HAP – The Homeowner’s Assistance Program - Virginia Beach Neighborhoods

While I don’t particularly care for the idea of government handouts, I am a supporter of at least one, the Homeowner’s Assistance Program, also known as the HAP. In 2009, Congress expanded the benefits to include military members who are required to relocate and face financial loss when selling their homes in areas where real [...]

[Read more →]

I loved being a do-it-yourselfer. When I needed a new “camera” (insert your passion here, instead of camera), I would spend hours online becoming a camera expert so that I would have the knowledge to make the right decision. It would have been a lot easier to just trust the guy at the camera store, [...]

[Read more →]

“You have a beautiful home, but you might want to take down the family pictures. You don’t want the buyer to be distracted.” I said this to a client recently while taking pictures for a listing. The home was immaculate. The furnishings beautiful. The only thing I noticed that would be an easy change was [...]

[Read more →]

I just spent a couple hours sorting through the latest Virginia Beach home sales data. Things are starting to look up! 1. Home prices in Virginia Beach are steady. 2. Asking prices are still falling. 3. Short sales and foreclosures are only a small portion of the market. While the median home sale price is [...]

[Read more →]

Back in 2006, a local Navy family bought a home in Princess Anne Quarter in Virginia Beach, off Princess Anne Road, for about $630,000. Interest rates at the time were about 6.5%. Their monthly payment was about $4500 which included taxes and insurance. The home was sold to another buyer for $540,000 in 2008. Today [...]

[Read more →]

Because buying a home isn’t a one step process, one must remain vigilant to ensure a smooth process. Unfortunately, sometimes things just don’t work out. Dick and Jane Smith (names changed to protect the innocent) were having trouble finding the perfect home. Getting a husband and wife to agree on the something like this is [...]

[Read more →]

Is my Virginia Beach real estate assessment the same thing as market value? The short answer is “no.” But it should be in the ball park. The City of Virginia Beach Real Estate Assessors Office does its best to assign a value to every property for tax purposes. The current tax rate is $0.89 for [...]

[Read more →]

If you ask ten people their favorite neighborhood in Virginia Beach, you’ll likely get ten different answers. Most people think their neighborhood is the best. If the house next door is for sale and they like you, they’ll try to get you to move into it. “This is the best neighborhood in Virginia Beach!” they’ll [...]

[Read more →]

Most people assume that the listed price is negotiable when a home is for sale. But how negotiable? Will a buyer accept an offer $20,000 below asking price? How about $30,000? Here’s the answer!

[Read more →]

There is a trick to selling your home quickly in today’s market. Present your home in its best light and price it very close to where it is most likely to sell. Your home will stand out because it shows nicely and is priced fairly. This brings lots potential buyers and multiple offers very close [...]

[Read more →]