Northern Virginia Real Estate and Community News Blog

Real Estate agents throughout Northern VA are watching with baited breath to see if the selling and renting market will come out of its slump and show improvement in January 2015.  It's been an unusually slow Fall and Winter, with rentals taking much longer to rent, rents dropping, sales prices falling, and all around gloomy real estate news.  January is always the time of year when in our profession, we look forward to the Heating Up of the market.  Too soon for Spring Tulips I realize, but not too soon for Spring buyers and tenants!  Early signs point to a fast start of the market.  The inventory of available homes to buy is down - and that's great news.  On the other hand, we still have a glut of available rental homes and so far not seeing the light at the end of the tunnel for the rental market slow-down. If you are thinking of selling in the Spring, now's the time to start planning.  A good evaluation of what your home will need to make it out-shine the competition is the first place to start.  Will you need fresh paint?  Any new carpet or refinish hardwood floors?  How is the roof, the windows, the chimney, and the heating and air system?  It's best to complete as much of this work in advance as possible.   Some of our contractors are willing to defer payment for some or all of their services until after settlement - so don't let lack of up-front funds hold you back.  Uncertain about what needs done and in what order to do it?  I would be happy to meet with you, walk through your home with you, and create a plan of action along with a rough estimate of cost. If you are trying to decide whether to rent your home or sell it, then  there are lots of factors to consider, and it may be just a little too early in 2015 to know which way will be best for you.   We can set up a market search to track the selling and renting trends in your neighborhood so that you can personally watch as homes nearby go on the market, or go under contract.  It's also good to have an earnings/cost analysis done for both scenarios - selling and renting, and we can provide that to you. It may be 20 deg. outside, and not a Spring flower in sight, but for we Realtors, Spring has already begun.  The early buyers are calling, and letting us know what they'll be looking for in the coming months.  Now is the time to start getting ready!