Will Buyer Activity Increase or Decrease in May and June?
History does not tell a consistent story here. Last year, contract activity (buyers -- and sellers -- actually signing contracts) decreased between April and May and then…
Home Sales Slow Slightly in April, Perhaps Due To Low Inventory Levels
Don't miss out on this fantastic four bedroom home in Barrington -- details here. OK -- now for your local real estate news! Happy May, everyone! I have published my…
Looking Closer at Investing
Yesterday, I was commenting on the market demand for well maintained rental properties for non-students in the City of Harrisonburg. I had pitched these general…
Attention investors, rentals are scarce, can you help out?
The townhouse shown above recently became available for rent -- and within days there were 30+ inquiries, multiple applications, and the tenants have already moved in…
Ravenous home buyers are still picky eaters
Inventory is low -- buyers do not have many choices of homes to purchase -- but that doesn't mean they'll buy ANYTHING. Buyers are still being relatively picky, not…
How many homes will you really be choosing from?
If you are entering the market to buy a home, the number of homes you will have to choose from will vary widely based on what you are looking for in a new home. Some…
Is a balanced market always this fleeting?
The graph shown above is an illustration of changing inventory levels (blue line) and the number of buyers buying in a six month period (orange line). The point at which…
Strong Home Buying (Contract Signing) Activity in March 2017
This beautiful home is 2930 Brookstone Drive - check it out here! Wow! March was a wild and crazy month in the real estate world in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County…
Balancing RISK and REWARD when purchasing a rental property for your JMU student
If you are looking to purchase a rental property for your JMU student to live in while they are a student at JMU, there are two basic paths you could go down.... Option 1…
Mortgage Interest Rates Drop (a bit) to Close Out March 2017
Mortgage interest rates ticked back downwards a bit yesterday to finish out the month of March at 4.14%. If we can keep going through 2017 between 4% and 4.25%, I'd be…
The process for making an offer, when you are ready
How, you might ask, do we go about getting from the point of wanting to make an offer --- to actually making the offer? Here's a brief overview.... Obtain a pre-approval…
The layout, floor plan, flow of the house is often the MOST important aspect for buyers
If a buyer is buying over $400K, or even over $300K, the layout of the home becomes very important to them. That is not to say that it is unimportant for a $200K buyer…