Realtor Q&A: What’s Happening Now & What’s Ahead?
• March 13, 2024

We asked three local realtors about the current market and what they think the future will hold. Our questions are below, followed by their responses and insights, edited for space […]

Greater Capital Area Assoc. of Realtors: Voice for Home Buyers, Sellers 
• May 9, 2022

The Greater Capital Area Association of Realtors (GCAAR) — one of the largest local realtor associations in the country — represents over 10,000 members from the D.C. area. The organization’s […]

Why You Shouldn’t Waive a Home Inspection, Even if You’re Waiving Inspection Contingencies 
• March 21, 2022

People do crazy things to buy the home of their dreams in a hot market. They purchase properties sight unseen. They offer well (well) above asking price. They get caught […]

Selling? Buying? We Asked Top Georgetown Real Estate Brokers
• February 9, 2022

The Georgetowner: In your view, what are the most significant trends in the Georgetown housing market for 2022?    Tom Anderson and Dana Landry, Washington Fine Properties: Given the shortage of […]

The Fall Market: Q&A With Brokers
• November 6, 2019

For this edition of The Georgetowner’s Fall Real Estate Special, we asked real estate brokers a few quick questions to assess the current situation.

I’m getting inconsistent appraisals!
• May 3, 2012

Dear Darrell: I live in Georgetown. In the process of thinking about selling my house over the past few years, I have twice asked a realtor to tell me how much I could get for it at that time. Both times the price she came back with was very different than the assessed value. Once it was higher and once lower. How is this possible? -Joan S., Georgetown

Dear Joan: I am guessing that the two realtor price opinions were in two different markets. Once when prices were on the rise, and once when they were declining. It’s common for the realtor’s opinion and the assessed value to be different. The higher/lower result is a function of the strength of the real estate market, and the fact that property assessments always lag behind what is happening in the day-to-day real estate transactions. Pricing is a subjective art in any case. The property owner and realtor are “reading” the market in a sort of snapshot. The price at the moment of that snapshot takes into consideration the recent sales of comparable properties. The tax assessors use the same process to set the assessed value, but it is six months to a year (or longer), after a given property has sold. By then the real estate market has changed — strengthened or weakened — and the assessors “snapshot” is somewhat outdated. If the gap between the assessor’s value and your opinion is quite large, it is worth challenging the assessment.

Darrell Parsons is the managing broker of the Georgetown Long & Foster office. Have a real estate question? E-mail him at darrell@lnf.com. He blogs at georgetownrealestatenews.blogspot.com.

What About My Artifacts?
• November 3, 2011

 

-Dear Darrell: I will be selling my house soon. I’ve lived here for a long time and have collected artifacts from my extensive travels over these many years. I think these things enhance the beauty of my house, but I’ve heard stories about real estate people coming in and telling owners to get rid of everything. Do I need to worry about that?

– Craig B., Logan Circle

Dear Craig: I don’t think you need to worry about it, but it is an important thing to think about. Nearly everyone, having lived in a house long enough, has collected “stuff.” Sometimes the collections are fine art, some are frogs from around the world, and one that I saw recently was a house with stuffed animal heads on the walls. Those three very different collections are precious to the people who live in those houses. However, it’s not difficult to imagine that what one person finds precious, another person doesn’t. Even extraordinary art work can affect the way any given potential buyer might respond emotionally to a property. In general, it is best to pare things down. I encourage you to find a real estate agent whom you like, and to ask that person to give you specific feedback about this issue. The feedback in some instances is hard to hear, but what the agent tells you is meant well, and is meant to help you sell your house in a reasonable time at a good price. I read an article recently in the New York Times by Dominique Browning, titled “What I Lost When I Lost My Job.” In it she beautifully and touchingly describes the process she went through in selling her own house. She talks a little bit about your question, so that might be helpful, but her other comments about moving from a long-time residence are also meaningful.

Darrell Parsons is the managing broker of the Georgetown Long and Foster office and abides by Equal Housing Opportunity regulations. Have a real estate question? E-mail him at darrell@lnf.com. He blogs at georgetownrealestatenews.blogspot.com.

Tax Credit for First-Time Homebuyers
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Dear Darrell:
I was looking for a condo to buy, and since I am a first-time buyer, wanted to buy something before April 30 so I could get the $8000 tax credit. Now that program has expired. Do you know if it will be reinstated any time soon?
— Jay L, Foggy Bottom

Dear Jay:
I’m sorry you didn’t make it under the wire. I haven’t heard any specific rumblings about the $8000 tax credit being offered again. Everything I have read about it seems to indicate that it will not be offered again. However, that program did offer a great opportunity for many, many buyers, and it wouldn’t surprise me to see a strong push to bring it back.

In the meantime, however, buyers in D.C. still have the opportunity to use the $5000 D.C. tax credit. This federal tax credit is available to first-time homebuyers in the District of Columbia. There are more restrictions related to this credit than to the $8000 credit, but it is still a good deal for those just getting started.

Additionally, you should look into the D.C. Homestead Exemption, and the D.C. Tax Abatement Program. These are other programs specific to D.C. which can help you as you purchase your first property. I encourage you to speak with a loan officer who can explain the specifics of how these programs work. You can also go to the District Web site (www.otr.cfo.dc.gov), which has a lot of information. I find this site somewhat difficult to search, so you may want to call the phone number given on the site to get specific direction.

Darrell Parsons is the managing broker of the Georgetown Long and Foster office and abides by Equal Housing Opportunity regulations. Have a real estate question? E-mail him at darrell@lnf.com. He blogs at georgetownrealestatenews.blogspot.com.

Is MRIS Worth It?
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-Dear Darrell:

I recently interviewed a couple of agents about selling my house. Both agents told me about the realtor listing system, the MRIS. That’s the system they use to let other agents know about the sale of property. One thing about it was confusing, though: one agent said that I should put it in the MRIS immediately to get the widest exposure. The other agent suggested marketing it privately for a period of time and then putting it in the MRIS later on if it didn’t sell right away. They explained the advantages of their different approaches. What do you think are the pros and cons?

Carol E.
Woodley Park

Dear Carol:

I definitely come down on the side of listing the property in the MRIS immediately. Here’s why: houses are subject to the same competitive market forces as any other marketable commodity. The buyers are comparing my house to other houses in myriad ways. This will happen with your home, too. Through this process, potential buyers become highly educated about the comparative value of properties. In the end, it is these potential buyers who largely define the market price of a given property. The truth is, none of us knows what a buyer will pay for a house until it is offered for sale. If a seller has underpriced her house, the buyers will bid against each other for the right to buy it. Likewise, if the house is over-priced, buyers will turn away from it in favor of a house they know will be a better value for them. The only way to get this kind of feedback is to disseminate the information about one’s house to the widest possible pool of potential buyers. And nothing comes close to the MRIS in that regard.

There are isolated instances where offering a property as a “private” or “quiet” sale is necessary or desired. But the vast majority of houses benefits by being in the MRIS. One of the supposed appeals of having a private sale is that it seems that one can control who comes to see the property. The downside to this is that it automatically eliminates a wide swath of potential buyers, and regardless of the intent, could be perceived as discriminatory. I recommend opting for the MRIS route so you can get the most exposure and, consequently, the best sale price.

Darrell Parsons is the managing broker of the Georgetown Long and Foster office and abides by Equal Housing Opportunity regulations. Have a real estate question? E-mail him at darrell@lnf.com. He blogs at georgetownrealestatenews.blogspot.com.

Ask the Realtor
•

Dear Darrell:
I have been thinking about selling my house, but want to do it at the optimal time. I see one day in the news that the real estate market is getting better, and then the next day see that it isn’t. I can’t wait forever to sell my house, but on the other hand, I don’t want to sell it today and then discover that I could have sold it for a lot more six months from now.

Libbie R.
Georgetown

Dear Libbie:
That is a tough question. There are so many things which go into the decision to sell. It’s sounds like you aren’t under the gun to sell, and so you have some flexibility as to when to put your house on the market. In some ways that makes the decision all the harder, because absent an outside driving force, you are left with trying to “read” the market in order to determine the best time. In that task you are joining a large company of realtors, economists and others who are constantly trying to do that very thing.

The current reality of our market is that it is sporadic. It changes direction from week to week, neighborhood to neighborhood, and price range to price range. The general overall trend, however, is in the direction of a higher number of sales. In the past few months, the number of sales has been increasing, but compared to last year at this time, the average prices are lower. This is in large part because the strongest part of the market has been lower-priced properties being purchased by buyers who were looking for the $8000 tax credit. That makes the numbers spike but lowers the average sale price.

In your case, I suggest you find a realtor who will help you analyze your local market for the number and frequency of sales and the ratio of list price to sale price. If you look at that data closely, you will probably be able to reasonably conclude whether now is a good time to sell. It may come down to deciding if you can live with the price you can likely negotiate for your house at this point.

Darrell Parsons is the managing broker of the Georgetown Long and Foster office and abides by Equal Housing Opportunity regulations. Have a real estate question? E-mail him at darrell@lnf.com. He blogs at georgetownrealestatenews.blogspot.com.