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State of the market
The first-quarter report for 2011, produced by the Charlottesville Area Association of Realtors (CAAR), gives reason for cautious optimism concerning recovery within the local housing market. The first-quarter median sales price dropped - good news for prospective purchasers - while homes sales showed a slight increase over those reported for the same time last year. At 3,239, the area’s active inventory is slowly decreasing, but remains above the 2,000-2,500 considered normal, perhaps due to the number of bank-owned properties being introduced to the market. One of the most positive indications of growth has been the rate of movement within the starter home sector; sales in this category accounted for 66.3% of total market sales last year, an increase of 9%.
Show me the money
According to CAAR, the median sales price for a home in the Charlottesville area is currently $19,000 lower than it was at this time last year, bringing the price down from $289,900 to $270,900. Lower prices mean more affordability, and that translates to more potential movement within the market.
Wait for it
Another indication of market condition is the number of days a home spends actively listed for sale before going under contract. The first-quarter average DOM (days on the market) in the Charlottesville area has dropped from 151 to 128, still up from the 90-day average evidenced by a healthy market, but showing incremental signs of recovery.
Big deals
Albemarle County may not be Beverly Hills, but that doesn't mean some serious coin hasn't been dropped for prominent properties in the area. In 2004, John Carr and Raymond Hunniston III ponied up $24 million for the Castle Hill estate in Cismont, a favorite breakfast spot of would-be gubernatorial kidnappers. In 2005 Fred Scott sold Bundoran Farm to eventually-forclosed Qroe Farm Preservation Development for $33 million, and eventually-bailed-out-by-the-state Hunter Craig shelled out a whopping $46 million for the land surrounding artists' enclave Biscuit Run. Recent transactions pale by comparison, although the historic Keswick estate Kinloch, which included a 10,000-square foot manor home, traded in late 2010 for a cool $14,500,000. Thus far in 2011, the biggest deal to date involves Chapel Springs Farm, a Free Union horse property of over 1,400 acres. Chapel Springs traded for $10,900,000 - hardly chump change, but a far cry from the astronomical figures realized back in ’05.
Who's moving here?
Thanks to Frommer’s Cities Ranked & Rated, which placed Charlottesville in the number #1 spot back in 2004, our area received an influx of retirees and other folks looking to lower their living costs. In 2007, however, we dropped to the #17 spot, though new developments continue to spring up in an effort to accommodate all the ever-increasing population.
Total assessments
Area assessments, based by law on market value, have been steadily decreasing, offering a mixed bag to homeowners. Some appreciate the tax relief while others find themselves ‘upside down’ - owing more than their property is presently worth. The Equalization Board, a three-person, court-appointed body that has the power to adjust assessment amounts, may be able to help, but in most cases the true solution lies in the passage of time.
CHARLOTTESVILLE – After years of double-digit inflation, where homes were being sold for more than their assessed values, many transactions now reflect the opposite with the selling price at or below assessment. "It will be another couple of years before we get an increase again," predicts City Assessor Roosevelt Barbour. Assessor: Roosevelt Barbour 970-3136
ALBEMARLE – Though Albemarle County experienced rapid growth in real estate values just a few years ago, including a jump of 29.8% in 2009 alone, the numbers have finally begun to level off, a trend reflected in the yearly assessments. Assessor: Bob Willingham 296-5856
Renting
Apartment search- Prospective apartment dwellers can check the search engine run by the local apartment group, Blue Ridge Apartment Council or investigate Apartment Search of Charlottesville/Albemarle, which is published four times a year and available online (817-2000). If you’re looking to rent a house, try the Charlottesville Area Association of Realtors, CAAR at 817-2227. However, only members of the BRAC are listed, so don't forget the old-fashioned methods of asking around, walking around, or... drumroll... checking out the Hook's classified ads.
Rights and responsibilities- Students can get free advice from Student Legal Services (924-7524). UVA's housing office (924-6873) offers a pamphlet called "The Off-Grounds Living Guide" that explains city ordinances.
Non-students might want to take a peek at the Virginia Landlord-Tenant Act, online or at the library– it governs rental real estate dealings.
–>>For more info on renting, check out our Consumer section.
Buying and selling
Real Estate Weekly-- Among local real estate publications, this one has the greatest array of ads and even some how-to tips. 817-9330
Property search- The best local search engine is run by the local realtor group, the Charlottesville Area Association of Realtors (817-2227), and is available on the CAAR website at the bottom of their homepage.
FSBO- The DIY way to sell a house, which used to involve putting up a sign and hoping for the best. While the method is often attacked as a tool of sellers with unrealistically high opinions of their property's worth, it has worked in hot neighborhoods as a way to avoid paying that nettlesome six percent commission. In the last eight years, three discount brokerages have opened. Assist-2-Sell says it'll sell your house for as low as $2,995, HomeSell offers to do the job for $1,500, and Help-U-Sell has a sliding scale.
Checking properties
CHARLOTTESVILLE
Assessment data can be found online or by phoning or visiting the City Assessor's Office on the top floor of City Hall. 970-3136.
The deeds are located a few blocks away in the clerk's office in the basement of the Circuit Court at 315 E. High St. 970-3766
Circuit Court Clerk: Paul Garrett
ALBEMARLE
Assessment data can be found online or by visiting or phoning the County Assessor's Office in the County Office Building. 296-5856
The actual deeds are located on the second floor of the Courthouse Annex by Jackson Park in Court Square. 972-4083
Circuit Court Clerk: Debra Shipp
–>>For more info on neighborhoods, check out our Newcomer section.
First-time buyers
Free home-buyer classes-- The Piedmont Housing Alliance offers free three-hour seminars to first-time home-buyers twice a month. 817-2436
Information on low-interest loans can be found from various local sources, but a good starting point is the Piedmont Housing Alliance (817-2436). This regional nonprofit shares information on various assistance programs including the Albemarle Housing Program (296-5839) and Jimmy Carter's favorite house-building charity, Habitat for Humanity. 293-9066.
Building and renovating
So you wanna build?
ALBEMARLE– The rules can be obtained from the Community Development Office in the County Office Building. 296-5832
CHARLOTTESVILLE– Taking a cue from Albemarle, the City also consolidated its zoning, building, and neighborhood offices into Neighborhood Development Services in City Hall. 970-3182
So you wanna dig?
Call "Miss Utility" at 811 or 800-552-7001 at least 48 hours before you plan to dig, so you don't hit an underground pipe or wire and hurt yourself and/or others.
"I saw the sign"
When Albemarle County developers request a zoning change, officials put up a beige sign with a code number to alert neighbors about an upcoming public hearing. Besides checking the number online, interested citizens can call the Community Development Office (296-5832) for more information.
ACE Program
ALBEMARLE- In its quest to keep a little bit of land undeveloped, the county began in 2002 buying development rights through its Acquisition of Conservation Easements (ACE) project, and budgeted $1 million per year for the program. With the county hitting hard times, the latest budget has zero funding for ACE. Will it survive? 296-5832
Proffers!
What's a proffer? There's no secretive or dirty trick involved; it's basically an above-the-table bribe from a developer to the County to get a zoning amendment. You can see all the proffers dating back to 1979 on Albemarle's website.
Relief for elderly/disabled
ALBEMARLE-- If you're 65 and over and/or permanently/totally disabled, make less than $69,452, and have a net worth under $200K (excluding your house), you may be eligible for real estate tax relief. 296-5851 x3442
CHARLOTTESVILLE-- Similar situation. The City offers a "wealth" of relief measures for disabled and elderly homeowners and renters including a package administered by the Commissioner of Revenue that offers tax relief, free trash stickers, and several hundred dollars off one's annual utility bills. Must be 65 or over, and/or permanently/totally disabled, have an annual income of less than $50K, and a net worth of $125K or less (excluding your house) to qualify. 970-3160
Welfare for the rich?
Farmette owners are notorious for taking advantage of something called "Land Use Taxation," which means that a mogul with an 8,900-square-foot palace can pay just $976 in taxes on his 50 acres if their land is devoted solely to agricultural, forestry, or open-space use. This is about as much as the owner of a one-acre lot in Forest Lakes pays. Defenders of the program point out that the discount fosters agriculture– or at least open spaces. Albemarle County supervisors decided to continue the program in May 2008, but to ease some pain are requiring that participating farmers "re-validate" for the program to prove that they qualify.
And don't get us started on conservation easements.
The man
Blue Ridge Home Builders Association– This trade association represents builders and suppliers, and every spring it hosts the three-day "Home and Garden Show" and the newly minted "Earthcraft House Tour," which features resource and energy efficient homes in various phases of construction. Every fall it sponsors the "Parade of Homes." 973-8652
Watchdogs
PEC-- The Piedmont Environmental Council, although based in Warrenton, has a strong presence here as a voice for moderating growth and launching side projects like "Buy Fresh, Buy Local." 540-347-2334
ASAP– Advocates for a Sustainable Population goes farther than PEC; ASAP actually wants to stop growth. 872-0044
SELC – The Southern Environmental Law Center is a multi-state organization headquarted on West Main Street. The organization tries to work from within all branches of government to conserve and sustain. Most recently, though, they lost a big battle when the state's transportation secretary suddenly decided to build the U.S. 29 Western Bypass. 977-4090
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