This is why elections (and your vote) matter. Whoever you choose to put in the office - especially on the local levels, because it has more impact into your daily life. For example, budget for education, transportation, affordable housing, social services, economic development, library, etc., decided on the state and local levels.

The all-majority-newly elected Republican board of Loudoun county decided to put politics (read: ideology) above people's need. "The board has threatened to derail the extension of Metrorail to Dulles airport and beyond because of a requirement that the general contractor for the project negotiate a project labor agreement with local construction unions," Steven Pearstein writes - on something that has already been decided.

The board failed to connect many dots, among others is the impact on housing market, via Washington Post. 

Certainly that has been the experience of local officials and real estate agents. Ryan Davis, for example, the city assessor in Falls Church, estimates the “Metro premium” to be somewhere between 5 percent and 7 percent for properties within one to three miles of a station. Closer than that, the premium jumps to nearly 15 percent.

Davis’s father, a real estate broker, thinks that estimate may be low. Rick Davis says he is aware of investors who bought homes a mile or two from the proposed station in Reston, expecting to capture a significant Metro premium once the station is open.

So let’s do some back-of-the-envelope calculations for Loudoun: The total assessed value of residential property on the east side of Loudoun County, in neighborhoods that are within a reasonable driving distance of the proposed Metro stations, is about $32 billion. A 5 percent increase in the value of those existing properties would translate into a $1.6 billion Metro premium. (emphasis added)

Not counting the added benefits of attracting business, talent to the county.

If the newly-elected board need to see how Metro impact housing prices, just ask any Realtor to see comparative study/analysis of say, Arlington county with Loudoun. (Arlington being the poster child of success in the region). 

There's more here...

Check this out. 

Download Calendar GreenIt Arlington

So how can you tell if your agent is right for you? Washington Post Express got it down to a few things important when you're looking for someone to represent you (buying or selling).

• Patience and personality.
• Demeanor is a huge part of what makes an agent great (or awful)
• Good communication skills, an encyclopedic knowledge of the area, self motivation, honesty and tech savvy.
• Driven
• Not afraid to tell the truth 
• Not self-serving
• Personal touch
• And more here. 

In this day and age of Internet and social media, "agents use of online tools is more important than certifications they have," says Jon Heithaus, CMO of Metropolitan Regional Information System.

What you say?

Read more.

MEET ROBERT PAXTON

Rob doubles up his gig as a Realtor and head of Safe Haven, a non-profit organization based in Falls Church. Rob hangs his real estate hat at Long & Foster's Annandale office. 

I first met Rob at a volunteer event hosted by a mutual friend of ours, in Reston. In our conversation, he mentioned that he works for this non-profit that serves meals for the poor. It just so coincidence that in my sparetime, I sometimes do volunteer work (outside my political activism) for organizations that serve meals for the poor/homeless. But in that capacity, I had never really seen the faces because most of the time we work behind-the-scene, until... last week.

So I decided to pay a visit to his organization last week.

On weekdays, Rob is wearing the hat as the Director for Safe Haven, "a non-profit day shelter that provides food and comfort to the hungry and homeless in the Falls Church area of Fairfax County," according to their website. Safe Haven is falls under the umbrella of First Christian Church of Falls Church. (He didn't tell much about his real estate business. We talk most of the time around the organization he works for).

Safe Haven was founded 10 years ago by Bill LaLiberte who decided at the age of 83 that he wanted to do something for the area homeless with the help of his church.

While waiting for Rob to finished up his meeting, I talked to Erin McKenney, who works as his assistant. At the time, Erin and a volunteer were working the table registering and counting how many people actually showed up that day for breakfast and lunch.

She told me that day they have at least 100+ people. "We have 153 people show up today," she says. People would come and go. "Sometime you see the same people come to the site, sometime they would come one day and never show up again."

Safe Haven serves meals (breakfast and lunch) on Thursdays for most months of the year. However, during the cold winter months they add another day - Tuesdays - to the schedule. 

Rob came to Safe Haven from another non-profit gig he had not far from where his office is now, where he taught financial literacy to the low income (mostly unemployed). He's been with the organization since mid 2010.

On the menu was pasta, salad, and cakes for dessert. So after they served the homeless, we - the volunteers and us - got to taste the food for lunch. Yum! The quality of the food was really good. The salad was fresh. With the exception of cakes, think the salad and pasta were prepared by volunteers from scratch - at Safe Haven's kitchen.

"One day, one of my friends who I haven't seen in 20 years, read about what I do now from Washington Post - and sent us a check - which was enough to feed them for 6 months!" Rob says. Every month, volunteers from different churches in the area come to help them out - whether working the kitchen, washing dishes or serving meals. There's usually one week a month that Safe Haven have to provide the meals upon themselves. 

In addition to working to help the homeless, Rob also loves to help homeless animals. He saved his then someone's dog from a foreclosed home. 

Rob would like to see next year - budget permitted - that Safe Haven expands their services into job training in addition to the ESL (English as a Second Language) that recently was added to the program. "People just need jobs. They want to work," he says. For him to expand their services into job training, they would need to pump up funding from private donations. Because right now, the small grants they received from the County covers only expenses for staffing up the program. There's no funding to cover the job training program yet.

If you want to help, donate and/or volunteer, you can reach them via their website http://www.fccfc.org/index.cfm?page=history-ministry. You can also find them on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/pages/Safe-Haven/193058304041713 

WISH LIST for Safe Haven

Here is the list that was put together by one of the volunteers. You can drop your donation off at Safe Haven, 6165 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church - Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9am to 3pm.

 A Day at Safe Haven (pictures)

SPONSORED POST

Thinking about remodeling your home? In today’s housing environment, whether you are buying or selling, a renovation may be the key to substantially increasing your home’s value. And the difference between this home or that other home – if you’re on the market to buy.

You've got the option to fix up the outside of your home, the inside or both. You can also have a small makeover project that can “wow” people like changing fixtures, painting or updating lighting. Or do a large scale project that include complete kitchen or bathroom remodels, the addition of hard wood flooring or the finishing of a basement area. Whatever you decide.

Here is the challenge. Renovation planning can be time consuming, confusing and overwhelming, it requires careful planning with a financial and time management budget. Chain stores with limit stock options can lead to long waits and delays in renovation projects. Driving from store to store searching for the perfect price and checking ever changing stock can be a waste of time when homeowners have options like a Direct Buy membership.

Why Direct Buy membership makes “cents?”

Direct Buy Membership offers one stop shopping in a local showroom or online at directbuy.com at prices up to 50% off retail. Direct Buy membership gives members access to over 1 million products at direct from the manufacturer prices.

Direct Buy uses its member’s collective buying power to purchase merchandise at wholesale prices then passes that savings along to its members. Direct Buy members have the ability to choose from a wide variety of merchandise from flooring, fixtures and cabinets to jewelry and furniture. Direct Buy reviews praise this innovated and simple way to shop at greatly discounted rates. Direct Buy Reviews also found Direct Buy’s no pressure sales force friendly and knowledgeable. 

Check this out. 

From ski homes, to golf estates to urban luxury living, the Fine Properties Fair offers attendees access to important information about global vacation second-homes in top locations like the Carribean, Florida, Central America, Europe, Australia, Canada, and more. In addition to browsing real estate listings, visitors can also meet online with real estate experts participating in the event. Visitors can join webminars focused on trends on international real estate investment.

If you haven't attended virtual event, think of it like going to an exhibition except instead of real booths you have virtual booths, where you can participate in whatever activities they have on there.

Realtors can benefit from this kind of luxury properties Fair. Who knows your client is interested in buying their second, third homes - internationally?

"Purchasing high-end real estate is never an easy decision," said Isaac Showman, Vice-President and head of Online Fairs. "The Fine Properties Fair provides all of the information potential buyers might need to make an informed decision and does so in just one place."

Fine Properties Fair is going to be held on October 18-19.

Check it out. You can log in from anywhere in the world and register for FREE at Fine Properties Fair.

--

Disclosure: Urban Trekker is partipating in the information network.

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Fine Metro Homes is a residential and commercial investment company founded by David Maier and Jeff Leighton who specialize in rehabbing DC area properties and acquiring commercial buildings. Please visit our website at www.finemetrohomes.com and drop us a line.

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Construction and demolition debris makes up over half of our nation's solid waste. That's the problem that Community Forklift trying to solve with their business. They are not a forklift store, rather it is a thrift store that sells surplus, salvaged and new green building materials - with a social mission. Think of it as a combination of Home Depot and Goodwill thrift store wrap in one package.

So the other week I talked to Ruthie Mundell, Outreach and Education Director with Community Forklift, to get an insight from her about their business. 

Reduce, reuse, reclaimed is embedded into their business to provide green options that are affordable. If you look at their goals, these are what they are aimed for: to lift up communities by making repairs and renovation more affordable; reduce construction industry waste, reuse materials; promote environmentally-friendly building materials and method; and develop career opportunities for communities around.

Part of our inventory comes from deconstruction, in which a building is carefully taken apart by skilled laborers instead of demolished. This creates jobs, and can cost less than traditional demolition. Instead of paying dumping fees, property owners earn tax deductions. Construction careers are created through job training in deconstruction. The materials can be sold cheaply, so homeowners and small businesses can afford repairs – making neighborhoods cleaner and safer.

Ruthie said that for inventory of products, the store accepts all kinds of home building materials donations with few exceptions. Inventory of products varied depending on what they receive at that time. It could be doors, windows, lumbers, wood flooring, sinks, etc. - anything that you can find from home improvement or hardware store. Though, they're not big box home building retailers, so don't expect them to have whatever you need in supply at all times. Sometime donations would include brand new stuff still in a package.

People who get the best stuff are those who pop-in once in a while. The store have flex rules that allows prospective buyers to put item on hold, if they're not sure about the measurements. In the event, they decided to buy, they can come back with their truck at later date, or store their stuff there in the meantime until they're ready to get their stuff - for a maximum of two weeks.

Reusing building materials just make more sense in times like this, especially for everyone looking for affordable green options. In addition, we have less waste to deal with that would otherwise end up in landfill. Less waste help municipality saves money. And for builders, if they can avoid or reduce paying dumping fees, it lowers the cost of their projects.  

When it comes to pricing of their products, Ruthie says "it depends on the condition and demand." Normally items are priced around 40 to 90% below market value. Occasionally, you'll find some free items, too. Like doors, dishwashers. Whenever they get too many items that they don't have enough room for, they'll put them on sale. More like fire sale. She said last month they have doors that were selling for $10! 

CF do have a separate division that handles the sale of salvage art, of which their items are priced much higher - than the other type of materials they have in stock. But considering the price, it's still a good deal.  

Their business have double in size during recession. In the five year they're in business, they've grown from 3 to 17 employees. That's pretty good. In addition to creating their own green jobs, they work together with another organization for the training of green jobs. 

Some of the success stories come from small remodelling business owners who are able to survive during recession because they get hired to do the jobs - at affordable rates. Thanks to the supply of products they could get from the store. 

You can learn more about how they deal with challenges and customers' success stories from a social-driven business in this interview. Alternatively, you can also subscribe via iTunes. 

Ecotwist_interview_with_Ruthie_Mundell_Comm_Forklift.wav Listen on Posterous

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