About Bristow's Braemar

What I Discovered Living in Bristow, VA

My husband and I have been life long Northern Virginia residents. We were both raised in Fairfax, VA. With the Washington, DC suburbs being so transient, we are not surprised that we don't run into my people FROM Northern Virginia.

We lived in Fairfax County our entire lives, until we decided to buy a single family home. At the time (the peak of the real estate market) our house buying dollars went much further in Prince William County versus the location of Centreville we were currently enjoying. So we investigated Bristow, VA. It was close to Manassas Regional Airport--a great thing for my flying enthusiast husband. It was also conveniently located to Routes 66, 29 & 28.

Our Bristow home, located in the popular neighborhood of Braemar, was built in 2004, and we moved in the day after Christmas. I will never forget that because the news coverage regarding the tsunami in Thailand had the movers enthralled around our TV. I suggested we pack that first, since we were paying these guys by the hour.

The first thing we noticed in moving to Bristow, VA was the wildlife. Growing up in Fairfax, we ocassionally saw a critter, but nothing like out here. The first week in the house there was a fox on our front lawn. We routinely saw bunnies and deer in our yard. I even saw a snake while mowing the lawn. (It was a baby garden snake.). Raccoons were also seen on our property. It was really neat to be able to hear owls at night, and crickets. They seemed so loud to me that I had trouble sleeping that first summer.

Then, one Christmas Day, we looked out in our backyard and saw a wild turkey. Seeing that thing fly to a branch about 40 feet up was hysterical. It looked like it was really a struggle for it. A graceful bird it was not. It was yet another first in our Bristow residency.

Braemar, and surrounding Bristow, has built up more in the past five years, but we still see our critters. No longer any fox, but definitely deer, raccoons and bunnies. Still hear the owls too. That's the nice thing about living on the suburban edge of rural. You get the wildlife attractions and are still able to have a modest sized lawn and closeness to shops. I love it here in Bristow!

If you are a resident of Bristow, Virginia's community of Braemar, then you may want to participate in the holiday home decoration contest. It's all about decorating the front facing exterior of your home with holidays lights and decorations.

Volunteers throughout each sub-association of Braemar will be coming the neighborhood on the evenings of December 12th & 13th to choose winners in the following categories:

GRISWOLD (Most Outrageous)

TRADITIONAL (a.k.a. Home Sweet Home)

BEST OVERALL

There will be winners chosen in each Braemar subassociation, in each of the three categories. You've only got to December 12th & 13th to get the decorations up. Better get moving!

Braemar Property Values are in for September-October 2009 for the Heritage Series homes. What's a Heritage series home? That's easy. A Heritage Series home is one of the mid-size single family homes with attached garages, built by Brookfield Homes. They come in four models: Exeter, Zachary, Yardley and Waverly. Yardleys are by far the most commonly seen of the Heritage Series.

Braemar Property Value for the Heritage Series homes is an average of the sales for the prior two months. In this report there were seven resales, five Yardley models, two Exeter models. This brings the avearage Braemar Propery Value for Heritage Series homes to $349,500. That down 3.7% from last report's average Property Value of $363,000.

I am proud to say that the home with the largest resale price this report was a home that I listed. Who would have thought that a Yardley model facing the power lines would sell for more than any other Heritage home in the neighborhood during the last two months. It pays to have a good Realtor.

If you are considering putting your Braemar Heritage Series home on the market you can expect it to be under contract in just about two weeks time, if priced to current market conditions. You can also expect to be asked to give a buyer an average of 1/2% of the sales price in closing cost assistance. Of course, some buyers will still need all of their closing cost paid in order to purchase your Braemar home, which generally comes out to 3% in our market.

The next Braemar Property Value Report will be out in January. Until then, you can check average sales prices dating back to 2005 on my website: www.nvarealestate.net. Simply click the link for Braemar Property Value Report Online and scroll down to Heritage Series for those mid-sized home figures. It will look like this:

If you are thinking of buying or selling a Braemar home, give me a call. No one knows Braemar better!

Chris Ann Cleland, Realtor, Licensed in VA, Long & Foster

703-402-0037, chrisann@LNF.com

Bramear Property Values are in for the months of September and October 2009 for the Courtyard Series homes. What's a Courtyard home? A Courtyard homes is one with nearly a zero lot line. They are five to a pipe stem. They are fully detached homes and have two car garges. They are often referred to as "executive" homes as they are ideal for folks that have no time, or want, for yardwork. Courtyard homes come in three models: Arlington, Clarendon and Ballston.

The Braemar Property Values for Courtyard homes are calculated by averaging the sales within the last two months. In September and October, four Courtyard homes sold...three being Ballston models and the other being an Arlington model.

The average Property Value for Braemar Courtyard homes this report is $309,725. That's just abut a 7% increase since last reports' (July-August 2009) average Property Value of $289,650.

If you are thinking of selling your Braemar Courtyard home, you can expect to have your home under contract in less than one month if it is priced to current market conditions. You can also expect to pay an average of 2.4% of the sales price in closing cost assistance. That's a more reasonable figure compared to last reports' average closing cost assistance of 4%.

The next Braemar Property Value Report for Courtyard homes will be out in January. Until then, you can find average sale prices online, dating back to the summer of 2005, by going to my website: www.nvarealestate.net. Simply click the link at the left for Braemar Property Value Report Online and scorll down to Courtyard Series. This is what you will see:

If you are thinking of buying or selling a Braemar home, please give me a call. No one knows Braemar better!

Chris Ann Cleland, Realtor, Licensed in VA, Long & Foster

703-402-0037, chrisann@LNF.com

Braemar Property Values for September-October 2009 have just been calculated for the Carriage Series homes. What's a Carriage Series home? That's easy. These are single family homes with detached garages. (Of course, not all Carriage home have a garage. Some homes chose to have only asphalt where the garage would normally sit.) The models that make up the Carriage Series homes are: Maplewood, Norwood, Oakdale and Parkdale.

Braemar Property Values for the Carriage Series this report are an average of the past two months sales. In September and October there were three resales. One Norwood and two Parkdale models. This gives us a mix of smaller and larger Carriage Homes.

Sadly, the average Property Value for a Braemar Carriage home is $262,000 this report. That's a 10.6% decrease in value since last report (july-August 2009), and the lowest property value since I began this report in mid-2005.

During the decline our real estate market, Braemar Carriage Homes have maintained their position as a top performing house. They neverlost the same ground as the larger homes around them. That's probably because Braemar Carriage Homes were a great alternative to townhouses, and much less expensive than the larger homes around them. Now, as the larger homes begin their recovery, the Carriage Homes are declining steeply.

If you put your Braemar Carriage Home on the market today, and priced it to current market condition, this latest report indicates that you can expect to have your home under contract in about one week's time. You can also expect to be asked to pay an average of 2.5% of the buyer's closing costs.

The next Braemar Property Value Report will be out in January. Until then, you can check back into average sale prices dating back to 2005 on my website: www.nvarealestate.net. Click the link on the left for Braemar Property Value Report Online and scroll down until you see the heading Carriage Series. The page will look like this:

Braemar Carriage homes will continue to be in demand as they are great alternative to townhouses for first time buyers. And with the extension of the $8,000 first time buyer tax credit, there will be many first time home buyers looking for a home like a Braemar Carriage Home. If you'd like to put yours on the market, give me a call. No one knows Braemar better!

Chris Ann Cleland, Realtor, Licensed in VA, Long & Foster

703-402-0037, chrisann@LNF.com