Arlington, VA

As soon as the weather gets warm new listings start poppling up all over. This week CJ Realty Group is bring three new properties on the market.

If you are interested in more information on any of these properties give Cindy Jones a call at 703-346-2213 to discuss the details and arrange a showing.

Arlington
Luxury Living at the Odyssey
Jr. 1 Bedroom/1 Bath
Kitchen with Granite and Stainless Steel
Custom Murphy Bed and Cabinets in Bedroom
Odyssey features 24 hour front desk
Roof top pool and deck
Private Wave Club for parties
Garage Parking
Only 2 blocks to Courthouse Metro Station
$300,000

Fairfax
Grays Pointe
Top Floor 2 Bedroom/2 Bath
Cathedrial Ceilings
Woodburning Fireplace
Balcony overlooking green space
1 assigned parking space
Minutes to I-66 and Fairfax County Parkway
$223,900

Belmont Bay
River Club
2 Bedroom/2.5 Bath and Den
Pergo Floors in Living Room & Dining Room
Less than 1 mile to VRE
Easy access to Fort Belvoir
$1750.00 per month

Radon is an issue we talk about every day in real estate. It is a pretty typical test to get when buying a home with a basement, and rarely are elevated levels found here inside the beltway. Radon is a naturally occurring carcinogen found in the ground and it is in pockets throughout the country. It is possible for one house to have it and the next to not. Recent real estate transactions in Arlington and Falls Church have been showing elevated levels of radon, however. I've heard it is due to the earthquake last summer, but can't confirm it.

I do know that you should take it seriously and test every couple of years for it as it can come and go. It can also test high in the winter and low in the summer. The EPA recommends that any home that tests at 4picoCuries per Liter (4 pCi/L) or above be remediated. The World Health Organization recommends remediation at/above 2.7 pCi/L.

Recently, I had a buyer under contract on a house that tested at 11.8 - that's quite high for this area. The sellers had it retested and it came in at 4.6. My buyer, after researching radon's negative health effects, decided she wanted it to be below 2. Fortunately, remediation worked and it came in at an average of 1.9.

Most homes can be remediated to be under 2, according to the Radon Abatement specialist who did the work. Radon is easy to test for an relatively inexpensive to fix ($800-1500 or so depending on how your house is built).

Homes with sump pumps are cheaper and easier to remediate because the radon pipe system can tap into the sump pump.

Homes built on dirt can be more difficult and more expensive to remediate because the radon is not buffered by anything.

I am by no means a radon expert, and everything in this blog I learned from research online and by talking to radon remediation contractors. If you have a home with a basement in N. Arlington, I recommend you get you home tested every two years for radon. Contact me if you'd like a recommendation on a testing or remediation company. My personal home tested at 3.9 so I got a system installed recently and would be happy to share my experience.

See this video from the EPA for more on radon's risks.

Don't Forget to Work for The Future While You Are Working in the Present.

It happens to us every year about this time....LOTS OF BUSINESS! Paychecks. Moola.

Get those signs in the ground. Put the locks on the doors. Create those pamphlets. Hold those open houses. etc.

And then...........we forget to do the follow-up with 'potential' clients. We're too busy with what's happening NOW. Let me ask you? What about 90days from today, tomorrow, the next day? Are you going to need business then also? I think we do.

The lesson here is simple. Work on your future EVERY DAY, no matter what. As a matter of fact, that's what I took a break from to write this.

BACK TO THE FUTURE!!!

Randy Morrow randymorrowdivorceandrealty.com randymorrowSELLS.com

What Are You Doing to Push Yourself Higher?

I've been wondering for awhile what it would take to push myself into areas that I've been more or less just dreaming about. You know what I mean....be a LOT better in a particular area; achieve higher than than you dared dream.

So have I. I've worked at it but haven't gotten there by myself. So I've decided to do something about it. I hired a particular coach--I'll call him Mike--to push me like I've never been pushed before. I have achievements I'm tired of not reaching certain heights.

Mike has instructions from me to not let me have any excuses, none.

I have to tell you...it scares the begeezus out of me, and excites me!!

randymorrowdivorceandrealty.com

Randy Morrow

~ The Shirlington Report ~

The Shirlington real estate report for February shows the impact of the huge jump in contract activity in January. There were 17 units that reached the settlement table, which was just one unit shy of the results in February 2011. Coincidentally, there were 17 new listings in February, so the net number of available units is the same as in January at 37.

I hate keep singing the same refrain (and re-use verbiage from the previous months’ report), but here it is. Inventory… or more correctly the lack of inventory is an issue currently, with the Shirlington real estate market having less than 2 months of inventory at the curent sales pace. Open house activity remains robust and rates remain near historic lows, so that competition remains light for properly priced and well presented units.

The Shirlington area is surrounded mainly by condominium developments, with some fee simple town home/row homes & apartment buildings, and has a main street section with restaurants, movie theatre, award winning live theatre at the Signature, County library, and boutiques. Shirlington Village, which is the proper name, also hosts community activities from the Christmas Tree lighting to Octoberfest to a pet adoption festival, so that on any given weekend the streets and outdoor restaurant seating in filled with local residents. Since it is not on a Metrorail line (but next to I-395 to get to the Pentagon & Washington DC), housing prices are lower per square foot than condos near the Orange line in North Arlington or the Yellow/Blue line to the East in Alexandria City. For all these reasons, it is a preferred destination and location to buy a condo by first time home buyers, military/relocation, and a few empty nesters looking to downsize into a vibrant area.

The distribution of sold units in February is almost a mirror image of the January graph. Just 1 unit settled in the $300K - $400K range versus more than 50% of units in January coming in this range. Additionally, the high end of the area rebounded smartly this month after having just 1 unit settle in January.

With that in mind, you have to be properly priced for condition in today’s market and avoid “testing” the market for a higher price. The market has very little sympathy or patience for a "good try"; so you need an agent that has proven experience in Shirlington and can help you interpret the market to get you settled.

Please contact me today so that we can start the process of getting you to SOLD!