Winslow Group Real Estate Blog

Brambleton: Awesome Lot, Awesome House!

2010-01-28T12:20:00.004-05:00

You have got to check out this listing located on Regal Wood Drive in Brambleton. Its a Centex built home, with three finished levels, on arguably one of the best lots in Brambleton! Priced at $549,900- which is $20,000 lower than the last comp sold, this house fronts to a park, and has a HUGE fully fenced backyard.

Interior features include hardwoods throughout the main and upper levels, and a fully finished walk up basement that has an in-law suite, a full bath, and a full size theatre room with theatre style seating.

Full size washer and dryer conveniently located on upper level next to master bedroom. Three additional bedrooms up, traditional dining and living rooms on main level, and a spacious two story family room, complete with fireplace.

For more information or photos on this listing, please contact Mike Winslow, ReMax Select Properties. 703.930.7052 or mike@winslowgroup.com

First Floor Master, New Granite in Kitchen

2009-12-19T12:17:00.003-05:00

Our featured property this week is a 4 bedroom (plus a loft), 3.5 bath detached single family home, in the sought after Potomac Lakes section of Potomac Falls. The house is the epitome of ‘turn key’, with pride in ownership throughout. The home has been recently reduced to $649,900, and the sellers have had granite put in throughout the entire kitchen.

FEATURES
A huge open floor plan, the main level features a two-story family room, spacious gourmet kitchen, office/library, and first floor master bedroom. The gourmet kitchen features a total of 31 custom cabinets and drawers, and a huge walk in pantry; storage will never be an issue here. Hardwood floors, a huge island, bump out-box bay window, and a double-sided gas fireplace complete this gem of a room.

Walk out to your entertainer’s paradise- a 900 square foot custom stone patio- from either the kitchen or connecting two-story family room. Backing to trees and providing you with an element of privacy, the workmanship is second to none. It’s the centerpiece of a lot that is professionally landscaped on all four sides.

The walk up basement alone is worth the price of admission. Ceramic tile throughout, a theatre “room”, exercise room, bar area, full bath, and tons of storage. All told, there are almost 1500 finished square feet on this lower level.

The Lockbox Conversion: Less Than Seamless

2009-04-14T20:01:00.006-04:00

(Recently, agents and realtor associations in our area were introduced to a new lockbox, called Sentrilock. Not every association in our area converted, and below are my thoughts and experiences with some of the "problems" this has caused.)

I will start by saying that I am a big fan of Sentrilock. I do find it to be more convenient to update, check showings, and the credit card size of the key itself, is definitely a plus. However, the timing of the switchover could not have been worse.

The National Association of Realtors- 60% owners of Sentrilock, have an obvious interest in seeing the Sentrilock system succeed. I don't claim to know the negotiations, or the conversations that took place between NAR's representatives and the associations that Realtors like myself belong to, and pay dues to, but its becoming clear to me that there were some questions not asked, and potential problems not considered, when deciding on going to multiple keys in a "market" that was not going to see 100% participation.

The fact that DAAR did not switchover, makes sense to me from what I know. They were still two years left into a contract with Supra, and would've had to pay almost $300,000 to get out of that contract. The decision not to put that expense on their members, seems like the responsible decision to have made in a market and economy that we are in right now.

However, in light of the fact that most of the other associations in the area converted to Sentrilock, the irony of DAAR's decision, is that Realtors are having to shell out more money for both keys- not the added expense most agents need right now. I wonder if the other associations took that into account, or simply caved into NAR's wanting to "provide competition" for the lockbox market.

My other concern, and the concern that should be noted by the homeowners who are selling or intend to sell their home, is that unfortunately, due to the tightened budgets of agents, and their choice not to fit the bill for two lockbox keys, I'm finding more and more listings having unauthorized combo boxes on the property, or even worse, keys being left out- unsecured, so that the property may be shown by the agents who don't have the assigned box's key. All under the watchful, or should I say "blind" eye, of the associations and the powers that be.

I do believe and hope, that all the associations will eventually be on the same page, in terms of lockboxes. And with NAR's ownership in Sentriock, I'm almost sure that will be the box that trumps all others. A more seamless transition should've been considered, and rendered, in an already tough market for both agents, and their clients.

Mike Winslow
Re/Max Select Properties
703.930.7052
www.winslowgroup.com

A Busy Market

2009-03-18T22:25:00.002-04:00

The interest rates are low, housing prices are more affordable, and I'm happy to report that I haven't been this busy in 4 or 5 years. Lots of buyers, lots of traffic, multiple offers- whats going on right now is very encouraging for the local market. In fact, transactions through the first quarter are going to be up about 20% compared to last year's first quarter.

Twice in the last month and a half, I've had buyers run into muliple offers situations in two different price ranges, and in two different parts of the county. I had townhouse buyers, who eventually got into Potomac Station, run into a 6 contract listing, on a townhouse in Ashburn Farm priced at $225,000. I have buyers looking in the $500k-$600k range, out in Western Loudoun, run into multiple offers on two different listings!

I currently have three listings, and a rental in Reston that I'm going to put up on Friday. I just lowered the price on a listing I have in the Broadlands, and I'm hoping the price drop gets the job done. The house shows like a model, is move in ready, and is located right in the heart of the Broadlands.

I have a former model home out in Lovettsville, that has all the bells and whistles; the custom bar and theatre in the basement. The huge deck, iron rod fence, and pool in the back- gorgeous home, on a couple acres.

Please see my listings at www.winslowgroup.com, and feel free to call me directly with any real estate questions.

Mike Winslow
Re/Max Select Properties
www.winslowgroup.com
703.930.7052

The Home Inspection: Just Do It

2009-02-11T09:34:00.002-05:00

An aspect of the real estate contract that has had a resurgence in this volatile market that we are in, is the home inspection. Five years ago, buyers had to wave almost every possible contingency, including the home inspection, just to have their offer considered. Now home inspections are the norm for an offer for sale, and in my opinion, an absolute must.

The way that a home inspection works is like this; you make an offer to purchase on a particular property, and within the offer, you write a home inspection contingency. This allows you to get some peace of mind from a professional home inspector, to ensure that there are no “deal breakers” or in other words, major flaws with the property that you’ve contracted on. The buyers have an agreed amount of time to perform the inspection, and in some cases, request items to be fixed prior to closing. This period of time is usually in the 10-14 day range, and that time starts from the day after all terms within the contract are agreed upon by both the buyer and seller.

Now I would advise my buyers to understand a few things with regard to inspections. For starters, any contingency agreed upon within the contract, ultimately can become an “out” for the buyer. In the case of a home inspection contingency, if you write an offer with this contingency, and you perform the inspection, and lets say the inspector finds major structural damage that would require thousands of dollars to fix, you as the buyer with the contingency in place, have a legal “out” of the contract, with no penalty and no forfeiture of deposit.

Two other things to remember, especially in the market we’re in right now: Number one, be absolutely certain of what you’re entitled to as a buyer, as it pertains to doing a home inspection. Many of the properties you’re going to see in this market are bank owned properties, or short sale properties- in which the owner is tapped out financially, and you as the buyer, may be involved with what essentially is an “as-is” property. You are absolutely entitled to do an inspection, but you may not be able to ask for any items to be repaired. Hence, “as-is”.

Lastly, regardless of how new the home might be, I’ve seen plenty of newer houses in which the prior owner or tenant, has “removed” major appliances, piping, wiring, etc. Just because a home might’ve been built in 2006 or 2007, doesn’t mean you don’t need to perform an inspection. Err on the side of caution. We’re talking a few hundred dollars for a home inspection, for the peace of mind in signing off on a few hundred thousand dollar purchase, or more.

Please feel free to contact me with any questions with regard to the home inspection, or any other real estate related item.

Mike Winslow
Re/Max Select Properties
703.930.7052
mike@winslowgroup

Congress to Stimulate Housing Market?

2009-02-06T07:48:00.002-05:00

All the talk about stimulus packages, and the debates back in forth about what is worth it and what is pork, probably has your head on the verge of combustion. It does mine. But late Thursday, there was talk about home purchasing incentives that might show up in some fashion or another, and could help 'move the needle' in a struggling housing market.

For starters, the Senate has added to the stimulus package a tax incentive for home buyers to receive a $15,000 tax credit, or 10% of the purchase price. The second part of the "bill", which isn't in the package yet, but has been proposed by Senator John Ensign(R-NV), and is being refered to as Amendment 353, would provide for a 30 year fixed interest rate at 4%, for anyone purchasing a primary residence.

Both of these proposed amendments could have a significant effect on our housing market. Stay tuned as the stimulus package pertains to the housing market.

Mike Winslow
Re/Max Select Properties
mike@winslowgroup.com
703.930.7052

New Construction Representation

2009-01-28T20:22:00.002-05:00

If you're going to be in the market to purchase a home, and you're going to opt for new construction, don't make the mistake of going into it without representation.

Alot of buyers get lulled into the fact that there is a sales representative who walks them through the house, discusses options and colors, and ultimately sits down with them to write the contract. Just keep in mind, that this representative is a representative of the builder, and is in the business to sell houses for the builder, but ultimately has no fiduciary obligations to you.

Take your agent with you when you visit a new construction site or trailer, or if you can't make arrangements to do so initially, tell the on site rep that you will be bringing representation to the table, and will be represented at contract. You want someone, other than the builder's rep, to read over the contract. Its also good to have representation to make sure the builder and sales rep are doing what they've contracted to do, and doing so when they tell you.

Your agent can also check in with the builder from time to time to check on progress, and make sure they have not made any significant price drops since your time of contract, especially in this market. You may think that this wouldn't affect you or your ability to negotiate your already contracted price down, but let me tell you, everything is and can still be negotiable.

Secondly, when dealing with new construction loans, or any type of home loan for that matter, get at least two quotes. But especially with builders, who will give you every incentive under the sun to use their lender, you need to get at least two quotes. Getting a $10,000 design center credit might not be that great of an incentive, if their lender is giving you a quote of something other than market rate.

Its a tough market out there, and now more than ever is a realtor's experience and guidance worth their weight in gold.

Mike Winslow
Re/Max Select Properties
mike@winslowgroup.com
703.930.7052

Ashburn Townhome Market Continues to Sizzle

2009-01-14T19:06:00.002-05:00

As I mentioned in an earlier blog when talking about investment properties, the Ashburn townhome market continues to sizzle. It is my opinion that this is one of the markets around Loudoun that has bottomed. The non-garage, 15-20 year old townhome, when priced in the $225-235k price range, and when not looking like a tornado blew through it, is selling like hotcakes.

Case in point, my first time buyers- who've I've been working with for a couple weeks now- made a full price offer on just one of those places, and lost out in what turned out to be a 4 contract listing. Good news for the market, bad news for my buyers. My buyers will get into a place sooner or later, but it certainly is a positive sign for a market and economy that needs any good news to build on.

And while I went on a rant in my last post, about some of the incompetent agents who are listing so many bank owned properties that they can't keep track of what day it is, I must give major "props" to Kathy Colville and her team at Long and Foster Sterling. Though my clients did not "win" the contract battle, her and her team were quick to respond when we indicated that we were making an offer, and kept us in the loop for the days that followed. Thank you Kathy, Anne, and Alice.

To all my loyal readers, feel free to contact me with any real estate questions either by e-mail or cell. Prices are more reasonable, interest rates are disgustingly low, and its my feeling that the overall feeling by the buying public is going to sway more positively once the president elect takes office. Don't stay on the fence, with so many positive buying factors, if indeed you may be in the market to buy.

Stay warm, and don't leave your pets outside for long periods of time. Its cold and getting colder out there.

Mike Winslow
Re/Max Select Properties
mike@winslowgroup.com
703.930.7052

Biting Off More Than They Can Chew

2009-01-04T15:08:00.003-05:00

There is a serious problem going on right now within our market, and it revolves around the agents who chase these bank owned properties, and their inability to keep their business in order. In short, there are agents out there doing a HORRIBLE job representing the bank they've contracted with, and myself and other agents have about had it, with the lack of return phone calls and the overall lack of customer service.

For those who are not in 'the know', I will explain. As the foreclosures have increased in our area and nationwide, the banks who hold these trusts eventually need a realtor/broker to represent them once its processed through foreclosure, and ready for the resale market. What has happened, and I will stress this is not for every bank owned property, nor is it for every realtor representing them, but for some agents representing banks in this market, they've taken on entirely too many listings, and can't keep up with the basics. Like calling another agent back after they've left you 4 voicemails, sent you an e-mail, and called their broker to complain.

You see, I've done just that this weekend. I'm working with first time home buyers who are looking at townhomes in Leesburg and Ashburn. We've found one that they want to write on, but I cannot get the agent to call me back to answer basic questions, let alone give me a working fax number, instruct me on addendums, etc.

This particular agent, who will remain nameless for at least the moment, has 81 listings and from what I can tell, just one alternate agent working for them. Again, for those who are reading this who don't deal with real estate on a day to day basis, that is entirely too much for one or two or even 5 agents to handle. And what happens, is that customer service goes straight out the window and not only is business being delayed, but these banks are getting garbage representation.

The market is tough enough as it is. The banks who select their representation need to start being a little bit more selective, and then they need to follow up on their properties, making sure they're being marketed properly- web photos, descriptions, etc. They should also set limits on the number of properties they 'hand over' to any one agent. And for the agents who are 'guilty' of these short falls, you need to either get squared away, or quit taking on more business than you can handle. Because at the end of the day, you're doing nobody any favors, including the 'client' that you represent.

I hate to call out my fellow brethren, but it is what it is.

Mike Winslow
Re/Max Select Properties
www.winslowgroup.com
703.930.7052

THE IMPORTANCE OF STAGING IN A TOUGH MARKET

2008-12-17T21:43:00.000-05:00

Now, more than ever, it is imperative to have your home staged “correctly” prior to going on the market. I will give you a few tips, that will not only help you get a contract on your home, but will allow you to do so without spending too much money in the process.

I’ve always told my sellers that the three most important things with regard to staging are as follows:
(1) De-clutter the home.
(2) The condition of the walls and doors and
(3) The condition of the carpet and flooring.

The cheapest of the three, which simply requires your time and energy, is to de-clutter your home. This includes everything from not having toys lying around during showings, creating a more “open” feel-and not having furniture blocking walk ways, to taking items off the refrigerator. I encourage my sellers with too much clutter to utilize a storage room in the basement, or even store items neatly in the garage. The idea here, is to showcase the amount of space available to the buyers, by eliminating your excess “stuff”.

Having your walls and doors up to speed can be as easy as scrubbing out scuff marks, or taking some paint and brushes, and doing touch up. Only in extreme cases would I hire contractors to come in and paint. Especially these days, with most people’s budgets getting tighter and tighter, I think a trip to the Home Depot and a little bit of your own time and elbow grease, will do the job just fine.

Depending on the condition of your carpet and flooring, this is the one staging item that could cost you the most. If your wood flooring is in good shape, taking something as simple as a broom, a vacuum, and a dry/damp mop to it will do the trick. If your wood floors have a lot of wear and tear, you might want to look into a refinishing solution that will help bring the luster of the wood grain back. With regard to your carpet, if we’re talking about a few spots here and there, and a carpet simply in need of a good cleaning, I highly recommend Stanley Steemer. They’re not very expensive, I’ve used them personally, have referred them to my clients, and I’ve always been pleased with their work. Now if we’re talking some serious carpet issues, as in stains that won’t come out or multiple areas where the carpet is worn, I would do all that you can within your budget to have the carpets replaced.

Pay attention to the details when staging your home, especially in these 3 key areas. Doing so will help your home make an impression on buyers, especially in this extremely competitive market. As always, I would encourage anyone with any real estate questions to contact me via e-mail at mike@winslowgroup.com, or feel free to contact me on my cell phone at 703.930.7052. Stay focused, stay positive, and have a safe and happy holiday and new year!

Mike

Mike Winslow
Re/Max Select Properties
www.winslowgroup.com
703.930.7052

SHORT SALES: THERE IS NOTHING ‘SHORT’ ABOUT THEM

2008-11-27T09:19:00.000-05:00

One of the biggest problems to face our market over the past few years has been the ‘short sale’.

The technical definition, as described by everyone’s favorite website, Wikipedia, is as follows: “ A short sale occurs when the proceeds of a real estate sale fall short of the balance owed on the property.[1] In a short sale, the bank or mortgage lender agrees to discount a loan balance due to an economic or financial hardship on the part of the mortgagor.” So, in other words, a short sale is when a house is put on the market, because of some sort of financial hardship taken on by the homeowner, and unfortunately, the amount owed on the house is higher than what the market will allow it to sell for.

Basically, the bank or banks that own the mortgage(s) tied to the property in question, accept what essentially is a buy out. They evaluate the market conditions, and if the banks believe it will result in a smaller financial loss by preventing a foreclosure, they will usually accept the short sale.

The problems with these short sales would require me to write a blog of biblical proportion, so since there is turkey to eat and football to watch ;) , I’ll try and summarize the basics, and explain how they effect buyers in our market.

The biggest problem with short sales is the time in which it takes these banks to approve these deals. I’m seeing short sales taking up to six months to get approved, and in some cases, after everyone has sat around for half a year, get denied. The time it is taking to get answers from these banks, is bogging down a market that is already ‘taking on water.’

The reason this is such an issue, besides the obvious waiting around for an answer, is that while these banks and their negotiators cut through the red tape and assess their bottom-line - depending on how much Congress is promising to shell out to them this week - they basically are taking ready and willing buyers OUT of the market. During this time, the buyers could be out looking at or writing contracts on other properties, but many opt not to, in hopes that their offer is approved.

After about the third or fourth time, that a bank negotiator gives me the proverbial, ‘Well Mike, we should know something by next Monday,’ my buyers and like buyers who are in the same boat, are at their wit’s end. It becomes extremely frustrating, not just for the buyers, but also for the messengers, like yours truly.

My advice to buyers, who may pursue short sales in this market, is just to accept the fact that it’s going to take some time, and ultimately, you may not even get the house you wrote on. Keep your expectations low, keep an open mind to looking at other properties, and if the house you’ve contracted on is meant to be, then hopefully it will all work out in the end.

I will address in a future blog, the affects of short sales on homeowners, with regard to credit, how you begin a short sale, and alternatives to staying in your home, and avoiding them all together.

As always, I would encourage anybody with any real estate questions to contact me via e-mail at mike@winslowgroup.com, or feel free to call me on my cell phone @ 703.930.7052. Stay focused, stay positive, and have a safe and happy Thanksgiving!

Mike

Mike Winslow
Re/Max Select Properties
www.winslowgroup.com
703.930.7052

Real Estate Opportunities in a Down Market

2008-11-18T19:17:00.002-05:00

November 18th, 2008

The opportunities in our real estate market right now are out there for all buyers, not just first time, and not just people moving up, but anyone who is ready to take advantage of the large inventory, and the still historically low interest rates. And that includes investment buyers.

I keep telling my friends and family, that with the stock market on its continued slippery slope, that they should at least diversify their portfolio, and invest in some real estate that can become a positive cash flow property.

Anybody who has read Robert Kiyosaki's book “Rich Dad, Poor Dad”, can tell you that a lot of what he preaches in this book, revolves around turning a positive cash flow on your real estate investments. Three and four years ago, with the housing prices as high as they were here in Loudoun County, this proposition for positive cash flow was a moot point; the numbers, based on mortgage to rental income ratios, just didn’t add up. Let me explain what I’m talking about, by using one subdivision in Loudoun County as an example, Ashburn Village.

Between the second and third quarters of 2006, a three bedroom, non garage townhome in the Village, was selling for between $375k and $400k. If an investor contracted to purchase one of these townhomes, and put 10% down, that would leave them with between roughly $335k and $360k to finance. Now if you do basic lender math, and if we apply the 2006 interest rates to this amount to finance, and of course we include taxes and insurance, this would leave the investor with a mortgage payment somewhere in the $2400 range, give or take. The market price for what this rental could command in 2006 was roughly between $1500 and $1600 per month. Now I’m no math major, but even I can tell you that those numbers don’t make much financial sense.

Now lets fast forward to 2008, where that same townhouse is selling for the low $200’s, only as high as $250k on the very high end, but most comparables showing median prices to be in the $225k to $230k range. If we run the same scenario, and mind you, in this credit crunch of a market that we’re in, an investor only putting 10% down is going to most likely require excellent credit and excellent reserves, but under this scenario we now have roughly $200k to finance. That leaves us a mortgage payment of roughly $1600 a month, in a rental market that is now commanding between $1750 and $1850 per month, and even higher depending on the condition of the property.

Now you might not think an extra $150 or $200 a month is a lot. And I realize the sometimes painful duty of “wearing the hat” of a landlord, but these rental properties are going to only become more of a demand, when you have as many people going into short sale and foreclosure as we do in this market. It is a sad state of affairs, I will admit, but these people going into foreclosure are going to have to live somewhere, and that somewhere is going to lead them into the rental market. Just in our area alone, Loudoun and the Dulles Corridor to extend east to Reston, some economists are predicting a 15-20% jump in what landlords will be able to command in rental income over the next two to three years.

Purchasing an investment property to use as a rental is at least something to think about in this continued downturn of a market. I would encourage anybody with questions about the current market, your own neighborhood, or any real estate question in general, to contact me via e-mail at mike@winslowgroup.com, or feel free to call me on my cell. 703.930.7052. Stay focused, stay positive, and have a great Thanksgiving!

Mike

Mike Winslow
RE/MAX Select Properties
http://www.winslowgroup.com/
703.930.7052

winslowgroup.com

2008-08-09T18:43:00.000-04:00

I've been working on getting my new website set up, winslowgroup.com. Its actually out on the web and functioning, but still a work in progress. The latest item i've added to my site is a video I created about The Importance of a Termite Inspection. You can also view this video on my blog. I was fortunate to have Jeff Z from Superior Pest Control walk myself and the camera through a termite inspection; the guy was a pro on camera! This was the first video of 3 that I want to create and post on my site. The next one I want to work on is Why Staging Your Home Is Important. I hope to have that out before the end of September.