Ed Graybill

Cathy,

Not only did you have the first answer in on this question, but I'm awarding you as the best answer so far! I already do, for the most part, everything else suggested. One or two of the suggestions, I just didn't see as a possiblity to help though.
When I first started my real estate career, I was not adverse to knocking on doors in the neighborhood, and although some of the residents didn't want to spend any amount of time talking to me, I found that a lot of them were quite nice and were even willing to offer up additional information on the neighborhood or let me know who would be moving / selling soon.
It does take up some valuable time, but I was able to drum some extra business that way.
Maybe it's time to get back to basics!!

Thanks again,
Ed Graybill
Sales Associate
Wainwright Real Estate - Mon Oct 20 2008, 10:17

Ms-I,

I appreciate your input, however..........
As a professional Real Estate Agent, I would never consider falsely advertising the property as a Short Sale or a Pre-Foreclosure. Nor would I suggest to a potential buyer that there were multiple offers on a property when indeed there are not.
Not only is this totally dishonest, but there would be severe consequences for any agent caught doing it. Any agent willing to sell by these practices are not only desperate, but they would be the few agents who give us all a bad name. You know what they say about "one bad apple"? Well it does ruin the whole bunch, Baby!!!
I hope for your sake that the professionals in Miami are not operating this way! I believe and hope you are just mistaken by what you see there. There are tons of these properties (Foreclosures, preforclosures, & short sales) in every municipality in the US these days, so maybe that's throwing you off a bit!
I still do appreciate the answer though!

Best regards,
Ed Graybill
Sales Associate
Wainwright Real Estate - Mon Oct 20 2008, 10:07

Penguin,

Chris Faircloth had a good answer for your question. There are nearly 12,000 homes for sale in the Hampton Roads area (which Virginia Beach is a part of). The question of home prices goes back to supply and demand. As long as we have more homes for sale than we have willing buyers, there's a good chance the prices will continue to drop gradually. Tougher lending practices do not really affect home prices, unless they are so tight no one can get a loan which would cause standing inventory to rise even higher. I don't see a quick turnaround (near future) in the current supply and demand mode we are in, and I can't predict what the market will do in a year or so.

Another thing to consider as Chris pointed out is the interest rates. Typically when the economy is good, interest rates are low, but when the economy sours, interest rates start to climb. I'm currently looking to refinance my mortgage, so I'm keeping a close eye on the rates right now. I'm hoping they will drop here shortly, but I'm not going to risk waiting very long. The rates are still pretty good, but I have doubts that the economy will get better in the short run, so the rates won't come down much if they do at all.

Ed Graybill
Sales Associate
Wainwright Real Estate - Sat Oct 18 2008, 13:16

Manny,

I see the previous two answers are from Real Estate Professionals in your local area and they have had no luck finding a recent sale in the local MLS. The property may have been sold as a "For Sale by Owner". If that is the case, it may not have been listed in the MLS.

Although I'm actually from Virginia Beach, I can tell you that you should be able to track the sale through the city records. If you call your local Real Estate Assessor's office, this would be a good place to start. Ask them where you would go locally to find the most recently recorded deed on that particular property. If you find the deed from the sale you should be able to get some of the information you are looking for.

If you just want information on the property itself, the City Assessor should be able to help you out on that. Most large cities also have a web site for the Assessor's office where you can look up property information as well.

Good Luck!!

Ed Graybill
Sales Associate
Wainwright Real Estate - Sat Oct 18 2008, 12:47

As I'm sure you know, mold can be a very serious problem. There is a lot of health problems that arise do to ingesting the mold spores. My sister-in-law and her family lived in a duplex unit that had a mold problem in the adjoining walls. They have since left the house, but although they have been out of the house for over a year now, they are still having adverse health issues.
It's hard for me to advise you on your particular situation without being there. My first question to you would be to make sure your Home Inspector is ASHI certified. ASHI stands for the American Society of Home Inspectors. If he is not ASHI certified, you might want a second opinion. I find a lot of General Contractors trying to pass themselves off as Home Inspectors to make some extra money, but they don't have the same qualifications. Also, did the home inspector tell you why he suspected a mold problem in the first place?
Iif the house does have a mold problem, it can be very expensive to correct and can indicate even more serious problems. Make sure you get an answer on what is causing the mold problem. Normally there's a moisture problem that turns into a mold & moisture problem. Make sure you make it the responsibility of the Seller to correct the problem prior to closing. - Sun Aug 10 2008, 16:15

Listing agents here in Hampton Roads are required to disclose what noise contour and what accident potential zone, if any, the house is in when it lies in the proximity of an airfield. The noise levels are listed as "greater than 75 decibels; 70 - 75 decibels; 65 - 70 decibels; under 65 decibels. The area of less than 65 decibels effectively means you are located outside of the high noise levels, but that doesn't mean you won't hear the jets. The accident potential zones are listed as APZ1, APZ2, Clear, or None. You won’t be located in a clear zone as those areas are not built on. Zone APZ1 is the area to be most concerned with as it has the highest potential for an accident, and these are the areas that the BRAC Commission wanted the city of Virginia Beach to condemn and buy back from the current owners. Although the BRAC Commission is no longer a concern, I feel that the whole BRAC issue has left the homes in APZ1 with lower property values and lower resale potential. Ask your agent what areas, both noise and accident potential, the property lies in. The area you are speaking of lies between Fentress Airfield and NAS Oceana, so I'm sure you'll get some noise. My best advice for you is to drive to the property when the jets are active and see how bad it is. Also, if you are concerned about street noise go to the property during high traffic hours, go inside and see what you can hear from the inside. - Wed Jul 30 2008, 05:31