Day after Day, as new condo buildings are being built in the Washington D.C. Metro area and nearby Arlington, VA, I read new descriptions that say “cozy boutique condo building.” But what does a “boutique condo building” really mean? Here’s my personal (i.e. others may have other viewpoints) definition: Dictionary.com defines ”boutique” as: “1. a small shop or a small speciality department within a larger store 2. any small, exclusive business offering customized service So how does that apply to real estate? I tend to think of a Boutique building as a smaller building, with fewer than 100 units, under 5 floors. (0 comments)
real estate jargon: Real Estate Jargon: What is a Duplex, or Duet?
- 09/06/09 02:03 AM
It's hard to keep up with real estate terminology when they're constantly coming up with "cuter" ways of calling a house a house. Sometimes referred to as a Duplex, and most recently a "Duet," is a single piece of real estate but serves to house 2 "families" or sides (by "families" I mean anyone living in the side - whether it's a single individual or a family of 5). There are several styles of Duplexes, and how they're bought/sold are can vary from state to state. For example, in the state of New York, the most common style of Duplex (in (6 comments)
real estate jargon: FHA Wikipedia - Great Resource for First Time Home Buyers!
- 08/26/08 09:37 AM
Part of the reason I love working with first-time homebuyers is getting to teach them things about the process. I know with the constant changing guidelines (be it lending, Northern Virginia Association of Realtors paperwork changes, etc) I learn something constantly! I think you have to in order to grow...so this is why I love sharing new resources for the ever eager home buyer. For questions like, what does PMI stand for? What does LTV mean? How about FHA? :) The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) came up with a Wikipedia site of their own: check it out here. For home buying (0 comments)