• Crawford Avenue - the left turn into the Purcell Park neighborhood after crossing over I-81 and directly after the turn for Starbucks.
   
• Hillcrest Drive - the second left turn into the Purcell Park neighborhood, directly after Crawford Avenue.
  
  
• Hunters Road - the left turn mentioned at the top of this article, that leads to the Starbucks with the drive through and to Hunters Ridge Condominiums.

"The changes, which will include signs and flashing lights to remind drivers of the restricted hours, are focused on reducing crashes and congestion at these intersections. Left turns are one of the most dangerous turning movements and are responsible for a high percentage of crashes with injuries. Left turns off of Port Republic Road onto neighborhood streets also have a tendency to cause rear-end crashes when the vehicle turning left has to wait for a gap in traffic and comes to a stop in the through-lane, causing the drivers behind the turning vehicle to have to rapidly or unexpectedly come to a stop."

"Those traveling to or from the neighborhoods between Main Street and Interstate 81 can use South Main Street as an alternative route during these hours. Those traveling to or from neighborhoods on Hunters Road should use Bradley Drive as an alternative route."

'The City realizes there is a tradeoff between convenience and safety, and recognizes that some trips will be slightly longer due to this change,' Director of Public Works Tom Hartman said. 'This is the reason for the restriction being limited to only peak travel times.'

'At the end of the day, we want to make sure drivers can safely move through this corridor to get where they are going,' Hartman added. 'And while these changes will take some getting used to, we know the end result will be a much-improved area for all who live in and pass through this area.'

1. There were 149 home sales in July - up 13.74% from last July!
    
2. We've seen 784 home sales this year, down just 0.13% (or, one house) from last year at this time.
    
3. The median sales price thus far in 2019 has been $219K -- up 1.86% from last year at this time when it was $215K.
    
   
4. It's taking even less time (a median of 17 days) for homes to go under contract this year, a 22.73% decline from last year's median of 22 days.

1. The pace of detached home sales increased 1.71% over the past year.
    
2. The median sales price of those detached homes is down 1.09% to $227,500.
    
   
3. The pace of attached home sales decreased 5.87% over the past year.
    
4. The median sales price of those attached homes rose 4.85% to $173,000.

1. If you have questions about the market that I don't regularly cover in these monthly reports, feel free to email me.
    
2. If you're planning to sell your home this Fall, we should start chatting soon about timing, preparations for your house, pricing within the current market and more.  Call (540-578-0102) or email me and we can set up a time to meet to chat.
    
3. If you are planning to buy in the near future -- again -- be ready to be patient and then to ACT QUICKLY!  :-)  Make it a bit easier for yourself by knowing the market, knowing the process, knowing your buying power, and closely monitoring new listings!

1. Starting to look at homes will help to create a context for you to understand what is a reasonable price for houses that might interest you.
    
2. You will also start to see how quickly homes that would interest you go under contract - thus letting you know how quickly you may need to act when you are ready to buy.
    
3. You can also start to determine how readily available homes will be that match what you're looking for.  Plenty of homes might seem interesting online but once you go inside them, are most really good options for you, or only a few.  This will give you a sense of how easy it will be to find a good option for you to buy.

• The closing for both will be on the same day.  Let's say it's a Friday.
   
  
• You'll have to be out of your current house by the evening before closing (Thursday evening in this case) so that you can close on the sale of that house the following morning (Friday morning).
   
• You won't have access to the new house to move your belongings in until after you close on Friday afternoon.
   
  
• So, where are your belongings going to be from Thursday evening until Friday afternoon?  And where will you be?

• Systems Plans (Heating, AC, Electrical, Plumbing, etc.)
• Appliances Plan (just the appliances)
• Combo Plan (both of the above)
• Build Your Own Plan (just what you select)
  

• Nine foot ceilings with drywall, windows and/or doors on three sides providing lots of natural light, luxury vinyl plank flooring, recessed lighting throughout, a second kitchen, home theater, guest suite, etc.  Wow!
   
• Eight foot ceilings with drywall, windows and/or doors on two sides providing quite a bit natural light, carpet, decent lighting throughout.
   
• Eight foot ceilings with ceiling tiles instead of drywall, windows and/or doors on one side providing some natural light, carpet and/or linoleum flooring, limited lighting.
   
• Seven and a half foot ceilings with ceiling tiles, several small windows, vinyl flooring, limited lighting.
   
• Seven and a half foot ceilings with ceiling tiles, one small window, painted concrete floors, limited lighting.
   
• Seven and a half foot ceilings with an open ceiling (no drywall or ceiling tiles), no windows, bare concrete floor, cinder block walls limited lighting.
   
  
• Seven foot ceilings with an open ceiling, no windows, concrete floor, cinder block walls with clear evidence of past moisture intrusion, limited lighting.
   
• Six and a half foot ceilings with an open ceiling, no windows, an irregular concrete floor, cinder block walls with clear evidence of ongoing moisture intrusion, floor drain and trenches leading to it, limited lighting.
   
• Six foot ceiling with an open ceiling, no windows, a dirt floor, stone foundation walls with mortar crumbling and falling out, clear paths of ongoing water entry, one light bulb with a pull string.

1. This proposal is a result of the urban flooding that has occurred in these areas for several years, causing frequent property and structure damage.  County staff has collaborated with engineering consultants and a citizen stormwater committee and they have concluded that the stormwater infrastructure in this area must be upgraded -- in both capacity and function.  
    
2. You can use the GIS (turn on the "Lake Shenandoah Stormwater Control Authority" layer under "Hydrological Features") to see if your property is located in this area -- or access this list of affected properties.
    
   
3. Fees would potentially be assessed to each property within this area, though what those fees would be as well as when and how they would be assessed has not yet been determined.  (The public notice of the public hearing does reference that the preliminary estimate of capital costs would be $3,169,200.)
    
4. Specific plans of what types of improvements to the stormwater infrastructure would be made, and where they would be made, has not yet been determined.
    
5. For further reading, download the Lake Shenandoah Watershed Master Plan from November 2013.

• Find out more about this beautiful golf course home above at 241ClaremontAvenue.com.
   
• Download a PDF of this month's full market report here.
  

1. June home sales dropped quite a bit (-22%) as compared to last June.  That said, you may recall that last June's home sales were ASTONISHINGLY high.  You'll see that in a graph below.
    
   
2. We saw 625 home sales in the first half of the year - a decline of 4% as compared to the first half of last year.
    
3. When looking at a full year of home sales, the pace of buyers buying and sellers selling has slipped by only 1.5% over the past year.
    
4. The median sales price of homes sold in the first half of this year was $219,900 -- a 2% increase from last year's $215,315.
    
5. Homes are selling 5% faster this year -- or one day faster, as the case may be -- with a "median days on market" of 21 days in the first half of 2019 as compared to 22 days in the first half of last year.

1. Sales of detached homes were 4% slower in the first half of this year (452 sales) as compared to the first half of last year (470 sales).
    
2. The median sales price of detached homes in the first half of this year ($232,000) was 1% higher than during the same timeframe last year when the median sales price was $230,000.
    
3. Looking only at attached home sales, we find 6% fewer sales (173) in the first half of this year as compared to last year (184).
    
4. The median sales price of these attached homes in the first half of this year was $174,900 -- a full 6% higher than last year when it was $165,000.

• How old is the roof and will it need to be replaced in the next three years?
   
• How old is the heating system and will it need to be replaced in the next three years?
  

• Your neighbor's home is a Colonial with 2400 SF split between the first floor (1200 SF) and the second floor (1200 SF) and is built on a crawlspace.
   
• Your home is a ranch style home with 1200 SF on the main level and 1200 SF finished in the basement.

These two homes will not be seen as having an equivalent value -- not by potential purchasers and not by an appraiser.

Above grade square footage has a higher value attached to it -- both specifically by appraisers, and generally by purchasers.  Even if all of the other factors (condition, age, location, bedrooms, bathrooms) are the same between two houses, if one has a significant portion of the square footage in the basement then it will be seen as less valuable than the home that has all of its square footage above grade.

• They wanted another bedroom here, instead of there. 
   
  
• They wanted a more open floor plan. 
   
  
• They wanted more of a formal dining room. 
   
  
• They wanted a more spacious basement. 
   
  
• This room is a bit too big. 
   
  
• That room is a bit too small. 
   
  
• They don't like how close this room is (or is not) to that room. 
   
  
• And on and on.