Budget
Establishing your budget before beginning the home search in Northern Virginia is an important consideration. Some experts suggest that you can expect to pay 25% of your salary towards your mortgage. Fortunately for people living in Northern Virginia, many job centers offering high paying salaries are available. These places include the Mark Center, Inova Hospitals, USPTO, NOVA Community College, Fort Belvoir and Reston Town Center.Size
When considering buying a home in Northern Virginia, you must answer several important questions, such as whether or not you would like roommates, or whether or not you are married or plan to start a family. The answers to these questions will help you determine whether you might prefer a 2 bedroom condo in Courthouse or a 1,000,000 home in Mount Vernon.Location and Atmosphere
Northern Virginiahas neighborhoods to suit everyone's needs. Arlington is a bustling city with all of the big-city amenities, such as businesses and shopping, and is only a short distance from DC. If you would prefer a small-town atmosphere, Woodbridge can offer this at only a short commuter from the bigger cities. Alexandria, a nice middle ground between Arlington and Woodbridge, has plenty of nightlife, restaurants, and shopping in a variety of neighborhoods like Old Town, West End, and Fairfax County.Type
Condo? Townhome? Single family home? Each has their own advantages and disadvantages. Condos can offer some amenities, like a pool, fitness center, or dry cleaner, all conveniently located in the condo community, but they come at the cost of condominium fees. Single-family homes do not have these extra costs, unless they are located within a neighborhood that has a home owner's association, but they also do not have the conveniences that a condo or townhome has to offer.Commitment
Since a mortgage is such a long term commitment, factoring in job security when preparing to purchase a home in Northern Virginia is vital. For those who end up having to leave the area, whether it is temporary or permanent, hiring a property manager is an option so that you can rent out your home and collect rent on it while you’re gone.Credit Score
The first step to buying a home in Northern Virginia is to get pre approved if you want to be considered a serious buyer. This can speed up the home buying process. Some ways to improve your credit score are to always pay your bills on time or, if you do not have credit, you can build your credit by opening a credit card, use it monthly, and pay the bill on time.Are you considering putting your house in Northern Virginia up for sale, but not sure where to start? Afraid it will take too long to sell, or that you won’t get the price you want? Here are 4 tips to get you started: 1. De-clutter. This is one of the most important things you can do. It might be easier to think of de-cluttering like this – you’re moving anyway, so why not start packing now? Pack up everything you don’t need and store the boxes out of sight in the garage (or consider temporarily renting a small storage locker). 2. Organize your closets - put similar colors together, pants together, skirts together, shirts together etc. Why? Because it will make the closets look bigger. (Really.) An organized closet appears bigger, and you want your closets to look as spacious as possible. 3. Make your home look like a model. You want to de-personalize as much as possible so potential buyers can imagine themselves and their own belongings occupying the space in your house. That means minimizing – putting away everything you don’t need or use. Clear off kitchen counters as much as possible – stash all those appliances you don’t use, and put miscellaneous small clutter in a few attractive baskets or boxes. 4. Call Nesbitt Realty at (703)765-0300. We can give you objective tips on what you can do to move your property. We even have options for professionally staging your home if you're interested. [learn more]
Is Hiring a Property Manager for You?
Although hiring a property management company has many advantages, there is a cost associated with hiring a property manager. In addition to the expense of property management, there are other reasons why property management may not be for you. Consider the following factors to determine if hiring a property management company would be a good decision for your property. Ask yourself these questions to be able to make an informed decision:- Will you live and work near your rental property? Northern Virginia is a very transient area. We have more than our share of military, diplomats, State Department, political appointees, and academia. If you're getting transferred across the country or around the world, it might be a good idea to let a professional manage your rental. Even simple tasks get complicated very quickly when you aren't around to manage the details.
- Do you want to handle the details of property management? Some landlords look forward to the challenge of finding good tenants. Some landlords find that maintaining a property and managing details is rewarding and enjoy taking late night calls. On the other hand, if you think rental property ownership is a chore and want little or nothing to do with the day-to-day management of your properties, you should probably consider hiring help to manage your property.
- How busy are you? Even if you find hands-on management rewarding, you may not have much time to devote to your property management business. If you already have a full-plate, then the last thing you need is more to worry about, thus; the hiring of a management company may be an excellent idea when investing your hard-earned money.
- Can you afford the cost? Let's face it. Hiring a property management company is a much more attractive option if you can afford it. If monthly cash-flow is not an issue, you'll likely save money by paying a property manager and writing off the expense. If at the end of every month cash is tight, however, you may not want to hire a property manager.
- Can you afford the risk? Are you familiar with the Virginia Residential Landlord Tenant Act? Are you aware of what are tenants' rights? Do you know your responsibilities? The more you know about property management in today's litigious culture, the more you'll understand the value of having a professional in your corner.
- Do you have access to a network of maintenance people? All properties require maintenance. When your tenant calls you in need of repair will you know who to call and what to do in a timely fashion? If not, you may want to consider hiring a property manager.
Once you know what you need and you have a good idea of the basic features you are looking for then it’s time to turn to our website. The website is designed to give you a good idea of the cost and type of properties available in Northern Virginia and help you identify potential rental properties. This should hopefully take the frustration out of the search by enabling you to eliminate properties that do not meet your needs or budget. [Read more about rental agents]
The answers are here.
From time to time we update our site it takes time for the search engines to pick up on these changes. This page is designed to help you find what you seek and to explain to you a little about our site.
The "About Us" tab contains information about our company including our history, notes about the staff , contact information and driving directions. The "Guide" contains stories and descriptions about the towns, communities, subdivisions, city and counties of Northern Virginia. Under "Real Estate for ..." you can find specific information for renters, landlords, buyers and sellers. Or, under "For Sale" you can jump right into listings of property for sale in Northern VA.