real estate: Facebook is My BEST Friend
- 03/13/10 03:11 AM
Facebook has quickly become my best friend. I vent to it, I tell it what I am doing, I tell it what I think is interesting, and I joke with it. In exchange, it consoles me, encourages and inspires me, teaches me things, and makes me laugh. I have reconnected with long lost friends. I stay in contact with friends I never seem to be able to "connect" with, because of differences in our schedules. I even make new friends and business connections. I like it so much that I currently have 3 pages.... My profile, where you will read things
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real estate: Dr Seuss's Realty Realty Quiz
- 03/02/10 07:28 AM
Dr Seuss's Reality Realty QuizShareIn honor of Dr Seuss's Birthday, I've put together a real estate related quiz.... try your hand; then "Fan" The Real Estate Whisperer" on Facebook to get the answers which will be published tomorrow morning! 1. What were the name of the apartments where Jo Jo lived? 2. Where are you likely to find Sneetches? 3. Where does one celebrate their birthday? 4. Gerald McGrew fantasizes about catching a "big bug" that is said to fly between Texas and what city? 5. What is the name of the city "where they never have troubles, at least very
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real estate: You Might Not Need A REALTOR IF....Reason #5
- 01/30/10 02:31 PM
You Might Not Need A REALTOR IF..... you understand the financing your buyer will need to purchase your property. In today's market this is critical. The lending environment is changing daily, and it is hard for even those of us who work in this day in and day out to keep abreast of the changes in programs, laws and the variances between the different types of lenders and brokers. First of all, the basics... Do you know the difference of the varying loan programs available? Do you know the difference between VHDA, VA, Rural Housing and FHA loans? Can you do
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real estate: REWhisperer: You Spent HOW MUCH to Remodel the Kitchen? (The Value of Home Improvements, Part 3)
- 01/19/10 12:42 PM
Each year, the National Association of REALTORs publishes a report as a guide for homeowners who are wondering how the value of their home will change based on home improvement projects. The report publishes numbers by region and by national averages. But, the regions are large - for example, the South Atlantic includes DC, DE, FL, GA, MD, SC, VA, and WV; and real estate is local, sometimes hyper local. So, I encourage you to contact a REALTOR in your area for more specific advice before starting your upgrades. However, as a point of interest, the NAR report will tell you in
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real estate: First Impressions Pay Dividends: The Value of Home Improvements Part 2
- 01/16/10 08:31 AM
In the annual survey, NAR (National Association of REALTORS) attempted to provide a gauge for what return sellers might expect to recoup after doing home improvements. In other words, if you spend $100 for the improvement, will it increase the value of your home $100, or more, or less - THAT is the question.Based on this report, there was ONLY one improvement that returns 100% or greater. Again, I refer to my advise in Part 1 of this series where I tell you that if you are planning to sell, don't "invest" in home improvement - it's sure to return you a loss. Wondering what the
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real estate: House in Town of Leesburg with POOL! Don't miss this deal!
- 01/10/10 12:18 AM
223 NEWHALL PL SW LEESBURG VA 20175 MORE PHOTOS NORTHERN VIRGINIA REAL ESTATE LOUDOUN COUNTY REAL ESTATE FOR SALE LEESBURG VIRGINIA: 223 NEWHALL PL SW LEESBURG VA 20175 Advertised Subdivision: STONEGATE Presented By: Vicky Chrisner of Keller Williams Realty Leesburg Virginia Offered At: $429,000 MLSID# LO7220645 - LOUDOUN YOU KNOW YOU WANT YOUR OWN POOL! Lovely 4 bdrm colonial style home IN TOWN in sought after Ashton Downs. Walk to downtown Leesburg. Move In Condition. Huge Family Rm w/Gas FP, Cathedral Ceilings. Large screened in back porch. Kitchen w/Breakfast Bar. 2 car garage. Lots of room to grow - full,
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real estate: A New Years Resolution for 2010
- 12/27/09 06:48 AM
Every year this time, people come up with New Years Resolutions. On January 1, they try to make a change in their life. By January 3rd most have quit trying.My birthday is in February, so I used to skip the typical New Years Resolutions (which I saw as being pre-destined for failure) and to make resolutions on my birthday. I had moderate success with this. But, in 2009 on my Birthday I realized I had 2 years before I would be 40. I thought about who I wanted to be when I was 40. Then, I made a list of things
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real estate: Thin Mints: A Key Ingredient
- 12/18/09 01:59 PM
Remember, you can only buy Girl Scout cookies once a year... but they freeze well, and there are so many things you can do with these American classics!GirlScoutCookies.org has an ongoing poll, and as of today, THIN MINTS are the second favorite GS cookie. So, here are some Thin Mint Recipes to get your creative juices stirring...THIN MINT BROWNIES - suggested by Little Brownie Bakers (the bakers that make Thin Mints)THIN MINTS PIZZA SUPREME - leave it to Rachel Ray to come up with this one! Yum!THIN MINTS CHEESECAKE - continuing with my theme from yesterday, I must highlight a cheesecake recipe!DOUBLE
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real estate: Rufus The Red Nosed Rain Dog
- 12/17/09 03:03 PM
Did you see him? He was in Leesburg this morning! As part of the Childrens Performance Series, Kaleidoscope Theatre at Ida Lee, Rufus was our special guest this morning! Once a month, there is a different performer. My son and I try to go each month - it's special "Mommy-Devon" time; but this month, our friend Zavion joined us.Rufus is a brown dog with a red nose. He's been homeless, hungry, cold and in the rain, for some time. He was looking for some food to eat and a place to stay when we met him. Then, out of the blue,
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real estate: LivingInLoCo: All I Want For Christmas Is To Save Landfill Space
- 12/01/09 11:04 AM
All I want for Christmas is to Save Landfill Space. Can you help?Yes, Trash and the Holidays go together. Think of what the streets and dumpsters in your neighborhood look like on "trash days" for the days and weeks after Christmas. It's been said that between Thanksgiving and New Years, Americans throw away an extra MILLION TONS of garbage EACH WEEK. Really? Ya gotta be kidding me.But, then again, think of the wrapping paper we purchase just to wrap presents and then unwrap them and throw it away. What about all the boxes we ask for from retailers - again, just to
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real estate: Be In The Know In Your Community - Loudoun Alert System
- 11/06/09 10:40 PM
Do you work, live or own property in Loudoun? Do you like to be informed? I do, and I am going to tell you how to do it.As a resident, it's important to be to know about serious crimes that are going on around my home. Things like business robberies, hostage situations, murders, serious assaults... even though I'd like to think that things like these wouldn't happen in my community, no one is exempt, and I want to know if they do. I want to know about REAL Amber Alerts in a timely manner, and when there is a fugitive on the
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real estate: Why It Is Still A Buyers Market
- 11/03/09 10:01 AM
With the $8000 tax credit almost gone, why is this STILL a good time to buy? PRICES (More House For Less) Some submarkets have "hit bottom". In the Washington DC metro area, the industry professionals and economic experts believe that pricing for the lower half of the market (generally, under $500,000 in Loudoun; under $750,000 in Fairfax County) are as low as they are going to go, and many are predicting prices will start to increase, and in fact, in some areas, we've already seen that. INTEREST RATES (Low Rates = Affordability) The Fed's rate is 0%, which is as
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real estate: Trying To Lead
- 10/10/09 06:16 AM
I was a Girl Scout for a short time as a child. My leaders, while they tried and their hearts were in the right place, didn't create much opportunity. My first leader was a nice lady, our meetings were afterschool at her house. She had a special needs son who was there and no one to help her manage him or her other daughter during our meetings. We did a lot of coloring. That's really all I remember. My second leader was a single mom who kept missing meetings because of her work schedule. Eventually, she had meetings on Saturday mornings, but
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real estate: H1N1 It's in Loudoun. Party Anyone?
- 09/12/09 02:03 PM
Yep. I am sure that's what I've had all week. No, I didn't have testing... the CDC doesn't really recommend it. It's been a long time since I had a flu that did more than inconvenience me. This one put me in bed for a few days. In case you're wondering, here's what I now know: It doesn't really matter "which" flu it is. It's all contagious, it all makes you feel terrible. Symptoms are fever, cough, sneeze, running or stopped up nose, achy-all-over feeling, fatique. Some people get tummy problems, not all. It seems pretty much like any flu we're used to getting.
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real estate: LivingInLoCo: Important Back to School Info
- 09/08/09 03:41 AM
Back To School Today is the first day of school here in Loudoun County. I logged onto Facebook this morning to share my bus stop photos, and to see those of my friends. I read comments from parents whose children are off at a boarding school or college, parents of kids yet to enter school... and of course, the sorrowful, hopeful, prpud parents posting and sharing their photos from bus stops all over Northern Virginia. Sniff, sniff.... Once we've all gotten past the nostalgia of remembering our own school days, and particularly first day jitters, we'll need to get organized.
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real estate: The Long and Short of a Short Sale, Part 4
- 09/03/09 02:11 AM
Continuing our posts on short sales, this post discusses the most common clauses in the contract, and the ideal contract for each party. All real estate contracts have contingencies in them on both sides. A contingency is the "if" in these statements: I will sell you this house IF ______________. I will buy your house IF ________________.Contingencies can be for anything you can dream up. However, most residential contract contingencies fall into a handful of categories.Sellers Contingencies: To protect the seller, the primary contingencies revolve around money and the settlement date. The seller says "I will sell you the house IF you
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real estate: The Long and Short of a Short Sale, Part 3
- 08/30/09 06:33 AM
Continuing our posts on short sales, this post focuses on how different situations can impact your chances of success with a short sale. Below, I've outlined highlights of the ingredients which improve your chances of having a successful short sale. (To Read Previous Posts, go to http://therealestatewhisperer.blogspot.com/2009/07/short-sale-anything-but-short.html). A true hardship If you had a true hardship which is impacting your ability to pay for your mortgage, and you provide evidence to back that up, banks have a strong reason to consider your request for a short sale. Banking is big business and they are under a lot of scrutiny
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real estate: The Long and Short of a Short Sale, Part 2
- 08/25/09 06:32 AM
This post is a continuation of a series on Short Sales. To see the previous posts, visit: http://therealestatewhisperer.blogspot.com/2009/07/short-sale-anything-but-short.html Since the homeowner is the one who initiates the short sale process, let's look in more detail at the selling side. In this post, I will talk about who should and should not consider a short sale; and WHEN they should take action. Why consider a short sale? Anyone who thinks they may end up allowing a home to go into foreclosure should seriously consider this option. CREDIT: With a short sale, your credit is damaged, but not nearly as badly as it
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real estate: First Fridays in Downtown Leesburg
- 08/21/09 01:09 PM
First Friday events are held in downtown Leesburg on the first Friday of each month. On these nights, 35 different specialty shops and businesses stay open until 9:30 offering various types of entertainment.Each month, scheduled entertainment is posted at http://www.firstfriday.com/. The entertainment varies, but usually includes many choices for art galleries, live music, wine tastings and more. In August, my husband and I went and took the kids (ages 3 and 6). We grabbed a light dinner at the historic Georgetown Cafe and headed to the Last Ham Standing, a regulary scheduled monthly improv comedy show at Tally Ho Theatre...and yes,
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real estate: The Long and Short of A Short Sale, Part 1
- 08/13/09 06:21 AM
There are many variables due to specific lenders, particulars of the parties involved and the heavy influence of third party negotiators and/or the involved real estate agents. However, in general, this is the process:* Regardless of the path taken to get to this point, the sellers eventually decide that attempting a short sale with their lender(s) is their best option. They ask a real estate agent to put it on the market.* Because there is often a race against a clock to prevent foreclosure, agents see this as a firesale and will market the property agressively, at a price they hope
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