Liz Local Peninsula - Spring 2022 Edition

THE PENINSULA SPRING 2022 Real Estate Market Predictions Help Your Kids Get on the Path to Building Wealth It’s a Great Time to Invest in Real Estate Azzurri Italian Restaurant

Real Estate Market Predictions There May Never Be a Better Time to Sell. So, What Does This Mean for Buyers? The primary factors that are influencing both national Buyers have had a tough go of it for the past 2 years. and local real estate markets right now – low supply and When there are 5 offers on a new listing, only 1 buyer is high demand – have converged to create an incredibly successful in their bid, leaving 4 disappointed and still favorable market for sellers. This is particularly true in looking. However, historically low interest rates are a our local market, where additional demand has been compelling reason to stay in the game, and also inspire a fueled by the pandemic; buyers who now work remotely buyer to pay over asking to win the bid on the property and can accordingly choose where they live and no they really want. longer be restricted by a commute, are finding the Closed sales on the Peninsula were up 19.1% in 2021 Peninsula a highly desirable place to live. over the prior year (and 42% at Liz Moore & Associates Sellers in 2021 enjoyed peak pricing, with the median Newport News Branch), so that’s good news. We sold price up 8.7% over last year on the Peninsula. That believe the key for buyers to win in the current market was enhanced by multiple offers in many instances. At climate is to hire a great agent. And, while that may Liz Moore & Associates, we pride ourselves on being sound self-serving, it’s true. Experienced agents who students of the market, and we monitor the trend of the understand the market, have solid relationships with the number of properties that sell over asking price. That other agents, and who are savvy negotiators will make was almost 60% of the market at its peak in June, and the difference for a buyer to be successful. still 39% at the end of the year. I predict that sales will drop slightly in 2022. So says My crystal ball says that the favorable trend for sellers Lawrence Yun, the Chief Economist for the National will continue well into 2022. The only 2 things likely Association of REALTORS, and I agree. Although to slow the train down are an increase in interest rates, there is plenty of demand out there, inventory is simply which will take some buyers out of the market, and an so low (hovering around a 1-month supply as of this influx of listing inventory, creating more competition. writing) that it will keep a lid on the number of sales. I do believe that both of those things will happen in 2022, but most likely not until the 2nd or 3rd quarter.. Real Estate is a Great Hedge Against Inflation. Liz Moore, If you invest $30,000 in the stock market, and your President annual return is 7%, then you’ve earned $2,100 (which is a lot better than you’ll do in a regular savings account in the bank!). Invest that same $30,000 as a down payment on a $300,000 home, and if it appreciates 7% in a year, then you’ve earned $21,000 – 10 times more! That’s the benefit that the leverage of real estate affords. This is a great time to explore investing in real estate; your portfolio can guarantee your retirement, or it can get your kids started on building lifetime wealth. Don’t let the intense market intimidate you. If you want to take advantage of the sellers’ market and the low interest rates to move up to a dream house for instance, don’t let the challenge of buying stop you. Your Liz Moore agent can help you formulate a strategy, and combined with a little patience, we can make it happen. In 2008, we all wished we had sold our homes back in 2005. Where will you be in 2025? *All stats based on Broker Metrics for REIN MLS areas 101-113 residential home sales in 2021.

Thank You! In March’s Sales Meeting, we presented Karen Gershman of the Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughters with a check for over $9,000 raised during the 2022 Cupcake Wars fundraiser. The Annual Liz Moore & Associates Cupcake Wars Fundraiser took place on February 11th and raised more than $20,000 in three hours across four offices making this the most successful fundraiser yet. Money raised was donated to CHKD, Comfort Zone Camp, and Smith Point Sea Rescue. Contents Real Estate Market Predictions Help Your Kids Get on the Path to Building Wealth It’s a Great Time to Invest in Real Estate Azzurri Italian Restaurant SPRING 2022 / LIZ LOCAL 3

Help Your Kids Get on the Path to Building Wealth By Brandy Centolanza Having a family member who works in real estate can be beneficial for first-time home buyers. Several Liz Moore real estate agents helped their family through the process of purchasing a home over the past few years. Elizabeth Jones assisted her two daughters in buying a home in 2020 and in 2021. “From a parent’s view, you want the best of everything for your child,” Jones says. “As a REALTOR®, your goals are no different.” Age shouldn’t be a factor when considering buying a home. “The earlier you can start thinking of homeownership instead of renting is paramount,” Jones says. “Communicating to your children the importance of good credit, a good lender, and placing them with the right REALTOR® are the necessary steps for buying a home. Starting young instead of renting is so much more cost effective, plus you are building for your future.” For Meg Clark, there were both rewards and challenges in helping her daughter find her first home, both from the perspective of a parent and an agent. “I was really excited to assist my daughter in helping her to purchase a new home,” Clark says. “She and I are a lot alike and love older homes, the character and the quirks. However, as she was a first-time home buyer with no real-world experience in homeownership and maintenance, I had to curb her enthusiasm for early 20th century homes with all the repairs, updates, and upkeep they often require.” At times, it was stressful, but Clark’s daughter ended up finding the perfect fit. “When we did find a mid-century home that had had some updating, it was a lot of fun helping her see the potential in the home for less money and lots of sweat equity,” Clark says. “She has loved the little house that she eventually settled on and now understands better the responsibilities that come with homeownership.” Clark is grateful for the experience of helping her daughter out. “Homeownership is one of the best, if not the best, ways to build generational wealth,” she says. “Being able to assist our kids in their first home purchase gives us peace of mind that we have helped them to be more financially secure now.” 4 SPRING 2022 / LIZ LOCAL

John Womeldorf agrees. He helped his 22-year- old son buy his first home a few months ago. His son had been living in an apartment but wanted more space including a garage where he can tinker with cars. Womeldorf started by encouraging his son to establish his credit, which took about six months. “The first step is to build up your credit,” Womeldorf says. “He did it mostly on his own, and he’s extremely happy. A lot of people think it is a lot of money to buy a house, but it is not undoable. Parents can help out and encourage their kids to save money.” Cassandra Zimmerman feels the same way about being there for her daughter and son-in-law as they purchased their home. “The reward of working with my daughter was watching her turn the house into their home,” Zimmerman says. “Being able to be there from the tour to move in was very special to me. My favorite moment was when their offer was accepted and seeing the excitement and joy they had.” First-time home buyers should keep several things in mind when purchasing a home, including: how long they see themselves in the house; costs both during the process such as down payment, inspection costs, and closing costs and after the house is officially theirs, including utility installation, furnishings, and any repairs to the home. It is a good idea for potential homeowners to draw up a list of “must haves” and “would like to haves” in a home before they begin hunting, and also consider the area in which they want to live before they meet with a REALTOR®. While the process of buying a home can be daunting, it is worth it. “Homeownership is a lot of work,” Zimmerman says. “In preparing to become a homeowner, it’s good to do research, and the best place to start is consulting your local real estate agent. There is a pride that comes with homeownership, but more than that, interest rates on a rental are 100 percent. Homeownership, when done right, makes a great investment, and it is never too early to start.” SPRING 2022 / LIZ LOCAL 5

It’s a Great Time to Invest in Real Estate By Brandy Centolanza There are several reasons for individuals to consider Virginia Payne, Director of Property Management/ investing in real estate and becoming landlords. Managing Broker for Liz Moore & Associates, is seeing Investing in rental properties is a great way to make more people wanting to invest in real estate as landlords. money, and can be less of a hassle than owning your own business or investing in stocks for those looking for “Investment ownership is not only quite prevalent in a financial safety net. our area, but becoming even more popular as people have money to invest and expect to see fluctuations in “I like owning real estate because it is proven to go the stock market this year,” Payne says. “It’s all about up in value, there are tax advantages for depreciation, return on investment. If you can buy something and and it’s income-producing,” says long-time Liz Moore have someone else pay for it while you reap the rewards, & Associates property management client George why not? Additionally, if you find a really great deal, Fiscella, who started in the real estate business 30 years you may even be generating cash flow.” ago working in residential construction with Virginia Enterprises Inc., and now buys and rents properties Payne offers a few suggestions for those who are thinking about investing in rental properties. through Cavalier Homes LLC. 6 SPRING 2022 / LIZ LOCAL

“Check your finances and make a plan,” she says. “Know “Tenants want their homes to be as nice as if they owned what area and price range you are looking for, and don’t them,” Payne says. “Pride in a rental generally translates deviate from this in the excitement of buying. Make sure to tenants taking better care of the property, which in that you have reserves in place to cover both expected turn is best for the landlord.” and unexpected expenses. Watch out for monthly HOA fee increases as well as special assessments.” Fiscella suggests starting with a smaller home and hiring Routine maintenance of properties is also essential to a property management company to look after the attract potential tenants as well as location. Other factors property. Management companies will help vet potential that may be important to those looking to rent a space tenants, help landlords get the best market rent value for include whether the property allows pets, whether the their properties as well as collect rent, and coordinate community has any amenities, and, of course, the cost to maintenance. live in the home. Keeping the property in good condition is a landlord’s responsibility, and expenses for upkeep or “Utilizing a property management company is highly improvements can be written off as tax deductions for recommended,” he says. “If you utilize a property rental property owners. manager, there isn’t much you have to do at all.” SPRING 2022 / LIZ LOCAL 7

Our Favorite Places: Azzurri Italian Restaurant By Leslie Pearce A Family Affair If you know Italian Restaurants, you know lots of family is usually involved! The legacy of chef/owner Giuseppe Fiorello of Azzuri Italian Restaurant runs deep on the Peninsula. His family has owned and operated several Italian restaurants in the area for decades. Giuseppe is the nephew of the famous Maurizio’s founder, which has been a Williamsburg staple since 1984. The family has been associated with several other Italian restaurants over the years, including Tony & Milena’s Pizzeria Inc., in Gloucester, and Antonio’s Ristorante Italiano in Williamsburg. 8 SPRING 2022 / LIZ LOCAL

Before coming to America from after his grandmother, Nonna. Carini, Sicily, Fiorello was making Ravioli Antonia’s features cheese bread and pizza after school in a ravioli sautéed with sausage and little bakery shop. “My dream was fresh tomatoes in a garlic wine always to come to the states,” said sauce, named for his mother. Fiorello. Uncle Maurizio asked Other favorite dishes are lasagna, him to come and work with him (which is made fresh daily), in Williamsburg in 2000 at age lobster ravioli, seafood cannelloni, 14. Giuseppe worked with both shrimp & scallops, and incredible his grandfather and uncle. For 17 garlic rolls. “We start every years, he learned all he could soak morning by making sauce from up at that popular Italian mainstay scratch which takes about two and eventually was running the hours.” place. He started thinking about “Business has been amazing; owning his own restaurant after the best year ever was last year! his grandfather, Francesco, passed Corona didn’t affect us too away in 2014. “He always told me much,” said Guiseppe. “We were I should start my own restaurant,” said Fiorello. a little scared for 5-6 Before taking months, but over Azzuri, new ideas Giuseppe brought us traveled back to back to the Palermo in 2015 normal level.” to work with Luckily, a famous chef. they already This experience, had a patio combined with for outside his grandfathers’ and uncles’ ideas, set him up to run seating and were using a lot of the delivery services. another strong family restaurant. In 2016, Giuseppe “We had regular customers who bought lots of gift took over Azzuri Italian Restaurant after the owner cards”, said Giuseppe. “Our incredible neighborhood retired. He brought his mom, Antonia, sisters, Maria was wonderful and very supportive. Customers love us and Francesca, and his brother like family, and we treat every from Sicily to help him. “If Want to go? customer like family here at you want to have a successful Azzuri.” restaurant you must have a passion Azzurri Italian Restaurant “The restaurant business is for cooking and be the best,” said 7 Hidenwood running in my blood, it makes Giuseppe. A regular customer me alive, and this is my house,” once told him, “You run the most Shopping Center said Guiseppe. The lyrical voice consistent restaurant I have ever Newport News VA 23185 of Andrea Bocelli filled the been to in my life.” restaurant as we spoke. The (757) 926-4890 One of Azzuri’s signature dishes azzurriitalianrestaurant.com enthusiasm and liveliness of is Nonna’s spinach salad, named Azzuri is truly energizing! SPRING 2022 / LIZ LOCAL 9

Love Where You Live! 341 Archer’s Mead | Kingsmill | $425,000 3804 Liberty Ridge Road | Windsor Woods | $365,000 1303 Glebe Road | Glebe | $330,000 215 Shifting Log | Willow Oaks | $310,000 Update Now. Pay Later. Sell for More! We all know that making the right enhancements to your home before listing will result in a quicker sale, as well as keep more money in your pocket. Not sure where to start? It’s as simple as setting an appointment for us to do a market-ready assessment for you - no cost or obligation. We will recommend improvements to get your home looking great, and provide a full estimate of costs and timeline. The best part? List with us, and you don’t pay until closing.* lizmoore.com/sellformore * SOME RESTRICTIONS APPLY. 10 SPRING 2022 / LIZ LOCAL

Check Out Our Guide to Real Estate Investing Liz Moore & Associates can help investors build wealth through their real estate portfolios. In response to client demand, Liz has authored ‘The Field Guide to Real Estate Investing’, a 16 page e-book created to give first time investors an idea of where to begin. The e-book is free and can be downloaded at lizmoore. com/ebooks. If you are wondering how to begin building your financial portfolio through savvy real estate investments, this introduction to the fundamental principles of real estate investing is the PERFECT place to begin! ADVERTISEMENT SPRING 2022 / LIZ LOCAL 11

lizmoore.com Oyster Point Newport News | 11801 Canon Boulevard, Suite 100, Newport News, VA 23606 New Town Williamsburg | 5350 Discovery Park Boulevard, Williamsburg, VA 23188 Richmond | 14061 Midlothian Turnpike, Richmond, VA 23113 Northern Neck | 276 N Main Street, PO Box 548, Kilmarnock, VA 22482 Kingsmill Williamsburg | 350 McLaws Circle, Suite 2, Williamsburg, VA 23185 © COPYRIGHT LIZ MOORE AND ASSOCIATES. IF YOUR HOME IS CURRENTLY LISTED WITH ANOTHER REALTOR® PLEASE DISREGARD THIS POSTAL, AS IT IS NOT INTENDED TO SOLICIT ANOTHER AGENT’S LISTING. REASONS TO INVEST Diversify Your in Rental Property Portfolio Investment properties come with many benefits. Increased Wealth Eligible Tax Professional Management Deductions Earn Services Rental Rental Income Income Pays The Mortgage Contact our property management division for professional management services for your investment rental. Virginia Payne, Director of Property Management 757-707-5388