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Want to see it for yourself...email me for an appointment.

Fighting For Loudoun Schools

The economic downturn is impacting Loudoun County Schools in a big way. The School Board meeting on Thursday had a large number of parents and teachers coming out to petition against shutting down Lincoln, Hillsboro, Middleburg and Aldie Elementary schools in order to save 2.2 million dollars for the next fiscal year. These elementary schools have been the launching point for our children's education and has allowed them to develop into great students. If we shut down these schools are children will be forced to larger class sizes and starting over in a whole new environment.



Loudoun County athletics are also on the chopping block. There is discussion for cutting all freshman sports and JV Lacrosse along with several coaching positions. Cutting the athletic programs will hurt the children who thrive in those environments. Athletics are a huge part of the high school experience and help teach our children valuable lessons of winning and losing. We should be encouraging our children to be active and be part of a organized group.



Finally, Special Education should always be important in our education system. Many people move to Loudoun for the Special Ed programs and will turn elsewhere to find a school system that will meet the needs of their children.



The School Board is forgetting that so many people move to Loudoun for the schools and by changing our standards we will have less people moving here and more people moving out because of it.



For more information check out the article in the Loudoun Times- http://loudountimes.com/news/2009/jan/16/parents-plead-school-board-spare-schools/

Dulles Metrorail Is Coming

There has been talk for years about bringing the Metro out to Western Fairfax and Loudoun County and it looks like we have a start date for phase one. The construction for phase one will begin in March of the this year and will be completed by mid summer of 2013. Phase One will bring the Metro out from East Falls Church to Wiehle Avenue in Reston. There will be four stops in the Tysons area and one at Wiehle.

The second phase that has yet to announce a start date but will bring six new stops that will include Reston Parkway, Herndon Monroe, Route 28, Dulles Airport, Route 606 and Ashburn.

The Metro is a welcome opportunity for Northern Virginia to cut down on traffic and pollution. I am sure anyone who drives down Route 7 at 7 am will appreciate an opportunity to hitch a ride on public transportation. For more information check out the following website-http://www.dullesmetro.com/.

Time To Hit The Slopes

Get away from all the hoopla in DC and hit the slopes. There are three ski resorts within 90 minutes or less of our front doors. It's cold outside and it's time to find a way to embrace it and skiing is it. If you missed out on the ski gene as I did, then check out the snow tubing. All the resorts offer ski lessons and it's never to late to give it a try. This is a great opportunity to burn up some energy and take in the cold but fresh air.

http://www.skiliberty.com/

http://www.skiwhitetail.com/

http://www.skiroundtop.com/

December Real Estate Stats For Loudoun

Loudoun Real Estate finished the year with a bang.

The County closed 389 transactions for December and that's up from 328 in 2007.

The monthly average and median sales prices remain constant from November to December but the 1 year change is huge. The county's average sales price in December 2007 was $473,366 and has dropped to $355,293 in December 2008. The county's average median price in December 2007 was $410,000 and that has dropped to $310,000 in December 2008.

There is good news with the inventory for the county. We have 2,346 active listings on the market right now and the same time last year there were 3,212 active listings. The county is at it's lowest inventory since August 2005. Bringing down the inventory is crucial for stabilizing home values.

The pending contracts are 397 which is up from 282 same time last year. This would point to a better start for the new year. There is an increase in activity which is being fueled by historically low interest rates.

The bottom line- it's a great time to buy! If you have any questions please feel free to email me at stacy@sherrywilson.com.

Free Rides To The Inauguration!

Good News for Loudoun County residents. There are free bus rides to the Inauguration throughout Loudoun County to the West Falls Church Metro station. This is the best option for getting into DC and witnessing this historic event.

• Purcellville—Departures from Franklin Park every 20 minutes between 4:05 a.m. and 6:35 a.m. Returns from West Falls Church Metro every 30 minutes between 3:00 and 8:00 p.m.

• Leesburg—Departures from 110 Catoctin Circle, S.E. every 10 minutes between 4:10 a.m. and 7:10 a.m. Returns from West Falls Church Metro every 15 minutes between 3:00 and 8:00 p.m.

• Dulles North Transit Center—Departures every 5 minutes between 4:15 a.m. and 7:05 a.m. Returns from West Falls Church Metro every 10 minutes between 3:00 and 8:00 p.m.

• Dulles South—Departures from Stone Ridge Village Center in Aldie every 20 minutes between 4:40 a.m. and 6:40 a.m. From 3:00 to 8:00 p.m., passengers may return to Dulles North from West Falls Church every 10 minutes. Shuttles from Dulles North to Dulles South will depart every 20 minutes until 8:30 p.m.

• Cascades area—Five scheduled departures from Broad Run Farms, Cascades and Lowes Island to West Falls Church between 4:39 a.m. and 8:04 a.m. Six scheduled returns between 3:10 p.m. and 7:55 p.m.

Please consult the metro website for the best stations to exit from-http://www.wmata.com/.

Remember to be safe and bring your money for the metro.