REALTOR CORNER: Samson Realty has Smart Request for MRIS to Add Short Sale Information to Information Database to help speed and smooth Closing Process on Short Sale HOMES

Hello All!We need to request that MRIS implement changes in the listing process for Short Sale properties. We have written a letter (see below) that we request that you copy and paste into an email to be forwarded to MRIS staff. These requests are intended to remedy the Short Sale epidemic currently overwhelming our market. As you can see below. We request that these listings be re-classified and full disclosure is made by the listing agent regarding payoff, approval status and time necessary to obtain bank approval. We hope that these changes will have a positive impact on our business in the coming months. If you agree with these changes, please copy and past this letter into an email and forward it directly to the following email addresses as well as forward it to any Real Estate professional that you can. The more people that send this to MRIS, the more likely MRIS will take action.suggest@mris.net Thanks for your participation!!! Regards, Doug Hall and Donny Samson Associate Brokers Samson Realty 3/6/2008——————————————————————– To Whom it May Concern, The Washington DC suburban real estate market has an overwhelming number of Short Sale and auction properties available for sale through MRIS. These short sales are typically listed at “teaser “prices that are not reflective of the actual price that the buyer will pay for the property. Because of this, these listings are causing much distress for purchasers, their agents and the industry as a whole. We feel that these listings need to be separately classified through the MRIS MLS system in a way that accurately discloses the constraints that will be imposed on any contract submitted. Disclosures including: time needed to obtain a 3rd party approval, whether the sellers lender has already approved the short sale and payoff amounts. We propose the following solution and request that MRIS quickly implement these changes to take effect immediately: Create new separate “status” heading of: AUCTION/SHORTSALE Instead of short sales and auctions being classified as ACTIVE the listing agent would use the above status when listing a property. For Short Sale listings add required field for: Number of days required for short sale approval Payoff amount of first mortgage First mortgage bank Has bank agreed to short sale yes/no Payoff amount of second mortgage Second Mortgage Bank Has bank agreed to short sale yes/no The benefits of these changes are that they will allow agents to better educate their buyer clients about short sale listings. This will also require agents to provide full disclosure through MRIS to prospective buyers and their agents. Excerpt from email blast by Casey Samson

Zillow offers HOME VALUE REPORT to show Changes (Increase of Decline)

How Does Your City Rate? Zillow’s latest Home Value Report shows that over the past year, U.S. single-family home values have decreased by 5.5%, while condo values have declined by 7.4%. VALUE CHANGES  ASHBURN 20148

Realtor.com shows online marketing surpasses all other media when it comes to marketing your home for sale.

Just the facts… Realtor.com has been funding some really big research projects and has released that for the year 2008, people seeking information about the local housing market are 500% more likely to sell a home if it has been advertised on the Internet (rather than simply relying on the newspaper).  To those of us living in the Dulles Technology Corridor, this comes as no surprise; but for many people and agents in the housing markets nationwide, they are scratching their heads wondering why properties not aggressively marketed by Internet are not selling at as fast a rate…

With the release of these new stats that show the dramatic rise in popularity of the Internets, these same folks can look back with 20/20 vision in hindsight and say, “Who knew?”. To that I would just laugh and answer, “Anybody under 40 or anyone living in Loudoun County–that’s who.”

Cheers, everyone. May all your internet footprints be left in the soft sand of the virtual beach standing on the edge of the real estate marketing ocean. Thanks for the statistical support Realtor.com–those of us out here who love the net and all the positive life changes the web has the power to bring us are really grateful to you.   

Scanning Print Advertising for NORTHERN VIRGINIA REAL ESTATE? Washington Post has online option for Tech Friendly!

I don’t know about your family, but ours is caught in the middle of generational crossfire with the older folks reading a daily printed paper and the younger generations being incredibly tech savvy. Rushing out each Sunday morning to fetch the Sunday Paper is not always the first thing on our list of priorities, but to keep ourselves informed and “in the know” about news and local happenings, we have turned to the internet–and the Washington Post has given us a great way to keep up with our contemporary elders without every having to set foot outside our home.

Know someone who still relies on print advertising to find information on real estate or open houses in Loudoun county and want to plan your day together?

Here’s the easy way to find out what is being advertised in the Washington Post each weekend. Hop online and visit http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/real-estate/ashburn-homes-realestate.html. Once you sign up, you can keep up with the old school reader and still be in the know.

Happy Sunday News,

Kae Davis

www.activerain.com/KaeDavis

Excerpt from the Washington Post online advertisment…

Ashburn, Virginia Real Estate

Trying to find Ashburn, Virginia homes for sale? On washingtonpost.com you can search our Ashburn real estate listings whenever you want. Find condominiums, single family homes, town homes, duplexes, and more when you use washingtonpost.com. Select specific property criteria such as the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, fireplace, basement, and swimming pool.

Find Ashburn, Virginia new homes for sale using our designated New Construction search. Search for Ashburn, Virginia real estate listings and view floor plans, virtual tours, or additional photos. If you’re interested in open houses for the weekend use our search to find an open house in Ashburn, Virginia.

Take advantage of washingtonpost.com site tools to map the property, email the listing, print flyer, or view community guide and crime report information. Use washingtonpost.com for your home buying in Ashburn, Virginia!

Sell Your Home

Sell Your Home in Ashburn, Virginia. Reach potential buyers by advertising your Ashburn, Virginia real estate listings on washingtonpost.com. You can add up to 20 photos and include 1,000 characters of descriptive text in your listing. Users can also provide links to an e-mail address, web site, and virtual tour. Even schedule an open house! Agents and brokers can are allowed to submit an agent photo or broker logo to appear on the details page of the listing. Washingtonpost.com is the place for selling and home buying in Ashburn, Virginia.

ASHBURN REAL ESTATE OVERVIEW FROM ZILLOW

Interested in learning more about our Ashburn area REAL ESTATE MARKET? Check out this great new 2008 launch of a statistical review platform presented by Zillow:

http://www.zillow.com/real-estate/VA-Ashburn 

Listing affordability date, home types by percent, and why Ashburn residents are unique, there is fun new information about the Loudoun County Real Estate Market Trends for everyone! 

Post courtesy of Michael A. Gilbert, Licensed VA Real Estate Agent YOUR ASHBURN NEIGHBOR, Weichert Realty Ashburn Office: 703-726-3909 43150 Broadlands Center Plaza, Ste 104 Fax: 703-726-0313 Ashburn, VA 20148 Email: mgilbert@weichert.com

Ashburn makes Sperling’s “Best Places to Live” List

Real Estate

Virginia

Ashburn

ZIP: 20147

Nearest metro area: Washington-Arlington-Alexandria
Population: 56,223

Median home price: $625,000
Median household income: $96,588
Unemployment rate: 2%
Commute time: 33.6 minutes
Violent crime index: 2

2007 Comprehensive Real Estate Market Stats

from Coldwell Banker Market Watch… The Real Story of 2007 Real Estate Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage February 1, 2008 – When deciding on how the real estate market is doing, we must first identify to which market we are referring – the residential resale market, new residential construction market, or the various types of commercial real estate. We must also look at what geographical location to consider since some areas are doing better than others. (Refer to the county graphs to see last month’s activity.) When assessing the residential resale market where most of us spend our time, there are two issues to consider — 1) number of actual sales and 2) home prices. With 2007 concluded, many who are reporting on the final figures are passing judgment on whether the year was good or bad. If you look at the second issue of home prices, the growing oversupply of inventory in most areas has pushed prices downward. For buyers who purchased two to three years ago who must sell today, that is not good news. For buyers who are looking to purchase today, it is great news to have many choices of homes at lower prices. Let’s consider the first issue – the number of actual sales in 2007. Back in 2001, the number of resale (existing) homes nationally hit an all time record of 5.3 million sales and the market was good. In 2002, we were thrilled to see another record at 5.6 million home sales which was considered a great year in real estate. Although some thought it couldn’t get any better, the market continued to reach new heights each year: 2003 = 6.2 million, 2004 = 6.8 million, 2005 = 7.1 million. Then in 2006, inventories were growing, but still 6.5 million homes were sold. Although less than the peak of the previous year, it was still the third best year in history. Then, despite all the doom and gloom from the media about the market in 2007, 5.6 million homes were sold, the same number sold as our great year of 2002. People are still buying existing homes and they should. Sellers are still selling their homes, not for as much as two and three years ago, but for most, more than they bought it for. If we can assist you or any one you know to better understand what is happening in our current market, please let us know.   Kae Davis Licensed VA Realtor, Real Estate Agent Hostess EverythingAshburn.COM   Steve Lizik Licensed VA Realtor, Associate Broker CBRB Ashburn Dulles Post Sponsor     Alexandria City Anne Arundel Arlington Baltimore Baltimore City Calvert Caroline Carroll Cecil Charles Culpeper Dorchester Fairfax Fauquier Frederick Harford Howard Kent Loudoun Montgomery Prince Georges Prince William Queen Anne Stafford St. Mary’s Talbot Washington County, MD Washington, DC