Archive for July, 2008
FEATURED LISTING – A QUIET STREET IN PLEASANT VALLEY
July 31st, 2008 categories: Chantilly Fairfax County, Featured Listings
If you are looking for real estate in Chantilly, Virginia, here is a community you may want to at least have on your radar screen. Pleasant Valley is very close to the intersection of Route 50 (Lee Jackson Highway) and Pleasant Valley Road. Built in the mid-eighties, the development includes over 500 single family homes.
We have listed and sold many homes in this community for nearly twenty years now. Here is one of my current homes for sale, a very nice property with Victorian flair. The attractive front porch is a special touch. It is located on one of the “back” streets in Pleasant Valley, a quiet cul-de-sac, Sovereign Place. It also has the benefit of backing to woods and a golf course.
The links below will give you more information about this property, as well as others in the same community.
As always, if you have any questions on this or other Pleasant Valley properties, just contact me. I know this wonderful community “inside out!”
Price: $380,000
Take a Visual Tour.
Featured Listings, including more details about this property.
Brief Neighborhood Visual Tour.
Full list of “For Sale” and Rentals in Pleasant Valley.
Property Search of homes in Northern Virginia.
MLS#: FX6761256
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STEP 1 – DON’T GET PRE-QUALIFIED FOR YOUR LOAN! LET ME EXPLAIN…
July 29th, 2008 categories: Buyer Strategies, Mortgage & Finance
[NOTE: Rob Martinson continues his series on getting the home mortgage process right. His first and second installments are in our Mortgage & Finance archive.]
So you want to buy a house in Northern Virginia do you?
For years I have been getting phone calls from borrowers telling me they are looking to get pre-qualified for a loan. My response? “No you don’t.” (Confused silence usually ensues). Read the rest of this entry »
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THE PRE-CLOSING PROCESS – KNOWING THE BASICS BEFORE YOU GET TO THE TABLE
July 27th, 2008 categories: Buyer Strategies, Mortgage & Finance, Seller Strategies
[NOTE: Drawing on several decades of experience as a real estate attorney, John Pitrelli contributes articles of interest for home buyers and home sellers. To view John's other posts please click here.]
As a home buyer, one of the most important parts of the transaction is the closing. What are some of the pitfalls of the closing process and how can you avoid them? In my next few posts I hope to describe what should happen and what you can do to avoid problems. Read the rest of this entry »
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NEW HOMES PROFILE: THE RETREAT AT SOUTH VILLAGE
July 22nd, 2008 categories: Chantilly Loudoun Cnty, New Construction
The Sheetz gas station at the intersection of Route 50 and Poland Road seems to be one of Chantilly’s favorite fill-up spots. It has good prices – as good as they can be in the current environment – and it sits near many of the communities that are part of the ever-expanding complex of Western-Fairfax-and-on-into-Loudoun home developments. Read the rest of this entry »
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UNDERSTANDING THE MORTGAGE PROCESS – FIVE STEPS AND YOU ARE HOME
July 20th, 2008 categories: Buyer Strategies, Mortgage & Finance
Let’s get into it then. I promised in my initial posting that by the time I was through, you would understand the mortgage loan process (whether you are a home buyer or a seller) from beginning to end. I think I also mentioned something about an exciting ride. I will do my best to attempt a perfect two for two, but sometimes batting .500 is not so bad. I’ll let you be the judge.
So, first things first. Read the rest of this entry »
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WHEN SELLING YOUR HOUSE, THE “GRASS SHOULD NOT BE GREENER ON THE OTHER SIDE”
July 15th, 2008 categories: Seller Strategies
In The Straight Scoop we routinely offer “Buyer Strategies” and “Seller Strategies.” They include ideas and approaches from myself or one of our contributors, designed to help you if you plan to buy a home or, if you are thinking about selling your home (or investment property) in the Chantilly, Centreville, or Western Fairfax area.
In this post I want to share a simple idea, a reminder really, of something you already know. However, you can “know” something and then again you can really “know” it. One of the things about the “obvious” is that what is clearly obvious to one person may not even be on the mind of someone else. This is certainly true in real estate. Working with buyers and sellers virtually every day, some things are obvious to me, but are not apparent to others not immersed in this world. And I respect that completely. The world always looks different, depending on one’s vantage point. Read the rest of this entry »
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REALLY SMART REAL ESTATE DECISIONS
July 10th, 2008 categories: Buyer Strategies, Seller Strategies
Even if you’re on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.”
Will Rogers
If you happen to be a prospective home buyers in the Northern Virginia area, you no doubt have your own set of guidelines and concerns that are or will be part of your decision process. May I offer these brief observations that I hope will add a little something to your perspective, especially if this is on your agenda now or anytime soon. Read the rest of this entry »
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UNDERSTANDING THE MORTGAGE PROCESS – LET’S START HERE
July 5th, 2008 categories: Buyer Strategies, Mortgage & Finance
[NOTE: In this post, Robert kicks off a series on how mortgage finance works. This will be especially helpful for first-time home buyers in our local area of Chantilly, Centreville, and the Western Fairfax region, but anyone who has not gone through the process in awhile will find his insights helpful. If you have particular aspects of the mortgage process that you'd like Robert to address, please let us know.]
“I don’t know where I’ll be in five years” is something I hear almost daily from many friends and potential clients. They are answering the question I usually ask, “Why are you still not a homeowner?”
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THE TAX DEFERRED EXCHANGE – AN INVESTOR’S SAVING GRACE
July 3rd, 2008 categories: 1031 Exchange, Buyer Strategies, Seller Strategies
[NOTE: Drawing on several decades of experience as a real estate attorney, John Pitrelli contributes articles of interest for home buyers and home sellers. To view John's other posts please click here.]
A 1031 or tax deferred exchange is a method by which a property owner trades one investment property for another property, without having to pay any federal income taxes as a result of the transaction.
To take advantage of 1031 you must own the property for investment or business purposes. Typically residential rental property or commercial property will meet this requirement. The property does not have to be improved (raw land can qualify). However, certain individuals or companies will not qualify if they are considered by IRS to be “dealers”. For example, if you are a builder and own the property strictly for resale, such as a builder’s inventory of new homes, you will be considered a dealer. Also, if you buy property with the intention of reselling it quickly (”flipping” the property) you may likewise be treated as a dealer and ineligible for a 1031 tax deferred exchange. If you own your property as a second home or use it personally for more than two weeks per year, you will be unable to utilize a 1031 exchange for that property. Read the rest of this entry »
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GULICK GROUP HOMES – ON THE ROAD LESS TRAVELED
July 2nd, 2008 categories: New Construction
Driving along Belmont Ridge Rd near the intersection Belmont and Ryan Roads, in Loudon County, you can’t help but notice one particular set of distinctive homes that are part of Brambleton, a planned community that includes homes from a number of major builders. Read the rest of this entry »
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