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Monday Morning Reads – 11 November 2013

in General Real Estate on

– Gabe Silverman, one of the modern architects of Downtown Charlottesville has died. Waldo has a heartfelt and candid account.

– Interesting ramifications of the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid expansion (or lack thereof) on the University of Virginia and medical Residencies – a typically strong component of the Charlottesville homeownership and rental markets. More at the Atlantic.

– Bike and pedestrian safety gets more attention in Charlottesville – Charlottesville Tomorrow

– Gonzaga Students Facing Expulsion for Legally Possessing Guns in Private University-Owned Apartments – I wonder if UVA has similar policies.

– New head of Greene County’s Economic Development – Greene continue to grow, become more self-sufficient and segmented from Charlottesville/Albemarle.

– Suburbia then and now (via reddit) — interestingly, I live in a similar type neighborhood and this is the first year I’ve contemplated buying a rake as this is the first year we’ve had leaves of any volume.

– This is a touch of silliness in the Waylands Grant neighborhood in Crozet. Apparently the one of the common areas – belongs to the bank is is liable to be sold. For houses. Hopefully the HOA is able to buy the land.

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The Walkable City – Achievable in Charlottesville?

in Albemarle Charlottesville Growth Transportation on

What would it take to make Charlottesville and Albemarle truly walkable? People who live in areas that are walkable are happier, leaner, have more money for leisure, spend more time with their families … is that really achievable in the Charlottesville area?

The answer is – the public would have to express its desire for this, the leaders would have to listen to the people, collaborate, plan and execute a vision that would enable the City of Charlottesville and County of Albemarle to create more walkable and bikeable localities. Of course, in an area that takes 30+ years to build a short Parkway, I think there’s a better chance of flying cars gaining prominence than thoughtful infrastructure being implemented.

What could be done to craft a truly walkable City/County?

Walkability matters – there are growing urban cores within Charlottesville and Albemarle and the sprawlish segmentation continues. But … what if each of these urban cores grows up and densely?

This is the original Google Map I did in 2007. I’ve updated it for today’s world. Biscuit Run is no longer planned. Albemarle Place is now Stonefield (and is built). North Pointe is far off in the horizon.

This is a map of the “town centers” in the Charlottesville – Albemarle area

(If you’re looking for homes near these, use the radius search on my search site)

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I Won’t Know What You’re Thinking Anymore

in General Real Estate Google on

I won’t know what you (the readers) are thinking anymore – and that sucks. Google’s not sharing keyword information with site owners anymore … and this is huge.

For years I’ve looked at the keywords that have brought visitors to RealCrozetVA and RealCentralVA to discern what questions to answer and what was trending in the minds of my readers and visitors.

I know my business cycles as the keywords shift from “buyers agent in Charlottesville” to “fall foliage in Charlottesville” and “Is Charlottesville the inspiration for Who-ville” (no) and “buying a home in Charlottesville in spring.”

Google’s changing all that. I wondered about this a few weeks ago, but this week brings confirmation.

It appears that Google has cut off keyword data altogether.… This means no more keyword data will be passed to site owners.

If you’re interested in reading a bit more, Moz has a useful post.

What this means is that I (and other site owners) need to accept not knowing search keywords anymore. Such is life.

So … I won’t know what questions you’re asking anymore unless you actively ask me (you know – send me a message or call or text me – 434-242-7140).

Recent Keyword Activity - Central VA Real Estate News - StatCounter.jpg

While keyword stuffing in an attempt to game Google has been common practice by many (not just in the real estate writing space) for years, I’ve done that only a handful of times – and have stated my intentions every time.

Ultimately, as I don’t have my own Building 43 filled with people smarter than the Googlers, I’m going to keep trying to write about stuff that interests me, answers questions about the Charlottesville real estate market, growth, politics, etc and will continue to try to answer my clients’ questions.

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No High School Rankings in Albemarle County Schools?

in Albemarle Education on

Albemarle County is in discussions about whether to stop ranking students.

In response to calls from parents to stop reporting class rankings to college admissions offices, Albemarle County Public Schools is in the process of reviewing its policy.

Currently, Albemarle reports class ranks to colleges and universities in deciles, but many parents feel that doing so paints students below the top 10 percent negatively in the eyes of selective universities.

Questions –

– Does *not* rewarding kids for achievement disincentivize them from trying harder?

– How could we focus educating kids on actually educating kids rather than passing tests in order to get better ranked?

– When folks are moving to Charlottesville – Albemarle what rankings to they consider in public schools? Do they factor in what percentage of

There is a great discussion at RealCrozetVA.

Update – Charlottesville Tomorrow has a poll – Should Albemarle County report student rankings to colleges?

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August’s Note – Disrupting Real Estate and More

in General Real Estate on

I’m finalizing this month’s note and in doing so am realizing just how fast 2013 is flying by.

Last month I talked about the market, the #1 question homebuyers should ask themselves, a life shift and a few other topics (and the note was very well received, based on responses). This month the outline’s looking to cover the Charlottesville real estate market (a consistent feature), disrupting real estate and a recap of some of last month’s more popular stories on RealCentralVA and RealCrozetVA.

If you sign up now, I’ll send you last month’s note to catch you up as well as this month’s note. That’s it. No more. No less.

I rarely publish the note stories here on the blog … so if you’re interested, please sign up to read.

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Nest’s 2nd Quarter 2013 Market Report

in Albemarle Charlottesville Market statistics on

Q2_2013 Cville Nest Report - Jim Duncan.pdf (page 3 of 9).jpg

As promised yesterday, here is our 2nd Quarter 2013 Nest Report – what we believe to be the most comprehensive market report in the Charlottesville area. As always, if you have questions, please ask.

Download the market report here.

But … the caveat holds:

Nota bene – The data below may or may not apply to you if you’re currently contemplating buying or selling. This is aggregate data – meaning if you’re looking for a single family home in Ivy with 4 bedrooms and 2.5 baths, the data and brief analysis below also includes affordable new construction in the City of Charlottesville, a $1.2 million home in Ashcroft in the County and everything in between. In other words, if you have specific questions, ask me. I’m a real estate agent .

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