This from an email I just received from CAAR:REALTOR® Beth Powell and her husband Tom (Mr. Toy Lift) Powell have an urgent need for the community’s assistance. This week, three major sponsors backed out of their support (I certainly hope they have good reason! -jd) for the annual Toy Lift Project. That means that this wonderful community charity will be short about $15,000 that was going to be used to buy 300 bicycles for needy children in our community. They have a special agreement with WalMart each year to purchase these bikes at a greatly reduced price, but now, they are significantly short of funds. If you can help, please make a tax deductible donation to Kid’s Lift Foundation. You can drop off your check to the foundation at CAAR, to Tom Powell at Quick Lane behind Colonial Auto Center or Beth at Frank Hardy Inc. If you have questions, please call Beth Powell at 434-817-0631 or 434-975-TOYS.Please help.
Browsing Category Regional
Central Va’s changing market
Buyers are being more selective and expect more from sellers in price negotiations and perhaps subsidies for closing costs.
…Be patient….In summary, the heady times are no longer with us. Normal used to be a few days to a couple of weeks on the market to get a ratified contract.
…If you do a Google Blog search for Virginia Real Estate or Northern Virginia Real Estate, we come up at the very top of the first page.
…Our properties are posted to “craigslist” and soon on Google Base (beta in test now) as well as Google and Yahoo maps.This, and all competitive businesses require constant innovation, idea implementation and ultimately, consistent execution.
Where is the Senior Housing?
Charlottesville has been repeatedly ranked as one of the best places to live, top five college towns and best places to retire in the States.Best places to retire … that implies that there is both adequate housing stock that is suitable for the (sorry for the broad brush) “Over-55 crowd.”From a Businessweek article – And from Charlottesville, Va., to Hanover, N.H., you can always count on having plenty to do in a college town…. Says retirement expert Mark Fagan, a professor of social work at Jacksonville State University in Jacksonville, Ala.: ”Retirees and college students are always looking for the same thing: a good time.”Many of the communities that are being designed for the Over-55 demographic are not located in or immediately around Charlottesville…. Seniors typically have less impact on infrastructure and existing services, add to the property tax base and can share their years of knowledge and experience, especially through programs such as the Jefferson Institute for Lifelong Learning – good for the entire community!
Morning reading
Ruckersville Parkway raises some hackles.Mail-order homesUVa. Students design affordable housing.
November Forum Watch
The Free Enterprise Forum has released its monthly Forum Watch. This is one of the best ways to stay abreast of local government issues.
Gov. Warner’s transportation committee
From the Road to Ruin – Gov. Mark Warner yesterday announced the creation of a Commission on Transportation in Urbanized Areas which will, as the release says, “recommend strategies for better integrating planning and transit options in Virginia’s urbanized areas.” It’s supposed to come up with those recommendations by Dec. 31.It would have been nice if someone from the Charlottesville/Central Virginia region had been selected. We do happen to be one of the biggest North-South bottlenecks in the Commonwealth, for goodness sakes. From now until 31 December, they are supposed to develop viable solutions to Commonwealth and local land use, transportation, growth issues?
Central Virginia Wine futures look good.
One of the great things about Central VA is that we are fortunate to have a number of outstanding vineyards. If there were a local tour company that would cater to folks who want to visit several in a day, I think that this would be a potentially profitable business, and would provide a good public service. Based on this DP article by David Hendrick, we should look for some good wine from the local vineyards.Indeed, they say, although weather is a factor in a wine’s final quality, the unpredictable climate will not be a ceiling on the industry’s growth.Rausse pointed out that climate conditions in much of Europe’s grape-growing regions are similar to Virginia’s.”Every year we get better and better,” McCarthy said…. Even better, there is a link to the Winetalk Podcast that I sponsored recently (or WineCast)!