Selling Your Home Will Likely Require Clearing These Three Hurdles
While every home sale is different -- with unique contingencies based on the needs and situations of the buyer and seller -- there are three main hurdles that most buyers…
Understanding Home Inspection Negotiations
A buyer agrees to pay a price for a house based on what they know about the house at that time. The home inspection process allows them to learn more about the house to…
Would You Move To The Other Side (!?!?!) of Interstate 81?
If you have lived in Harrisonburg for a while (more than a few years) which side of I-81 do you live on? The East or the West? Would you consider moving to the other side…
How to Buy a Foreclosure in Harrisonburg, Rockingham County
With some regularity, I am asked by potential purchasers how they would go about buying a foreclosure. First, here is a list of upcoming foreclosure sales, but more…
Will Single Family Home Sales Ever Return to 2016 Peak?
Apparently, 2016 was a special year for single family home sales in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County. After three years straight (2013, 2014, 2015) of seeing a very…
When Will Home Buying Activity Start in Earnest?
It is no surprise that buying activity (signing contracts, not closings) slows down over the Winter. As shown above -- an average of 72 buyers sign contracts in January…
City vs County Home Sales Trends
Now, for the annual showdown between the City of Harrisonburg and Rockingham County, though first noting that: City of Harrisonburg = 17.41 square miles (around 13K…
30 Year Mortgage Interest Rates Starting To Rise
While we ended the year just below 4%, the average 30-year fixed mortgage interest rate has now risen to 4.15%. This is a good bit above the 12-month average of 3.98%…
Which price range of homes have been hit the hardest with reduced inventory levels?
Clearly, the under $200K market is extremely tight right now -- with a sharp (65%) decline over the past two years. Some of this is the lack of availability of this…
January Inventory vs. Past Year of Home Sales
In 2014, 2015 and 2016 we started off the year with enough homes actively listed for sale to last us for right around six months -- or a bit longer. This balance (a six…
Conjecture vs Analysis in Home Pricing
Sometimes, determining the market value of a home is quite straightforward, such as in this recent example.... Buyer A paid $250K for a 3 BR, 2 BA, 1800 SF, circa 2000…
How does a Kickout Clause work in real estate?
Buying and selling at the same time can be tricky -- and a common question is whether you should go ahead and make an offer on a house if you do not yet have your house…