Archive for May, 2008
Buying Your Next Home With the End Game In Mind
May 28th, 2008 categories: Market Trends, Real Estate News, Relocating, Spouse Stuff
Purchasers, any purchases for that matter, are often done with one thing in mind. Specifically, possession of the object being bought. In simple terms, we found something we like, something we want to possess, and “having it” is a MUST. But, what about the cost, or the long term value of what is probably our most expensive asset, our home? Is it important to consider what its value might be, three, five, or ten years down the road? Similar to Wall Street’s most successful investors, is buying for the long term, or at least taking a value based approach, a recipe for success when it comes time to sell?
In one of the 1990’s best selling books on leadership, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Steven Covey outlines key principals of personal development that lead to success in our personal and professional lives. One of his Seven Habits, the second, emphasizes the importance of “beginning with the end in mind” when making choices in life. Simply put, this means working backward from where you want to end up and making choices that will get you there. So, as a home buyer, what does that mean? How can you benefit from Covey’s advice?
For many home buyers, especially those in Northern Virginia, relocation is a way of life. Many are Department of Defense (DoD) employees, or employed with contractors doing work with the federal government. Moving and selling homes are something that oftentimes comes much too soon. But, even in a buyer’s market, forethought and considering an exit strategy or end game when making the purchase, can make the goodbye a few years later much easier to handle financially, and more importantly, emotionally.
One of the most important questions to consider when purchasing a home is, “What would prevent buyers from wanting to live in this home?” While that consideration may seem to be apparent, believe it or not, it is often more of afterthought. Instead, we concentrate on the positives, and minimize the drawbacks of the property. But that’s purely part of human nature, don’t you think? Clearly, the attractive features are important and shouldn’t be minimized. But, it’s wise to consider the drawbacks, especially those that might be deal breakers.
What sort of drawbacks are we talking about? What might prevent prospective buyers from choosing other homes instead of yours?
- Location – there’s lots to consider here. The obvious is proximity from schools, shopping, and other area attractions. Is the property hard to get to? How about traffic patterns? Is it located on a street where there’s a high traffic volume? Does the traffic make it difficult to get in and out of the driveway?
- What about the particular lot. Is it level? And, if not, does it matter. How steep is the driveway? As one blogger mentioned on their site about the a driveway concern, “Basically the only thing that is keeping us from signing the purchase and sale (which we have to do some time today) is our ambivalence about the driveway – the one thing we really can’t fix.” Where does the water concentrate or run off to when it rains? Does it drain away from the house or towards the house causing excessive wetness next to the house? These are questions that need to be considered before purchasing any property.
- What about the basement. Is it a walk-up, or preferably, a walk-out? You can bet that most buyers prefer an outside entrance/exit to the basement. With walk-outs, the additional outside light these provide are another attraction.
- Room sizes. While we don’t expect the normal home to provide us the extravagance of a luxury home, the homebuilding trend has been one of a bit more room in both the kitchen and the bathrooms, especially the Master bathroom . Remember, you can always upgrade what’s there, but it’s much more difficult to make rooms larger once the home is already built. That goes for the bedrooms as well.
- Subdivision amenities/fees. While all homes aren’t necessarily in a subdivision, or part of a Home Owners Association (HOA), when they are, they can be an important attraction, or, at times the reason for hesitation by the buyer. Some of the attractive features include swimming pool, bike/walking trails, sidewalks, and a community clubhouse, among others. For some, this package of community features is enough to tip the balance when two homes are competing for a buyer. On the other hand, HOA fees and restrictions can be the deciding factor between two competing properties. If fees are too high, and restictions too onerous, buyers can turn to many other appealing choices. Most of us just don’t need the expense and headaches.
There are many important issues home buyers consider in their search for a place to call home. While each of us tends to focus on the attractive home features, we need to consider the flip side of the equation as well. What are the drawbacks? Home buyers, at some point, become home sellers. The last thing you want to thinking when it comes time to sell is, “shoulda, woulda, coulda.” As a buyer, use some forsight and ask the critical, discriminating questions before you buy. While a home’s ”bells and whistles” can be awfully attractive, make sure you notice the blemishes as well. It’ll sure help when it gets to the end game and its time to pack up for another assignment.
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Is Your Home Fit for Summer?
May 27th, 2008 categories: Repairs, Spouse Stuff
With summer already here, have you done the prep work necessary for the upcoming heat and humidity? If you’re like me, probably not yet, but, it’s certainly on the “to do” list. Preparing your home for the warmer temperatures is not only practical, but can save you a few dollars along the way.
- Take a look at your cooling system. Make sure your air filters are changed. While its recommended that this be done monthly, if you haven’t done so, do it now.
- Test your air conditioner. Before temperatures get too hot, make sure your unit is working properly. Test the system by turning it down to activate the air conditioner. If it doesn’t come on, check for tripped circuit breakers first. If you can’t identify the problem, call an air conditioning repairman. While no one likes repair bills, catching the problem early is certainly better than facing the same problem in the middle of a heat wave.
This is also a good time to check insulation and seals. Is your attic insulation still in good shape or has it compacted and is not quite as robust as it once was. Take the time to see if you might need to use some additional insulation. Also, seals around windows and doors also need to be checked for inegrity. How many of us have felt that cold air seeping in through a door or window during a frigid winter night? Well, that seepage doesn’t stop with warmer temperatures. So, reseal where needed.
On the outside of the home, if you haven’t already, it’s a good time to get your deck into shape. Sweep and remove all the debris. Next, power wash, or if you prefer, hand scrub the deck to remove stains & mildew. After washing, seal the deck using a water based sealant, preferably a waterproofing sealant, with UV protection against the sun.
Preparing a home for warmer temperatures makes the heat of the summer season a bit easier to handle. Taking a few preventative steps to ensure the air conditioning “moving parts” are ready to go will give you peace of mind as those tempertatures begin to climb with the advance of summer. Doing a little clean up to the outside of the house yields similar dividends. So, take the time during the last few days of May to prepare for the long hot summer – it’ll pay off in more ways than one.
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Memorial Day With The Corps
May 23rd, 2008 categories: Entertainment, Military Installations, Spouse Stuff
After years of learning more lessons than I care to mention, avoiding the Interstate, any Interstate, on holidays is one thing I’ve been pretty successful at the past few years. So, this Memorial Day weekend, I’ll more than likely spend a few hours just next door at Quantico, enjoying the many activities taking place at The National Museum of the Marine Corps.
The abundance of activities taking place include childen’s workshops, new displays in the Global War on terrorism gallery, a “how to” session with a Marine Corps Combat artist, a performance from a local fife and drum corps, and much more. The Museum, which opened in November, 2006, is not only a wealth of information on the history of the Marine Corps, bit it’s lots of fun too, with many indoor and outdoor activities and sites. Whether it’s a walk accompanied by a National Park Service ranger discussing the history of the USMC Heritage Center site, or time for the teens to enjoy a Physical fitness Training (PT) session at the Playground with Marines, trying to see everything in a day is a chore.
So, if you’re like me and you’d rather celebrate this Memorial Day a bit closer to home, take a few minutes to stop by and enjoy the Memorial, or just to say “thanks for your sacrifice.”
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Shrinking Revenue and Bigger Roads
May 22nd, 2008 categories: Real Estate News, Relocating
One of the many tasks our government (elected and otherwise) employees are responsible for is maintaining the roads. As I’ve routinely warned incoming clients, when it comes to day to day living in Northern Virginia, the “long pole in the tent” is transportation. With the area’s increasing population, and more and more cars on the road, traffic congestion seems to get worse every day. For commuters, getting to and from work can be a daily exercise in patience, patience, and more….yes, patience. In its attempt to bring in greater revenues to fund road expansion and improvement, agencies and politicians have had their sights set on increasing the homeowner’s grantor’s tax, which owners have to pay when selling their home in Virginia. 
In order to fund transporation improvements, not only are we going to see increases in our automobile related costs (motor vehicle rental tax, sales tax on auto repairs, vehicle safety inspections, etc.), but also place part of that revenue burden on the home seller. While we understand the need to improve/expand the roads (do we ever!), asking home owners to help foot that bill is questionable. But, as one of the Arlington County Board member said, “No one ever wants new taxes, but more people are recognizing that location is only valuable if you can get there.” The public has resisted efforts to increase the grantor’s tax. Voters rejected an increase in sales tax to pay for transportation in a 2002 referendum. Similary, following last year’s Northern Virginia Trasnportation Authority (NVTA) tax increase to pay for transportation improvements, the constitutionality of the measure was successfully challenged and overturned. Specifically, the Virginia Supreme Court ruled the General Assembly “did not have a constitutional basis to delegate taxation authority to NVTA.”
But, these efforts to squeeze the homeowner seems to know no end. In his call for a special June 23rd session of the Commonwealth’s General Assembly, to specifically address transportation challenges, one of the governor’s revenue proposals is an increase in the grantor’s tax by 25 cents. Opposed to this proposal is the Virginia Association of Realtors (VAR), specifically disagreeing with the statewide tax increase, which VAR fears unfairly taxes homeowners who won’t benefit from revenue generated. And, somehow, even if the increase in the grantor’s tax doesn’t survive this session, I’m sure we’ll be seeing it again real soon.
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Running For Honor
May 20th, 2008 categories: Entertainment, Military Installations
The weekend’s inaugural Marine Corps Historic half marathon was remarkable in many ways. Not only was it a first (more on that later), but more significantly, the run was dedicated to a fallen soldier, Army Ranger 1st Lt. Benjamin Hall, who was killed in Afghanistan on July 31, 2007. Hall, a platoon leader of one of the Ranger’s Airborne Brigade Combat Teams, had been in Afghanistan only seventy days when he lost his life.
Hall’s parents, Sarah and John Hall are residents of Fredericksburg. The marathon dedication is a remembrance they say is a chance to celebrate their son’s approach to life, one characterized by an active spirit. Ben Hall was a runner. In high school he ran cross country, and continued his quest for testing the limits of his endurance by competing in marathons in the years that followed. And, many of these adventures were shared with family and friends, which Ben made a priority in life. So, it was no surprise that a number of friends took part in the inaugural event honoring him. Many of those participants ran wearing shirts bearing Ben’s picture and the words, “Be Like Ben”. And, Fredericksburg’s first half marathon was the perfect place for this run to remember. 
Last year the Marine Corps decided to move its half marathon to Fredericksburg in order to accomodate a larger pool of participants. Previously called the Quantico Half Marathon, the event had usually seen about 1500 participants, mostly Marines and their families. While many of the usual suspects showed up for this annual competition, the number of runners in this new venue exceeded 6,000.
The large turnout was a result of a joint effort between the Marines Corps Marathon team & Fredericksburg leadership. The Half-Marathon’s 13.1 mile course began and ended at Fredericksburg’s Expo & Conference Center just behind the Central Park complex. For those that hadn’t been to the city’s Old Town area previously, the route included a tour of its paved brick walkways and many of the shops that tourists just can’t get enough of. For watchers and participants alike, this inaugural run was not only fun to be a part of, but meant much more than a few hours of sacrifice. As one of the participants, Army Capt. Brennan Speakes from Fort Benning, who ran cross country as a high school friend of Ben Hall said, “it’s the farthest I’ve run in a long time, but the cause is worth it.”
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What’s Does “MilitarybyOwner” Have To Do With Military Homes?
May 15th, 2008 categories: Military Installations, Real Estate News, Relocating
Earlier this year, the National Association of Realtors (NAR), adopted a new Standard Operating Procedure (SOP), 12-12. It stipulates that Realtors shall not:
Use URLs or domain names that present less than a true picture, or register URLs or domain names which, if used, would present less than a true picture.
In a recent case involving the use of a Realtor’s website name, or URL, NAR already exercised its enforcement of the new restrictions. In this partciular case, a Realtor was using the URL northwoodsandlakesmls.com for his website. While the website did contain information about the area, the use of “mls” in the URL was deemed to be in violation of the intent of the new SOP. Why? The letters “MLS”, in real estate jargon, are understood to stand for Multiple Listing Service. The Multiple Listing Service, or MLS, is the information sharing and cooperative marketing network or platform used by realtors for the buying and selling of homes. The northwoodsandlakesmls.com was a Realtor’s website that did feature homes for sale, but not those of the entire MLS. In other words, it was not in any way, operated by or with a Multiple Listing Service (MLS). Obviously, this Realtor was attempting to take advantage of the of the letters “MLS”. An acronym, or initials that the realtor world, and those familiar with its use, recognized as relating to home sales. In his defense, the Realtor explained, “If I used MLS in the name of my firm, I could see how that might be perceived as something less than a true picture,” he argued, “but by simply using MLS in my URL I am telling consumers that they can get MLS-provided information about properties in the north woods from me. What could be truer than that?” Unfortunately, the Board, and NAR didn’t see it that way. So, what is in a name, or URL, and what does “presenting less than a true picture mean”?
For may military personnel, one of the first places they go to on the web to look for homes is militarybyowner.com, or MBO.
According to the owner and author, its Mission is:
“MilitaryByOwner.com will provide a comprehensive low cost means for military members and their families to advertise on the world wide web. The service will be provided throughout the entire year and will encompass all locations where military members may be stationed to include overseas assignments. MilitaryByOwner.com will aggressively advertise in base newspapers and other military periodicals as well as leverage web based search engine postings in order to attract military personnel and the general public to this site to ensure success”.
True to their word, MilitaryByOwner has done a respectable job of advertising in publications targeting military families, and has taken advantage of similar advertising online. As a matter of fact, it is one of the first places military members turn when it is time to sell or buy a home. During its first few years of existence, MBO’s popularity mimicked its counterpart, “For Sale By Owner”, which, in a hot market was an easy way for home sellers or buyers, to go it on their own, and try to save a few dollars. Additionally, the military community is one built on trust, among other things, and that, too was an attraction of the site for military members, and an intent of the marketing effort. Seemingly, buyers and sellers were dealing with other military members. It was almost like family.
But, as far as their efforts to ”encompass all locations where military members may be stationed to include overseas assignments”. Is that really true? And what about that name “MilitaryByOwner”? As we look a little deeper into what MBO has to offer, we see that many of their listings aren’t military at all. After a careful examination, one finds many of the listings are Realtor listings, regardless of the client’s profession. As far as the listings ecompassing locations where military members may be stationed, we’ll, let’s just say that that depends on one’s perspective. Don’t all online Homes for Sale sites do the same? Simply put, with MBO, one listing criteria they include is the distance the property is from a military base/installation. For home listings, the proximity to military base choices are:
<10miles
<20 miles
<30 miles
<40 miles
<50 miles
>50 miles
As you can see, just about anywhere in the U.S is more than 50 miles from a selected military installation, or anywhere else for that matter. Unless, of course, it is less than 50 miles. In other words, are the homes advertised necessarily close to a military base? No. Some are, and some aren’t, just like other sites. Secondly, does MilitarybyOwner mean owned by military? Of course not. And, perhaps it was never meant to be.
It needs to be pointed out that MilitaryByOwner.com, unlike northwoodsandlakesmls.com, is not bound by the restrictions of the National Association of Realtors (NAR). The latter is owned by a Realtor, and in NAR’s estimation, his website was a bit misleading. MilitarybyOwner.com may not mean exactly what it says either, but its owner is not a Realtor. However, the owner’s spouse is. Does that count?
Don’t get me wrong, MilitarybyOwner is another resource for military home buyers and sellers. Does it provide something more than Zillow.com, Trulia.com, the local MLS, or similar sites? While each of these provide various helpful tools for those active in the housing market, a look at some of their additional features may provide military members with a more comprehensive marketing package for sellers, and much more capability for buyers. With state of the art mapping tools, finding available homes near military bases has become much easier for those being reassigned.
Buying and selling homes for Department of Defense (DoD) personnel, whether civilian or military, can be challenging. Due to the brief duty assignments, most sellers are simply happy to “break even” with the transaction. Buyers, on the other hand, are looking to get the most out of their transaction, realizing they’ll probably be turning around and selling two or three years down the road. In today’s tough home market, making the most of the tools the internet has to offer is vital in maximizing the value of your transaction. Especially for military members, take the time to ensure the platform or service you use is one you get the most out of. And, sometimes, believe it or not, less ISN’T more.
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