Welcome to a customized rowhouse unlike anything you've seen from this model! Throughout, you will find thoughtful updates and layout modifications that create a supremely functional living experience: An open kitchen that doesn’t sacrifice storage or counter space. A separate dining area. Totally re-imagined full-size bathroom layouts with double vanities and soaking tubs. Zoned HVAC for year-round comfort on all three levels. Couple these innovations with premium, top-tier remodeling updates throughout - no detail overlooked and no expense spared - and you have a one of a kind rowhouse without equal!
Special Features & Updates
MAIN LEVEL FEATURES
Bright, open floorplan w/ great use of space!
Deep crown molding & trendy neutral paint
Wide plank flooring
Dimmable recessed lighting
Custom window treatments
GORGEOUS gourmet kitchen:
LOTS of cabinet & counter space!
Rich maple soft-close cabinets
Stylish, textured soapstone counters
Marble, glass & metal backsplash
Integrated marble wall shelving
Stainless steel appliances
Breakfast bar & separate dining area
UPPER LEVEL FEATURES
Stylish statement-piece foyer light
Built-in shelving
Large primary bedroom w/ statement wall, tray ceilings, recessed & pendant lighting, & large closet w/ on-trend barn door closure
Expansive primary suite boasts sunny sitting room, walk-in closet, large en-suite bathroom & private access to balcony
Two additional full size bedrooms
Second full bathroom
NEW carpet in bedrooms!
Separate laundry room w/ full size washer/dryer & storage space
ADDITIONAL FEATURES
Large private balcony
Full size dedicated garage just STEPS away from the front door -as well as driveway parking space
NEWER water heater & microwave
AMENITIES & LOCATION
Central Park at Lowes Island is a premier 55+ community offering a host of popular amenities including a library, party/meeting room, fitness center, clubhouse, outdoor pool & more!
Access to Cascades community pools, tennis courts, golf course (membership available) & more!
FANTASTIC location! Quick access to all your shopping, dining & grocery needs.
Convenient to Route 7, Route 28 & Fairfax County Parkway
Newer water heater (2020), newer washing/dryer (2020), Google Nest thermostat
Additional Features
TWO assigned garage parking spaces!
Unit pre-wired for Verizon Fios (upgrade)
Enjoy the unparalleled amenities at The Continental, including: 24/7 concierge, roof-top pool, terrace & BBQ area, penthouse-level fitness center, movie room, meeting spaces, library, business center & more!
2 blocks to Ballston Metro!
Steps from fine dining, shopping, entertainment & more!
The Northern Virginia real estate market is in the middle of a substantial shift. What are the top nine things for home buyers to keep in mind right now?
Tip #1: The Market is Definitely Shifting
After the pandemic started in 2020, the Northern Virginia real estate market slowed down, and a lot of people were wondering what was going to happen.
Everyone was wondering if recording offices were going to close in counties, and whether real estate sales would stop temporarily, so there was a lull that happened for a while when the pandemic started. About two or three months after the pandemic began, the Northern Virginia real estate market really started to build momentum (especially that summer of 2020), and it took off like a rocket. It didn’t start to slow down until recently. During that real estate market boom (later in 2020 through early 2022), bidding wars took on a whole new dimension. You’d have easily 15 plus offers on properties on almost every single home and townhome. Most of the offers that would be submitted would have 0 contingencies (no home inspection, no contingency, no appraisal contingency, no financing contingency). It was a crazy market! That's what happened up until several months ago, when interest rates started rising sharply.
Tip #2: Contingencies For Home Buyers Are Actually Becoming a Thing Again
Contingencies became very uncommon for buyers that were actually winning contracts during this crazy Northern Virginia real estate market boom that started in 2020. Now, I'm seeing a lot fewer bidding wars, and in the bidding wars that I’m seeing, a lot of buyers are seeking regular contingencies again and still winning contracts. That's a big deal! For a long time, buyers just were not able to have those things and still win contracts. Now, we're seeing situations where a lot of our clients are able to have regular negotiable home inspection contingencies again, where they’re able to have regular financing contingencies, regular appraisal contingencies, and still win contracts.
Tip #3: The Northern Virginia Real Estate Market is Normalizing
So what does that mean? It just means that as a buyer, it is not necessarily like you're able to get a huge discount on every single property. It just means that home prices are starting to stabilize and come down some. Some properties are sitting on the market a little longer and offer situations are just not as competitive. The market is looking a lot more normal. What's happened is that a lot of sellers were, and often still are, living in the past, in the market from several months ago. They're overpricing their properties, which is why a lot of properties are experiencing price reductions. That's a big opportunity for a Northern Virginia home buyer.
Tip #4: Many Sellers Have Not Come to Terms With The Current Northern Virginia Real Estate Market
As I mentioned, a lot of sellers are still living in the past. They've been living in the Northern Virginia real estate market from a few months ago. Because the interest rates are going up, there are fewer buyers in the game right now. The sellers who are smart right now are pricing competitively and they're getting out ahead of the shift that's happening in the market (instead of still thinking they can get the prices from two or three months ago). What does that mean to you as a buyer when you have lots of sellers that are still living in the market from a few months ago? It just means that there's a tug-of-war right now between home buyers and home sellers, and it might take a little bit of extra patience in your home search to find a property that you want at the price that you want. It's going to take a while for sellers to continue to realize that they're not in the driver's seat like they were in the Northern Virginia real estate market as recently as a few months ago.
Tip #5: There Are Still Bidding Wars in This Market
It's important to know how to navigate the types of bidding wars that are happening right now. Even though they're still bidding wars, there are just not as many of them. The segment of the current Northern Virginia real estate market where bidding wars typically happen the most is the most upgraded properties that are on the market: the nicest ones, the most renovated ones, the showpieces. These are the properties that get the most interest from buyers. A lot of home buyers don't want to have to do work and pay for upgrades after they buy a property. The homes in Northern Virginia that are getting the most action right now are the most upgraded move-in-ready properties. If these properties are priced well, they will get a lot of action and could very well have a bidding war on their hands. Properties that are not doing quite as well in this shifting Northern Virginia real estate market are properties that need some work and are not priced well. If a property is a fixer upper and is priced pretty well, it'll still get a lot of interest. But, the problem is a lot of sellers are still overpricing their properties even though they need work or even though they're not particularly upgraded. Those kinds of properties are just not getting as much interest and they're usually sitting on the market longer.
Tip #6: Northern Virginia Condo Market
The condo market in Northern Virginia is still fairly erratic right now and can be a good opportunity for buyers. During the boom from 2020 into early 2022, condos were not benefiting as much from that boom as single family homes and townhomes. One of the trends that started happening was that buyers just needed more space. A lot of people were working from home, they wanted private entrances, patios, yards, second and third bedrooms, office space. While condos did fine in many situations, they weren't benefiting from that crazy Bonkers Boom from 2020 to early 2022. They’re still recovering from that more erratic kind of market from the past couple of years, and they still represent a really good opportunity for buyers.
Tip #7: Fixer-Uppers Are a Really Good Opportunity For Buyers in This Current Northern Virginia Real Estate Market
Right now, any property that is overpriced will likely sit longer on the market, but fixer-uppers that need some renovations and updating are sitting longer. That represents a great opportunity for buyers who don't mind putting work into a property and buying a place that's not completely move-in ready. The caveat is that ever since 2020, it's been hard to nail down contractors on scheduling and getting people in to do work. If you buy a fixer-upper, you might need some patience in terms of getting together a good crew of people that are available and can do good work.
Tip #8: Higher Interest Rates, Not Highest
Interest rates are higher right now, but, compared to history, they're not that bad! Bottom line is that we all got spoiled for a long time with these artificially low interest rates. They were amazing. A lender that I know really well has a good saying when it comes to the current interest rates - “Marry the home, not the interest rate.” I think it's good to keep in mind that when you buy right now, you're getting an interest rate that might be a little higher than you'd like, but you can always refinance in the future. Once you buy your home, that’s where you want to get into the place that you love. Interest rates can always be changed later. Your home can't - unless you sell and buy another one in the future. Focus on finding a home that you really like right now and knowing that you can always refinance your interest rate later.
Tip #9: Good Market for Anyone Wanting to Sell Their Home and Buy Another Home at The Same Time
During the boom from 2020 on into early 2022, home sale contingencies just became a thing of the past. Every single client I had who was trying to sell their home and then buy another house had to make all kinds of different arrangements that really were not ideal for them, just because of how crazy the Northern Virginia real estate market was. For instance, selling their property first (and making a pretty penny on it which is great), but having to look into temporary living arrangements and put their belongings in storage while they found the right property. Now, we actually have a lot of clients who are getting home sale contingencies accepted by sellers again. They're writing offers on properties that have been on the market a little bit longer, and the seller is more willing at that point to consider something like a home sale contingency. That's a big deal! It allows you to sell your property and have a lot more flexibility with the timeline and the logistics of your move.
Thinking of buying a home in Northern Virginia? Call me at 703-462-0700 or email me at darren@darrenrobertsonhomes.com. I’d love to connect with you and find out how I could help!
The Northern Virginia real estate market is shifting. What are the top eight things for sellers to know about what's happening?
1. Causes And Effects of The Market Shift
A little background about what happened in the past couple years, after the pandemic started in 2020 for the first two or three months things were really uncertain with the Northern Virginia real estate market as it was across the country.
However, after that first two to three months, the market started taking off like a rocket and it never started slowing down, until recently. With the lower interest rates that were happening in 2020, tons of buyers jumped in the market and we saw a seller's market in Northern Virginia like pretty much no other. We saw buyers literally waiving every single contingency and every property selling for $50,000 or $100,000 more over list price. It was an amazing time for sellers.
However, due to the rising interest rates, the Northern Virginia real estate market has started to shift significantly. To put this in perspective of what sellers and buyers are experiencing right now right now is if we look at an example regarding a mortgage amount. So, if a buyer gets a $500,000 mortgage, a few months ago (when rates were still really low) buyers would be looking at about a $2,000 a month payment from that $500,000 mortgage. Now that rates have gone up significantly in the past few months, a buyer is looking at about a $2,900 a month payment for that mortgage amount. That's a big deal to most home buyers. Keep in mind it hasn't become a buyer's market overnight or anything. Technically, with the inventory levels the way they are right now, even though inventory has picked up in a lot of areas - they're still fairly low so technically on paper it's still a seller's market right now. It's just a much less crazy seller's market that it was a few months ago
2. You Can't Get Away With Overpricing Like You Did a Few Months Ago
During the real estate boom in the Northern Virginia real estate market from the past couple years, a home seller could get away with overpricing their single-family home or townhome. They could look at the recent comparable sales price above the recent comparable sales and still know that they would likely have a bidding war on their hands (just due to the supply and demand). Now, the market is not like that. It's very important to price well and to price according to the shift that's happening.
One reason you're seeing so many price reductions right now is not because the bottom of the market's falling out or anything, it's just that many sellers are pricing according to what they thought would be this never-ending stair-step effect that has been happening in the market from 2020 into 2022. They’re pricing according to these recent comparable sales that closed in May/June. We're not in that market anymore, so sellers who are pricing too high are having to reduce their prices to get out ahead of the reduced buyer demand. The market is not becoming a buyer's market. It’s just normalizing right now.
3. Property Condition is More Important in Today's Northern Virginia Real Estate Market Than it Was a Few Months Ago
During the Northern Virginia real estate market boom from 2020 and early 2020, a lot of sellers weren’t bothering to update properties because they were able to sell an outdated property (or fixer-upper) and still do very very well and still often have a bidding war on their hands. With the shift that's happening right now, yes properties that are overpriced are staying on the market longer but properties that are also more vulnerable to this current market are places that need work - properties that are outdated or properties that are fixer uppers. It's just very important to price a property well, especially if it’s not completely move-in ready. Bottom line, the properties that are selling the fastest and for the most money in the current Northern Virginia real estate market are move-in ready/remodeled properties that look amazing. We're still seeing a good number of bidding wars for these types of properties in this market.
4. Staging is More Important Than Ever
A lot of people don't realize the value of a staged home. Let me put it this way: Many buyers just don't have the imagination to really envision the space when they walk into a home. It helps to have a staged home to help them visualize where they would put their furniture and how they would live in the space. It helps home buyers to get emotionally invested in the property when you have staging. Staging doesn't necessarily have to be a fully staged home - it can be accent pieces and different things in different rooms and then just maybe have a couple (two or three) main living spaces that are better staged. Keep in mind every little bit helps in this current Northern Virginia real estate market in terms of helping your property stand apart from the competition.
5. Offering a Good Buyer Agent Commission
During the boom from 2020 leading into early 2022 we started seeing reduced buyer agent commissions. A very common buyer agent commission right now is somewhere around 2.5 - 2.75%. We were seeing some sellers during the boom from 2020 to 2022 who were starting to offer very low buyer agent commissions in the MLS (2% 2.25%). Sometimes, they were getting away with it because there was such a stark contrast between the number of buyers and properties available. However, in this shifting Northern Virginia real estate market, it's very important to offer a good buyer's agent commission to set your property apart from the competition. Buyer agents are a very important part of the home selling process, and you want to give all of the buyer agents who are showing your home to their buyer clients every incentive possible.
6. Work With a Northern Virginia Agent Who Knows How to Market Effectively
In this shifting market, it's important to get as many eyes as possible on your property in order to stand out from the competition. It's important to work with an agent who knows how to market effectively online, how to navigate pay-per-click ads, social media ads, organic traffic on search engines, as well as blogging.
7.There Are Still Bidding Wars Out There
It's still very possible for your Northern Virginia home to sell in a bidding war, however the bidding wars that are happening right now look different from the way that they were happening in 2020-2022. We are still seeing waived contingencies but just not as many as we were back in 2020-2022. Sometimes a bidding war that might happen in today's Northern Virginia real estate market might very well mainly just involve a buyer making some changes to the sales price they are offering, and maybe waiving a contingency or two, but not waiving everything. We're still seeing bidding wars, but the bidding wars are different and are most often happening surrounding properties that are completely move-in ready (remodeled, look nice, very attractive to buyers).
8. Sellers: You’ll Probably Need to Accept Contingencies in Offers
Keep in mind, most buyers out there will still be able to have most or all of their contingencies in an offer situation. It's surprising to a lot of sellers right now that they might have to accept a contract that has contingencies, such as a regular home inspection contingency that involves negotiation. A buyer in this current Northern Virginia real estate market can often negotiate for repairs or for monetary credits after the home inspection. That wasn't happening at all during the boom from the past couple years. Keep in mind, sellers are still getting great prices on their properties - it's just the dynamic has shifted some and buyers have more power than they had as recently as just a few months ago.
Thinking of selling your Northern Virginia home? Call me at 703-462-0700 or email me at darren@darrenrobertsonhomes.com for a no-obligation comparable market analysis and consultation!
Tip #4: Many Sellers Have Not Come to Terms With The Current Northern Virginia Real Estate Market
