Lake Ridge Virginia Real Estate Help For Sellers and Buyers

You learn something new everyday in this business and when I do I like to share it with others. This post is for all of you who live on acreage lots, or you have lots of lawn equipment. Did you know there is a lawn tractor service repair company in the Woodbridge Virginia area who makes house calls? Neither did  I.

Well today, I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Tim Davis. Mr. Davis works at  Davis Lawn Tractor Repair. We had a lawn tractor that needed repair and had no way of getting it to the local lawn repair shop here in Woodbridge Virginia. Another business person in the county said " why don't you call  Davis Lawn Tractor Repair ?  Well, we called. Davis Lawn Tractor Repair sent Mr Davis. Imagine my surprise when he arrived and repaired our lawn tractor in less than an hour!

As you can see from the photos I took above this company comes prepared to take on any challenge. That's some workshop.

Wow... I feel like hitting the Staples Button on my desk and saying " That was easy!"

We didn't have to borrow someone's truck to bring it to the local repair shop we normally go to. We didn't have to pay for a pick up and delivery fee.

Do you need this service...you can contact them ONLINE Start Here

I went ahead and wrote a review on Yelp as well VIEW HERE

I needed some work done around the yard, you know tree's need to trimmed and a few stumps need to be ground down. So I remember a few guys who had come through our subdivision last fall offer stump grinding services and tree trimming services. I found the card and we called  them.

They were  on time, did a great job and were on their way. If you are in Prince William County Virginia and you are looking for someone who has reasonable rates check around, however Robert and his son need work, and will handle the task that needs to be complete at a rate better than the competition.

So their name goes on the list of service providers that I would recommend to my real estate clients and customers.The company was called Countryside Tree Service 540-717-6168

If you believe is helping out the little guy...here's your chance.

If you are looking for a good Buyers Agent to help you find a home to buy, don't hesitate to give me a call. Have a super weekend!

The local real estate market has picked up to a pace we haven't seen since early 2003.

Showings are up dramatically on our listings, my friends in the new homes arena are reporting amazing traffic and across Prince William and Northern Virginia inventory is low. So it appears spring market has arrived early this year.

Breaking News---the home located at 12280 Tilney Ct, Lake Ridge Virginiawent under contract is 10 Days!

Listed for $845,000. 

For more information on this home or to search the local MLS Listings Click Here

Do you need to sell your home?

I truly believe Marketing Matters!

 If you are a home buyer searching for a realtively new home, that is ready to move in turn the key ready, start your engines. We have a new listing coming on the market this morning priced at $489,900. The home is a Stanley Martin but Briley Model with luxury bath, four bedrooms, three finished.

Lockbox will be on this afternoon.

Home is located at

16409 Chattanooga Ln, Woodbridge VA, 22191

Just Listed- Lockbox goes on this morning.

End Unit Townhouse with full fenced back yard in parklike setting.

Home is being offered by Short Sale, two loans.
Interior needs an entire face lift to bring it into 2012. This is a great investor opportunity.

Showings only between 9-5 pm Monday through Friday -NO EXCEPTIONS.

Address: 14329 North Park Ct, Dale City Virginia 22193.

List Price $125,000

Finally it's SOLD!  I have been  assisting a family in the Westridge Subdivision with the sale of their home. The sellers called me after they had watched Erick and Company recently list and sell two homes in the acreage section off Tilney Ct . Both Tilney Ct sellers had tried sell and failed, prior to hiring  Erick and Company .

What makes this listing different is , the homeonwers were upside down.The challenge was they had two loans. Bank of America is the first loan and USAA is the junior lien holder ( aka-the second trust mortgage) As luck would have it, the sellers were eligible for the HAFA Program. This is a huge advantage for the seller  since Bank of America participates in the HAFA program and if the homeowner qualifies, Bank of America automatically waive any rights to a deficiency. It is important to request the HAFA package asap.

We listed the home and as luck would have it, the home received two offers within 20 days. A cash offer for $350,000 from an investor group ( don't get me started this is a great topic for another blog post) that the seller quickly rejected. And a very reasonable offer from a VA Buyer which the seller negotiated and finally accepted. This process may have been quicker if we could have submitted the HAFA Package prior to listing. We did not have any problems with value, since I make sure the home is listed at market value regardless if it is a short sale or not. It is my duty to get the seller as much as I can for their home and to do my part to protect neighborhood home values.

As we entered the eighth month, everyone nerves were beginnng to fraye. This short sale is proof Bank of America, still has major kinks in the short sale process. Bank of America has outsourced the HAFA approval process to UTLS. So not only did we have to get the short sale request approved through Bank of America we had to  wait for Bank of America to get the HAFA approval from UTLS.  Then we needed to get the lender in second positions ( USAA)  to agree to the short sale as well.

Over the summer months the sellers received approval for the HAFA program and received notice they would  receive a $3000 moving incentive.  Now all we had to do was wait for Bank of America and USAA to grant the short sale approval request and issue the seller their short sale approval letter. Finally in November it happened we had both shorrt sale letters in hand! Everyone was thrilled!  The buyers, the sellers, the buyers loan officer, the title company, the home inspector, the buyers agent and myself finally were able to exhale.

Settlement was scheduled for Thanksgiving Week. The buyer loan was locked and all contract contingencies were removed according to the terms set forth in the contract.  Both moves were set up and utilites were transfered, everything was going according to plan.

Then a BOMB WENT OFF! 

What happened? 

Bank of America rejected the final Hud-1 in the last hour!  Bank of America/HAFA will only allow $6000 to be paid to the Junior Lein holder (USAA) and USAA wanted over $13,000. Sellers were willing to pay, but Bank of America would not allow the Junior Lien holder to get anymore than $6000 period. The seller had to wire voluntarily the addition money between $6000 and the $13,200 to USAA. Unfortuntely, the USAA decision maker was on leave during the Thanksgiving Holiday week.  No one else in USAA could or would take responsibility of simply crediting the seller's loan balance and drafting the revised short sale letter to reflect the payment the seller made to allow everyone to settle on November 23rd. No one would answer until the following Monday.Worse, Bank of America's short sale approval letter was scheduled to expire on November 25th, 2011.  The title company  requested  Bank of America extend the short sale approval letter the very day they rejected the Hud-1, because we were coming up on the Thanksgiving Weekend. The response was...that can take up to ten days to complete that task. "Seriously? Are you kidding me? What are the buyers and sellers to do? What about the lock-in. No one at the bank seemed to care. No One...it will get done when it gets done. No one seems to care about the human toll of their lack of action!

A week passes, and no response to the calls to Bank of America. Trying to unturn every stone, I decide to Tweet the Bank of America Help Team on Twitter. I was pleasantly surprised to get a response quickly. In fact, "I am thrilled to say that the Bank of America Twitter Help Team was able to get a supervisor to call and expidite our transaction." Fast forward a week......

Great news for all! We  went to Settlement Today! Bank of America forwarded the revised short sale letter last week and so did USAA! Whew, that was a tough one.

Note: Not all short sale transactions are as challenging. I have helped homeowners short sell from start to finish in 90 days. However, Bank of America short sales always make me the listing agent feel like I must defend my reputation as a good listing agent.

Erick and Company has a wonderful track record to get homeowners under contract and settled quickly. Review our RESULTS here.  Typically when we list a home for sale and the home goes under contract, the process is very straight forward. Follow the terms of the contract, remove the contingencies, negotiate and head to settlement.  As you can see...buying or selling a short sale takes a great deal of patience for all involved.

           If you need help selling your home by short sale, call me...I can help. 703-851-3085.

I was working with a relocating buyer the other day. He's been here awhile and his family has just arrived in the area, so now it is time to seriously pick out a place to live. As I was driving to the next home, I asked the husband what has been the worst part of the relocation so far.

He said- "Traffic...learning how to get to and from work!"

He further explained, after driving by myself, taking the bus from the place where I am staying in Lake Ridge Virginia, and trying the VRE I learned about Slugging. So I decided to try it one morning. That is an awesome system!" Peggy, it is like  legal hitch hiking!"

Why was he so excited?  Because Slugging is FREE!

Imagine that, in the Nations Capitol and surrounding sub-burbs you can stand at a local commuter lot and jump in a strangers car and get a Free ride to work everyday, to and from.

This is one of the best video's I've seen that lets you the commuter see and experience exactly what Slugging is and how you do it. Presented by CNN and Money Magazine watch now 

Now below is Erick Blackwelder my real estate partner (as well as my brother-in-law) who shares with you information about traffic, and just confirms that if your friends have told you that the traffic in the DC Area is horrible, and that commuting is awful..."that you have honest friends!"

• Map of local Slug Line Locations around the Beltway View Here
• The Slugging Message Board View Here
• To view more real estate tips from Erick and Peggy visit Erick and Company on YouTube-View Here

"We Know Woodbridge Virginia and surrounding area's! Do You Need Help?"  

                      Have a question? Let's talk contact me by email  or call 703-851-3085.

Contact Peggy James or Erick Blackwelder  of Erick and Company  ofExit 1st Choice Realty, WoodbridgeVA. Realtors®, call 703-851-3085 (Peggy) or 703-590-2252(Office).Give us a call and we can "GET YOUR HOME SOLD FAST"to list your property for sale we service  Lake Ridge, Westridge, Old Bridge Estates, River Falls, Middle County, Manassas, Manassas Park, Haymarket,Montclair, Dumfries, Quantico, Fort Belvior, Occoquan, Dale City, Gainesville, Garrisonville and Triangle area's.

This week I am starting a blog series called This Weeks Caller. Everyday, I get calls from home buyers and sellers who have questions about the market. Over the past month, I have featured one call a week on the front of our website in the yellow box called This Weeks Caller.

These are some of the calls, questions I answered this week:

#1.-I would like to see a Foreclosure Home. It is Vacant. Can't you just give me the code?

My answer to this one is absolutely NO.The caller said but my other REALTOR® ( friend of the family who I hate...just gave us the code to get in) I said well not this REALTOR®.  If you would like to see a home for sale, I will be more than happy to show it to you. Please forward your pre-approval letter to me, and then we can set up a time.

#2- Is there a way to buy a home with a low down payment and avoid PMI?

You might be surprised to know the answer is yes! ACACIA Federal Savingsis offering a five percent down loan with no PMI read more here

#3.  Will the landlord of 11166 Alendale Ctwait until my lease ends  at the end of August ?

11166 Alendale Ct  off Davis Ford Rd, in Manassas is now Vacant and Ready for new tenants. The home was listed at $2400 a month and has just been reduced to $2200. I will check with the landlord however what you are asking them to do is SUCK up two months of mortgage payments waiting for your lease to end. I will let you know what they say.

#4. Peggy, your name was given to me by the owners of 3388 Vineland Place. Can you help me?

My answer was of course we can. Thank you for calling. Can you do me a favor, just fill out this formso I can better serve you. In less than a few days, that caller has now talked with a loan officer, and has received information on the  value of their current home and is looking forward to purchasing a move up home.

#5. Peggy, why do you use those Ugly Yellow Signs on the weekends?

This call was from the homeowners who's home I have just listed. I mistakenly forgot to share with her why I use the Ugly Yellow corrugated directional signs on weekends to bring attention to her home. She called all upset saying she pulled them all up. Read what my answer was

#6. Hi, Can You Give Me The Number For the HOA in Princeton Woods.

It was from another local REALTOR®who was frustrated trying to find the management company for a community. The good news is I had the answer. I directed here to the PWAR HOA Database

           Have a question? Let's talk contact me by email  or call 703-851-3085.

Contact Peggy James or Erick Blackwelder  of Erick and Company  of Exit 1st Choice Realty, 14029 Crossing Place,Woodbridge VA. Realtors®, call 703-851-3085 (Peggy) or 703-590-2252(Office).Give us a call and we can "GET YOUR HOME SOLD FAST"to list your property for sale we service  Lake Ridge, Westridge, Old Bridge Estates, River Falls, Middle County, Manassas, Manassas Park, Haymarket,Montclair, Dumfries, Quantico, Fort Belvior, Occoquan, Dale City, Gainesville, Garrisonville and Triangle area's

This a call we get weekly. Of course you want a good deal.  The first question I am going to ask is you is "What do you consider a GOOD Deal?"

Some will say they are looking for a house they can buy low and make a killing on in a few years. And I say great are you willing to pay cash? Are you really handy? Are you willing to accept a foreclosure home that has been sitting rejected by others? If the answer is no. Then we need to talk.

What is a good deal to you?Do you know? A good deal is subjective to your situation, your cash position and you budget (pre-approval)

• Do you need closing costs?
• Do you need a delayed settlement?
• Do you need to use a VA Loan, an FHA Loan? A 1% Down Loan?
• Are you looking for a turnkey house that needs very little work?
• Or a fixer upper?

For those who say they want to buy really low and sell really high in a few years. I say, you missed that market in 2008! Back in 2008 I personally showed many single family homes in Dale City Virginia that were being offered by bank under $100,000, now those homes today are almost $200,000. Less that three years later. Investors who use cash are able to beat out buyers like yourself. They fix properties up and then resell to you for a profit. Are those homes good deals? It depends. If you are looking for a turnkey home, where you will not have to spend a lot of money  monthly fixing it up and the seller pays your closing costs, then you might consider that a sweet deal. The only way you are going to know is by house hunting with a Buyers Agent who works strictly for you and helps you decide what is best for you.

Right now Prince William County Virginia is experiencing a Balanced Real Estate Market.

What does that mean?

Well we have three kinds of markets in real estate.

• A Buyers Market- this is when their is a glut of inventory and we are seeing sellers competing against each other to offer the best terms to entice a buyer like yourself to choose their home.
• A Sellers Market- this is when inventory is critically low, and buyer activity if very high and sellers are not so quick to offer incentives. Negotiating things like closing costs are not as favorable.
• The Balance Real Estate Market - this is when homes are selling in 60-90 days of listing, there is good inventory, not to many, not to few. In this market, negotiation is possible and favorable

 Now let me show you what has happened in the past three years so you can see what Realtors see. The charts below were taken from the Realtors MRIS database. I asked the system for closed detached homes sales in 22192 for 2008,2009 and 2010. You may find the results of interest.

Clearly these charts show the minimum price for homes has risen since 2008 from an average of $175,000 to $231,000 in 22192. In 2008 you had a far better chance of getting a tens of thousands off the list price than now in 2010! That said when you get over the $600,000 price point in the 22192 area, you have a far better chance of seeing price drops and closed prices far less than Original or Current List Price.

Here is the Northern Virginia Market Watch Report

So when you are ready to buy a home...let's talk about what kind of home you want to live in, what features you want, how much closing costs you need from the seller, and how flexible you are with regard to condition. It would be my pleasure to negotiate for you and help you find the perfect home.

Need real estate help? Feel free to contact me by email  or call 703-851-3085  

Contact Peggy James or Erick Blackwelder  of Erick and Company of Exit 1st Choice Realty, Woodbridge VA. Realtors®, call 703-851-3085 (Peggy) or 703-590-2252 (Office).If you are a homeowner who has a home to sell, we have  buyers ready and waiting for nice homes to come on the market. Give us a call and we can "GET YOUR HOME SOLD FAST" to list your property for sale we service  Lake Ridge, Westridge, Old Bridge Estates, River Falls, Middle County, Manassas, Manassas Park, Haymarket,Montclair, Dumfries, Quantico, Fort Belvior, Occoquan, Dale City, Gainesville, Aquia Harbor, Garrisonville and Triangle area's . 
                                
         

Last night we had a really bad snow storm move through the area. It was about nine pm, I had taken my real estate hat off, and had just sat down to watch American Idol and ZAP- total darkness. Bummer!!!

But wait....my iPhone was working.  So I jumped one facebook and wow...watching the LIVE FEED on what was happening to all my friends on facebook was shocking. To read post after post at  how long it was taking to get home amde me very thankful that both my husband and I, work and live in our community!  It is was also comforting to learn that many communities across the region were with out power, not just our neighborhood. 

On facebook I follow the Woodbridge Patch. This is where I can find up to the minute reporting in our community.

Last night during the storm a local driver reported on Woodbridge Patch that Smoketown Rd was backed up:

Smoketown Road is all backed up. People can't get up the hill under the power lines as they try to head towards Old Bridge Road. We took Minniville to Elm Farm Road, Pennington, Russell Road, Smoketown to Old Bridge - with no problems. Good Luck

There is always something about the area that you can use. Such as this one one on Woodbridge Patch  this morning:

VRE Fredericksburg line plagued with problems this morning:
Train #306 delayed 120 minutes due to switch/signal problems
Train #310 cancelled due to mechanical problems. Passengers Transferred to Train #312
Train #312 delayed 45 minutes due to switch/singal problems, but may get longer as it picks up Train #310 passengers. ... See More

People can complain alll they want about technology. However,this was one night I was ever so glad to have my iPhone and to be connected on facebook!

                                      Feel free to contact me by email  or call 703-851-3085  

Contact Peggy James or Erick Blackwelder  of Erick and Company of Exit 1st Choice Realty, Woodbridge VA. Realtors®, call 703-851-3085 (Peggy) or 703-590-2252 (Office).If you are a homeowner who has a home to sell, we have  buyers ready and waiting for nice homes to come on the market. Give us a call and we can "GET YOUR HOME SOLD FAST" to list your property for sale we service  Lake Ridge, Westridge, Old Bridge Estates, River Falls, Middle County, Manassas, Manassas Park, Haymarket,Montclair, Dumfries, Quantico, Fort Belvior, Occoquan, Dale City, Gainesville, Aquia Harbor, Garrisonville and Triangle area's . 
                                
         

Well there is a Google Map that shows you exactly where slug lines are. Did you now that there are more than 10,000  people who use this form of commuting to get back and forth to work everyday in the Washington DC Area.  Check out where the lines form in the Prince William County Virginia area.

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