Analyzing Fairfax real estate involves both value analysis and area analysis. You’ve probably heard of the saying that the 3 most important rules in real estate are Location, Location, Location, but actually, that’s just partly true. The three words you need to understand in real estate analysis are: Jobs, Jobs, Jobs!
Those 3 words are more influential and encompassing than just location. It’s really quite simple to explain if you think about it. Places without employment opportunities aren’t going to attract people to move into them. People will actually even move away from places that have a diminishing employment base because jobs are really more important. It doesn’t matter if you’re located in the best state in the area if there are no jobs or its economy is taking a beating. People will move away and homes in the area will have less or even no demand.
Jobs can also create noticeable differences in real estate values with towns only ten miles apart from each other. The town’s entire economic base, which consists of all its economic engines, is an important factor. Areas that have a large state or federal government presence are best, and so are those with large military or corporate presences. Small businesses are good, too.
However, areas that are largely dependent on only one economic engine have unsafe and unreliable housing values. If there’s only one group of corporations or one industry that provides most of the economic opportunities in the area, it’s like a one-legged stool. On the other hand, if there are 3 or 4 different industries, such as government, businesses, military, or there are large universities present in an area, this diversity will make the economy more dynamic and stable. Keep this in mind if you are still considering different areas.
The next important factors after jobs are the neighborhoods and subdivisions and their amenities, schools, shopping, and the major road and highway access they have to employment centers.
Those without children might think that schools aren’t important, but actually, it will matter to the next person to buy their property, so it directly affects resale value. The same can be applied for employment center access, since even if you don’t work locally, the next buyer might. Being close to work is a relevant issue especially in the future, as population density increases. All these need to be taken into account in analyzing the value of Fairfax VA homes for sale.
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Thierry is a Real Estate Agent at RE/MAX Premier, and Host of Talk Radio’s, “Inside Real Estate”
Thierry & his team Guarantee a $25,000 minimum savings for Northern VA Homebuyersby applying his unique insider techniques & strategies that he discovered throughout 8 years of exclusive Radio Interviews & Insider Access to wealthy Real Estate Insiders, Investors & Top Industry experts.
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