misc from a reston realtor: Sell Your Home: A Series of Posts, Part 4 - 10/09/11 06:21 AM
You've done the hard work and the heavy lifting. Your house is on the market and you may be getting anxious because you did not get a contract on the first day.  Here are some posts that can help you understand things you might consider to improve your chances of getting a contract and how buyers who are looking at your home are reveiwing the information that is available to them.
An informed seller is a seller who is in a good postion to get a solid contract with a  high chance of getting to settlement. Make sure YOU are an … (0 comments)

misc from a reston realtor: LOL Friday--Two Really Funny Videos out of Virginia Universities - 08/11/11 11:56 PM
My oldest goes to school at the University of Virginia (UVA) and I am a James Madison University (JMU) alumni with another daughter following in my JMU footsteps, as a rising sophomore.

Each of these schools has a number of extremely talented acapella singing groups.
I hope you enjoy them as much as I did and that they make you laugh out loud!
The first one if from AVP at UVA:


The next one is by The MadisonProject at JMU. It references the beloved Quad at JMU (keep an ear out for reference to Kissing Rock, … (1 comments)

misc from a reston realtor: Wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas! - 12/24/10 01:53 AM
 
Wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas!  
 

 
May all the blessings of the holidays be with you during the Christmas Season.We may all celebrate our holidays in different ways, but in the end, we all hope for the same things: Peace, Love and Happiness. May you have all of these things, and more, during this most special of holiday seasons. May your traditions be more fulfilling, your relationships more peaceful and your food more tasty!Merry Christmas and best wishes for a wonderful holiday.
Holly Weatherwax
Momentum Realty, Broker/Owner
… (4 comments)

misc from a reston realtor: A Once-in-a-Lifetime Kodak Moment | The Nile, Egypt - 12/11/10 01:50 AM

You never know when the 'moments of your life' will happen. When planning a special trip, it is always our hope that we will create lasting memories for our children.  We are blessed with great children and great friends, so when planning our trip several years ago to Egypt with another family, we hoped that this trip would create many special moments--and it did!With such a spectacular setting, how could we fail? The trip was everything we had hoped and more. We started out in Cairo, cruised the Nile in luxury (stopping along the way to see the many  historic … (9 comments)

misc from a reston realtor: Reasons to be happy about this bitter cold spell in Northern Virginia - 12/08/10 09:48 AM
Anyone who knows me well, knows that I am cold almost every second of my life. So you can imagine this cold snap that Northern Virginia, and most of the Eastern Seaboard, is facing is a challenge for me (certainly I am not acclimated to the cold yet this early in the season).

Being a 'glass half full' kinda gal, I decided to to assemble a list of all of the positives to come out of this bitter winter weather. So here is my list, so far: 
 
Roaring fires in the fireplace Fresh wreaths hung out doors will remain … (2 comments)

misc from a reston realtor: What to Spend Your Northern Virginia House Prep Money on When There is A Limit - 12/06/10 09:59 AM
You are a Northern Virginia homeowner preparing to list your house for sale. What do you spend your money on and how do you prioritize the projects?
We have all learned the value of being thrifty over the past several years. So it rubs many the wrong way to have their Realtor® tell them they need to make improvements to sell their house.  After all, you want to maximize your return...not shell out more money.
Any Realtor®  who has been around the market will tell you that this is definitely a case of, you have to spend money to make money.
Buyers are a fickle group. They want … (2 comments)

misc from a reston realtor: Speechless Sunday: A Tree Re-purposed - 12/05/10 04:10 AM

 
I am a believer in reduce, reuse, recycle. So when our beautiful evergreen tree snapped off its root ball in the wind last weekend (after many seasons of staking and trying to save it), I thought it best to chop it up for firewood. My husband, however, had other ideas. With the help of some neighborhood friends (one of whom is an engineer), he dug a post hole, chiseled the base and 'planted' the tree to decorate during the holidays.
Next, he covered it with colored lights (to stand out against our white lights) and VOILA! an instant Christmas … (9 comments)

misc from a reston realtor: Holidays, Weekends and other real estate time - 11/28/10 06:21 AM
The buying public falls into two categories: those who assume that a Realtor® will be available 24-7 and those who are so overly considerate that they wait to call us--even when they should. The truth is, most Realtors® work somewhere in between.
During a holiday weekend, your local Realtor® will, just like the rest of the world, spend time with friends and family. The truth is, however, we signed on to be available at the time that you have some free time--often weekends and holidays. Most of us are willing to tell our clients when we are unavailable and re-schedule for a … (5 comments)

misc from a reston realtor: How to Hit a Deer - 11/27/10 09:24 AM
The Virginia Suburbs of Washington D.C. are a beautiful place to live, but at certain times of the year, deer can be a real threat to the safety of drivers.Lately, you can drive any road in the area and find evidence of car and deer collisions. Deer are particularly active between 6-9 in the evening (and hard to see as they approach the road) and during mating season. Occasionally, you will see Department of Transportation warnings in areas where the deer are particularly active, but mostly, it is driver beware!Growing up in the area, we were taught the proper way to … (16 comments)

misc from a reston realtor: Small Business Saturday, November 27, 2010 - 11/27/10 01:20 AM
Today is Small Business Saturday.
This event, sponsored by American Express, is intended to be, 'A day to come together in support of the small businesses we love. The shops and restaurants that employ our neighbors and reinvest our money close to home. The businesses that are the heartbeat of our communities and local economies.'
As a small business owner, married to a small business owner, I cannot support this effort strongly enough! In my community, at least, it can be difficult to even find small businesses to support. There is no shortage of 'big box' stores, but the quintessential 'mom and … (1 comments)

misc from a reston realtor: Holiday Mail For Heroes: Send a Card to A Service Member - 11/26/10 08:04 AM
The turkey is history and Black Friday is well underway. There are many members of the Armed Forces who are unable to participate in the preparations for the holidays, due to their military service. In fact, many of them will be away from family, friends and loved ones this Christmas season.
If you have a few extra minutes, why not write a card to a service person or veteran?  Let them know that we understand, and are grateful for, all that they have scarified for our country.
The Red Cross and Pitney Bowes are teaming up to collect cards to be … (2 comments)

misc from a reston realtor: Playing for Change: Standy By Me - 11/25/10 03:57 AM
This Thanksgiving enjoy this rendition of 'Stand By Me' performed by Playing For Change. The group, Playing for Change, is composed of street musicians from around the world.

The inspiration for the group, as detailed on their website:
'Playing for Change is a multimedia movement created to inspire, connect, and bring peace to the world through music. The idea for this project arose from a common belief that music has the power to break down boundaries and overcome distances between people. No matter whether people come from different geographic, political, economic, spiritual or ideological backgrounds, music has the … (3 comments)

misc from a reston realtor: Short Sale Listing Agent In Orange County, California | When To Talk To A Realtor® About A Short Sale | Short Sale Listing Agents - 11/21/10 11:49 PM
Despite all of the press about short sales, there continues to be confusion about who should consider a short sale and who will not be eligible. This post by Karen Fiddler is a well thought out essay on why (and who) to consider a short sale and how to determine the best real estate agent to help you through the process.
Her point that we are all community members and that our objective is not the 'quick cash' but rather the referral and good will that doing the 'right thing' will bring to our business is important.
Thanks for a great … (0 comments)

misc from a reston realtor: Relocating? Loudoun and Fairfax Counties Top the List of Richest Counties! - 11/13/10 12:21 AM
Loudoun County and Fairfax County, two of the richest counties in country, are located in Northern Virginia, reports Newsweek magazine, 11/10/10. 
Loudoun County, Virginia tops the list with a median household income of over $114,204, with 17% of households making over $200,000. Fairfax County, Virginia comes in 2nd with a median income of $102,499 and over 50% of the households making in the 6 figures.
The remainder of the list of Richest Counties in America include 5 others in the Washington D.C. Metro area: Howard County, Arlington County, Montgomery County, Calvert County and Charles County.
If you are considering a relocation, this is … (1 comments)

misc from a reston realtor: Festival of Lights at the Washington D.C. Temple Visitors' Center, 2010 - 11/12/10 12:19 AM
Yesterday I read a post by Todd Clark, Decided to take a tour of the Salt Lake Temple and wow, amazing! (A photo tour) and it reminded me that I had promised my family to do some research about the Festival of Lights show at the Washington D.C.Temple. The temple, which is visible from the Capital Beltway in Kennsington, MD, is known throughout the region for its majestic presence set above a curve in the, otherwise tedious I-495. Thinking that other families might want to go see this special event, I am providing the details below: 
33rd Annual Festival of LightsWashington D.C. … (2 comments)

misc from a reston realtor: Live, work and play in Reston, VA...and get a license plate to show it! - 11/11/10 05:15 AM
Just over a year ago, I signed up with a grassroots campaign to get a live work play license plate for Reston, VA. I blogged about this exciting opportunity,  Live, Work, Play: Reston, VA Gets It's Own License Plate! 
Today, there was an article in the Washington Post, Fairfax Local Living section (11/11/10), Resident wants a license to make his hometown of Reston stand out on the road, by Megan Buerger.  I guess they have not made as much progress as they would like on this effort.
In order to get the plates processed, the state requires 350 signatures. To date, the … (0 comments)

misc from a reston realtor: Wordless Wednesday: Summer Flowers and Fall Leaves - 11/10/10 04:56 AM

This time of year is filled with contrasts as the summer flowers hang on and the fall leaves hang in the background! This view off my deck will soon be a 'Water View' as the leaves continue to fall.  Soon we will be able to see shimmers of the pond in the distance...'waterfront' living at its best  (not really, but it makes me smile)!
… (8 comments)

misc from a reston realtor: It's not all about the points, but... - 11/10/10 01:10 AM
I sat down this morning to the great news that overnight I was awarded 4000 points!  How did I do it?  I participated in a Hyper Local Events Challenge. The point of the challenge was to get folks writing Hyper Local Posts so that they could see how significantly these posts would be viewed by consumers in their local markets.
If you are new to Active Rain (and even if you aren't) I highly recommend that you seek out the contests and participate. I have learned something from each one that I have particated in and, in most cases, I have received … (13 comments)

misc from a reston realtor: Hard work is the new BUZZ! - 11/09/10 03:51 AM
For those of you who do not live with a  14 year old boy, you may not know that Call of Duty: Black Ops went on sale at midnight. My son, thankfully, did not push to be one of those in line (so I did not have to say 'no'), but he told me last night that he is sure that at least one of his friends (and likely more) were in line!Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows  will be released on November 19, 2010. My son HAS asked to go to the midnight show. Like any good parent, I responded … (0 comments)

misc from a reston realtor: I am a soccer/lacrosse/track/swimming/basketball mom--and proud of it! - 11/08/10 09:20 AM
I am a soccer/lacrosse/track/basketball mom--and proud of it!
I spent the entire weekend on a lacrosse field (thank goodness for my trusty Blackberry).  Saturday we were in Aberdeen, MD, and Sunday we were in Charlottesville, VA, with just enough time in between to return home, wash the uniform and get a bit of sleep. I loved every minute of it!
My kids were early soccer players, competent baseball players, reluctant swimmers, inconsistent basketball players, occasional field hockey players,  and finally, the two youngest (girl and boy) latched onto Lacrosse. Both were hooked!
But it doesn't much matter to me which sport they … (5 comments)

 


Listings

Links

Archives

RSS 2.0 Feed for this blog