Now is the time to buy, blah, blah, blah....want a BMW with that?

Every week, the AGC team gathers around a conference table to regroup, swap notes, discuss interest rates, brainstorm and take the pulse of the market.  This week was no exception.

We started the meeting with a guest, John Browning of Fairway Mortgage, who presented us with our Certified Military Residential  Specialist certificates from our recent training. We chatted about the upcoming Wreaths Across America, #redfriday and our Rivercrest Community Clean Up event (postponed do to weather).  After a few photo ops (and pic bombing by baby d) we settled in to hand sign our holiday cards and get down to business.

We had two hot topics today - the upcoming revised Regional Sales Contract and the state of the Northern Virginia Real Estate Market.  Since the lawyers haven't finished massaging the new contract, we will write about that in a future post, as it is mostly conjecture and speculation at this point.  The market however, is quite relevant and legit. With sales pitches right and left - especially during the holiday season - it is sometimes difficult to weed out the real information from the advertisements....we decided to lay some facts out - without flashy "time to buy" comments and let you decide for yourself if it should be part of your current life plan, or not.

The skinny:

- There are WAY more homes on the market right now than typically found this time of year. Most recent stats for 20165 (Potomac Falls/Sterling in Loudoun) show 130 active listings for buyers to choose from. Last year at this time? only 75. More choices mean better opportunity to find a good fit.

- Average "days on market" for the same Sterling area  is 56 - last year was 34. This is how long from when a house gets dressed for the prom until it is asked to dance (listing to contract)....if you were standing on the side of the gym waiting to be picked for kickball wouldn't you be elated no matter what team chose you?  You were not the last man standing! Sellers can feel this way too....more negotiating power for buyers.

- The DC regional market is in a bit of a dip. According to stats at Freddie Mac,which matches the info we just discussed, the DC area is technically considered "weak and declining". Given the areas history for outperforming the nation as a whole, this would be that time when the savvy decide to buy.  NOVA has only blipped just below the line a handful of times and generally rides higher - take advantage of it while you can.

- And last but not least, interest rates.  Seriously. I could put up chart after chart showing that any rate starting with a 3 was a steal and a half, I don't want to waste your time, you've seen those. So I'm instead just going to put it in tangible terms...if rates jump about a point to 5% and you were to purchase an average priced home for the Loudoun area the difference is a BMW.  Yep, watch this:

Average sales price for Potomac Falls from RBI stats: $443,000

Interest rate received from one of our happy buyers closing today: 3.75%

Lease payment for a 2015 model year BMW 320i: $279

Principle and interest payment at today's rates: $2051

Principle and interest payment at 5%: $2378

Difference: $327/month or ONE SHINY NEW BMW and lots of Pumpkin Spice Lattes

The choice is yours:

If you want to explore the option of purchasing a home while rates are low, whether in Virginia or beyond, just raise your hand! Ask Gina & Company, with Keller Williams Loudoun Gateway in Ashburn Virginia, specializes in residential real estate for homeowners and investors in the Northern Virginia area.  Gina Tufano started working in real estate back when dinosaurs roamed the earth and became licensed in 1996.  Her extensive experience coupled with first hand knowledge of owner and non owner occupied real estate makes AGC the perfect real estate team for your NOVA real estate needs.  Together we have an extensive network of contacts to call on and  in the end  first class service is what you can expect and will receive. Text or call today at 703-574-3478 and unlock the possibilities of home ownership.

Fine print: All sources are linked through this post. We used stats directly from the MLS and BMW, we guesstimated on the lattes. The pictures are of actual people on our team, the 3 series mentioned, one of our recently sold listings at our area's average price point, and a random Starbucks image that looked yummy. The payments we quoted are purely interest and principle based on a 30 year loan and calculated online. We have no idea if the rates will go up today, tomorrow or months from now. History tells us they will eventually.