when it comes to buying a house in Northern Virginia.  No three day rule after you’ve signed the settlement papers to back out.  Last month in my post  Virginia Sales Contract Undergo a Big Change the change to what we refer to as “Paragraph 7″ of the Regional Sales Contract…

Thinking if you buy a new home you will avoid all the headaches of a re-sale property? It is a new home, right? What could possibly be wrong. You might look at this photo and say, “what’s the problem?”  Fortunately a home inspector can tell you exactly what the problems are.  Jay Markanich, owner of…

Really…says who?  Actually it was the  National Association of Realtors® (NAR) pending home sales rose in October 2011.  Yes this is over 6 weeks ago but we are always off by about 30 days with reporting statistics in the MLS and across the nation. According to NAR  “The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator…

Thinking of buying a new home this winter in Northern Virginia?  The first question you need to ask you agent is “have you attended training and understand the new Northern Virginia regional sales contract?” When buying real estate in Northern Virginia the term “cavaet emptor” (buyer beware)  is often used.  With the new regional sales…

Depends on how you frame the answer. The question is “are there fewer short sales and foreclosures in Prince William County VA than last year?” As an example I’ve posted charts showing the decrease in foreclosures and short sales in the Port Potomac neighborhood since 2008. Port Potomac is one of the newer developments in…

Prince William County VA covers a significant amount of real estate, 338 acres from the Potomac River to the Bull Run Mountains.  Located about 30 miles outside of Washington DC and with two major interstate’s running both west (I-66) and south (I-95) PWC offers business with connections to DC easy access to the city.  The…

There are plenty of HGTV, BRAVO and A&E network TV shows that talk about “what you get for the money” in certain areas of the country. If you are a prospective buyer relocating to Northern Virginia or already living here and considering a home purchase the same question applies only on a much more micro…