Two Dog Realty-Richmond, VA

 Hopefully part 1 has made sense and you're ready to hear more! First, let's address how this is viewed by Realtors. When the first ruling was issued in the first lawsuit, I think most of us (here in Virginia) felt generally confused and somewhat angry. This suit portrayed us as greedy liars who only want to rip off the public and now this judge has set everything straight and housing will be cheaper for everyone. This is what was all over the media, and even our own President said it would make things cheaper. The only one getting anything here besides the lawyers is some and yes I mean some sellers. I will address who now pays what below but what has happened is that now the buyer's are responsible for their agent's commission thus actually raising the cost of purchasing a home. In theory the only one saving is the seller, but in practice this isn't happening regularly, yet. The second thing was that the suit says that we were not being transparent with the public

  With our work we are often out and about all around the city during meal times. It’s just part of the job to sometimes have to eat lunch in the car or grab a quick bite to tide us over for an evening appointment during dinner time. But every once in a while, we take the time to try someplace new, often at lunch, and take a break from the rush. A couple of weeks ago we were near Innsbrook and I suggested Mama Cucina. https://www.facebook.com/MamaCucinaRVA/ This little Italian place has been in the strip shopping center at the front of Innsbrook at Cox and Broad for years. I’ve driven by this place for over a decade and it never got on my radar. So back to the story. Heather and I stopped in for lunch. Heather got the Chicken Pesto sandwich and loved it. The bread was fresh and the sub delicious she said. I got the Ravioli with Walnut Cheese Sauce and on one bite I was hooked. O My Word was this lunch good. Based on a fabulous lunch we made a pact to try and eat dinner there soon a

 Many of you have heard things on the news or on social media about recent court rulings against NAR (National Association of Realtors). But maybe you're confused by what it all means, well you're not alone. The settlement, which doesn't actually get full approval until November, has left a lot of Realtors confused as well. Luckily here in Central Virginia our MLS and Association made some of these changes  months ago and even some of them years ago. So here's a quick synopsis and keep in mind, I am in no way a legal expert, this is purely my point of view. It started out west with a lawsuit filed by sellers that did not like the fact that they were paying the buyer's agent a commission. They felt it wasn't fair to pay someone to work against them and they testified that they were not aware that it was their money going to the buyer's agent. All of this lead the DOJ to start looking into real estate practices. This is where and when it all blew up 💥  Up unt

 I want to explain the ONE mistake that many future homeowners are making. Updates at the end!! People have this idea that if they wait to buy a home they are going to have an advantage in the market. Like, by waiting a year or more, the market will correct itself enough that they are going to save a bunch of money on a house. But that's just likely not going to be the case. Simple housing supply vs demand forecasts say otherwise. But if we do see a decrease in housing prices, it doesn't necessarily mean housing will be more affordable. People tend to lose sight of overall affordability only considering prices and not considering mortgage rates into the affordability equation.....let me show you: right now, the average home for sale in Richmond is about $360,000 and the average interest rate is 3.6%. To make things simple, if a buyer puts 20% down (meaning 20% of the total purchase price), the 30 yr monthly mortgage payment (principal and interest) would be about $1310. But wai

 7 Hidden Gems of Richmond           Here are our Top 7 Hidden Gems of Richmond. Have you been to all of them? Some of them you may not even know about, especially if you're new to the area. Check them out.....and if you have one that we missed, let us know! #7. Great Shiplock Park-located at 2803 Dock St, it's at the site of the lowest lock that connected the James River to the Richmond Docks. Built in the early 1850's, the park was renovated in 2013 and is now part of the Virginia Capital Trail. #6. Edgar Allan Poe Museum-located at 1914 E. Main St, built around 1740 it's the oldest original residential building in Richmond and it's cool to visit just for that reason alone. Although Poe never actually lived in this home, he did spend quite a bit of time here in Richmond and this museum offers plenty of information on his life and even some interesting personal artifact. #5. Yuengling Caves-located along the docks at Rocketts Landing. You may not even know what you

As we've been saying for months now, the housing market has been absolutely bananas. The biggest problem we have is a lack of inventory, leading to multiple offers, bidding over the asking price and waiving inspections. If you're a frustrated buyer who's lost out on countless bids and is looking for an alternative, new construction may be an option. But whoa nelly on that galloping horse, don't jump in without checking over our list of "things to thin about when buying new construction". 5. Pricing- the signs at the front of the neighborhood will use terms like "starting from" when mentioning a price. Know that this is the price of a base house on a base lot and does not include anything extra. Most of the homes will run $50-$100K over that base price. How is that possible you may ask. Upgrades! Upgrades is the answer! The model home is going to be chock full of all the upgrades and you will want all of them! It's very important to look at the bu