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New JMU student housing on West Grace Street |
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![]() Photo Source: Moseley Architects I'm not sure if we call this on campus or off campus housing, but JMU is building a new residence hall on West Grace Street that will feature approximately 507 beds, various student life spaces, classrooms, seminar spaces, administrative offices, and other support spaces. Read more via The Breeze here. | |
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University Fields (1,152 bed student housing community in Harrisonburg, VA) purchased by NY investment firm for $19MM |
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![]() An auction was scheduled for University Fields back in September -- and now we know who purchased the property. Vesper Holdings, a real estate investment firm in New York City, purchased University Fields for $19 million on October 28th. Five million dollars of capital expenditures are planned including renovating the interiors of the apartments, clubhouse and amenities as well as enhancements to the exteriors of each building and technology upgrades. Pertinent details about University Fields....
Read the entire press release here. Read today's Daily News Record article here. | |
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Maximum Negotiability in Home Prices.....Has Passed Us By |
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![]() You can still get a great deal on a house these days --- but the amount you can expect (on average) to negotiate is a bit lower than it was over the past two years. We're back to 2010 negotiability levels, and that trend is likely to continue. Read more about what's going on in our local housing market at HarrisonburgHousingMarket.com. | |
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Sales Boom at Hunters Ridge (and Camden Townes) |
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![]() After several (very!) slow years of condo sales at Hunters Ridge, there has been a rush of sales this year --- 13 as of 11/13/2013. Prices have come down a bit further this year, to a median of $56,250. ![]() Sales have also increased (slightly) at Camden Townes (Hunters Ridge Townhomes) -- and prices have started to tick upwards a bit to a median of $78,500. Here is all of the data.... ![]() Search for properties for sale in... Hunters Ridge or Camden Townes. | |
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Long Term (5Y) Changes in Sales Pace By Price Range |
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![]() Sometimes it's helpful to look back a bit further than the last 12-24 months. The data above illustrates how the pace of home sales has changed in four segments of our local market. Each data point shows the average number of sales per month in the previous 12 months. We find that.....
It is likely important to note that in this same 5-year timef rame, the median sales price declined 11% --- from $197,650 to $175,000. It is possible that this shift in home values contributed to the shifts shown above in the pace of sales in different price ranges. | |
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Inventory levels stabilizing? |
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![]() For several years now, there have been many more home sellers in the market than home buyers -- but this has been gradually changing has home sales have increased in pace, and inventory levels have declined. Now, it would seem that perhaps we are seeing inventory levels stabilize around 650 homes for sale, as we have only seen a 3% decline in inventory levels over the past year. Here is some context....
These significant declines in inventory levels have helped to restore a balance between buyers and sellers in our local real estate market. | |
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Harrisonburg Area Home Sales Continue Upward Climb |
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![]() Featured Home: 2000 Marigold Circle, Harrisonburg, VA I just published my monthly report on the Harrisonburg and Rockingham County real estate market -- and there is plenty to be excited about this Fall, though a few cautionary notes as well. Click here to download the 28 page PDF or read on for some highlights. ![]() First, how exciting --- as shown above, the first 10 months of sales in 2013 have already matched the total number of home sales in 2012! ![]() As shown above, October 2013 was the 10th month in a row (every month in 2013) when home sales exceeded the same month during the previous year. This steady increase has lead to the 21% YTD improvement in the pace of home sales. ![]() One less than exciting note in this month's report is the decline (-22%) in contracts being signed by buyers during October 2013. This decline will likely result in lower home sales (closings) in November --- and may have partially been the result of the partial government shutdown in October. ![]() There is a LOT more the full report, so click here to download the full November 2013 Harrisonburg & Rockingham County Real Estate Market Report. An Important Caveat: Yes, our overall housing market is improving. But no, that does not apply equally to all price ranges, locations and property types. We can chat about your specific property to see whether that segment of the market is performing better or worse than the overall market. And as always, if you're interested in talking to me about buying a home in Harrisonburg or Rockingham County.....or if you are interested in selling your current home.....just drop me a line by email (scott@HarrisonburgHousingToday.com) or call me at 540-578-0102. | |
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New Indoor Soccer Facility in Harrisonburg, VA |
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![]() Have you heard about Harrisonburg's new Indoor Soccer Facility? Located on Acorn Drive, this is a top-notch indoor soccer facility, complete with field turf, dasher boards, and built in goals, for use by the community both in the form of organized soccer leagues throughout the fall, winter, and spring as well as potential pick up play and rental options. Learn more about this facility and Mike Martin (the owner) and Next Level Athletic Development (his company) on their Facebook page or website. | |
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Wally Home, a simple, yet sophisticated home sensing solution. |
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![]() You might be interested in checking out Wally, a new home sensing product that will hit the market in Spring 2014. From the Wally website.... From expensive water leaks to unhealthy mold issues, Wally has you covered.Learn about How it Works, or Reserve Your Wally. | |
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Preston Lake no longer underwater |
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![]() Preston Lake, a large (500-ish unit) mixed use development east of Harrisonburg began selling homes in 2008, was foreclosed on by Wells Fargo in 2011, and was then acquired by a developer out of Maryland in 2012. Here are a few updates of what has been happening since the new developer has taken over....
Take a drive through Preston Lake sometime soon to see the changes that are under way, and if you have questions, feel free to email (scott@HarrisonburgHousingToday.com) or call me (540-578-0102). Some Preston Lake reading material from the archives....
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The importance of replacing the seal under your toilet |
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![]() There is a wax ring between your toilet and the floor --- which prevents moisture from leaking out of the toilet and onto the floor and sub-floor surrounding the toilet. What's the worst that could happen if you don't replace the wax ring?
Yes, the photo at the top of this post is really mushrooms growing around the basement of a toilet. And yes, those are native species -- I took this photo earlier this week in a property in Harrisonburg. | |
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Halloween Surprise, Mortgage Interest Rates Drop Nearly 0.5% |
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![]() This is certainly a TREAT, not a TRICK. Perhaps we'll see 3.something% interest rates again soon??? | |
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The Hidden Benefits of Homeownership |
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For decades, homeownership has been an American ideal and sought after by many people as a sign of stability, success and independence. There are many benefits of purchasing a home instead of leasing, starting with the much wider selection of homes that will be available to you as a buyer as opposed to as a tenant. Furthermore, as a homeowner, you will be able to make improvements to your home to make it a nicer place to live, all of which will actually benefit you - the homeowner, as opposed to solely benefiting your landlord. There are, however, some benefits of homeownership, particularly in our current housing market, that are not as readily apparent. Today's extraordinarily low 30-year fixed mortgage interest rates (currently hovering around 4.25%) give home buyers the opportunity to lock in their housing costs for the future. If you are purchasing a home in today's market, you can secure a fixed housing cost for years to come at some of the lowest mortgage interest rates we have seen any time in the past several decades. Purchasing a $250K house with a 20% down payment and with current interest rates (4.25%) will result in $984/month in principal and interest. When rates increase to 5.25%, that payment will increase $120 to $1,104/month. When rates eventually increase to 6.25%, that payment will increase $247 to $1,231/month. Purchasing a home (now or soon) will allow you to lock in low monthly housing costs on into the future. When deciding whether to purchase a home or rent a home, it is also important to remember that one dollar of a mortgage payment is not equivalent to one dollar of a rent payment. The interest that you pay on your mortgage is tax deductible, making a $1,000 rental payment more expensive than a $1,000 mortgage payment once tax time comes each year. Your $1,000 per month mortgage payment is likely to include around $7,200 of interest paid in the first year ($215K purchase price, 20% down payment, 4.25% interest rate). If you are in the 25% tax bracket, then paying this $7,200 of mortgage interest will result in tax savings of $1,800 over the course of the year. That then means that your $1,000 mortgage payment is only an effective payment of $850 per month – much more affordable than the supposedly equivalent $1,000 per month rental payment. Given the option of paying $1,000 per month towards your own mortgage or in a rental payment, it is also important to note that you can either be contributing to your own retirement (or savings) plan or to that of your landlord. Over the first five years of this $1,000 per month mortgage payment ($215K purchase price, 20% down payment, 4.25% interest rate) you would have paid over $15,000 towards the principal balance of your mortgage. Thus, just by paying your mortgage payment each month, you have accumulated $15,000 of savings. Looking at the first ten years of this mortgage, you would have accumulated over 35,000 of savings. Of note – this does not even account for the potential increases in the value of your home over time. Homeownership is not for all people at all times in their lives, but there are many benefits of owning (and thus purchasing) a home both in the short term and long term. Many of those benefits are immediately apparent, but some require a closer look at the overall financial impact of making a home purchase. | |
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Beautiful Home with 2 BR Apartment on College Ave |
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![]() This beautiful home on College Ave, near Eastern Mennonite University, offers gorgeous Western views and a 2 bedroom in-law suite. You could also continue to rent the in-law suite, offsetting your mortgage payment by $650/month --- giving you a $300K mortgage payment on this $425K home! More details can be found here: http://www.1897CollegeAvenue.com![]() | |
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$600K+ home sales bouncing back |
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![]() Admittedly, there are still quite a few (38) homes for sale in this price range compared to the number that are selling (perhaps 9 or 10 per year) but it is encouraging to see buyer activity bouncing back in this price range. | |
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Updates sales trends on HarrisonburgTownhouses.com |
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![]() HarrisonburgTownhouses.com has been updated with sales data from 2013-Q3, and many townhouse communities are (finally) starting to see median prices increase again. So, are you wondering about property values in your townhouse community? Or considering purchasing an investment property? Whatever the reason for your interest in townhouses in Harrisonburg, you will likely find the information you need at HarrisonburgTownhouses.com, including (for each townhouse community):
The townhouse communities featured on HarrisonburgTownhouses.com include:
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Halloween on the Square, Saturday, 10a-2p |
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![]() Don't miss it --- this Saturday, from 10 AM - 2 PM --- in downtown Harrisonburg. This year's event will include....
Find out more on the HDR Blog. | |
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Unemployment down 10% year over year in Harrisonburg Metro Area |
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Harrisonburg Cyber Integration Center |
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![]() As reported in the Daily News Record last month, the large data center on North Main Street in Harrisonburg was sold to DBT-Data for $35M last month. Here is the history of the property....
A recent press release offers further insights on the facility....
It will be interesting to see if DBT-Data can now make good use of this data center, and bring in government and private sector clients for their data storage needs. | |
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Neighborhoods near Rockingham Memorial Hospital |
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![]() These neighborhoods (shown above) are all conveniently located close to Rockingham Memorial Hospital, and offer a variety of housing options. Click on a link below to browse currently available homes for sale: Barrington Battlefield Estates Bridlewood Crossroads Farm The Glen at Cross Keys Highland Park Lakewood Estates Madison Village Magnolia Ridge Preston Lake Spring Oaks Taylor Spring ![]() | |
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Scott Rogers
Funkhouser Real
Estate Group
540-578-0102
scott@funkhousergroup.com
Licensed in the
Commonwealth of Virginia
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