The National Association of Realtors reported that existing home sales rose 6.5 percent from November 2008 to December 2008. This a rare bit of good news for the national real estate market, which saw a drop in sales prices around 15% in from 2007 to 2008. Read more here. The...
Author Archives: Chris Rooker
Is Now the Time to Buy a Home?
Maybe. It is certainly a buyer’s market, which means that home buyers have the advantage in negotiations, as well as a broad range of choices. However, since it is a difficult market for sellers, our team’s counsel to inquiring would-be buyers is that they need to be reasonably confident that...
Fuzzy Math on Average Home Price? Or Not?
As I wrote in a post a couple of days ago, home prices in the Harrisonburg area did not drop significantly in 2008. When I ask friends and clients how much they think prices have dropped, on average, from 2007 to 2008, the answer is reliably between 10% and 25%....
Shout It from the Rooftops — Home Values Have Not Dropped (Significantly)
There’s no glossing over the fact that 2008 was a difficult year to get a home sold. The demand for homes decreased due to tightening loan requirements (which is largely a good thing) and a rather poignant feeling of caution among buyers. The sharply receding economy has produced those fears,...
New Winter Hours for Farmers’ Market
One of my favorite Saturday activities over the last year or two is shopping for fresh produce at the Farmers’ Market in downtown Harrisonburg. I have a lot of friends who frequent the market, so it is also a great way to connect (somewhat randomly) more often. But in years...
Three Cheers for HDR
Last night I enjoyed an evening at Clementine, a fun and very trendy restaurant that opened earlier this year in the old Strand Theater building. I was mindful that I might not have been able to enjoy dining there without the efforts of Eddie Bumbaugh and his staff at Harrisonburg...