Charlottesville VA real estate listings and homes for sale, home buying, home selling information – Yates Nobles, GRI, SRS, ABR, E-PRO - Associate Broker, Montague, Miller & Co. - Downtown

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Charlottesville & Surrounding Counties Real Estate Tax Rates

March 2nd, 2010 11:35 AM

Area Tax Rates: Most rates change in April

Locality Tax Rate Year Telephone

Charlottesville .95 per $100 2009 434-970-3136

Albemarle .752 per $100 2009 434-296-5856

Orange .47 per $100 2009 540-672-4441

Greene .69 per $100 2009 434-985-5211

Nelson .55 per $100 2009 540-967-3432

Fluvanna .50 per $100 2009 434-591-1940

Buckingham .44 per $100 2009 434-969-4972

Madison .44 per $100 2009 540-948-4409

Posted by Yates Nobles on March 2nd, 2010 11:35 AMPost a Comment (0)

MM & Co Leads the Way!

March 2nd, 2010 9:15 AM

We are excited to announce that Montague, Miller & Co. Realtors is being recognized as one of the top 5 real estate companies, of our size category in Leading Real Estate Companies of the World, at the 2010 Annual Conference being held at the Wynn Las Vegas in March 2010! This nominee of Award of Excellence honors top firms in the LREW network for Outstanding Sales Production through our efforts in 2009 in sending great, quality outbound referrals.

Posted by Yates Nobles on March 2nd, 2010 9:15 AMPost a Comment (0)

2009 Charlottesville Area Sales Analysis

February 5th, 2010 2:30 PM

CAAR Market Report

2009 Year-End

Published by the Charlottesville Area Association of REALTORS®

Where Are We Now?

Home sales, compared to 2008, continued to show improvement in the second half of 2009. At

mid-year, sales were down 28%, but by year-end sales were only 8.7% below the 2008 levels. In

the 4th quarter of 2009, sales (696) were up 34.1% from the same period in 2008 (519). This is

the first year-over-year increase in sales we have seen in several quarters in the Charlottesville

area. While it is certainly exciting to see such a significant increase in sales, it is important to

remember that the 4th quarter of 2008 was the height of the economic and housing crisis. As

predicted, the 4th quarter of 2008 (and the 1st quarter of 2009) appear to be the bottom of the

housing downturn in the Charlottesville area.

As reported for the past two quarterly reports, significantly lower home prices (down 20% or

more) are driving the pick-up in sales. In addition, the $8,000 tax credit for first time buyers

supercharged the sale of starter homes (below $300,000) in 2009. 67.5% of home sales for the

year were in this starter home category, which is approximately a 10% increase in this category.

Home Sales for 2009

There were 2,730 homes sold in the Charlottesville area in 2009, which was down 8.7% (-261

sales) from 2008. Albemarle (+5.7) and Greene (+11.7) showed an increase in sales for the year.

All other ares were down from last year: Charlottesville -19.9%, Fluvanna -15.4%, Louisa -

15.8%, Nelson -12%, and Orange -20%.

Sales in the Central Valley region were generated from the Greater Augusta MLS, which has

more complete data on the Valley market than the CAAR MLS. Sales were down in the Valley

by 14.9 % compared to last year.

Residential Sales

County 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

Albemarle 1973 1680 1440 993 1050

Charlottesville 555 764 644 562 450

Fluvanna 639 523 423 318 269

Greene 309 291 203 171 191

Louisa 241 217 208 209 176

Nelson 399 259 194 158 139

Orange 133 128 122 85 68

Area Total* 4677 4412 3768 2991 2730

Year-End Sales by County

2008 2009

Home Prices Have Dropped

Based on the data from the CAAR MLS, we believe that the numbers clearly show a significant

decrease in home prices during 2009. The median prices listed below are the middle of the

market of properties that sold. Simply put, this is an indication of what buyers were willing/able

to pay and is not a true reflection of individual home prices. It is probably safe to assume that a

steady, year-to-year decrease in the median price is a good indication that prices are going down,

but it is not an exact measurement.

We believe the numbers displayed below provide compelling evidence that our local real estate

market has experienced a noteworthy drop in home prices. The CAAR market reports have been

discussing this trend since the Fall of 2007, and this report shows further evidence of the decline.

The one caveat that we need to make is that part of this median price decline is a reflection of an

increase in home sales in the lower price ranges. Of the 2730 homes that sold this year, 1565

were sold for $300,000 or less. This surge in the lower end of the market will naturally pull the

median price down.

Overall, the median home price (including attached homes) declined $20,823 (-7.8%) compared

to last year. The median price in 2009 fell just below what we reported as the year-end median

price in 2004. All areas covered in this report showed a decline as follows: Albemarle (-10.9%),

Charlottesville (-7.1%), Fluvanna (-17%), Greene (-5.8%), Louisa (-15.7%), Nelson (-7.2%),

Orange (-25.6%) and the Valley (-5.6%).

Page 3 of 8

Median Prices

County 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

Albemarle $289,000 $320,000 $307,000 $320,000 $285,000

Charlottesville $249,000 $240,000 $280,000 $265,509 $246,750

Fluvanna $234,000 $244,900 $260,000 $243,250 $201,978

Greene $234,900 $267,000 $285,000 $260,000 $245,000

Louisa $205,900 $231,900 $265,000 $249,000 $209,900

Nelson $300,000 $325,000 $310,000 $300,000 $278,500

Orange $215,000 $259,750 $277,500 $215,000 $160,000

Area Median * $256,741 $270,000 $279,000 $266,180 $245,357

Price Per Square Foot (Finished)

Another indicator that allows us to see the decline in home prices is a major drop in the price per

square foot numbers. The average price per square foot of finished space in homes is not a

scientific number, but a downward trend over the years clearly indicates a decrease in prices (and

vice versa). According to the chart below, prices peaked in 2006 and have declined for the past

three years. There has been a $28 per square foot drop since the peak in 2006. The current $143

per square foot is the lowest number since 2004.

Price Per Finished Square Foot

County 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

Albemarle 165 178 175 169 152

Charlottesville 171 201 197 185 171

Fluvanna 130 142 141 134 120

Greene 140 155 152 143 128

Louisa 132 147 151 135 114

Nelson 206 212 209 192 171

Orange 137 164 166 129 117

Area Average 158 171 168 158 143

Inventory of Homes for Sale

The inventory of homes for sale in the Charlottesville has continued to decline very slowly. As

we have reported for the past several quarters, the excess of inventory is causing many of the

problems with our local housing market. The decline in inventory is very encouraging, but we

will still have too many homes on the market for the current demand. This could change very

quickly going into the busy spring market.

Currently, we have 2,877 homes on the market, compared to 3,086 at this time last year. This is

the largest year-over-year decrease in several years, but we are still a little bit above a balanced

inventory level in the 2,000 to 2,500 range. The median price of homes currently for sale is

$289,900, which is $10,000 less than last year. The average DOM (days on market) of these

homes is 182 days, which is ten days less than last year and 42 days more than homes that have

sold. The most telling statistic related to homes currently on the market is that the average price

per square foot is $208 compared to $143 for homes that sold in 2009.

Housing affordability is the positive aspect of this market. There are 786 homes for sale

$200,000 or less with an average DOM of 164 and an average price per square foot of $146.

There are 232 homes currently on the market priced at a million dollars or more with an average

DOM of 270.

Days on Market (DOM)

In this market, the average days (DOM) a property stays on the market is less important than it

would be in a more balanced market. There are many variables in the marketplace – excess

inventory, foreclosures, short sale, and financing issues – that affect the length of time a property

is on the market. The local area DOM stabilized in the second half of 2009 which, combined

with the decrease in inventory, may indicate a change in the market. We are still in a buyer’s

market, which means the best way to shorten the days your property is on the market is to price it

correctly.

Page 5 of 8

Average Days on Market

County 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

Albemarle 53 69 91 114 107

Charlottesville 51 57 79 111 116

Fluvanna 60 75 88 118 123

Greene 59 79 93 108 98

Louisa 85 91 126 108 134

Nelson 71 86 111 149 159

Orange 72 72 110 154 135

Area Average 62 75 94 119 120

New Construction Still Slow

It is important to note that many “new” homes are not included in CAAR MLS statistics. It is

very common for a buyer to contact a builder directly to custom build a home. With that said, the

historical perspective of the pace of new home sales gives us a reasonably good picture of the

market for new construction. As the chart below shows, new home sales are still struggling and

until the inventory of re-sale homes for sale declines more, new construction will lag.

Condos and Townhomes (Attached Homes)

The sale of attached homes is only reported in Charlottesville and Albemarle because very few

properties in this category are located in other counties, except Nelson. Since the condos in

Nelson are primarily in the Wintergreen Resort market, we have decided not to include them in

this report. One of the more interesting numbers in this report is the 26% increase in the sale of

attached homes in Albemarle in 2009. Charlottesville attached home sales, on the other hand, are

down 28.6%. Inventory levels of attached homes dropped during 2009 due to reasonably strong

sales and little new inventory being created. The average DOM of the 333 attached homes

currently on the market is 232, and the median price of an attached home currently on the market

is $206,000. The median price for an attached home sold in 2009 was $221,500 with a DOM of

102.

Townhome and Condo Sales

Albemarle Charlottesville

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

Page

Posted by Yates Nobles on February 5th, 2010 2:30 PMPost a Comment (0)

FHA Mortgage Program Changes

February 5th, 2010 1:53 PM

FHA Imposes Floor for 3.5 Percent Down

Filed under: Home Finance, Press Releases, Real Estate — CAAR @ 3:02 pm

FHA last week announced major underwriting changes to strengthen its reserves while maintaining the agency’s critical position in the mortgage market at a time when its federally backed loans comprise about 40 percent of the market. Among the changes: an increase in the up-front mortgage insurance premium by 50 bps to 2.25 percent; a FICO credit score floor of 580 for borrowers to qualify for the agency’s 3.5 percent minimum down payment (other borrowers must put down a 10 percent minimum); and a reduction in seller concessions from 6 percent to 3 percent of the mortgage amount. Access NAR’s brief on FHA credit issues. Separately, the increase in the FHA up-front mortgage insurance premium and efforts to heighten enforcement against bad lenders are fleshed out in Mortgagee Letter 2010-02 and Mortgagee Letter 2010-03, respectively.

Posted by Yates Nobles on February 5th, 2010 1:53 PMPost a Comment (0)

Cville Home Sales Update

February 5th, 2010 1:51 PM

Home statistics for current month

Active Listing Inventory: 2,935

Number of Listings Sold: 13

Median price of Listings Sold: $250,000

Average Days on Market for Listings Sold: 167

Home statistics for previous month

Active Listing Inventory: 2,941

Number of Listings Sold: 105

Median price of Listings Sold: $225,000

Average Days on Market for Listings Sold: 114

Posted by Yates Nobles on February 5th, 2010 1:51 PMPost a Comment (0)

Realtors Reach Out to Haiti

February 5th, 2010 1:42 PM

NAR Donating $550,000 to Haiti Relief

Filed under: Press Releases — CAAR @ 2:58 pm

NAR is contributing $550,000 to relief of victims of the Haiti earthquake, and is calling upon its 1.2 million members to help. “REALTORS® help build communities and there is no better time than now to do that in Haiti,” says NAR President Vicki Cox Golder. NAR is donating $500,000 to the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund and another $50,000 has already been donated to The Harvest of Haiti, founded by a 2007 winner of REALTOR® Magazine’s Good Neighbor Awards, Patrick Moore. Moore’s humanitarian outreach program in Haiti supports orphans, delivers clean water, and provides medical care to more than 3,500 people a year.

Part of the NAR fund came from Lowe’s, a partner of NAR’s REALTOR Benefits® Program, who contributed $100,000 that was matched by NAR.

Posted by Yates Nobles on February 5th, 2010 1:42 PMPost a Comment (0)

Understanding Green Certifications for Homes

January 30th, 2010 12:07 PM

The following article is useful for understanding the various green certifications:

Home Energy Certification (reprint excerpted from Upstream Construction)

EarthCraft and LEED for Homes certifications require third party performance testing of the house and systems including the Blower Door test (measuring the integrity of the thermal envelope) and the Duct Blaster test (measuring the integrity of the duct work). Upstream has two team members that have achieved Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) professional accreditation by demonstrating a thorough understanding of green building practices and principles, and the LEED rating system.

Energy Star certification requires that a Thermal Bypass Checklist be completed by a third party. The Checklist requires visual inspection of framing areas where air barriers are commonly missed and inspection of insulation to ensure proper alignment with air barriers to ensure that air and thermal barriers are continuous and complete.

These three well respected certifications work together. Energy Star sets high standards for appliances, lighting and energy efficiency. EarthCraft is a very good all-around standard and has the benefit of being tailored to our mixed humid climate in Virginia. LEED for Homes is a stringent national standard for those wanting the very best in high performance homes. The LEED for Homes standard is driving the industry to update existing products to make them healthier, to create new products and technologies, and to adopt practices that will transform how buildings are constructed for a sustainable future.

Certifications are something that consumers can look for to readily identify homes that are proven to be superior to conventional homes by third-party inspection and performance testing. The certifications confirm that the home is constructed to meet the highest health, sustainability and energy efficiency criteria and is truly a high performance home.

Posted by Yates Nobles on January 30th, 2010 12:07 PMPost a Comment (0)

LEAP: Local Energy Alliance Program

January 13th, 2010 7:25 PM

LEAP is an exciting new development in the greening of the Charlottesville-Albemarle area. LEAP is a non-profit organization that will be headquartered at the corner of 5th St and Cherry Avenue, in a building that will be retrofitted and will serve as an example of energy efficiency. This organization won grant money from the Southeast Energy Efficiency Alliance ( http://www.seealliance.org/ ) and is now in the planning/formation stage.

LEAP expects for its executive director to begin in early March, and for the rest of the staffing to be completed by the end of March. Meanwhile, PVCC (Piedmont Va Community College), is partnering through their Construction Academy, by offering courses in home performance contracting to teach contractors and others interested in learning how to improve home energy efficiency.

LEAP will have a multi-faceted approach to promoting energy efficiency that emphasizes hands-on promulgation of energy efficiency. LEAP will educate building contractors, building inspectors, bankers, landlords, and property owners to the best practices for insuring energy efficiency in new and retrofitted buildings. Some of the certifications available for buildings to earn come from LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), EarthCraft, and Energy Star. LEAP will publicize means of obtaining energy efficiency. LEAP will provide property owners with information on their buildings, certified contractors, quality assurance, and financing to remove barriers that prevent them from investing in the retrofits needed to lower energy bills and to create a more comfortable, healthier indoor environment.

LEAP will work to promote savings in energy and money, to create jobs (that revitalize our local construction industry), to accelerate local efforts in climate protection, affordable housing, workforce development and long-term energy security. LEAP will work with local governments, businesses and non-profits to help create a sustainable energy future for the Charlottesville-Albemarle community. Visit http://leap-va.org for more information.

Posted by Yates Nobles on January 13th, 2010 7:25 PMPost a Comment (0)

Va Energy Efficient Appliance Rebate Program Commences in April 2010

January 13th, 2010 6:31 PM

Virginia Energy Efficient Appliance Rebate Program

Updated January 4, 2010

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) provided nearly $300 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act for states to set up new, or augment existing, appliance rebate programs. The money was divided up by state, according to population. Virginia’s allocation is $7.45 million.

Virginia will implement an appliance rebate program in partnership with some utilities. Participating utilities will receive a population-based portion of the state’s allocation to augment appliance rebate programs operated by the utilities. The Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy (DMME) will offer rebates to all other qualifying Virginia residents who are not eligible for a utility rebate. Thus, any ARRA-funded rebate on the purchase of an appliance or other qualifying item, such as a heat pump or water heater, will be available to all Virginians.

DOE approved the Virginia appliance rebate plan on December 22, 2009. The planned program launch date is late April, 2010.

> Energy Star-rated appliances and other equipment will be included in the program. Rebate amounts and qualifying appliances and other equipment will be identified at a later date to be determined. Rebates will not be available retroactively for purchases made prior to the official launch date of the program.

Please do not call DMME for program details, which are subject to change until the program opens in late April. Information on the amount of rebates, items that will be eligible for rebates, how rebates will be applied for and paid, and other program rules and guidelines will be added to this website by late April, 2010: http://www.dmme.virginia.gov/DE/ARRA-Public/ARRA.shtml

Posted by Yates Nobles on January 13th, 2010 6:31 PMPost a Comment (0)

Va Energy Efficiency Rebate Program

January 13th, 2010 6:28 PM

The Va. Dept of Mines, Minerals and Energy (DMME) reports: New applications to the Efficiency Rebate Program closed on November 18, 2009. Current requests to reserve rebates have exhausted the first round of funds. A second round of rebate funds is expected to be made available at a later date to be determined.

Last week I talked with the DMME representative in Richmond who explained that the number of energy rebate applications far exceeded what was expected, and that all the money was reserved within the first 21 days of availability. They reserved the maximum $2000 for each applicant, but are now finding that many applicants do not have receipts for that amount. Therefore, they are accruing unused money for additional rebates, and expect to re-open for applications sometime in February.

Stay tuned for an update on when this rebate money is again available. Meanwhile there is another source of funding which I will address in a subsequent blog.

Posted by Yates Nobles on January 13th, 2010 6:28 PMPost a Comment (0)