Arlington Real Estate News

The owners of Liberty Tavern are at it again. Construction is currently going on in anticipation of the grand opening of Lyon Hall, a new restaurant coming to Clarendon in February 2010. The restaurant will be located on the ground floor of the commercial building of the Phoenix Condo at 3100 Washington Blvd, Arlington VA 22201 – located across the street from Mister Days, and just 1 block from the Clarendon Metro.

Lyon Hall will feature over 20 different beers on draft, and Eastern European cuisine, which will be overseen by the head chef at Liberty Tavern, Liam LaCivita. Their tag line is “casual neighborhood brasserie.”

The restaurant will be 3 levels, with private dining upstairs, an 18-seat bar, outdoor patio, and open kitchen in the basement.

In a recent conversation with one of the owners, Brian Normile, he mentioned their idea for the name came from being located between Lyon Park and Lyon Village.

Scheduled to be open for dinner from Tuesday – Saturday.

the $8,000 tax credit, interest rates, and lower prices, i’ve had a ton of buyers that i’ve been working with lately. In doing so, you get to see the process from another side – and it becomes VERY clear what makes a world of difference when a buyer is house shopping. This past weekend was a particularly frustrating one for me, representing the buyer. I know i’ve learned a tremendous amount of changes I can make when helping sellers to attract more buyers.

Here are the most aggravating and common mistakes real estate agents make:

1. No Pictures: Our MLS allows for up to 30 photos and a virtual tour…or better yet, take more photos and create an individual website for the property. Even as an agent – the first thought that occurs when you see something without a picture is: “what’s wrong with it?!” Uploading 3 pictures of the backyard, and having all 3 be identical, is not helpful. Take pictures!!! Pictures attract buyers!

2. Is it the right key for the unit? DOES IT WORK? I don’t know about you, but I know i’m MORTIFIED when I drive a buyer to a property and waste their time and mine to find out the key doesn’t work. Or better yet – isn’t there. Label the key (especially if it’s a condo building!) so we all know which unit it opens, and please make sure it works.

3. Is the listing information correct? The other time waster - giving show instructions as “Show anytime, vacant,” only to find out that there’s no key….because it’s 24-hour notice, by appointment. I congratulate you, Mr. Busy Agent, on having multiple units for sale in one building – but you’re not doing anyone a favor by having agents knocking on the doors of unsuspecting sellers in the middle of dinner because we think it’s vacant.

4. Add as many details as possible. Know your product! I think it’s a reasonable request to ask square footage. If you can’t answer that very frequently asked question, you don’t know your product. If you don’t know it – how can you sell it? Does the building/neighborhood have pet restrictions? Put it in the listing. If my client has a 75 lb rottweiler, we’ll save everyone’s time by not showing them properties that only allow cats. It will also prevent getting your sellers excited about a potentially interested buyer.

5. Make it as easy to show as possible. Some circumstances really do require at least 24-hour notice or appointment only instructions. But if that’s the case – answer your phone. You do your clients a disservice by not even attempting to entertain showings by ignoring emails and voicemails. We all know you have a blackberry or iphone – what good is it in paperweight mode? The other big one? I know we’re reliant upon GPS nowadays, but please, please make sure the directions are correct – both to the property and for parking!

Located in the western part of Arlington County, near the East Falls Church Metro, is the neighborhood of Berkshire Oakwood. The neighborhood has somewhere between 1,700-1,800 homes. This area is in the Arlington-East Falls Church area, which broke away from Falls Church in 1936, when it formally joined Arlington County. Located in the 22207 zip code, bordered by Lee Highway (Rt 29), Fairfax Blvd (and Rt 66), and many other side streets including John Marshall and N. Trinidad, Berkshire Oakwood is a very popular area.

Originally built homes were mostly constructed in the 1930s and 1940s, however, Berkshire Oakwood has been a popular site for Arlington McMansions. There are many homes that retain their charm of yester-year, but there are also many, many homes that have been remodeled from top to bottom with today’s popular features.

The map below is a ROUGH estimate of the neighborhood. This part of Arlington had some side streets that are part of a near-by neighborhood, some of Falls Church, etc. But you can see the general area of this neighborhood.

Search Berkshire Oakwood Homes For Sale

This Saturday, September 5th, is the 21st Annual Blues Festival in Washington, D.C. This event is FREE, and this year will be held in celebration of the Society’s Founder and First President, John Cephas.

The event will be held at the Carter Barron Amphitheater, located at
4850 Colorado Ave
Washington, D.C. 20011
Noon – 7:30pm

Here’s a lineup of the talent that will be entertaining the crowd:

12:20 – 12:55: Capital Blues Ensemble
1:05 – 2: Billy Thompson & Friends
2:10 – 3:15: Michael Hill’s Blues Mob
3:25 – 4:35: Eddie Turner
4:45 – 5:55: Eugene “Hideway” Bridges
6:05 – 7:20: Teeny Tucker

If you’re interested in learning more about their events and membership, please visit their site: DCBS

I hope you woke up hungry today!! It’s the first official day of Washington, D.C.’s Restaurant Week! It’s that time where over 180 of the D.C. Metro Area’s finest open up their menus pre-fixed three course meals for Lunch and/or Dinner.

Restaurants from Downtown D.C., Arlington, Alexandria, Rockville, Gaithersburg, Tyson’s Corner, and all over the neighboring cities of D.C. are participating. Get a Full List of Participants to find your favorites. You can also make reservations online through OpenTable here. Reservations are strongly encouraged!!

Bon appetite!!!

Winner of the 1997 and 1999 Community Association of the Year, The Belvedere Condominium, has a lot to offer a resident.

• Built in 1986, there are 526 units spread between 2 towers.
• The building features a pool, tennis courts, concierge, a gym with aerobics studio, a spa, and a small convenience store.
• The location of the building, 1600 N Oak St, Arlington, VA 22209 is located near the Rosslyn metro and corridor of North Arlington, within the school districts of Key Elementary School, Williamsburg Middle School, and Yorktown High School.
• Many of the larger units are well over 1,800 sq. ft.

Search Belvedere Condos for Sale

The 2009 Urban Mobility Report conducted by the Texas Transportation Institute ranked the D.C. Metro area #2 in wasted hours attributed to congestion (i.e. traffic!). The 395/495 interchange – you could spend a massive amount of your life tied up in this bottle neck. The report showed for 2007, travelers wasted, on average, 62 hours annually in traffic. SHEESH! Only 2nd to L.A. (at 70 hours).

Here’s a little tip if you’re trying to save a few hours of your life…sign up for Arlington Alerts!!

The system will send you an email or a text message when there’s something you should know. Here’s an example of the Alerts I received today:

“Severe Weather Watch for Arlington County:National Weather Service has issued a severe thunderstorm wastch for Arlington County through this evening.”

“Traffic Alert: I-66 in both directions in Rosslyn are blocked as a result of a downed tree. One eastbound lane getting by. Crews are on the scene.”

Trust me! This is news you want to get, and as early as possible!

To sign up for the Alerts, visit the Arlington Alert website.

A North Arlington neighborhood consisting of about 600 single family homes, Waycroft-Woodlawn is bordered by N. Glebe Rd, Rt 66, 17th St, and N George Mason Drive, just to the north of the Ballston area and metro. The neighborhood spans over the zip codes 22205 and 22207, and includes Woodlawn Park (a family-friendly area for the community).

Search Waycroft- Woodlawn Homes For Sale

May has now come and gone….along with 32 condos in Arlington’s 22201 zip code. Here’s a brief snapshot of some of the sales last month:

Buildings with 3 Units Sold
Colonial Village
Station Square
Westview

Buildings with 2 Units Sold
1021 Clarendon
The Phoenix
The Odyssey
The Williamsburg
Eastview
The Astoria

There were several other buildings with 1 unit…Windsor Plaza, 1800 Wilson, etc.

For buildings fewer than 10 years old, here are some recent sales:

2 bedroom, 2 bath: Average sale price, $538,000

1 bedroom, 1 bath: average sale price, $370,000

Studio, 1 bath: average sale price, $278,000

For the other buildings in 22201:

2 bedroom, 2 bath: average sale price, $454,700

1 bedroom, 1 bath: average sale price, $330,400

Market snapshots try to encompass high level stats…they don’t account for individual details that really help to narrow down a price range for a certain unit. Several factors go into running more specific market analysis.

Local governments *tried* to make budget cuts to keep costs down…but apparently, Northern Virginia homeowners should prepare to see a slight increase in their real estate taxes. 

Arlington, Virginia, Arlington County: current tax rates are .838 for every $100 of the assessed value. The budget for 2010 has that increasing to $0.865

Fairfax County, Virginia: tax rates are 0.92 for every $100 of the assessed value. The 2010 rate appears to be $1.04

Alexandria City, Virginia: tax rates are currently $0.845, they will be going up to $0.903

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news!

Read on at the WashingtonPost.com article.