Please post your local house search updates, MLS finds, on-topic ideas, and links here.
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Northern Virginia Real Estate Statistics
REAL ESTATE SEARCH
County Assessment Websites
Buy/Sell Without an Agent
Local Real Estate Agents
Housing Economics Blogs
Local Interest
Housing Bubble Links
Eastern Regional Blogs
Western Regional Blogs
- Bakersfield Bubble
- Bay Area Real Estate Blog
- BubbleInfo (N. San Diego)
- Burbed (San Francisco)
- Dr. Housing Bubble (SoCal)
- Patrick.net (San Francisco)
- Portland Housing Blog
- Professor Piggington's Econo-Almanac
- Rancid Truth (Orange County)
- Sacramento Land(ing)
- Seattle Bubble
- SoCal Real Estate Bubble Blog
- Socket Site (San Francisco)
Real Estate Blogs
REAL ESTATE AUCTIONS
16 comments:
6415 Shady Lane, Falls Church is now UC. I guess I'm not the only one who thought that was a great buy.
So, what does everyone think of these two Arl. flips? Note location (backs to very busy Wash. Blvd.) on the Clarendon one.
Clarendon flip
Shirley Woods flip
VA_Investor - did you bid on it?
Shady Lane
Ace,
No. I'm too busy right now. I would have. That is a nice nabe.
The Anonymous,
I just replied to your comment from a few days ago (been out of town). Figured you wouldn't see it there so here it is:
My wife is mostly logical and we are like-minded about waiting so far. Like I said before, we are DINKs so we haven't needed a large home. We have saved a lot of money renting rather than buying with an FHA or other low money down loan right after we got married in early 2008. We do want to start a family soon, and I don't want her to have to walk up to the 4th floor every day when she's pregnant, so we will be moving this coming year. Hopefully we find the right house for us, but if not we are both okay with the idea of renting a townhouse and waiting a bit longer. At this point it's not really about the money anymore for us, it's about not having to settle since we've got the funds and flexibility to avoid it.
My point is, our home requirements are changing. Renting has provided the flexibility for us to save a down payment without the transaction costs and risks associated with the housing ladder - which would have killed us over the past few years had we tried to use it.
Ace,
Both links have the same house. I think a flipper got really lucky. I would have not paid more than $650K for that house. Then again, that is why I am not the buyer.
Ace,
Correction. Location next to two highways noted. I would have not bought that home under any circumstance. Mabye $450K if I really, really needed to live in Arlington.
Oops, sorry, dc2 and thanks for pointing it out. Here's the Shirley Woods house.
SW
dc2,
I wouldn't say any "luck" is involved.
The Shirley Woods property is a little bigger, 1,660 sq feet of living space (above ground). The Clarendon one was only about 1,300 on two levels, not exactly large.
I prefer the Shirley Woods property although don't like the hilly lot. Would have never paid what they seem to be getting. I always said as long as there are people willing to pay the high prices in Arlington the market would stay high there. I just don't understand the mentality though. Never in a hundred years (well maybe literally) would that house cost over $900,000. Maybe $700,000.
VA Investor,
Sure, the flipper knows the market and priced it believing he or she could get that much. I just happen to think that some people really do not have a clue. There is a lot of people who do not analyze the value/cost of things that much. They see a colonial in Arlington (never mind it is the size of a very small townhome), looks renovated (don't think they spent more than $60K in renovations), should cost close to a million, what a deal at $900k. Unbelievable.
Well, dc2, FWIW, I don't think either house will get close to asking. I have a friend with a nicer (though not as updated) house that is the size of the bigger one, and is priced considerably less than either. But it is still overpriced, so it has been sitting a long time. I think someone would have snapped it up a long time ago if $60K worth of work would have yielded even $800K. We'll have to see if either flip goes for close to asking.
By the way, something's strange about the ownership of the Shirley Woods house. The flippers' address is shown on the Arl. Co. records as being in Arl. But I had never heard of Brecknock Street, and Mapquest does not show it as an Arl. address. I think I found the flippers at a similar address, but in Oakton. It appears that the flippers may be feeling a pinch from the ~20% drop in the value of their own home:
flippers' home?
And a pet peeve with the Shirley Woods (aside from the exterior that screams bad taste): if you're going to install new kitchen cabinets, put in 42 inch cabs. (I realize that there may be duct issues but often there isn't, and the owner is just taking the cheapest way out). And don't stain maple to look like cherry! Most woods are much more beautiful, and show much less wear, with a natural finish. If you don't like maple, don't put it in. If you want a cherry look, get cherry cabinets.
Ace,
Cherry is too soft of a wood for cabinets. It would be dented to heck within the year.
(there's a reason oak was so popular despite it aging to an unattractive color, it's nice and hard...)
Cara, that's simply not the case. Cherry cabinets are among the most popular of all kitchen cabinets -- you'll see many upper end Arl. houses with them. These have been used for many years. Cherry is also popular for many other types of furniture. Check out the Copeland website, as one of many examples of manufacturers, or Hardwood Artisans, a local handmade furniture maker, as another that uses cherry.
Copeland
HA
You'll also see cherry (esp. Brazilian cherry) floors in new homes.
There are many cabinet manufacturers--here's one of the big ones:
Merillat cherry and other woods
Post a Comment