The end of the week is here along with another list of open houses across Arlington!
Currently, there are 509 homes for sale, according to Homesnap. In the last 4 weeks there have been 161 new listings and 298 sales. The median sales price is $675,000 with a median list price of $650,000 and there have been 169 price changes.
(Updated at 4:10 p.m.) Rosslyn is about to get a bit more spicy with the opening of Hot Lola’s later this month.
The spicy chicken sandwich shop finally has a tentative opening date for its second Arlington location, with ownership now aiming for a soft opening on June 17, general manager Alan Vo tells ARLnow. Since they’ll still be training staff until June 21, everyone who walks in for an order during that time will get 30% off.
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].
Question: How common is it for a home sale to fall through once it’s under contract?
Answer: According to a recent study, 70% of sellers fear that buyers will back out of the deal before it closes. How often do real estate transactions actually fall apart?
Arlington, Northern VA Buyers Are Committed
Since 2019, less than 10% of real estate contracts fell through in Arlington, compared to 26.3% in Prince George’s County.
Just 11.4% of Northern VA real estate contracts didn’t make it to closing, as opposed to 13.8% in Montgomery County MD and 15.2% in Washington DC.
Spring Buyers Are More Committed
Homes that go under contract during the spring market are more likely to close than those that sell later in the year.
In Northern VA, just 9.6% of homes that go under contract in April fall through, but December contracts fall through 12.8% of the time; 12% more than average.
This pattern of fall-through rates follows a similar pattern of best and worst times to go to market for sellers. February through May often produce the best results for sellers in speed and price metrics, it also gives sellers the best chance at getting to the closing table.
Seasonal fall-through rates across the entire DMV market follow a similar trend as Northern VA, but the average fall-through rate increases 4-5% when you include DC and Maryland suburbs. (more…)
A series of outdoor summer concerts is starting tonight (Friday) in Crystal City.
NaLa Fridays at the Park, formerly known as Fridays at the Fountain, is set to be held at Long Bridge Park (475 Long Bridge Drive). The concert series is set to run through October, according to the event’s website. One concert is scheduled for each Friday between 5 p.m. and 8 p.m.
Ghost Limb is a timely and haunting examination of authoritarianism set during Argentina’s Dirty War that draws poetic inspiration from the Persephone and Demeter myth. When Consuelo’s son is “disappeared” by the military, she discovers a psychic link between her injured arm and her tortured child-and races to find him before it’s too late.
Performance Days and Times
Both the boys and girls Ultimate Frisbee teams from H-B Woodlawn and Washington-Liberty High School are set to compete in the high school national tournament today and tomorrow (Saturday).
The High School National Invite tournament is set to be held in Richmond. This is the first time the organizers Ultiworld and Competitive Ultimate Training have held the tournament since the pandemic, according to a news release.
Join us for the 12th Arlington Triathlon in Memory of Anne Viviani. This youth-only swim-bike-run event for ages 7-15 takes place Sunday, June 7th at Washington-Liberty Aquatics Center. It features a time-trial pool swim, a circuit bike course on closed streets, and an on-road run to the finish on the track. For registration, sponsorship information and more, please visit our website at www.triathlonfamilyusa.com. The race benefits the Arlington Triathlon Club, Arlington’s award-winning, elementary school-based multi-sport training program, the longest-running youth triathlon program of its kind in the country.
Expanding Board Would Require State Action — “The Civic Federation’s TiGER (Task Force in Governance and Election Reform] body has recommended a number of changes to Arlington’s governance structure, including changing the election cycle. But the most basic tenet – increasing from five to seven the number of County Board members – could determine whether the Republican governor and House of Delegates want to play nice.” [Sun Gazette]
Serious Crash on I-395 — From Dave Statter: “Serious crash with one ejected on I-395S at Arlington Ridge Road. Fire, EMS & police appeared to be looking to make sure no else was thrown from the vehicle.” [Twitter]
One of the main fireworks viewing spots in Arlington will be closed on the Fourth of July this year.
The Air Force Memorial will be closed on July 4, then will reopen on July 5, due to “safety and security” concerns caused by the ongoing Arlington National Cemetery expansion project.
Wonky GPS directions and old road design are some of the factors that have led some drivers to haphazardly cross several lanes of highway traffic at an I-395 exit, leading to multiple crashes.
Videos, captured from a Crystal City high-rise apartment by former local news reporter Dave Statter, show drivers consistently and dangerously moving across four lanes of southbound I-395 traffic specifically to make the lefthand Route 1 exit (8C).
A bear spotted roaming Arlington’s Maywood neighborhood on Monday has been seen elsewhere in the county since then.
The young black bear’s presence prompted a warning from local officials, who urged residents to keep their distance should they see it. Public curiosity about the ursine vagabond is keeping those officials tight-lipped over where the bear has been spotted since, however.
(Updated at 4:25 p.m.) The draft plan to allow more small-scale multifamily housing in Arlington has picked up another influential enforcement.
The county’s Missing Middle Housing Study draft framework recommends allowing everything from townhouses to an eight-unit apartment or condo buildings on land currently zoned exclusively for single-family detached homes. The lot size would determine the maximum number of units and the structure would be no bigger than what’s currently allowed by-right as a single-family home.
It’s a cold winter night in Almost, Maine — a small town so remote it never quite got around to being officially incorporated. The Northern Lights shimmer overhead, and something in the air makes ordinary moments feel a little electric. Over the course of one enchanted evening, love stories unfold across town: couples fall into each other, fall apart, fall back together. A man carries the weight of his broken heart in a paper bag. A woman returns the love she borrowed from a relationship that didn’t work out. Two strangers find themselves drawn together in ways neither can explain.
John Cariani’s Almost, Maine is funny and aching in equal measure — the kind of play that makes you laugh out loud one moment and go quiet the next. It’s about how love surprises us, how it shows up when we’re not looking, and how hard it is to say the thing we most need to say. It has become one of the most-produced plays in American high school theater for good reason: it speaks to everyone who has ever loved someone and struggled to find the words.
