Archive for January, 2009

There are some deals out there people!  We are shocked at the deals we are finding for our clients.  Find out how you can get a piece of the action–and why it matters who you choose to represent you to buy real estate property.

Where and when:
Our office in Adam’s Morgan: 2410 17th St. NW, Suite 200
February 9, 2009
6:30 p.m.

Seating is limited so please e-mail amber@brandongreen.com to reserve your seats.

Click to see our see our January 2009 newsletter.

While the change in administrations probably will lead to a spike in Washington, DC,-area real estate transactions, I bet it’s going to cause a lull this weekend.

With DC expecting as many as 4 million people and many roads closed, I doubt there’ll be many open houses or agents and buyers driving around, checking out properties.

Are you a DC Realtor or someone buying or selling in the area? I’d love to hear how you’re approaching Inauguration weekend in the comments!

We saw this information and wanted to be sure to help get the word out.

Click the link below for a list of road closures, vehicular restricted zones, public transportation, charter vehicles and pedestrian routes surrounding the events next week with the Presidential Inauguration.

Inaugural Street Closings

It should go without saying, but in a real estate transaction always get every detail in writing.

During his walkthrough, a buyer (not a client of mine) noted that a couple of small windows on the beautiful French doors were broken. And he asked that the DirectTV satellite dish be removed from the roof.

Originally his agent said he’d put these requests in writing and get the sellers to sign off on it. But then he changed his mind and said he’d take care of the window and that the sellers would call to get the satellite dish removed.

Based on my initial warning in this post, I’m sure you know what happened. After closing the agent told the buyer to take care of the window and just bill him for it, leaving the buyer to spend his own time fixing it or looking for a handyman to do it.

And while the sellers called DirectTV to remove the dish, DirectTV said it wasn’t their responsibility. So now the buyers are stuck with either having an unsightly satellite dish on their roof or having to hire someone to remove it.

Again in a real estate transaction, or any other financial deal, get all of the details in writing.

Continuing with the recent trend of me talking real estate in the media (it’s a lot of fun and I enjoy sharing my perspective), Charles Scutt recently interviewed me for his syndicated article about first-time home buyers:

First-Home Fever

As the article explains, in the right circumstances, now could be an excellent time for a person to become a first-time home owner. Just check out the article for some details (or contact me)!

Recently I had a client looking to move to Washington, DC, from another part of the country. While I love DC and enjoy helping people move here, it can be hard for them to understand a neighborhood from afar.

While clearly it’s no substitute for an actual visit, Google Streetmaps is a great online tool for gauging the curb appeal of a listing—and neighboring houses. With Google Streetmaps, my client was able to eliminate some properties before he visited DC, saving him time on his visit.

(Thanks to 14th & You the reminder to blog about Google Streetmaps!)

Sure, it’s a bit out of the Washington DC real estate market, but I was interviewed last month for an article in Philly.com by Barbara Ballinger:

Downsize the Right Way

Clearly I’m biased, but the article has great pointers for people looking to move into a smaller house.