Recall back in science class in junior high when you learned in science class that water makes up over 70% of your body, but yet less than 1% of the Earth's water is clean enough to drink? I hope you are nodding your head "yes." Now let's help keep water from being contaminated with pollutants. A few minutes out of your day could mean less pollutants end up in local drinking water wells and in the habitats of local wildlife.

Loudoun County residents are strongly urged to drop off unwanted paints, stains, fuels, cleaners, and other hazardous wastes to Heritage High School in Leesburg on Saturday, November 21st, from 8:30am-2:30pm during the Household Hazardous Waste collection event. The next collection will be has yet to be announced, but Loudoun County authorities say it will be held after the New Year.

 

 

 

Accepted Items:

• Fluorescent bulbs
• Oil-based paint/stains/varnishes
• Paint thinners
• Metal polishes
• Rust removers
• Wood preservatives
• Old fuels: gas/oil mixes, kerosene, & diesel

NOT accepted for HHW*

• Used motor oil
• Antifreeze
• Automobile batteries
• Lead-acid batteries
• Propane tanks

 

 

 

*These items can be dropped off year round at the Loudoun County Solid Waste Management Facility on Evergreen Mills Road in Leesburg.

For more information go to www.loudoun.gov/hhw or call the Solid Waste Management Office at (703) 777-0187.

 

All residents of Loudoun County that fall into any of the high risk categories below are eligible to receive the H1N1 vaccination on November 21st at Smart's Mill Middle School in Leesburg. Approximately 1,500 vaccinations will be available and administered on a walk-in, first-come-first-serve basis from 10am-2pm.

HIGH-RISK Categories:

• Pregnant women
• Household contacts and caregivers for children younger than 6 months of age
• Health-care and emergency medical services personnel
• All people from 6 months through 24 years of age
• Persons aged 25 through 64 years who have health conditions associated with higher risk of medical complications from influenza.

For the most up to date information regarding both the seasonal and swine flu, please go to www.loudoun.gov/flu or contact the Loudoun County Health Department directly at 703-771-5512.

 

Toll Brothers celebrates a GRAND FINALE SALE of new construction homes in the Waterford Ridge community in Waterford, Virginia. Only 7 home sites remain! Located in Virginia's beautiful wine country, the 3+ acre home sites feature breath-taking, mountain views from that you won't want to take your eyes off of. With over 9 gorgeous floor plans with square footage starting at 3,800-5,000 and priced from the mid $600's, what more could you really ask for?

Feel free to give us a call at (703) 574-3478 for more information on this lovely Toll Brothers community.

Okay this home is in EXCELLENT CONDITION and has many ENTICING FEATURES, but for some reason, I am still struggling to get a motivated buyer to get this place SOLD! This home MUST SETTLE by Nov. 27th to avoid foreclosure. Please contact me on my office line (703) 574-3478 or via email at gina@ask-gina.com if you are interested in this property.

Home Description:

"Lovely 4 bedroom, 3.5 bath home is situated on a beautiful wooded lot with many enticing features..! A spacious kitchen with 42" cabinets, cook top island, double ovens, ceramic tile floors, breakfast area, and adjoining sunroom. On a warm summer day, step out into your own private oasis and soak up the outdoors on the large sundeck & brick patio. On a rainy day, relax in the L-shaped Rec Room with full bath and possible 5th bedroom. The upper level features bedrooms and an exclusive Master Retreat with his & her walk-in closets, dual sinks, and a large soaking tub. What more could you ask for? Make this your dream home today!"

 

 

On November 7th from 10am until 2pm at Smart's Mill Middle School in Leesburg, the Loudoun County Health Department will administer approximately 2,000 of the H1N1 vaccine to high risk people including pregnant women and children ages 2-9. The vaccination will be administered on a walk-in basis and desired recipients are encouraged to wear a short sleeve shirt.



Want to know when additional H1N1 vaccinations will become available? Check out www.loudoun.gov/flu for the most up-to-date information. If you have questions, you may contact the Loudoun County Health Department at flu@loudoun.gov or by calling the flu information line at (703) 771-5512.

This Friday, the Dulles Area Association of Realtors (DAAR), will its 18th Annual Charity Auction & Dinner from 6-11pm at the River Creak County Club. The event will begin at 6pm sharp with a cocktail and hors d' oeuvres being passed around. The silent auction will host 75-100 items that will end at 7:30pm when a gourmet Fillet Mignon dinner will be served with 2 lovely bottles of wine per table (you may put in a request in advance for a vegetarian meal if desired). Please come dressed in business or cocktail attire. Dessert and coffee will follow, along with a live auction from 8:30-9:30pm. To finish off the night, the winners of the great door prize and raffle will be announced.

Tickets are $75 and proceeds from this event will benefit many local Loudoun County charities such as Loudoun Cares, Loudoun Abused Women's Shelter, Loudoun Families for Children and many more.

For more information on this event, go to www.DullesArea.net

First I want to say that I hope everyone had a great Halloween regardless of the few showers we had. With that being said, I'm sure that lots of you out there have extra, unwanted candy that you would be happy to give up and our office has just the solution - We are accepting donated candy for our troops abroad and local children in Afghanistan. So please feel free to drop off as much or as little candy to our office in Sterling by Monday, November 9th, between the hours of 9am-5pm. Let's give a little piece of home to our hard-working and dedicated troops overseas with a very 'sweet' gift.

 

Ditch the car keys! This beautiful home is located just inside the Cascades Marketplace shopping center where you can easily roam through the local shops & restaurants that are just minutes from your doorstep. Two large bedrooms fill the upper level, each with their own full bath! During the upcoming cold winter nights, park your car in the garage and curl up on couch with a book and the fireplace blazing. When the weather warms again, step outside from the main level onto the deck perfect for grilling or relaxing in the sun. Completely ready for you to move in with features such as freshly painted walls and new carpet throughout!

Access to all of Cascades Amenities: multiple pools, basketball & tennis courts, a club house with exercise equipment room, and numerous walking paths & common grounds.

Click the icon below for more information

The other night I was chatting about real estate with a close friend of mine, who also happens to be an appraiser. We got to talking about what we think will happen in the near future with the foreclosure ratings and I started to grow a little concerned. Previous to talking with my appraiser friend, I had heard rumors about MANY, MANY more foreclosures that are projected to come to the surface. It was not until I came across multiple articles posted by RISMedia that I started believing those rumors and began to prepare for the next wave of distressed properties...

Currently, about 65% of the recent home sales have been distressed properties and the U.S. Treasury Department says there is more to come in 2010 - by the MILLIONS. So get ready, because they are coming whether you are ready or not!

Okay, don't stress, just freshen up on your skills and prepare for the worst - like mom always says. I made a list comprised of tips on how to effectively target prospective buyers of foreclosures. I combined the list of tips RISMedia gave and added a few of my own. This is what I came up with:

• Include the terms "foreclosures" and "bank-owned properties" in your listings and html tags. ALWAYS, check with your seller first to make sure they are not sensitive to seeing these terms when describing their property.
• If you have a personal web page, add a section about describing to the public what defines a short sale and a foreclosure. Follow with a link to your distressed properties.
• If clients contact you in regards to foreclosures and short sales, comprise a list for them and/or add them to an MLS property search.
• When working with a client, extensively educate your clients, buyers and sellers, on what constitutes a short sale and foreclosure.

For more tips and information regarding distressed properties, click here to go to the source of this article.

 

Okay, so I had new pictures taken recently because I got sick of the old ones and I thought I would freshen up my look a little bit. A great friend of mine took some beautiful photo's of me and now I'm stuck on which picture I like best..! I've narrowed it down to the three below:

1. Classic B&W (current AR picture)

 

2. Full on Color

 

3. Indoors, but with a little greenery in the background still

 

Which one do you think??