About Alexandria's Kingstowne

We live in the Washington, DC metropolitan area, and if there ever was a 'good thing' about the future, the election of Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States will not only add more consumer confidence...but that alone is adding 18,000 jobs to our neighborhoods! That doesn't mean 18,000 new people will be coming in with the Democrats....but it is job growth...and when most of the country is loosing jobs, this can only be good for our market.

The most important job right now is getting back to the basics of real estate....getting your listing presentation finely tuned, keeping in contact with past clients and giving them information they need and can actually use. Go to educational classes given by lenders to keep current with the new loan programs...learn new technology.

Just a note about the local market...we are seeing real signs of change....the closer you are to DC, the better. We are still seeing multiple contracts and homes are selling! If you go farther out, but still in commuting distance to DC, the market is WILD! Prince William county, full of foreclosures and short sales, the increases are in the triple digits over last year. Learn to do short sales and actually go back to why you went into Real Estate in the first place, to help people!

Go to my website http://www.suzanneleedy.com and click on the "market watch" section to read all about the local market in the October Stat Pack.

Realtors tend to be optomistic people in their genes...we need to be the cheerleaders for people in this tough economic climate! Be happy and think positively.... and remember "Thoughts become things, choose the good ones"!

Absolutely not!! Kingstowne is neither an incorporated borough, township, town or city and does not have a mayor or council normally associated with an incorporated location.

WHY YOU ASK? Kingstowne is a planned unit development (subdivision) located in a section of Fairfax County having a postal address of Alexandria 22315. It is not located in the City of Alexandria -sections of Fairfax County adjoining the City of Alexandria are identified as Alexandria for postal purposes only

Here in the Commonwealth of Virginia if you live in a county all of your services are provided by the county. That includes schools, public safety, water and sewer, courts, libraries, hospitals etc. The elected officials of the county are Supervisors and one of those folks is the Chairman of the Board of Supervisors. The day-to-day business of managing county agencies falls to the County Executive who serves at the pleasure of the Board of Supervisors. This is also true of the police chief, fire chief, and school superintendent. The sheriff is elected as is the clerk of court. Therefore, you only pay one tax - your real estate tax. You do pay a water and sewer bill since that is a function of your personal usage.

ARE THERE TOWNS and CITIES IN VIRGINIA? You bet there are. They have mayors and town or city councils just like other states. They provide all of their own services and do not normally receive services from the surrounding counties. However, there are instances where smaller incorporated towns and cities purchase services from the surrounding county such as school and water and sewer service. You may have a seperate tax to defray the cost of these purchased services, but they are usually included in your municipal tax.

Quaint? Not really, we've been doing it as long as there's been a United States of America.

Kingstowne is an ideal location for commuting to Fort Belvoir and it is within 15 minutes of the Van Dorn metro station facilitating travel to the Pentagon, Alexandria and Washington, DC. See my recent post highlighting the many features of KINGSTOWNE

Planning to Buy or Sell Real Estate in Kingstowne or Northern Virginia? Contact Karen and Art by Email or call us at 703-562-1532. Put our record of customer service, real estate experience and state-of-the-art technology to work for you in Alexandria, Arlington County, Fairfax County, Prince William County, Stafford County, Fauquier County or the entire Northern Virginia Area.

For some reason there seems to be confusion among prospective buyers who are looking at the community of Kingstowne in Fairfax County.

Kingstowne is not a city of its own even though it certainly is larger than some cities in our area. In fact Kingstowne is a planned community with a postal address of Alexandria but it is located in Fairfax County. Wow that seems confusing enough even for anyone who has lived in the area their entire lives.

With its convenient location close to two metro stations, Springfield-Franconia on the Blue line and Van Dorn on the Yellow line the neighborhood provides ease of transportation to Alexandria, Reagan National Airport, Pentagon or into DC and you can be at the gates of Fort Belvoir within 15 minutes.

Kingstowne offers two major grocery stores including a huge Safeway and Giant, smaller stores such as World Imports, DSW Shoe Warehouse, Home Goods and a Next Day Blinds to name a few. Looking for places to eat? Not to worry you can enjoy Italian at Macaroni Grill, Seafood at Bonefish Grill, Cajun at Kings Street Blues and of course Tex-Mex at Chipolte's.

So if you are relocating to Northern Virginia there is no need to be confused by the right address for Kingstowne. I can connect you with an experienced agent who knows their way around Kingstowne's neighborhoods and can help you make the right choice for your next move.

Kingstowne is only 20 years old with all the features that make a newer planned community attractive to many people. There are

• 2,799 town homes
• 712 condominiums
• 587 detached homes
• 1,213 apartments

There are 23 tot lots, three multi-purpose courts, approximately 22 miles of hiking and biking trails, and three community centers. The Snyder and South Community Centers each has a swimming pool and two tennis courts. Two additional tennis courts are located at the Horgan Court recreation area. The Thompson Community Center and the Snyder Community Center each has a fitness area, while the South Center has an aerobics studio. All three have rooms which can be rented for private social events.

**** HOMES FOR SALE ****
There are 8 detached homes available at an average asking price of $693,659
**** HOMES SOLD AND SETTLED ****
YEAR-TO-DATE 2008 AS OF 10/1/2008 VERSUS TOTAL 2007
	2007	2008	+/- %
Number of Homes	21	12	NA
Average List Price	649,601	699,799	+7%
Average Sales Price	638,831	652,563	+2%
Seller Contribution	- 9,309	- 3,903	-58%
Net Sales Price	629,522	648,660	+3%
Prepared By Karen Kruschka
Planning to Buy or Sell Real Estate? Contact Karen and Art by Email or call us at 703-562-1532. Put our record of customer service, real estate experience and state-of-the-art technology to work for you in Alexandria, Arlington County, Fairfax County, Prince William County, Stafford County or the entire Northern Virginia Area.

The Fairfax Connector Bus operates throughout Kingstowne delivering commuters to both the Franconia-Springfield Metro station and the Van Dorn Station facilitating travel to both the Pentagon and Washington, DC. It is also within 15 minutes of Fort Belvoir, I-495, I-95 and I-395.

Kingstowne is only 20 years old with all the features that make a newer planned community attractive to many people. There are

• 2,799 town homes
• 712 condominiums
• 587 detached homes
• 1,213 apartments

There are 23 tot lots, three multi-purpose courts, approximately 22 miles of hiking and biking trails, and three community centers. The Snyder and South Community Centers each has a swimming pool and two tennis courts. Two additional tennis courts are located at the Horgan Court recreation area. The Thompson Community Center and the Snyder Community Center each has a fitness area, while the South Center has an aerobics studio. All three have rooms which can be rented for private social events.

Ease of commuting is one of its' finer points.

• The Fairfax County Parkway is less than 10 minutes away
• Interstete 95, 395 and 495 are all within approximately 15 minutes or less.
• Fairfax Connector Routes 231 and 232 run in a clockwise and counter clockwise direction to both the Franconia-Springfield and Van Dorn metro stations.

It is approximately 15 minutes by car to Fort Belvoir. Once aboard metro the trip to Crystal City and the Pentagon is approximately 20 minutes. DC is another 10 minutes, but the proximity of metrorail provides access to the entire subway system in 10 to 15 minutes of Kingstowne.

KINGSTOWNE TOWN HOME MARKET REPORT
**** HOMES FOR SALE ****
Currently, there are 36 town homes available at an average asking price of $460,475
**** HOMES SOLD AND SETTLED ****
YEAR-TO-DATE 2008 AS OF 10/1/2008 VERSUS TOTAL 2007
	2007	2008	+/- %
Number of Homes	165	93	NA
Average List Price	450,366	460,046	+2%
Average Sales Price	442,405	451,166	+2%
Seller Contribution	- 5,860	- 6,855	+17%
Net Sales Price	436,545	444,311	+2%
Prepared By Art Kruschka
Planning to Buy or Sell Real Estate? Contact Karen and Art by Email or call us at 703-562-1532. Put our record of customer service, real estate experience and state-of-the-art technology to work for you in Alexandria, Arlington County, Fairfax County, Prince William County, Stafford County or the entire Northern Virginia Area.