Sponsored by Monday Properties and written by ARLnow, Startup Monday is a weekly column that highlights Arlington-based startups, founders, and local tech news. Monday Properties is proudly featuring 1515 Wilson Blvd in Rosslyn.
There is nothing Clarendon resident David Kolton loves more than hyping up the ancient Roman superfood legume, the lupini.
An affordable housing complex along Route 50 in the Buckingham neighborhood will officially open tomorrow.
The grand opening of The Cadence (4333 Arlington Blvd) on Tuesday, Dec. 6 caps off just over two years of construction. There will be remarks from project partners and local officials, followed by a ribbon cutting, community tour and reception, per the nonprofit behind the project, Wesley Housing.
This regularly scheduled column is written by Eli Tucker, Arlington-based Realtor and Arlington resident. If you would like to work with Eli and his team in Northern Virginia and the greater D.C. Metro area, you can reach him directly at [email protected].
Fannie Mae sets the rules for (most) residential lending and just released new requirements for condo loans. Here’s a link to the full release and I’ll highlight a few changes that have the biggest implications for Arlington/Northern VA condos.
Thanks to the always-on it, Trey Reed of Cross Country Mortgage ([email protected], 703.297.9382), for the notice and helpful explanation on these changes.
Elimination of 50% Investor-Owned (rental) Unit Limits
This rule caused mass confusion for years for condo boards/owners and is now eliminated.
Effective Immediately: The 50%+ investor-owned limit is eliminated for ALL loan types.
Why it Matters: This should increase the buyer pool for investor-heavy buildings which is good for values, but may push rental percentages even higher, which most owner-occupants consider a negative.
What to Watch: Many condo buildings with rental caps set them at, or just below, 50% because of this rule (I’m generally opposed to rental caps) so it makes sense that some buildings will drop their rental caps. On the other hand, the elimination of this rule may increase the number of investor purchases and owner-occupants may play defense by adding a rental cap. It’ll be interesting to see how this plays out over the next 2-3 years.
Increased Reserve Allocation to 15%
What Changed: For loan applications dated after Jan 4 2027, condos must budget at least 15% of their total income from assessments (condo fees) toward Reserve contributions.
Background Context: Previously, the requirement was 10%. Reserves are a building’s savings account for the maintenance and replacement of common elements (e.g. HVAC, roof, carpet, paint, parking garage, etc).
Between the Lines: Underfunded Reserves are the biggest financial risks for a condo association; and thus for the banks that lend to its owners. The minimum contribution requirement is an effort by Fannie Mae to reduce this risk exposure.
Why it Matters: This is a nationwide rule, but Arlington/Northern VA condos tend to be in a better financial position, with stronger reserve balances, than many others across the country and do not need 15%+ annual reserve contribution to properly maintain their Reserves. As a result, this rule will force these buildings, that have been financially responsible for years/decades, to increase condo fees unnecessarily to meet the new requirement. This will result in an unnecessarily overfunded Reserve account and put downward pressure on market values because monthly fees are higher. (more…)
The Ballston Silver Diner is finally opening this month, which means the Clarendon location is closing after 26 years.
The new Silver Diner at N. Glebe Road and Wilson Blvd, next to Target, is planning to officially start serving on Wednesday, Dec. 14, a restaurant spokesperson told ARLnow.
Two people were rescued from a precarious situation in Glencarlyn Park on Friday.
The driver of an SUV reportedly mistook the gas for the brake in the parking lot of the Long Branch Nature Center, sending it over an embankment and nearly into the creek below.
*Mamistad Groups meet IN PERSON-only the introductory Zoom call is virtual. :)
Pregnancy and new mom groups are a lifesaver when it comes to normalizing those feelings we just can’t be prepared for.
I-66 Change Takes Effect Today — “Starting Monday, Dec. 5, vehicles on I-66 in Northern Virginia will need three or more occupants to qualify as a High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV). This change from HOV-2+ to HOV-3+ applies across the entire I-66 corridor in Northern Virginia from Haymarket to the D.C. line, and is in line with regional policy and goals to reduce vehicle miles traveled and comply with federal Clean Air Act Amendment of 1990.” [Press Release]
Weight Restrictions Lifted on TR Bridge — “The Theodore Roosevelt Bridge reopened to all traffic Wednesday as the District lifted weight restrictions that had been in place since mid-February. The shift marks the completion of nearly 10 months of emergency closures and repairs at the span that carries Interstate 66 over the Potomac River. In February, the District Department of Transportation abruptly closed part of it to traffic after an inspection found steel support beams had continued to deteriorate.” [Washington Post]
Good Friday evening, Arlington. Today we published 6 articles that were read a total of 14680 times… so far.
The following are the most-read articles for today — Dec 2, 2022.
(Updated at 4:10 p.m.) Police issued a traffic ticket every six minutes, on average, during an enforcement effort in front of Nottingham Elementary on Thursday afternoon.
The several block stretch of Little Falls Road near the school, in the Williamsburg neighborhood, has seen three fatal pedestrian crashes since 2014, including an elderly woman who was struck and killed by the driver of an SUV in October. That driver is not facing criminal charges.
(Updated at 3:35 p.m.) Police swarmed the Rosslyn neighborhood after an alleged thief led an officer on a brief foot pursuit.
The incident happened just before 2 p.m. An officer chased a suspect who had stolen a large quantity of laundry detergent from a store in Rosslyn, according to scanner traffic, before finally detaining the person near the intersection of Wilson Blvd and N. Pierce Street.
It’s holiday time and the lights are coming on in Arlington.
Over the next several weeks, a slew of tree lightings, Santa visits, markets, and holiday celebrations are happening around the county. That’s in addition to last night’s Shirlington tree lighting and the Santa photo shoots already underway at the Pentagon City mall.
