In the 2 zip code 22102 (McLean) and 22182 (Vienna), what I lovingly refer to as the Tysons Corner Area, in February 2010  there were 6 Townhomes sold.  These 6 homes were sold in 5 Tysons Corner communities = Amberwood, Courthouse Station (2), Hahn Property, The Reserve at Tysons Corner, and Tysons Manor.  Prices for these homes ranged from as low as $432,000 for the no garage, (built in 1970) 3 level town home in Tysons Manor, to as high as $826,750 for the practically brand new (built in 2009) 2 car garage Townhome at The Reserve at Tysons Corner.

Of the 6 townhomes sold in the Tysons Corner Area in February 2010, none were bank owned and none were short sale situations.  The average days on market was 24.  The average seller subsidy was $983.33.  These Tysons Corner townhomes sold for 98.34% of their list price at time of contract.

6 Townhomes sold in Tysons Corner Area (McLean + Vienna) in February 2010

data from MRIS

Don’t worry, it’s not a huge stretch of road.  But it is definately gone.

Do not be surprised if the you’re coming from McLean and as you get closer to the Capital One building and where route 123 meets the beltway, the traffic starts to slow.  I know it often does this anyway, but it will be even more so now.  The Dulles Metro project is in full swing, and in order to do what they need to do there will be some hiccups in our Tysons Corner (McLean + Vienna) Area traffic patterns.

The stretch that the lane is missing is basically on West bound route 123, starting at the intersection of Scott’s Crossing and Route 123 and going upto the 495 (Beltway) overpass.  This construction coincides with the location of the Tysons East Metro stop.  It will be the first of 4 Metro stops on the Dulles Metro line, also known as the Silver line.

Today, 2/26/10, there are 35 properties for sale in the Tysons Corner area (McLean 22102 zip code + Vienna 22182 zip code) in the price range from $300,000 to $600,000. 

Quick Facts

- 19 are Condos, 8 are townhomes, and 8 are detached single family homes

- Communities with properties for sale in Tysons Corner Area in the price range $300,000 to $600,000 = Courthouse Station (2), Dunn Loring Garden, Eudora, Fountains at McLean, Hahn Property (2), Hallcrest Heights (2), Lillian Court (2), Madrillon Springs, Martin, Park Crest (only 2 listed), Regency at McLean (5), Rotonda (7), Spring Lake (2), Sunnybrook, The Colonies (2), The Trails, Tysons Townes, and Tysons Woods

- Distressed Properties (5 of 35 total properties) = 1 is a bank owned property, and 4 are listed as potential short sales.

Tysons Corner available real estate $300,000-$600,000

data from MRIS

Today, 2/19/10, there are 12 properties for sale in the Tysons Corner area (McLean 22102 zip code + Vienna 22182 zip code) under $300,000.  All of those are 1 and 2 bedroom condos located in the 22102 (McLean) zip code.

Quick Facts

- Communities with properties for sale in Tysons Corner <$300,000 = Encore of McLean (1), Fountains at McLean (1), Gates of McLean (5), Regency (1), Rotonda (2), and The Colonies (2).

- All are 1 level properties

- 10 of the 12 are 1 bedroom properties, the other 2 are 2 bedroom properties.

- Distressed Properties (3 of 12 total properties) = 1 is a bank owned property, and 2 are listed as potential short sales.

On the Market right now (2-19-10 11:48am) in Tysons Corner, Virginia under $300,000

data from MRIS

Fairfax County, VA (parent of Tysons Corner) ranks 5th in the nation in wages

In the February 11th issue of this year’s Sun Gazette local (McLean, Vienna, Great Falls, etc.) paper, there was an article by Scott McCaffrey, “Fairfax 5th in Wages Amoung Big U.S. Counties.”

The article quoted figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showing that the counties residents average weekly wage (from 2nd quarter 2009) was 60.4% higher than the national average.

The top 10 earning counties in the country were =

1) New York County (Manhattan)

2) Santa Clara County, CA

3) Arlington County, VA

4) The District of Columbia

5) Fairfax County, VA

6) Fairfield, Conn.

7) San Mateo, CA

San Francisco, CA

9) Suffolk, MA

10) Somerset, NJ

That bodes well for Tysons Corner residents in terms of abilty to purchase and own real estate.  Lets see how many of those big earners purchase this year!

Tysons Corner area Home sales in January 2010

- 23 Homes Sold in Tysons Corner Area (22102 McLean Zip Code + 22182 Vienna Zip Code) in January 2010

- The Type of homes sold were = 14 Tysons Corner Single Family Homes, 4 Tysons Corner Townhomes + 5 Tysons Corner Condos

- For all Tysons Corner Area Properties sold in January 2010 the average statistics were [1] 99.68% sold to list price ratio, [2] an average subsidy of $2,456.22 and [3] average of 98 days on the market

- The numbers are somewhat different by property type though:

–> Tysons Corner Single Family Homes = [1] 99.8% sold to list price ratio, [2] average subsidy of $1,942.2, and [3]average of 104 days on the market

–>Tysons Corner Townhomes = [1] 98.9%, sold to list price ratio, [2] $7,325.50 average subsidy, and [3] average of 88 days on the market

–> Tysons Corner Condos = [1] 100% sold to list price ratio, [2] average subsidy of ZERO ($0), and [3] an average of 89.8 days on the market.

- Homes sold in a variety of communities and neighborhoods =

–> Tysons Corner Single Family Homes = Colvins Glen, Estates at Great Falls, McLean Hamlet (2), Peacock Station, Pine Hill, Saddlebrook Farms, Shouse Village, Smith Farm, Spring Hill, Spring Lake, Timberly South, Woodhaven, and Woodside Estates

–> Tysons Corner Townhomes = Colonies of Madrillon, McLean Court, The Reserve at Tysons Corner, and Westwood towns

–> Tysons Corner Condos = Fountains at McLean, Regency at McLean, Rotonda (2), and The Colonies

- Of the 23 homes sold in the Tysons Corner area in January 2010, there was 1 identified as a Short Sale, and 1 identified as a “foreclosure” or bank owned sale

data from MRIS

Anicipated record snow fall has begun in Tysons Corner, Virginia

With just about all area schools closing for today and the weekend, the plans of many have changed.  The schools weren’t the only ones closing down, as the Metro and Dulles Transit Partners (the contractor joint venture company doing the construction of the new Silver Line) canceled all of it’s planned road closings for the recent future.

As is almost always the case, the weather future isn’t certain.  Although many are claiming the Tysons Corner area (McLean and Vienna, Virginia) will receive 12-36 inches of snow over the weekend.  That said I believe there won’t be very many home showings in the real estate market for this Saturday and Sunday.

Under Contract in 3 days in Tysons Corner

A new listing was put on the market in a Tysons Corner Condo community.  There were 7 groups of agents and buyers who saw the property in the first 24 hours.  All that while an underestimated snow storm was blanketing the area with 2+ inches.

An offer came in on the property the next day, Saturday.  A pre-planned open house occured on Sunday with 40+ people who came through the property.

By Sunday night there were 3 offers, and more agents and buyers hoping to see the property.  Monday afternoon the property is under contract over asking price.

The real estate market in Tysons Corner is not even close to freezing.

Waiting a few extra days or weeks to purchase a home this spring could cost buyers thousands of extra dollars as the office of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) implements several changes for loans guaranteed by the Federal Housing Authority (FHA).

Coming just weeks before the April 30 deadline for the Home Buyer Tax Credit and just days after the March 31 expiration of the Federal Reserve Board’s mortgage backed securities purchase program (which has kept home loan rates artificially low for over a year), these FHA changes make it even more important to act now to save big.

Here are a few reasons why:

On April 5th, the cost of required up-front mortgage insurance for loans guaranteed by the FHA will increase from 1.75% to 2.25%. For a borrower purchasing a $200,000 home with a $7,000 down payment, the up-front mortgage insurance will increase by $965. Up-front mortgage insurance is typically financed in the final loan amount so the impact to a monthly payment will be minimal but overall, the increase is still borne by the borrower both upfront and monthly.

Later this spring, the amount of money that a seller can return to the buyer from their sale proceeds will be reduced from 6% to 3%. The reduction in these “seller concessions” can increase the amount of cash a buyer will be required to pay at closing by $6,000 for a home purchase of $200,000.

There is only one way to avoid being affected by all of these costly changes that lie ahead – submit all FHA mortgage applications by the last week of March.

If I can answer any questions you may have about how these changes could impact you, call me. I appreciate your business.

Post Courtesy of,

Leslie Wish
Suntrust Mortgage

Tysons Corner Virginia

In an article 1-4-2010, Dan Beyers of the Washington Post wrote that the Top Washington Business stories of 2009 were =

[1] Tough Year for Retailers – Circuit City was used as an example, as it shut its doors to all retail locations in 2009. Ritz Camera was anothere example of a company going through some tough times, although it seemed to be trying to survive.

[2] Abe Pollin’s death, is the area’s loss of a good person, sports team owner, and former developer.

[3] Local speciality finance companies: Allied Capital, Capital Source, and American Capital, were hit hard during the recession.

[4] Prominent local car dealers losing local franchises due to bankruptcies.

[5] The rise of unemployment.

[6] Lawfirm merger of DC’s Hogan + Hartson to London’s Lovells.

[7] Fairfax County scores big in getting companies to move their headquarters to the area: Hilton (Tysons Corner), SAIC (Tysons Corner) + Ignite Institute for Individualized Health.

[8] “The Executive Shuffle,” as movement in key positions continued at Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae.

[9] The project to bring Metro to Dulles airport began construction on the first phase and was awarded federal funding.

[10] Westgroup announced the sale of it’s 42 acres in the McLean/Tysons area.

[11] Cupcake shops abound in Greater Washington area.

We are reminded that the Tysons Corner area is a key player in the area’s, the nation’s capital’s, goings on; As it is prominent in six of the above stories = 1, 7, 8, 9, 10 + 11.  What do you think was an impactful event, story in the Tysons Corner area in 2009? Business? Transportation? Real Estate ([a] the constant improvement at the end of the year [b] 2009 better than 2008!)?