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

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Everywhere is Walking Distance if You Have the Time

06-28-09
Brian Block -- Northern Virginia & D.C. Real Estate

"Everywhere is Walking Distance if You Have The Time"

-- Steven Wright, American comedian

Walk

The problem is these days people don't have the time. Gone are the days of walking 4 miles uphill both ways to school. Nowadays, parents pack the kids in the car and drive them the quarter mile door to door to drop them off to 2nd grade. We're increasingly dependent upon our cars, even moreso the further out from a city we decide to live.

As people tire of the expenses and hassles of commuting and having to hop in the car for everyday errands and to just to grab a bite to eat, walkability has become a more important criteria for neighborhood home searches in Northern Virginia and Washington D.C.

Maybe you want to be close to the Metro, close to stores and restaurants, and leave the car at home after a long work week of commuting to the office.

While determining where you want to live in the Metro D.C. area, you should visit the Walk Score Website. This site was developed out of the need for homeowners to calculate the convenience of homes to stores, restaurants, work and other quality aspects of a neighborhood.

Walk Score can range from 1 to 100 depending on the proximity of the address to grocery stores, restaurants, coffee shops, bars, movie theaters, schools, parks, libraries, bookstores, fitness centers, drug stores, and other amenities.

The Walk Score website describes what makes a neighborhood walkable:

  • A center: Walkable neighborhoods have a discernable center, whether it's a shopping district, a main street, or a public space.
  • Density: The neighborhood is compact enough for local businesses to flourish and for public transportation to run frequently.
  • Mixed income, mixed use: Housing is provided for everyone who works in the neighborhood: young and old, singles and families, rich and poor. Businesses and residences are located near each other.
  • Parks and public space: There are plenty of public places to gather and play.
  • Pedestrian-centric design: Buildings are placed close to the street to cater to foot traffic, with parking lots relegated to the back.
  • Nearby schools and workplaces: Schools and workplaces are close enough that most residents can walk from their homes.

Washington D.C. was ranked the 7th Most Walkable City. Click here to view the Walk Scores of various D.C. Neighborhoods.

Here's a screenshot of the WalkScore results and map for a home I sold in Old Town Alexandria last year:

Walk Score -- Old Town Alexandria

Try it for yourself while looking at different home locations:

Get your Walk Score!

24 Comments
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July 4th Fireworks -- Don't Light Your Own in Alexandria, Virginia

06-24-09
Brian Block -- Northern Virginia & D.C. Real Estate

Firecrackers -- Illegal in AlexandriaEveryone enjoys a good fireworks display for July 4th. In the D.C. area there are some great ones -- whether it's down on the National Mall, at Fort Belvoir, over the Potomac River, or in various locations throughout Northern Virginia.

However, while some jurisdictions allow people to shoot off their own private fireworks displays, there are other cities in Northern Virginia where doing so is illegal.


The City of Alexandria is one such place. Here's a public service reminder that's out on the streets right now, just 10 days before Independence Day (this one's located on Duke Street at the exit ramp for Van Dorn Street -- right by Landmark Mall):

4 Comments
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What's the Average Price of a Home in...?

06-24-09
Brian Block -- Northern Virginia & D.C. Real Estate

Everyone buying a home wants to know the average home prices in the areas that interest them. People planning to sell their homes like this information too. While real estate is extremely hyper-local, just getting an idea of prices in a particular area can be helpful. Home prices vary greatly from one locality to the next.

Here's a quick and easy guide to the average prices in different cities and towns in Northern Virginia -- note that within each of these areas prices can vary widely depending upon particular neighborhood. This is a general guide just to prices within the cities and towns.

I've broken it down by type of home -- detached single family, townhouse, and condo. You should also note that these averages are based on MRIS data of currently listed homes. The data does not include for sale by owner properties, and does not necessarily indicate the prices for which these homes will eventually sell. The numbers are meant to give you a general landscape of the different average prices by jurisdiction.

Average Home PricesALEXANDRIA

Detached $975,816
Townhouse $909,432
Condo $323,811

ANNANDALE

Detached $614,283
Townhouse $339,196
Condo $139,810

ARLINGTON

Detached $995,863
Townhouse $718,379
Condo $522,667

BURKE

Detached $644,839
Townhouse $311,589
Condo $189,975

FAIRFAX

Detached $746,033
Townhouse $450,917
Condo $261,364

FALLS CHURCH

Detached $776,188
Townhouse $467,817
Condo $423,050

MCLEAN

Detached $2,085,052
Townhouse $853,474
Condo $500,265

RESTON

Detached $777,019
Townhouse $478,080
Condo $365,362

SPRINGFIELD

Detached $565,446
Townhouse $315,143
Condo $159,780

You can certainly see the disparity between the different locations. Use this as a handy-dandy guide to helping you choose where to purchase your next home. The average home in McLean is obviously very different from the average home in Springfield.

Of course, for a more detailed pricing guide broken down to a more micro level including zip codes or particular neighborhoods, feel free to contact me anytime.

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The College Grads are Coming! The College Grads are Coming!

06-16-09
Brian Block -- Northern Virginia & D.C. Real Estate

Hip bars, cool restaurants, close to a beach, affordability, young & beautiful population.

College Graduates coming to DCSure these are all things that attract newly graduated college students. But what really gets them flooding into any metropolitan area is the prospect for work. College grads go where the jobs are. They have no choice -- those college loans have to be paid off somehow!

While the rest of the country is bleeding jobs, the D.C. area is adding them. According to a report from Reuters, college graduates increasingly see the Washington DC area as a very attractive place to live and work:

"D.C. is the only place where we can point to
that is actually adding jobs right now, and we
also know that the government is hiring thousands
of people to oversee both the (economic) stimulus
package and all the associated projects," said
Marisa Di Natale, Senior Economist for Moody’s
Economy.com.

The article discusses how many graduates are "shunning Wall Street for Washington." When I graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1995, most of my friends (many of them Wharton students) went up to New York City to start their careers. I came down to D.C. for law school, practiced law, stuck around, got married, and got into real estate. At the time, my path was the anomaly.

Apparently no more!

Jobs = College Grads = Growth of Economy = Housing Market Recovery

5 Comments
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Home Prices & Inventory by McLean Virginia Neighborhood

06-08-09
Brian Block -- Northern Virginia & D.C. Real Estate

McLean Home

As of today, June 8th, there are 397 homes on the market for sale in McLean, Virginia. 80 of these were listed for sale within the last 30 days

This chart shows the current inventory, number of pending sales and average list price sorted by neighborhoods within McLean:

McLean Virginia Neighborhood

# of Homes Available

Pending Sales

Average Listing Price

Ashley

5

2

$3,056,998

Ballantrae Farms

4

-

$2,448,500

Beverly Manor

4

2

$695,000

Brookhaven

4

-

$1,661,750

Bryn Mawr

6

2

$1,318,832

Chesterbrook

8

1

$1,146,000

Evans Farm

8

-

$1,761,625

Franklin Park

10

4

$1,793,838

Hunting Ridge

6

1

$825,467

Langley Farms

4

-

$5,695,500

Langley Forest

8

2

$2,415,488

Old Dominion Gardens

4

2

$1,767,000

River Oaks

9

1

$3,365,544

Rivinus

4

-

$4,224,500

Salona Village

6

2

$1,820,500

The Reserve

6

1

$5,045,813

Woodhaven

5

1

$1,538,478

Woodside Estates

12

-

$2,162,250

The average listing price for all homes currently on the market in McLean is $1,751,018. Of the 397 homes, 256, or 64% of all McLean Virginia homes listed for sale are priced above $1 million. Interestingly, there were 55 sales of homes in McLean in the last 30 days. 16 of these, or 29% sold for over $1 million. The discrepancy points to the fact that the higher priced homes are not selling as rapidly.

However, the average sales price of a home in McLean, Virginia in the last 30 days was $906,848. Certainly nothing to sneeze at!

Additionally, there are 152 pending sales in McLean.

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