I find it incredible to believe that Robert and Reagan are already five weeks old.  As I have told many of you, the proudest moments in my life were when Bob and Ryan were born.  Anyone with kids of their own can fully appreciate this.  The birth of the twins may well overtake that.  When your baby has babies, its really hard to comprehend just how thrilling it can be.  I know I’m behaving like so many other Grandpas, but I can’t help it.   Just click play to see the next installment of amazing videos and more photos.

The two of them are doing fantastic and have gained a considerable amount of weight.  Reagan is already bigger than her father was when he was her age and Robert is gaining quickly.  Bob and Marie continue to miss out on a great deal of sleep.  Boy is it nice to go see, hold, love the babies and then be able to come home and get a good nights rest.

Nancy and I have been sworn to secrecy with respect to revealing which one was born first.  I had thought this was a bit silly until speaking with the twin brother of a friend.  I had not actually known Kevin had a twin until just two days ago.  Of course, his brother was quick to point out that he was so much older.  So remember, don’t share this with the twins.

Friday November 28th

The Reston Town Center Christmas Tree lighting and other events kick off a 8:30 am with the annual race for the neediest children.  The Holiday Parade begins at 11:00 am followed by photos with Santa from  12:30 – 4:30.  The Holiday Tree lighting and sing-along begins at 6:00.  Be sure to look for Lois Olson (a member of our marketing department) in the Reston Chorale.   For information on these events and much more, visit:   http://dc.about.com/od/christmasevents/a/RestonHolidays.htm.  Dress warmly and I hope to see you there.

Christmas in Great Falls

Don’t miss the Great Falls Village Center’s annual tree lighting and ceremony that will be held Friday, December 5th from 6-8pm.  In addition to the tree lighting, there will be a live Nativity presentation, Santa’s parade, photos with Santa, live music, and a petting zoo.  Be sure to dress the young ones in warm clothes and come join the fun around the Christmas tree located behind the Great Falls Post Office.

One of my favorite movies of all time is Forrest Gump.  This film is an extremely deep comment on life and how we approach things that come our way.  After sitting through a presentation by an investment counselor on Wednesday, I immediately thought of Forrest and Lieutenant Dan as they were out at sea on their shrimp boat in the midst of one of the worst hurricanes to hit the Gulf of Mexico.  Their shrimping business had been a total bust up to that point.  As Forrest captained the ship through the storm, Lieutenant Dan sat atop the mast and relished the moment.  They did this as every other shrimp boat sought the safety of the harbor.  As you will recall, every other shrimp boat was destroyed while Forrest and Dan came back into port with a huge catch.  Due to their willingness to brave the storm, they went on to be extremely successful and ultimately owned the largest fleet of shrimp boats while others went bankrupt.

We are currently in the midst of one of the worst housing hurricanes seen in decades.  The winds are extremely volatile and everyone has been running to a safe harbor.  Needless to say, it is those who brave the storm and seek out opportunities while everyone else waits for the market to strengthen who will fare the best.  Whether you are considering purchasing one, two or more rental properties or are looking to upgrade your own personal residence, I don’t believe you will experience a better time than now to make the move.  Prices are have come down dramatically and interest rates are still quite low.  Weichert Financial, Wells Fargo and Bank of America (my three preferred lenders) all assure me that they have plenty of money and that you can secure personal mortgages with 10 percent down and investment loans with 20 percent.

To give you an idea of what is out there, in the past month a $2.8 million property in Great Falls sold for $1.1 million and potential rental properties in Sterling have come on the market at $80,000 – $100,000.  I am currently negotiating the sale of a $5+ million home for less than $3 million and working on several other incredible opportunities for my clients.  With 20 percent down, the PITI for an $80,000 rental property in Sterling would be somewhere in the area of $600 per month.  Rent for such a property would be around $1,000 per month.  My assumption is that in five years time, these will be back to selling at $250,000 – $300,000.  A potentially huge return on a $16,000 investment.

My buddy Frank Barlow told me a few months ago that when you are in the middle of a hurricane, it seems like it will never end. It always does and the sun always does return.

Contact me if you are ready to move towards owning a fantastic personal residences or your own fleet of rental properties before its too late.

I can’t say how many times I’ve had people say that it is nearly impossible to get a home mortgage at this time.  The have also said that they heard you need 20 or 30 percent down to get a loan.  These two are really the biggest fallacies in today’s market.  I refer to them as Washington Post headlines!!  As with most new articles, you really need to read further down to fully understand the story.  Those people with bad credit or other issues may well need to come up with 20 or 30 percent, but the majority of people can typically get a loan with only 10 percent down and in some cases there is still  mortgage money available with only three or five percent downpayments.  Each of the lenders that I deal with have assured me that they have plenty of money to lend and at very good interest rates.  Don’t let the myths keep you from getting into this incredible buyers market.

Don’t get caught waiting for the bottom only to find that the sellers’ market has returned.  Once this happens it will be too late to take advantage of this incredible opportunity.

Contact me at Bob@BobNelsonTeam.com for more info.

As a service to my clients, friends and neighbors, I have begun compiling a directory of businesses (e.g., services, contractors, lawyers, etc.) that I or others recommend.  Please feel free to make recommendations of others you would like to see included in this directory by contacting me or leaving a comment on the Referral Directory page.  If you do so, I only ask that you include an overview of their services and why you are recommending them. (Referral Directory)

October                        2008                    2007             % Change

Total $ Volume        $14,186,205     $16,660,000        -14.85%

Avg. Sold Price        $      886,638     $     925,556        - 4.20%

Median Sold Price   $      710,000     $     876,250        -18.97%

Total Sold                     16                      18                      -11.11%

Avg. Days on Mkt.        107                     83                     28.92%

Avg. Sale Price as a

percentage of Avg. List       94.25%            89.78%

October                       2008                 2007          % Change

Total $ Volume       $30,021,049     $18,064,000        61.37%

Avg. Sold Price        $ 1,072,180     $  979,158             9.50%

Median Sold Price   $     752,500    $  874,000        – 13.90%

Total Sold                         28                     19                47.37%

Avg. Days on Mkt.        112                    162              -30.86%

Avg. Sale Price as a

percentage of Avg. List    90.05%          89.08%

The current housing slump began when first time homebuyers stopped moving into the market. I had a real gut feeling that this was going to start happening back in mid-2005 when we started seeing more and more homes and condos being offered for rent in the DC Metropolitan area. This started to occur because the number of homes for sale exceeded demand. My personal feeling was that speculators had increased the demand for new homes starts with the idea in mind that they could then sell for a 20-30 percent profit once the home was completed. This was the ultimate pyramid scheme that was doomed to collapse. Once it did, more and more homes became available for rent at increasingly lower rent prices.

We now have a situation where home prices (in some areas) are significantly below 2004 prices. This is particularly the case in Loudoun, Prince William and Prince Georges counties. Mortgage payments, particularly after taxes, are now lower than rents. As a result, buyers have begun to recognize the unprecedented opportunities they are being offered and are beginning to come back into the market at a rapidly increasing rate. The following information is from a Weichert report:

A recent study released by the National Association of Realtors (NAR) at the 2008 Realtors Conference & Expo provides important information about first-time homebuyers. Specifically, the research showed that first-time buyers are responding to favorable market conditions, purchasing homes in greater numbers and helping to reduce the inventory of homes for sale.

The number of first-time buyers rose to 41 percent from 39 percent of all transactions in 2007, and NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun expects this figure to continue increasing due to the first-time buyer tax credit of up to $7,500 (see my earlier posting form more info on the tax credit) and better access to financing through the FHA loan program.

In addition, these facts about first-time buyers were released:

• The median age was 30, down from 31 in 2007.
• The median income was $60,600.
• The typical home purchased cost $165,000.
• 92% chose a fixed rate mortgage

Anyone who is still renting and has a decent credit score should seriously consider purchasing a home before the market starts heading back up. The days of 25 percent increases each year won’t be back, but I am firmly convinced that we will begin to see 4-5 percent appreciation beginning next year. With a ten percent downpayment, this translates into a 100 percent appreciation on your investment.

To better understand how this works, give me a call or send an e-mail.

Comparison of October 2008 Sales to October 2007

October                                      2008                2007                 % Change
Total Sold Dollar Volume:     $ 8,477,500     $ 9,427,400         – 10.08 %
Average Sold Price:               $    605,536     $    628,493         -   3.65 %
Median Sold Price:                $    586,000     $    491,000            19.35 %
Total Units Sold:                        14                      15                  -  6.67 %
Average Days on Market:           74                    113                  – 34.51 %
Average List Price for Solds:  $   642,957      $   688,907           -   6.67 %
Avg Sale Price as a
percentage of Avg List Price:     94.18 %           91.23 %