Events

The Military Children World Expo 2024 is coming to Pentagon City to honor and celebrate the resilience of military children.

The event — scheduled for Saturday, April 27 at the Pentagon City mall (1100 S. Hayes Street) from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. — is free to the public and promises a lineup of family-friendly activities, such as face painting, art and sculpture exhibitions, musical performances, contests, workshops and scavenger hunts, per the expo’s website.


Around Town

A new barbershop promising “more than just a haircut” is in the works in Clarendon.

Signage for Bold Blade Barbershop has appeared at 2836 Wilson Blvd, at the former site of A&R Engravers and on the same block as the former IOTA Club and Cafe.


Sponsored

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: Does the cost of renting a home in Arlington increase at a similar rate as the cost of buying a home in Arlington?

Answer: The cost of renting and buying a detached home increases at a similar rate, but the cost of renting a condo has outpaced the cost of buying a condo.

Condo Rents Rising Faster than Condo Prices

Since 2020, the cost of renting a detached home in Arlington increased at a similar rate as the cost of buying a detached home; 26% and 28%, respectively.

However, the cost of renting a condo increased significantly faster than the cost of buying a condo; 21% and 6%, respectively.

Sale Price to Rental Rate Multiple Shifts with Interest Rates

The table below shows the average price and $/SF of buying a detached home or condo relative to the average annual rent for a detached home or condo, in Arlington. Higher multiples show that buying is becoming more expensive relative to renting.

Takeaway: Condo buyers are more rate sensitive than detached home buyers and are more likely to rent (higher rental demand = strong condo rent appreciation) than buy (weakened purchase demand = low condo value appreciation) when interest rates increase. Notice how quickly the sale price to rental rate multiple drops from 2020/2021 to 2022/2023 (rates skyrocketed spring/summer 2022). (more…)


Opinion

There’s no place like home. Especially if you’re from one of the safest, happiest, fittest, most climate resilient, most livable, most Millennial- and renter-friendly places in the United States.

This month’s Mike Mount cartoon hits on some familiar notes to make the point that, even on a deserted island, an Arlingtonian might find themselves trying to figure out ways to feel more connected to our fair county.


News

Gov. Signs Vape Shop Bill — “The governor on April 5 signed HB 947, a Lopez bill giving localities the power to regulate the location of vape shops and other venues that deal in nicotine products, including a prohibition of operating within 1,000 linear feet of a school or day-care facility. There are some exceptions: Existing facilities will have their previous approvals grandfathered in, and the measure does not apply to convenience stores or gas stations.” [Gazette Leader]

Preservation Bill Becoming Law — “The measure by Del. Patrick Hope (D-Arlington) would mandate a 30-day cooling-off period before a locality issues a permit to raze or demolish any building that is, at the time, being considered for local historic status… Gov. Youngkin signed the measure yesterday. Its provisions will got into effect July 1.” [Gazette Leader]


News

In a bid to preserve its paper-and-ink legacy, the Falls Church News-Press plans to introduce a few changes to its business model — chief among them a website paywall.

“If my deference to a print newspaper simply doesn’t afford us the ability to continue in that mode, we’ll try something else, at least on a temporary basis,” Nick Benton, founder and editor of the more than three-decade-old publication, told ARLnow. “I’ll do whatever it takes to keep the paper going.”


News

More stringent towing ordinances could be coming to Arlington as two bills targeting “predatory” practices are set to become law.

Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) has signed off on two pieces of legislation — both backed by Arlington lawmakers — allowing Northern Virginia local governments to set tighter restrictions on tow operators. This move could allow Arlington to implement changes to its towing ordinance originally approved in 2016 but later nixed by the state legislature.


Around Town

(Updated at 12:30 p.m.) A new burger restaurant featuring “contactless” food lockers is opening in Cherrydale this Saturday.

Burger Billy’s Joint is attempting to make fast food a little faster at 3800 Langston Blvd with a grab-and-go concept. Customers will order ahead or punch in their orders at the restaurant’s kiosks before retrieving their food from heated lockers.


Around Town

An intentionally “weird” shop specializing in international snacks, sodas and oddities has closed.

Highs & Lows’ location at the Pentagon City mall shuttered several weeks ago, a mall representative told ARLnow.