Sweet Summer Surprise!

Sometimes a new home comes with a surprise. In my case, the surprise came a few years after I moved in, when I realized my backyard in Ivy is home to an enormous patch of wineberries. I am not much of a gardener, and am not the least bit "outdoorsy" but the first week of July now tempts me to put on jeans, gloves and a long sleeve shirt every morning and brave the brambles to collect a bowl of fresh deliciousness. It takes quite an effort to collect a small bowl - usually eaten with vanilla yogurt. I've not yet had the patience to try for a "pies-worth" but I may one day soon! The fruit is about to burst forth and I cannot keep up with the deluge of berries, so if anybody wants a taste, or wants to grab a stem ( this Autumn?) to propagate, just let me know.

Retro in the Extreme!

Do you secretly love your laminate countertops, your Danish Modern buffet, your black lacquer headboard or your kidney shaped coffee table? Do you long for Brady Bunch style or miss the glitter and glitz of the 80's? If you're into a retro style, whatever, the era don't miss this recent NYT article Living in a Time Capsule.

A Cville Thing: the PieFest

If you're not on Twitter, you might not yet have heard of the upcoming Cville Pie Fest. The Fest is an outgrowth of last month's twitter-conceived, s Cville Pie Down, in which local bloggers Marijean Jaggers (STLouisWorkingMom) Brian Geiger (TheFoodGeek) squared off to see who is the "Master of Pie".

Mark your calendar now for the Pie Fest, Coming Sat. Oct 3, 2009 at the soon to be opened Mudhouse Crozet. Nest Realty Group's own Jim Duncan is slated to judge and we will be there hoping to get our piece of the pie too!

You can follow the Piefest on Twitter at @CvillePieFest.

More about Mortgage Relief

Another useful, informative article in today's Times: Penetrating the Maze of Mortgage Relief. The bottom line? Get connected with a HUD certified housing counselor. In Central Virginia, call Piedmont Housing Alliance at 434.817.2436 for assistance.

Yum in Charlottesville

Hey Charlottesville locals and prospective visitors: mark your calendars for the first ever Charlottesville Restaurant Week, July 3 - 19, 2009. Enjoy gourmet tasting menus for a fixed price of 25/person throughout town, throughout the week. Planning is still in the works & the list of participating venues will grow in the next month, so stay tuned!

New at Nest (Charlottesville's Innovative Real Estate Brokerage)

Just a quick update on 2 exciting developments at my new firm, Nest Realty Group:

1) We have welcomed a new Nestmate: Heather Griffith! Learn more about Heather and her project, the Woodlands of Charlottesville, here at the Nest Report.

2) We are weeks away from occupying our new "Nest" in downtown Charlottesville. The uber-cool space will itself represent a new approach to real estate in Cville. Watch for our big reveal.

The opening of our office will be a landmark for me and for my colleagues, not just because we long for access to a high speed scanner, but because this office will truly be a home for us: a place where we can welcome our clients, customers, friends and the public to engage, debate, and learn about the real estate market, the economy, local development, community planning, architecture, design, our firm's philosophy/approach to the real estate business and many other topics which unite and drive us.

I look forward to meeting you there!

Do You Qualify for Mortgage Relief?

Navigating all the new information about mortgage relief and restructuring can be daunting. If you think you might qualify, have a look at Mortgage Relief Online, brought to you by the same people behind your "FICO" score.

An article in the New York Times outlines the capabilities of this site which helps you assess your financial situation, determine if you qualify for a restructuring, puts you in touch with non-profit credit counseling services and helps you start the process.

Green Resources in Cville and Albemarle

Thanks to the CAAR staff for spreading the word about this Albemarle County Green Resource page! Quoting directly from the CAAR Newsletter:

"Albemarle County’s new Green Resource Map, available on the County website, is intended to make “green living” more convenient for residents by:

• Providing a resource for residents to find out where they can reuse, recycle and/or properly dispose of common household items (e.g. electronics, motor oil, inks/toner, compact fluorescent bulbs, etc.)
• Highlighting Park & Ride sites to make carpooling easier
• Featuring farmers market locations so that residents can choose to “eat local”
• Including green demonstration projects for residents to tour/visit/see, such as LEED certified buildings, rain gardens, solar energy sites, green roofs, etc.

The Green Resource Map will be updated periodically as new features become available. "

Virginia Wine Country Featured on CNN

The Charlottesville area makes news again, featured on CNN in a story about Virginia Wine County.

The Silver Lining

Here is an article from today's NYT about first time homebuyers making the most of the foreclosure crisis. This is a process I have observed in action here in Charlottesville. First time home buyers are definitely playing a big role in re-invigorating the market.

Is it better to Rent or Buy?

Without considering the soft issues involved in that decision, here is a calculator from the New York Times which might help!

Albemarle County School 2009 - 2010 Schedule

Here it is for those of you planning your summer and beyond. School starts up on Tuesday, Aug 25, 2009.

Fruit and Veggies coming soon to Charlottesville!

Horse and Buggy produce is gearing up for their next season, with a new website and online ordering. I did H&B last year and it was fabulous!! Think about giving it a try, or looking into one of the many other area CSA's ( Community Supported Agriculture )...Makes me feel like Spring is coming despite today's rain and gloom!! Have a yummy summer!

A heartbreaking state of the Union

3 stories from just today's news sites:

1 in 50 children in the US homeless or nearly so

Living in a motel: hidden homelessness

Shelter for the Homeless

Countdown to Match Day - March 19, 2009. Will you need a home in Charlottesville?

Click here for the Match Day Schedule if you're pursuing a UVA Residency!

If you may be coming to Virginia for a few years, you can search for properties now at Go Virginia Homes! and contact me any time by phone at 434.760.1319 or email to ambw@comcast.net to schedule your Charlottesville Area Home Buying Tour.

Answers to many of your questions about the Albemarle and Charlottesville Community and the Home Buying Process can be found online too....and don't be hesitant to reach out to me if you need more information or just have preliminary concerns.

Do you Qualify for Assistance under the New Housing Plan?

Great article in today's WSJ with lots of details about the new housing plan and who qualifies to benefit from it.

Charlottesville Real Estate Site Re-Launch

I am pleased to introduce an update to my Charlottesville Real Estate Website. I hope you enjoy the updates and revised look. The downside of this change, however, is that some of the older links from this blog into my website are no longer functional. I apologize for the inconvenience. Feel free to contact me if you have any problems with this and need information!

Charlottesville Open House List and Map for 3/1/09

Spring has sprung and the number of new listings on the market is picking up. If you are thinking of visiting open houses this weekend, here is an interactive Google Map of Charlottesville Open Houses incorporating all public houses listed in the CAAR MLS (as of this blog post) for Sunday, March 1 2009. and here are more details on these homes.

You can search the Charlottesville MLS and conduct your own Charlottesville Open House Search without registering on my Charlottesville Real Estate Website, and find lots of useful resources , topics for homes buyers and information about our community!

If you have questions, please feel free to email me any time.

Amy Webb
Nest Realty Group
Charlottesville, Virginia
visit me online at A Home in Charlottesville
Licensed to sell real estate in Virginia

Time for a Change: Now with Nest!

I happily announce my affiliation with Nest Realty Group, Charlottesville's new, innovative real estate firm.

I am excited to be joining a talented team of tech savvy, service focused, dedicated agents. I look forward to getting my broker's license within the year and to being part of the changing face of real estate in an era of transparency and consumer empowerment.

I'm particularly proud to subscribe to Nest's core values and client-centric approach to real estate. I invite you to learn more about Nest Realty at our website and at the Nest Report blog. You can also check out my updated personal web page A Home in Charlottesville.

Charlottesville Open House Map for February 8, 2009

Lots of Sunday Open Houses this week: 44! ...which is a big uptick from the last few weeks.

Here is an interactive Google Map of Charlottesville Open Houses incorporating all public houses listed in the CAAR MLS (as of this blog post) for Sunday, February 8, 2009. and here are more details on these homes.

You can search the Charlottesville MLS and conduct your own Charlottesville Open House Search without registering on my Charlottesville Real Estate Website, and find lots of useful resources , topics for homes buyers and information about our community!

If you have questions, please feel free to email me any time.