Brian Block -- Northern Virginia & D.C. Real Estate

From time to time I've had clients sincerely apologize to me for taking my time and causing me hassle for just "my small sale."

I always give them this same explanation:

There's No Such Thing as a "Small Sale" in Real Estate.

Sure, I've helped people purchase million dollar properties and I've helped people purchase a home for $79,000, and everywhere in between. However, if you're planning to spend $100,000 on your home or $800,000, that's a big purchase for YOU. The real estate process is the same on each property regardless of price, and you'll have the same questions whether purchasing that first condo or the dream estate on 2 acres with a pool.

It's important that you are treated equally. For a REALTOR, every sale is important and they all add up. Besides, my hope is to have clients for life, and I'd like to help you eventually sell your first home and buy your second and third ones. If I treated your sale as a small insignificant matter, would you want to work with me again when it was time for your third home?

Moreover, you may be purchasing a one bedroom condo, but perhaps you have friend, colleague, or fourth cousin twice removed that's ready to buy or sell that Great Falls mansion. You'll want to pass my name along, won't you?

Please don't apologize. Your sale is NOT small.

I want to help you whether you're searching high or low.

Get started today on your Northern Virginia home search in all price ranges

Taxes.

Let's face it, they are a fact of life.

Any economist will tell you that taxes play an important role in people's economic decisions.

Thus, those of you searching for homes in Northern Virginia need to be aware of the property tax rates in the various local jurisdictions.

The list below shows the current tax rates for the various areas of Northern Virginia (all rates are per $100 of assessed value):

AREA TAX RATE

City of Alexandria $0.903

Arlington County $0.865 + $0.01 sanitary district fee

Town of Clifton $1.04 + $0.01 stormwater fee

City of Fairfax $0.88

Fairfax County $1.04 + $0.01 stormwater fee

City of Falls Church $1.07

Town of Herndon $1.30 + $0.01 stormwater fee

Loudoun County $1.245

City of Manassas $1.35

Manassas Park $1.65

Prince William County $1.212

Town of Vienna $1.2681 + $0.01 stormwater fee

Great Falls, Virginia is named for the spectacular falls and rapids on the Potomac River. This is a community with large lots and large homes.

Here's a snapshot of Great Falls Virginia home sales in the last 30 days:

GREAT FALLS, VIRGINIA HOME SALES:

• Active homes for sale: 189 (including 19 new listings in the last 30 days). There's another 46 Great Falls homes currently under contract and pending sale.
  
• Average current listing price: $1,887,562
  
  
• Homes sold in the last 30 days: 28
  
  
• Average Sales Price: $1,078,584
  
  
• Median Sales Price: $914,500
  
  
• Average Days on Market: 80
  
  
• Average Sales Price/Original Listing Price: 90.77%. There's a bit of negotiating room in this upper end of pricing.

Interesting Notes:

Great Falls, Virginia comprises the 22066 area code.

These homes come with land. The smallest size lot for homes currently on the market in Great Falls is just slightly under 1/2 an acre. A full 2/3 of the homes on the market are on 1.5 or more acres of land. 15% of Great Falls home in the current inventory sit on 5 acres or more.

If you want a home with acreage and privacy, think about Great Falls, Virginia.

** Find a Home in Great Falls **

Contact Brian Block, Managing Broker, RE/MAX Allegiance, McLean:
Licensed in Virginia & Washington D.C. 703-626-0715.
If you are interested in purchasing or selling a property in Great Falls or elsewhere in Northern Virginia or Washington D.C., contact Brian today.

Are you wondering about Northern Virginia real estate and pondering what has sold recently?

Here's some information about the most expensive home sales in Northern Virginia (Arlington County, Alexandria City, Fairfax City, Fairfax County, and Falls Church City) for June 2009. All information was obtained through MRIS.

Overall, there were 92 sales sales topping $1 million during the month of June 2009, a 50% increase from the 61 that sold in May and more than double the number (40) that sold in April. The luxury market seems to be heating up a bit. Or maybe it's just those Maryland Millionaires moving down our way to Virginia.

JUNE'S MOST EXPENSIVE SALES

Single Family Detached Homes:

• 816 Arcturus on the Potomac -- Sold on June 25th for $3,700,000.
  This riverfront home came with a power boat! On almost an acre, this gated home offers amazing views, an in-ground pool, a boat lift and dock, guest house, and more. It was built in 1914 and has 3 bedroom and 4.5 bathrooms. Sold for $600,000 below the $4.3 million asking price.
  
  
• 10005 Windy Hollow Road, Great Falls, VA 22066 -- Sold on June 23rd for $3,695,350.
  Built in 2000, this 8,250 square foot home on 1.72 acres also features a 2 car garage Carriage House with a full apartment. The main home in the Falcon Ridge community has a state of the art kitchen and butler's pantry, a terraced swimming pool and a lower level with media, game, and exercise rooms.
  
  
• 1020 Founders Ridge Lane, McLean, VA 22102 -- Sold on June 29th for $3,000,000.
  Located in The Reserve in McLean, this 5 bedroom, 6 full and 2 half bathroom home has a hand laid stone and stucco exterior. The home has a four car garage and built-in European antiques!
  
  
• 1133 Basil Road, McLean, VA 22101 -- Sold on May 15th for $2,200,000.
  Even though this home sold for $395,000 below its asking price, it was simply advertised as the best value in McLean -- PERIOD.
  
  
• 8644 Old Dominion Drive, McLean, VA 22102 -- Sold on June 10th for $1,925,000.
  On 3 private acres with a gated entrance, this 6000+ square foot home features a gourmet kitchen, indoor pool and sauna. This McLean home was sold by an agent in my McLean RE/MAX Allegiance office.
  

CLICK TO SEARCH FOR AVAILABLE SINGLE FAMILY HOMES IN NORTHERN VIRGINIA

Note: Over 27% of the million dollar plus single family homes that sold in June were sold in McLean. It's a Great Place to Have a Real Estate Office, I Can Tell You That.

Townhouses:

• 104 Queen Street, Alexandria, VA 22314 -- Sold on June 30th for $1,200,000.
  This townhouse on Queens Row has views of the Potomac River and a riverfront park. It also has assigned parking for 2 cars -- a premium in Old Town Alexandria. The townhouse was built in 1998 and has 3 bedrooms and 3 full bathrooms.
  
  
• 314 S. Fairfax Street, Alexandria, VA 22314 -- Sold on June 10th for $1,100,000.
  Built originally in 1820, this townhouse has front and rear staircases, large rooms and hardwood floors. With 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms, this million dollar plus townhouse also has 4 fireplaces.
  

• 712 Potomac Street, Alexandria, VA 22314 -- Sold on June 15th for $1,025,000.
  The newest million dollar townhouse on this month's list, this one was built in 2002. It features stainless steel appliances, granite counters, 2 fireplaces and a 2 car garage. There are 3 bedrooms and 4.5 bathrooms.
  
  
• 810 Rivergate Place, Alexandria, VA 22314 -- Sold on June 30th for $1,020,000.
  Selling for close to the asking price of $1,049,000, this townhouse has 3 bedrooms and 4.5 bathrooms on 4 levels. It was built in 1995 and comprises 2,446 square feet of space in Old Town Alexandria.
  

As you can see, Old Town Alexandria is the "King of the $1M townhouse!"

SEE AVAILABLE TOWNHOUSES IN NORTHERN VIRGINIA

Condominiums:

• 11776 Stratford House Place #1404, Reston, VA 20190 -- Sold on June 26th for $1,000,000.
  Located near the Reston Town Center, this was the only condo in June to hit the million dollar mark! From the 2330 spacious square feet of this high rise condo, there's a view of the Reston Town Center. 3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, a large eat in kitchen and elegant entrance made this one tops.
  
  
• 1250 S. Washington Street #311, Alexandria, VA 22314 -- Sold on June 30th for $975,000.
  Over 2500 square feet, this condo at Porto Vecchio is a corner unit with views of both the Potomac River and a country club. This condo features 4 bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms and a formal living room and dining room. The building was built in 1985.
  
  
• 1600 N. Oak Street #1110, Arlington, VA 22209 -- Sold on June 30th for $875,000.
  Located in Rosslyn at the Belvedere condos, this unit is 2,060 square feet large and has a full view of the Washington D.C. memorials. With 2 underground parking spaces and a glass enclosed balcony, this one sold for just $75K off the asking price.
  
  
• 11990 Market Street #1602, Reston, VA 20190 -- Sold on June 25th for $865,000.
  Another Reston condo, this one at the Midtown at Reston. It measurees 2,111 square feet with 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms and was built in 2006.
  

SEE AVAILABLE CONDOMINIUMS IN NORTHERN VIRGINIA

Contact Brian Block, Managing Broker, REALTOR/Attorney, RE/MAX Allegiance: Licensed in Virginia & Washington D.C. 703-626-0715. If you are interested in purchasing or selling a property in Northern Virginia including Arlington County, Alexandria City, Annandale, Burke, D.C., Fairfax County, Falls Church City, Great Falls, Lorton, McLean, Springfield, Washington D.C., contact Brian today.

It's a matter of public record.

Once a house is sold, that purchase price is recorded in the land records of the city or county where it was sold. The whole world can see what Sally and Tom paid for their new house. When it comes time for them to sell, many potential buyers will be asking this question:

HOW MUCH DID THE SELLERS PAY?

9 times out of 10, buyers I work with ask this question. Whether the sellers have lived in the house for 3 months or 32 years, buyers want to know. As the tagline for a popular supermarket tabloid used to say, "Inquiring Minds Want to Know."

While this amount can sometimes give an indication of the position of the seller, more often than not it does not make much difference at all. Sometimes the public record will show that a seller paid a very low price for a home compared to its value today. However, it may not display the fact that the seller has refinanced a couple of times and now owes more than they'll be able to net from a sale. Other times, it may appear that a seller would need a short sale because the value is so far below the previous purchase price. This may not be the case if the sellers used a large down payment to purchase the property.

The key thing to remember is that the today's value has almost nothing to do with what a seller originally paid for their home.

The market value of a home is the estimate of the most probable price that an item will bring in cash in an open and competitive market assuming reasonably informed buyers & seller, unrelated buyers & sellers, and property exposed to the market for a resonable amount of time. That's the textbook definition.

While one can ask what the sellers paid, the reality is that the price the new buyers will pay is determined by the market and the sales that have occurred most recently. It may be interesting to know what the sellers paid and speculate until the cows come home about their motivations to sell, that number has very little bearing on today's market value.

The only question buyers should ask themselves is instead:

HOW MUCH AM I WILLING TO PAY FOR THIS HOME?

Your experienced REALTOR can help you with making an informed decision.