U r b a n T r e k k e r

N. Va Sees 2009 New Property Tax Rates

All new things, anything that passed through the legislation becomes effective July 1, including this new property tax that will affect residents of Northern Virginia.

Real estate (or property) tax is based on per $100 of assessed value (not resale value). Via Update (magazine for members of Northern Virginia Association of Realtors).

City of Alexandria	$0.845 per $100 of assessed value
Arlington County	$0.848
Fairfax County	$0.92
City of Falls Church	$1.03
Loudoun County	$1.14
Prince William County	$0.97
Town of Clifton	$0.92
Town of Herndon	$1.16
City of Fairfax	$0.79
Manassas Park	$1.27
City of Manassas	$$1.115
Town of Vienna	$1.1291

Using the table you can figure out how much your property tax will be for 2009. The trick is to understand how each jurisdiction defines 'assessed value' for tax purposes. (So, if your up for a task, check out the county or town website of the area where you live for more information.)

For tax purposes, you probably hear or read something about 'the assessed value' when it comes to buying and selling a property, which has nothing to do with appraised value. These are two different things.

Appraised value is when your lender send an appraiser out to estimate the fair market value of a property based on the information available (or comps) and other related factors. The lender wants to know if you defaulted on your loan, how much will they get it back. Assessed value is when a local jurisdiction determine the value of your house - for tax purposes.

Furthermore, when an agent advertises in a listing that the house priced 'well-below' assessed values, the value refers to tax assessments and not how much it is appraised for.

Lastly, in addition to the increase in residential property tax, VA passed legislation which allows local jurisdiction to raise commercial property tax by as much as 25 cents on the dollar.

Technorati Tags: real estate,northern virginia,arlington,falls church,alexandria city,fairfax,fairfax city,clifton,herndon,vienna,manassas park,city of manassas,prince william county,property tax,virginia,assessment,appraisal

Real Estate News Roundup

[... roundup of real estate stories that should have been posted on Saturday]

::

New Rule on Second Home Exclusion May Change Some Owner's Plans
LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Many readers panicked after reading my previous column on how the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 will affect the personal residence exclusion ($250,000 for single filers; $500,000 for married filing jointly) on sales of vacation homes or former personal residences.

More Lenders Stuck with Home
The number of vacant eyesore homes in your neighborhood could be on the rise.

Yankee-Ingenuity: A New England Home Uses Innovative, Eco-Friendly Technology.
Tony and Sally Grassi’s house blends New England tradition with cutting-edge green technology. Run entirely by renewable energy, it fits beautifully into Maine’s coastal ecosystem.

Michael Phelps Buys in Baltimore
Swimming supah-star and eight-time Beijing Olympics golden boy Michael Phelps is already spending the tens of millions of dollars he's expected to earn in endorsements and other monetary windfalls such as the million dollar bonus Speedo paid the long and lean water baby as a bonus for his outstanding and record breaking achievements in China.

These Homes for Sale Stink
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Mold, maggots and piles of festering trash - no wonder home prices are in freefall.

Mortgages: Higher Fees for Mortgages
MORTGAGE rates are typically driven by the financial market’s outlook for long-term interest rates, but not always.

Home Sales Probably Held Near Decade Low: U.S. Economy Preview
Aug. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Home sales in the U.S. probably teetered near a 10-year low, property values dropped and consumer spending cooled, signaling the economy has taken another turn for the worse, reports this week may show.    

Jet Service Proves to be Popular Incentive for Buyers
With resort projects around the world dangling everything from satellite-ready security technology to a year's worth of coconut oil spa treatments, developers are struggling to find new perks to entice luxury home buyers.

ELSEWHERE - WHERE ALL THINGS LOCAL:

9 Great Places You've Never Heard of: Greenbelt, Maryland [Mother Earth News]

Neighborhood Properties Heading to Tax Auction [JD Land]

F.C. Mayor Predicts Slow Down But No Fiscal Crisis [FCNP]

Many Trees Do Not Grow in Brookland [Washington Post]

D.C. Area Hot Spot for Inc. 5000 Companies [Wash BizJournal]

Connecting Communities (or not) [Greater Greater Washington]

Aero Train on Track for 2009 [Fairfax Times]

Boosters Think Crafts Market Creates Home-Town Feel in Ballston [Sun Gazette]

DC Sold 31% Less Homes in July than a Year Ago

According to the data provided by MRIS, the number of homes sold in the District declined 31.62% from the same period last year. Last year, DC sold 740 homes and this year? Only 506 homes changed hands. However, the average sales price increased by 2.64% from $565,194 to $580,119 while median price declined 2.05% from $431,000 to $422,180. Looks like DC follows the same trend as its neighbor in Northern Virginia, the lower-priced homes drag down higher-priced homes. That's why you see median price average drops.

Slice it further. On the single home market, the number of homes sold year-to-date drops 24% from a total of 2,159 to 1,639 homes. Single homes sold last month also affected by the downturn. It sold 246 homes in comparison to 359 homes a year ago or sales declined by 31.5%.

Maybe this is the reason why DC sold less home this year than previous three years: Prices.

The average sales and median prices is in its five-year uptick trends. In 2005, the ave. sales was around $628,179 while median was $489,000. And July's sales price was $697,260 (+10.99%) while median was $540,000 (+10.42%). So, there was not much price gain over the past three years. However, this condition varies locally from hood to hood.

The condo market in DC took a dive, too. The number of condos sold year-to-date declined 35% from a total of 2,445 to 1,581 units! And last month overall condo sales was 220 units in comparison to 345 units. No wonder, my email box is swamped with all kinds of sweet-heart deals for buyers. (We'll talk about this in another post).

Sales price was kind of flat with average sales went from $405,271 to $408,620 and median pushed up to $364,000 from $350,000. Since 2005, when average sales was $426,576 - last month's average sales price was pretty much along the same trend from 2006. So, there wasn't much movement for condo prices.

Home inventories of condo is at 7.4 months supply and inventories of single home (and townhouse) is 7.8 months supply. Or in layman's terms: A 'STRONG' buyers market for all types of homes in the District.

And that is an opportunity if you're on the market for a home. Because DC don't have much land like in Virginia or Maryland.

data: MRIS, GCAAR

Technorati Tags: washington dc,real estate,trends,urban living,home buying,selling,luxury homes,condominium,townhouse,prices,northern virginia,mortgage,financing,first-time buyer,single home,housing market,july,2008,sales

How's the Market?

This has been going on for a while. As soon as someone knows that I am in 'real estate,' the first question coming out of their mouth is: How's the market? My answer to that question varies, but usually follow along the same line. It's good. And they always gave me that jaw drop look. Like are you nuts? That's not what we've been hearing or reading lately. Sure.

For one. Everything real estate, really depends on where you live or intend to live.

The other day a colleague says to me'..why is it these days, anything happened to real estate is 'always' big news.' Of course. Because housing is one of the reasons the economy is in trouble. (Nobody likes to hear this, but that's the fact). However, on the flip side, like Einstein once said '..In the middle of difficulty, lies opportunity.' Find that opportunity because opportunity is still available out there for those who are ready and able.

It's late August. Some people are still on staycation or vacation. In the meantime, let's look what's been happening lately when they're out of town. You probably read about this, this, and this. All tey're saying are about the same thing on the state of housing that happened - not in DC region! - but rather somewhere in the nation.

Between how's the market and opportunity, here's what July (local) home sales is all about.

NORTHERN VIRGINIA

Believe it or not, we saw evidence of higher sales in July. What's interesting here, the difference in the total number of homes sold for the month of July came down to 2 homes. Last year, total number of homes sold was 1,859. And in '08, it sold 1,857 homes. Still below 2005 sales, but it's improving. However, the average sales price declined by 12.46% from $554,274 to $485,225 while the median price declined by 16.87% from $480,000 to $399,000.

What those numbers tell us is this: Buyers took advantage of low, more affordable prices of homes.

Many of the buyers used FHA loans to purchase. There were 357 transactions financed by FHA while conventional loans took care of 1188 transactions. The use of VA loans for purchase also rising. VA financed about 101 transactions. A tiny sliver of the financing pie still shows - that buyers use 'cash' to financed their purchase. Yes, cold cash that is.

The number of homes sold finally took a hit in Arlington. For a long time, the market over here seems to be more resilient than other counties. However, like the trend shows, buyers took advantage of low prices in areas where it feels the most pain because of foreclosures. Buy-Lo attitude. Arlington's July home numbers show that the total number homes sold plunged 23.43% from 303 to 232 while the sales price only declined by 2.25% from $574,427 to $561,516. Sellers were a little bit 'firm' with their asking prices.

FHA and VA loans made up of over 20% of all types of financing while conventional loans financed over half (161) of the purchases.

Sales of homes in City of Alexandria  also took a hit. The total number of homes sold plunged 11.74% from 213 to 188 homes in July while prices increased by 4.16% from $498,253 to $518,900.

The type of loans use here also follows along the same trend line as in Arlington. VA and FHA loans financed 38 purchases or 20% of the total homes sold in Alexandria last month. Not so much cash transactions happened here.

Over in Fairfax county, the total number of homes sold increased by 8% from 1,288 to 1,392 homes while sales prices dipped 16.4% from $557,980 to $467,897. Median home price declined 20.84%. What this tell us is that Fairfax sold more lower priced homes than higher priced. (Median is where 50% of homes sold above the price and the other 50% sold below the price).

The type of financing use to purchase follows along the same trend line as in Arlington and Alexandria. VA and FHA financed more than 369 homes purchased or 26% while conventional still leading at 62% of all sales transactions for the county.

So overall in Northern Virginia, sales of lower-priced homes drags down the higher priced homes. That's why we see average and median prices were on declining trends. While at the same time, buyers saw opportunities - and the numbers show.

For those who just dream and sit - instead of taking action. Take a look at what happened in Prince William county, the home of foreclosure sales. PW sold more homes than last year! The trend first reported by Washington Post. Over here, the total number of homes sold in July up by a whopping 115.32% from 470 homes to 1,012 homes!

Okay, so much for waiting.

The prices. Still showing a declining trend. Average sales price declined 38.27% from $396,045 to $244,494. How affordable! And median price (you use it to compare hoods) declined almost 40% from $354,450 to $214,000.

And who's buying here? Majority is first-time home buyers. Thirty-eight percent of all homes sold in July was financed by FHA loans! While conventional loans financed about 34% of all purchases.

That's the news from Virginia side. We'll continue looking at District of Columbia stats tomorrow.

Data: Courtesy of MRIS, NVAR

Technorati Tags: real estate,trends,housing market,sales,homes sales,northern virginia,district of columbia,arlington,alexandria,falls church,vienna,oakton,mclean,burke,springfield,reston,chantilly,herndon,first-time home buyer,foreclosure,prince william county,va loan,fha,fannie mae,freddie mac,conventional loans,suburban living,nvar,mris

R & R

I will be taking R & R for the rest of this week. Will be back blogging sometime middle of next week.

In the meantime, enjoy your summer!

Weekly Real Estate News Roundup

image: Slate

Morgan Stanley Said to Freeze HELOC
Aug. 6 (Bloomberg) -- Morgan Stanley, the second-biggest U.S. securities firm, told thousands of clients this week that they won't be allowed to withdraw money on their home-equity credit lines, said a person familiar with the situation.    

Fannie Mae's Alt-A Pain May Extend to BofA
All hemming and hawing aside over a large quarterly loss at Fannie Mae (FNM: 9.05 -9.05%) posted Friday — one that, it should be noted, was the result of aggressive reserving for future losses — it’s pretty clear that the GSE now faces the proverbial piper over its foray into Alt-A mortgages in the past few years.

Foreclosure Crisis Catching Renters Off Guard
James Austin was stunned when a real estate agent showed up to snap photos of the house he was renting last year and casually informed him the place was in foreclosure.

House-Hoppers May Suffer Under New Tax Rules
Life is getting tougher for some people who own more than one home.        
Pulte Homes Gives Discount to New Buyers
PHM 12.96, +0.52, +4.2%) Inc., one of the country's largest home builders, says it will match a new $7,500 tax credit for first-time home buyers with its own $7,500 discount on homes.

East Meets South
Like the fine handwoven textiles she markets, entrepreneur Eve Blossom’s life is imbued with many passions, including a strong environmental and social consciousness and a love of world cultures, particularly Southeast Asia’s.

2008 State-by-State Closing Costs

Q&A: Are Compact Refrigerators an Energy-Efficient Alternative to Full-Size Ones?
A small refrigerator, say a model with a capacity of about 2 cubic feet, could be a good fit for a your basement or home office or a dorm room (most are bought for dorms).

Energy Efficiency for the Home, Saving Money for All
The myth that being green is for the prosperous will have to weather the storm with a program from the U.S. Department of Energy that assists families with making their homes more energy efficient.

How Low can You Flow?
Tired of wasting water every time you flush, wash dishes or do a load of laundry? Check out what’s new and cool in water-saving appliances.

Beijing 2008 Olympic Green Buildings
If you're like me, the architecture and sheer grandiosity of Beijing 2008 Olympics is blowing your mind.

Denver Convention Housing Bubble
Anticipating a crush of attendees at the Democratic National Convention this month and a shortage of hotel rooms, some Denver residents are renting out their homes at mile-high prices.

Sean and Robin Penn List for $15 Million
Hollywood couple Sean Penn and Robin Wright Penn have put their San Francisco-area home on the market for $15 million.

U.S. Cities with the Most Home Equity
While homeowners in areas of central California and Michigan watch their home equity disintegrate thanks to second mortgages and falling home prices, those in small cities like Beaumont, Texas, and  Charleston, W.Va., are doing just fine.

ELSEWHERE FROM AROUND THE WASHINGTON DC REGION

D.C. One of Congested Areas in U.S. (WashBizJournal)

Judiciary Square SmartBike Rack Completed (DCist)

Ridership Record Push Metro to the Limits (Fox5 News)

Montgomery County Considers HOT Lanes (NBC4 News)

A Throwback to McLean Before the Bustle (Washington Post)

To Force a Sale in Court, Buyers Must 'Ready, Willing and Able' (Washington Post)

Tyson Density Dispute (Fairfax Times)

Fairfax Weighs Fining Mortgage Companies for Derelict Foreclosures (Examiner)

F.C. Council Poised to Strike Blow for Affordable Housing (Falls Church News Press)

The 10 Most & Least Expensive Homes on the Market

Interesting to see the wide gap in prices of these homes, the most and the least expensive (or affordable) homes on the market.

The "10 Most Expensive Homes" in DC region.

1. 2933-2943 Benton Place, NW, DC 20008. List price: $18.5M.
A mansion of 10 BR/ 10 FB and 3 HB (half-bath), sits on a 0.5 ac. of lot in Mass. Heights neighborhood. It was completely rebuilt and renovated.

2. 1322 Balls Hills, McLean, VA 22101. List price: $17.5M.
Four-level mansion of 8BR/ 8FB and 3 HB, sits on a 2.05 ac. in Elmwood Estates.

3. 1175 Ballantrae Ln., McLean, VA 22101. List price: $15M.
Four-level manse with 8 fireplaces that sits on a 1.43 ac. of lot in Ballantrae Farms.

4. 636 Chain Bridge Rd., McLean, VA 22101. List price: $13.5M.
Think is an estate owned by Sen. Ted Kennedy. It has 10 BR/ 8 FB and 1 HB on a 6.52 acre sits on two lots. (#634-636).

5. 1147 Chain Bridge Rd., McLean, VA 22101. List price: $12.5M.
This is another Kennedy's properties, not Sen. Kennedy but Mrs. Ethel Kennedy. It's also known as Hickory Hill and was previously owned by JFK. It has 12.5BR/ 10.5Ba.

6. 5216 Abingdon Rd., Bethesda, MD 20816. List price: $11.9M.
It's a Bauhaus (contemporary style) home sits on 2.6 ac. This is one of the high priced properties where you have to fill in a registration form - to preview. It has 6BR/ 6 FB and 2 HB.

7. 2510 Foxhall Rd., NW. DC 20007. List price: $11.5M.
A four-level manse originally built in 1935, sits on 1.5 ac. of lot in one of the sought after hoods in DC.

8. 7724 Georgetown Pike, McLean, VA 22102. List price: $11.25M.
Almost two-years old manse on 5.01 acre. It has three-level terraces, 9 BR/ 12FB and 5HB. The bonus: 6 car garage with 2 limo bays.

9. 9050 Falls Run Rd., McLean, 22102. List price: $10.75M.
This is a five-level mansion that has 5BR/ 5FB and 2HB sits on a 12.2 acre of lot somewhere deep in McLean 'Difficult' subdivision. Difficult, is the name of the subdivision.

10. 2425 Tracy NW., Washington, DC 20008. List price: $10M.
A DC mansion sits on a two block of street in Kalorama neighborhood.

From the list above, you can pretty much see that McLean area is the home to many luxury homes. Though, it's a mixed. Because on one side, you have smaller homes which sells for under $1M and other side, there are homes supply for over $3M.

On the low spectrum of prices you will be surprised that there are 229 properties on the market for less than $125,000.

Here's for the 'bottom fishers.'

10. 5125 Astor Place, NE, DC 20019. List price: $49,000.
Okay, here is the challenge. The property is a 'shell!' Only for the brave souls need to look. It is a one-level home that has 2 BR, 1FB in Marshall Heights neighborhood. Guess what? Tax is only $1,200 per year.

9. 9332 Taney Rd., Manassas, VA 20110. List price: $54,000.
A two-level townhouse that has 3BR/ 1.5Ba and owner is shorting it. (Short-sale)

8. 18032 Olde Port Ln., Triangle, VA 22172. List price: $59,900.
A two-level townhouse that has 2BR/1.5Ba and sold as-is. It is bank-owned or REO. The bank foreclosed this property for $124k. So, bank is selling it for a 'big' loss.

7. 1705 Fort Henry, Dumfries, VA 22026. List price: $60,000.
Another two-level bank-owned townhouse that has 3BR/2.5 Ba. The listing remark reads "..property is rough..and it will take some work to restore it..." Proceed with a lot of caution.

6. 9813 Maury Lane, Manassas, VA 20110. List price: $65,000.
A 2-level townhouse that owner's putting it in on the market for short sale. It has 2BR/1.5Ba.

5. 2400 Good Hope Rd. SE #201, Washington DC 20020. List price: $69,000.
A one bedroom condo with 1,307 s.f. Pretty spacious space. Special financing is available. (not sure how special)

4. 120-4 Washington St. NE, Leesburg, VA 20176. List price: $69,000.
A one bedroom condo which has 898 s.f. of living space.

3. 7597 Gales Ct. #7A-201, Manassas, VA 20109. List price: $69,000.
A bank-owned one bedroom condo that has 794 s.f. of living quarter. The bank foreclosed it for $130,000. So, bank too taking a loss. Selling it short. Less than what they paid for. Condo is assessed for $130k - that's according to the county. It's for tax purposes. But it doesn't mean that it will sell at that price.

2. 3900 D St. SE #98, Washington DC 20019. List price: $69,900.
A bank-owned. It has 2BR/ 1Ba with 1100 s.f. of living quarter. The building was just converted. Interesting. So, it came with hardwood floors, SS appliances, ceramic tile and jacuzzi tub.

1. 16604 Georgetown Rd. Woodbridge, VA 22191. List price: $69,900.
It is located in Georgetown Village - in Woodbridge. It's a two-level 3BR/1.5 Ba. The property was originally listed for $105,900. Now, that is quite a price cut.

What a difference a year make!

You see, these bottom 10, a year or two ago was selling at almost doube or triple the price. In 2005, there were not a single condo on the market for under $200k in closer-in. Or outside the Beltway.

And now, there are so many that you kind of wondering - when will all the properties get sold - especially, when you have regular homeowners properties competing with bank-owned. For banks much easier to get a hit than to hold them in their non-performing assets portfolio. But, for the regular Joe owners? That is a good question. Only 'they' know the answer.

:: The full list of luxury homes, here. And bottom of the list, here. (link drop dead in 30 days)

data: MRIS

Top 10 Real Estate Deals (YTD) in Washington DC Region

From the top 10 real estate deals list, the District of Columbia had 3 mega million deals, McLean got a couple and the rest is split between Montgomery county in Maryland and Old Town, Alexandria.

Here is the year-to-date Top 10 manse sales:

1. 1607, 28th St. NW, Georgetown, DC.
List price: $14,500,000.
Sold price: $11,500,000.
- 20.6%
Days On Market=0
Looks like deal was sealed even before the property hit the market. What a deal!

2. 9212 Harrington Drive, Potomac, MD.
List price: $12,500,000
Sold price: $10,000,000
- 20%
DOM= 53

3. 3154 Highland Place, NW, DC.
List price: $7,500,000
Sold price: $5,600,000
- 15%
DOM= 227
The dreaming price was $10,000,000 when it was originally listed.

4. 5120 Wissioming Road, Bethesda, MD.
List price: $6,750,000
Sold price: $6,600,000
- 2.2%
DOM= 93

5. 1003 Crest Ln., McLean, VA.
List price: $6,500,000
Sold price: $5,725,000
- 11.9%
DOM= 277

6. 1028 Towlston Rd., McLean, VA.
List price: $5,950,000
Sold price: $5,800,000
- 2.52%
DOM=0
What a lucky seller! Looks like property deal was sealed before it hits the market.

7. 2456 Tracy Pl. NW, Washington DC.
List price: $5,900,000
Sold price: $5,500,000
- 6.77%
DOM= 300

8. 3905, 44th St. N, McLean, VA.
List price: $5,875,000
Sold price: $4,995,000
- 14.9%
DOMP=308 (the total number of days on the market)
This is what interesting about this property. It has an Arlington tax record but McLean address. Strange.

9. 4819 Indian Ln. NW, Washington, DC.
List price: $5,850,000
Sold price: $5,600,000
- 4.2%
DOM=23

10. 224 Lee St., Old Town, Alexandria, VA.
List price: $5,595,000
Sold price: $5,150,000
- 7.9%
DOMP= 158

As you can see above that homes over $3M, a few of them sealed the deals even before it hits the market. For people who moves where homes are more expensive than here, a couple of million dollars is like - a drop in a bucket.

With the market the way it is, the luxury home market got hit, too. From a few of the deals, sellers have adjusted their asking prices. Since pool of buyers for this kind of home is not as large as lower price range (read: under a million dollars).

One thing, no upside down sellers. They're all pocketed pretty hefty profits - on average.

By the way, you won't see pictures properties, because of copyrights issue. However, you can take a look at some of the region's homes sold over $3M, here. Link is good only for limited time. (Drop dead at 30 days.)

*** UPDATE: All the homes on the "TOP 10" list and most of the homes traded above $3M - were manse. There was, however, a few million dollars condo traded. Somebody paid $4.9M for a Ritz-Carlton condo. Read this. Condo fee is $5,881/ per month! And that includes the access to the Ritz's amenities.

Data: MRIS

Weekly Real Estate News Roundup

image: Slate

With Condo Foreclosures, Others Feel the Pain, Too
When too many condominium owners lose their units to foreclosure, condo associations feel the financial pain.

Why Does Gas Cost $4 Or More a Gallon?

When the Tap Turns Off
WOOLWICH is a down-at-heel working-class port in East London that teeters between gentrification and decay.

Slides: Best and Worst Performing Zip Codes

The Credit Crisis Turn One
Happy birthday, credit crisis.

The Possibility of a Residential Green Roof
Over at Green Building Elements, Philip Proefrock’s post Showing the Green Building Process highlights a Philadelphia couple’s blog, Building Green on Montrose.

Report: Distressed RE Nears 20 Percent of Nationwide Sales
There are motivated home sellers, and then there are motivated home sellers. In this market, that term has taken on new meaning, capturing sales made under borrower duress as well as institutional sellers looking to sell off REO properties in an effort to clear their books.

Infill Container Home by LWA
We're bringing you back-to-back container home coverage here with this home on an infill lot in the eastern hills above San Francisco Bay.

The High-Tech, Low-Fuss Deck
Forty years ago, pressure-treated deck boards were the greatest thing to hit the housing market since, er, vinyl siding.

Fine Print in Housing Bill Benefit
That's just one of the lines of fine print in the bill that mutes the benefit to consumers, housing analysts say.        

With the New Housing Law, the $250,000/$500,000 Capital Gains Exclusion is Gone
The Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 passed into law this week with a lot of positives for the American people.

Hedge Funds Investing in Delinquent Mortgages
Guess who holds your mortgage now? It's your friendly neighborhood hedge fund.

Mortgages: Subprime Loans' Wide Reach
WHILE subprime loans deeply penetrated low-income and minority groups, a new study suggests that more upper-income borrowers and more whites took out such loans than any other groups.

Ghost Town USA
Dennis Pflueger and his wife won a rent-free year in a nice new house in an expensive subdivision not far from the headquarters of Wal-Mart Stores Inc.

America's Most Overpriced Zipcodes
In San Jose, Calif., home to Silicon Valley and some of the highest home values in the country, a bumper sticker reads, "Dear God, one more bubble before I die."

Lenders Change Tactics, Now Discounting at Foreclosure Sale
For the last few years lenders have been bidding the amount they were owed at foreclosure sales on the court house steps.

Elsewhere from Around DC Region:

A HOT Idea Brewing in Maryland

A Lure for the City

In Prince William A Spike in Home Sales

HOA Dues Payment Decline

County Eyes Vienna's Water Rates

New Law May Raise HOA Fees Statewide

Fairfax Unemployment Trickles Up Past 3%, But May Have Peaked for '08

Arlington Unemployment Still Lowest in Commonwealth

Fairfax Communities Make 'Best Places' Ranking

FCNP: Falls Church Summer Real Estate Guide

Lease Common Denominator

Spectacular Outdoor Rooms

District's Southwest to See Renewal