Summer in Charlottesville With Memorial Day weekend behind us, the unofficial start to summer has begun in the Charlottesville area. With the students now gone for the summer – this is how many locals tell the time of year here based on when UVA is in session or not – it’s the perfect opportunity to […]
Farmington – Charlottesville
A walk down history lane in Farmington One of Charlottesville’s premier neighborhoods for over 87 years, Farmington, is located just west of Charlottesville. A quick 5-minute drive back to UVA has made this a convenient place to live for those who want the access to the city and its amenities, and yet live in a […]
Glenmore – Keswick VA
Exploring Glenmore Charlottesville is home to several historic mansions that have become the anchors for popular neighborhood developments. The historic namesake for the neighborhood we’re featuring today was built in 1724 and is the original manor home to Albemarle County’s largest gated community – Glenmore. It’s minutes away from nearby Martha Jefferson Hospital at Pantops, […]
Barracks Rugby - Charlottesville
Living Close to UVA – Barracks Road/Rugby Neighborhood We’ve discussed Charlottesville city walking scores in a previous blog, but the Rugby/Barracks Road area in particular boasts the best walkable score of all. With a strong residential population of UVA students and professors alike and families that want to be close to everything Charlottesville has to […]
Walker Square – Charlottesville
Walker Square West Main Street has become the place to live for undergrad and grad students at UVA or young professionals who work at UVA or Downtown. One of the first developments to revitalize the area, construction on Walker Square began in 2004. Consisting mainly of one- and two-bedroom units, studio and executive style, there […]
Mill Creek – Charlottesville
Introducing … Mill Creek! Mill Creek is a popular residential neighborhood located just off Avon Street Extended and past where the new Wegman’s is being built – many residents there are incredibly excited about the national grocery store setting up shop and being able to easily access Fifth Street via the new cross through. This […]
Pros and Cons of a HOA
We’re often asked by prospective Buyers first, what’s an HOA and what does it cover, and second, what are the pros and cons of living in a neighborhood with an HOA? The first is relatively simple to answer. You’re required to join an HOA – or Home Owners Association – when you purchase a condominium, […]
Clean Your Home Before AND After Selling
The importance of Cleaning Your Home Before AND After Selling In previous blogs, we’ve discussed the important of decluttering a house before listing it, and also about what the term “broom clean” means as you’re getting ready to close, but what about the importance of having a clean home before and during listing, and then […]
Why your Home Appraisal is Low
Why your Home Appraisal is Low Many Sellers have been faced with this problem – after going through contract and home inspection negotiations, everything is waiting on the appraisal report, and then it comes back lower than the sales price – what to do next? First, don’t panic – this happens more frequently than you […]
The Jefferson Theater in Charlottesville
The Jefferson Theater in Charlottesville Charlottesville’s Downtown Mall is fortunate to have two renovated theaters that offer residents and visitors alike a plethora of entertainment options in the way of music, plays, private event space and movies. The older of the two (the Paramount Theater opened 19 years later), the Jefferson Theater has been a […]
Virginia Discovery Museum – Explore Something New!
Virginia Discovery Museum – Explore Something New! As parents all over central Virginia know, the Virginia Discovery Museum (VDM) has become a vital link as a safe place to take their young children to play and explore the revolving exhibits and fun, brightly colored rooms on Charlottesville’s Downtown Mall since 1990. Any given weekend you […]
Charlottesville SPCA – a No-Kill Organization
The Charlottesville-Albemarle area has been served for over 100 years by the Charlottesville Albemarle SPCA (CASPCA), which was founded in 1914 and then located in the Market Street livery. Many local residents remember the first official location, founded in 1956, off of Woodburn/Rio Road, on eight acres, that was transformed out of a chicken coop. […]
Preschools in Charlottesville
Preschools in Charlottesville This is the time of year when parents in our area are making plans for enrolling in preschools for the next school year – which typically starts in early September. While it can seem that all of the options you’re interested in have already filled up for the year by January, there […]
Interview with a Professional Home Inspector
Interview with a Professional Home Inspector Having an inspection done is the only way for Sellers and Buyers to know the state of a house, at a given point in time, and have a general understanding of what to look out for in the way of potential upcoming repairs. Your home inspector wants the process […]
Ways to Prepare for Your Home Inspection
Ways to Prepare for Your Home Inspection After you’ve fallen in love with your dream home, ratified the contract and contacted your lender, the next vital step in the buying process – for both Sellers and Buyers – is the home inspection. Having an inspection done is the only way for Sellers and Buyers to […]
Renting in Charlottesville
Renting in Charlottesville Here at Solutions we often get asked about rentals in the Charlottesville area. We do not deal with rentals in our local market as it requires an agent that specializes in just rentals to be beneficial to the public. We specialize on new construction and resale. Most people do not realize that […]
Will Bookcases Become Obsolete?
Will Bookcases Become Obsolete? With all the talk of technology, e-readers and cell phones, it appears likely for people to assume books will also go the way of the dodo – with bookcases not far behind, because, if you don’t need them for books, what use are they? To many, a house without books is […]
Does it Ever Snow in Charlottesville?
Although many Charlottesville area residents thought that the 70-degree weather we enjoyed around the recent 2015 holiday season would last forever, we finally had our first taste of winter with this past weekend’s storm – called Jonas – courtesy of El Niño. Although people have been known to make fun of the havoc an inch […]
House Hunting – Dos and Don’ts
House Hunting – Dos and Don’ts Searching for a house can be challenging and time-consuming, and most won’t be “the one.” It’s tempting to dive right in and start looking at every open house listed in the paper or online. But before you dedicate your weekends, you need to know what you’re looking for. In […]
Pros & Cons of Removing Shoes Before Showing a House
Pros & Cons of Removing Shoes Before Showing a House Sellers want their houses shown in the best light, and many think that asking potential Buyers and their agents to remove their shoes is the perfect solution – thereby keeping their houses clean and dirt-free. Some Sellers, for example, may have severe asthma – so […]
Downsizing in Charlottesville
Whether you’re an empty nester moving from a house into a condo, or a renter trading in a two-bedroom for a studio, downsizing is hard— a smaller place means you don’t have room for all of your current belongings. But downsizing is also an opportunity to refresh and start anew. If you get rid of […]
Charlottesville Doctor’s Loan
Doctor Mortgage Loan Here in Charlottesville, we are home to the University of Virginia Hospital, one of the premier teaching hospitals in the state and on the East Coast. Every year in the United States,16,000 new doctors graduate from medical school and about the same number graduate from residency. Every year here in March, know […]
To Move or Not to Move Before the Baby Comes
To Move or Not to Move Before the Baby Comes Moving can be one of the most stressful things you can do under normal circumstances. But when you add in the factor of moving while pregnant – whether you’re three, five or even nine months along – this can take the stress to a whole […]
Tips for Painting your Home
Tips for Freshening Up Your Home’s Paint The fastest way to grab attention for your home, and improve its curb appeal and resale value, is a fresh coat of exterior paint. It not only makes your house look nicer and last longer, but it also prompts a potential buyer to want to check out the […]
Hidden Costs of Buying a Home
Many first time homebuyers have in mind that they need at least a 20% down payment and a monthly check for the mortgage. But that’s not the entire story when it comes to buying a home. There are a mountain of “hidden” costs — from closing fees to taxes — that can add up to […]
How to Make a Small Room Appear Bigger
When it comes to listing a home it’s ideal to have professional photos done to show off every aspect of every room, but there are some rooms that are just so small they often get skipped in this process. But, there ARE ways to make these rooms – which are often bathrooms – stand out […]
Should you Renovate or Sell AS-IS?
We often get asked by our Sellers, is it worth making a ton of home improvements – other than the typical staging suggestions we’ve made in previous blogs – or should you sell “as-is”? Of course, it depends on what the Seller can afford to do, how much the Seller wants to make on the […]
7 Signs That Your Home Is Over-Priced
We get asked lots of questions about when the best time to list a home is – we’re heading into a traditionally quiet time of year – but there are other ways to make sure your listing gets noticed. We’ve talked about ways to spruce up your home so it stands out, from curb appeal […]
Fun Winery Events Around Charlottesville
While many farms and businesses around the Charlottesville area were concerned about the dearth of rain here in August, the local wineries were beyond happy as dry weather just before harvest was exactly what was needed to stave off disease and help ripen the fruit to peak perfection. The 2015 vintage here began wet, with […]
Walking Trails in Charlottesville
We recently talked about Charlottesville’s Walk Score, which, a few years ago, named us the most walkable city in Virginia, and now we have some more information for our Solutions audience on many of the lovely walking/hiking/biking/running trails that circle in and around the city. Charlottesville Parks and Recreation, according to their website, maintains nearly […]
