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Recent Articles from Bob and Donna McWilliams
Realities of Real Estate: The million-dollar market
Million dollar homes aren’t uncommon in this neck of the woods. It stands to reason, since incomes around the Washington DC area are much higher than the nation as a whole.
Realities of Real Estate: How’s the market?
Whenever we’re out and about, people who know us from the paper, or recognize the Champion Realty ball caps we wear to work around the house, always have the same question: “How’s the market?”
Realities of Real Estate: What do sellers need to disclose?
We’ve all heard the phrase “caveat emptor,” which is Latin for “Let the buyer beware.” According to Wikipedia, “The phrase caveat emptor arises from the fact that buyers often have less information about the good or service they are purchasing, while the seller has more information.
Realities of Real Estate: How accurate are state property assessments?
Every three years, the state will reassess the value of your property. And because real estate taxes are calculated by using a combination of the tax “rate” and assessed property values, how your assessment changes can have a substantial impact on what you’ll owe in real estate taxes.
Realities of Real Estate: Getting your house ready for sale
Every year about this time, people start asking us, “What should I do to get my house ready for sale.”
Realities of Real Estate: How the economy affects real estate
Real estate is such a large part of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) that some believe significant changes in the housing market can affect the trajectory of our economy as a whole.
Realities of Real Estate: What’s hot in home design
One of the most interesting aspects of our job is the ability to see a wide variety of homes, as well as the style with which people decorate them. Over the many years that we’ve been real estate agents, and certainly since our youth, the basic layout for a house has evolved to meet changing consumer needs and wants.
Realities of Real Estate: Important real estate trends for 2015
As soon as the year-end numbers come in, we’ll recap the performance for real estate in 2014. But for now, let’s look forward to the trends and market dynamics that are expected to shape real estate during the year that is yet to be.
Realities of Real Estate: Why we live where we live
As part of our profession in real estate, we’ve seen and sold a wide variety of homes, everything from a $14,000 double-wide to multi-million dollar waterfront estates.
Realities of Real Estate: Online, on the prowl for homes
Back when we first started our career in real estate, some 20 years ago, the process for buying a house was quite different from how it’s done today.
Realities of Real Estate: Where have first-time buyers gone?
Although the housing market continues to recover, there’s one important segment of the market that is lagging behind — first-time home buyers.
Realities of Real Estate: For status updates, check with agent
When you hear the question, “What’s your status?” many people think it’s time to update their Facebook pages with news about a life-changing event.
