A six-month-old Prince George’s County law that makes new home construction contingent on ample fire and police service has essentially shut down the pipeline of new projects across the county, planning officials say.This is a very interesting article in today’s Washington Post, particularly when looked at from a local perspective…. Builders and developers would surely pass the costs on to the purchasers, but is this not the way the market works?One Democrat says that “It would not hire more police officers or pay to get more firetrucks,” Hendershot said. “All it would do, which it has done, is shut off development activity, which has the possibility to generate revenue to hire more police officers and get more firetrucks.”
Date Archives June 2005
Another Bubble Blog
The Housing Bubble Blog has some good stories and anecdotal evidence that may serve as evidence to be applied to the Central Virginia market.
Charlottesville is the best new place to drink wine
Life Magazine has named Charlottesville as The Best New Place to Drink Wine. Twenty-one wineries on the Monticello Wine Trail make this the perfect weekend get away for wine lovers.1. Charlottesville, VA: Best New Place to Drink Wine; Twenty-one wineries on the Monticello Wine Trail combined with the lack of snooty angst makes this town the perfect weekend tour.Not a bad category in which to place first, in my opinion.
Macro real estate
What happens when they drop?PERHAPS the best evidence that America’s house prices have reached dangerous levels is the fact that house-buying mania has been plastered on the front of virtually every American newspaper and magazine over the past month…. The IMF has warned that, just as the upswing in house prices has been a global phenomenon, so any downturn is likely to be synchronised, and thus the effects of it will be shared widely. The housing boom was fun while it lasted, but the biggest increase in wealth in history was largely an illusion.Eventually, house prices will most likely level off, even here in the Charlottesville market.
It’s all relative
I was showing property in the 29 North corridor this afternoon/evening to some clients from Northern Virginia…. Driving 20 minutes to dinner may be becoming the norm, unless you happen to live within reasonable walking distance…. Growth has added much traffic but is also bringing in new restaurants and shops – we will finally have a good seafood restaurant!
Charlottesville Blogs
Since its launch, Waldo Jaquith’s blog aggregator has grown quickly. Personally I am quite pleased and a bit honored to have been included in the list. I have not yet had time to read each one, but in due time I plan to!
Bubble Talk
You’ll also lose the tax deduction for mortgage interest.”Stocks can be sold in seconds, but it may take two to four months to complete a real estate transaction,” NAR’s Yun says. A stock transaction can be had for less than $10, whereas selling a house results in outlays in the thousands for commissions and closing costs.”The real question,” says Randall Guttery, a professor of real estate at the University of North Texas, “is what do you do with the money” you made from selling your house?This is the real quandary that those in the Charlottesville market face…. As a community, we have to ensure that we maintain the vibrance and reasons why people move here, lest we start to resemble a certain region to the north of Culpeper.