As you're making plans for your weekend, don't forget to stop by one of the local farmers markets. Here's a list of some that I've been frequenting:

Nokesville Farmer's Market - I just discovered this one but already love it. Hours are 8 to noon on Saturdays. They take "local" seriously at this one. All vendors are from Prince William or Fauquier Counties.

Warrenton Farmer's Market - Great excuse to get into old town Warrenton. This is their 33rd year. See them downtown Saturday's from 7 a.m. to noon or on Wednesdays out on Lee Hwy from 7 a.m. until 1.

Culpeper Farmer's Market - At the corner of Main and Commerce every Saturday from 7:30 to noon. I've been very impressed by the great selection of heirloom vegetables here!

Clevenger's Corner Farmers Market - This is the newest addition having just opened last Friday. This is at the intersection of 211 and 229 in Amissville. They're open Fridays and Sundays from 4-7 p.m. for all you non-morning people!

And...I hear there will be a new one in Sperryville any day now! More to come on that.

If you've got others you'd like to see mentioned here, jump into the comments and let everyone know!

There's lots to talk about today.

Saturday, in Warrenton, is the third annual Alternative Energy Expo. It runs from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Fauquier County Fairgrounds. Admission is $5. If you've been thinking about making your home and/or your life more "green" this is a great place to get ideas, talk to people who can help and get inspired! It's bigger and better than ever this year!

Most of you should have received in your mailboxes this week a circular called "Northern Piedmont - Buy Fresh - Buy Local". The Piedmont Environmental Council sent this to residents of Culpeper, Fauquier, Orange, Madison and Rappahannock counties. In it you'll find a guide to buying almost everything you eat locally from produce to meat, from farmers markets to CSAs to buying right on the farm. Great publication!

The WSJ has run a couple of very interesting real estate articles this week. First up was an article called "As Dues Dry Up, The Neighbors Pay" about how as no one is paying the HOA dues on vacant/foreclosed houses, other homeowners are having to swallow large increases in dues. It's another things buyers need to take a careful look at prior to buying.

The other article in WSJ was "Will Upgrading Your Home Help You Sell It?" and the results are clearly mixed. In a declining market I'd always argue that while you want your house to shine, you should never put in expensive upgrades. This article has some interesting details.

Is this happening locally?

I've been watching a house in Warrenton that appears to have been taken back by the bank, owners are long gone, and yet it's never been put up for sale, or even auction. I've been wondering about what's going on and this may provide an answer.

I'm going to attempt to investigate this particular property further.

If this is happening, think about the potential revenue implications for the local jurisdictions! Prince William thinks they have a revenue shortfall now!

Meanwhile, does anyone else have any anecdotal evidence that this is happening?

Warrenton's mayor, George Fitch, has issued a call for Warrenton to become more energy self-sufficient; to, as the local newspaper put it, "go green".

First of all, I applaud Mayor Fitch for taking this step. A focus by the town on renewable energy resources is a welcome one. Every locality should be looking at ways to reduce our energy consumption and our dependence on sources of energy that are bad for our planet and increasingly bad for our country.

The mayor's focus seems to be on buildng a small scale biorefinery capable of producing ethanol from locally available materials such as corn. The idea of small local refineries that are joint public and private partnerships is, in my mind, a good one. It could be good for the local economy, local farmers and, to some extent, for energy efficiency.

My concern is that ethanol made from corn, which seems to be the cornerstone of the plan is not all that efficient a fuel. Some studies show that more fossil-fuel energy is expended in the production of corn-based ethanol than we would ever save by burning it.

But it's early yet and the idea is just getting off the ground. There's time for fact-finding and, eventually, modification of the original proposal. The Warrenton Town Council has provided $5000 for a feasibility study and I look forward to hearing the results.

I hope that no one is waiting for this to solve our energy dependence problems though! This is another instance where "waiting for the world" is definitely not the way to go! Each of us can be looking at ways to reduce our own carbon footprint. Whether your motives are cost savings, saving the planet or making our country energy independent, there are plenty of good reasons to look for ways to reduce our energy consumption.

One of the things I love about real estate is that I'm working to fulfill a basic human need - shelter. It's something I feel good about! About the only more basic human need I can think of is food. And I've recently had a chance to get more involved with an organization that's working on that.

Fauquier County Food Distribution Coalition is an organization working to feed their hungry neighbors. It is truly amazing what they do using almost entirely volunteer labor and donated food and monies.

In the month of December, 2006 they served almost 200 families. I'm guessing there are an awful lot of people in the county who didn't even know there were 200 hungry families here. And they're sure they're not even reaching everyone who needs their services.

The food is distributed once a month on the third Saturday. Volunteers not only provide almost all the food, but also man the operation. They set up tables, sort food, fill boxes and help the families with getting the food to their cars. Considering it's only once a month it's not all that much food. Most of us wouldn't want to try and live on it! But you'll see people waiting for hours for this.

I believe we are our brother's keeper and let's face it, most of us have so much more than we need in terms of material goods. If you can spare time or money or food, there's a way for you to help feed your neighbors. And I'll bet it's hard to think of something that feels better than that!

You can find out more at their web site: http://www.fauquierfood.org

Or contact them directly at info@fauquierfood.org

There have always been homeowners who, for whatever reason, one day have trouble making their mortgage payments. Circumstances change, people lose jobs, medical bills overwhelm or any number of bad things happen. It can happen to the best of us. It's beginning to happen more often in many parts of the country as some of the adjustable rate mortgages suddenly require much larger mortgage payments. And, some buyers who were encouraged to stretch more than they should have to buy a home, will now find themselves in trouble.

If you know you've got a problem, the first thing to do is not panic.  It's so easy to say, so hard to do! Don't panic, but also don't avoid the situation. It's important to intervene early in order to have the best chance of a good outcome for you and your family. Approach your lender immediately when you know you've got an issue. Many of them want to work with you to find a way for you to keep your home if at all possible.  Remember that it's expensive for them to take your home and resell it. And, in this buyer's market it's definitely not easy money for them! Often lenders will try to help you restructure your mortgage. That may mean adding a little to future payments to make up for missed payments. It may even mean they forgive some debt. Your situation and your lender's policy will be unique. But rest assured that there are other options than walking away or declaring bankruptcy.

There are foreclosure counseling services out there, but you should be very careful. Many of them are simply looking to prey on people who already are feeling desperate. HUD (Housing & Urban Development) a federal government department has certified certain homeowner counseling agencies. You can be sure that these agencies are not looking to take advantage of your situation. You can find a list of these agencies on HUD's web site at: http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/hcc/hcs.cfm

And, if I can ever be of assistance, please don't hesitate to call! There have always been people available to help me when things looked dark. I'm happy to pass that along when I can!

Mojitos and Tapas is an exciting new restaurant in Warrenton. As a big fan of Cuban food, I've been eagerly awaiting this opening and I was there with bells on for lunch on its first day.

There was a crowd there to try out the newest spot in town. It's so nice to have something new that's not a chain!

While the wind was cold and blustery outside, you feel warm as soon as you step in the doors. The decor immediately tells you you're in a warmer climate than the outside thermometer indicates! The bold red behind the bar immediately grabs your attention!

The menu is extensive, with much of it made up of tapas, small savory bites meant to be shared. Bring your friends and try a few of these. Tapas originated in Spain and seem to now have made their way to almost every corner of the world. The tapas I tried were terrific and I especially enjoyed my garlic fix! Enjoy your tapas with Cuban bread and a glass of wine, beer or sangria. Or, of course, you can try their signature drink, a mojito, from Cuba. They've got a larger variety of mojitos than I've ever seen and I lived in Miami for 13 years!

The service is warm and friendly. And there were surprisingly few first day glitches for a new restaurant.

You can find more information on their web site http://www.mojitosandtapas.com

I definitely recommend the food and will be going back soon with friends!

We've talked here before about proffers.  Perhaps the largest proffer ever was recently offered and then rescinded by Centex Homes as part of a development in Warrenton.

Word is out today that the proposed development has been cancelled. The handwriting was on the wall for this one for some time in my opinion.  This was a deal that made no sense even in a hot real estate market, never mind the cooler one we're currently in.

The development would have featured homes for individuals and couples who were at least 55 years of age.  The prices of these homes was to start at somewhere around $850K-$900K.  In return for the rights to proceed with this development, Centex offered to pay Warrenton $23 million dollars!

First of all, ask yourselves how many retirees, or people approaching retirement are looking for $900K homes? And, $900K homes in Warrenton, Virginia???  As nice as Warrenton is, I believe that price for this community would have always been unsustainable. And to offer $23 million to have the chance to build this money-losing development seemed truly foolhardy!

The only question remains, what in heavens name made them think this was ever a good idea in the first place! And maybe the other question is does this person still have a job at Centex?!

Buyers are always interested in how many days a property has been on the market. Buyers assume that the longer a property has been on the market, the more negotiating leverage they have.  And, generally speaking, that's probably true. That assumes, of course, that the seller really does need and/or want to sell!

Sellers, in this market, are very sensitive to days on market as well, and are worried about the perception buyers have as they see that Days on Market number increase.  Again, this is perfectly reasonable. They don't want to give buyers the impression they have more leverage, even if it might be true! No one wants to give away information that might hurt their negotiating position.

Sellers are asking more frequently how they reset the counter to show their property as newly on the market.  Many times they believe that if they withdraw their house from the market for a few days and then put it back on, that will reset the counter. Some believe that if they relist with a new agent the counter will go back to zero. Generally, what I tell them is that this doesn't work. But the full answer is a little more complex than that and this seems like a good place to go into a little more detail.

The Multiple Listing Service that we use in this area actually carries to Days on Market numbers for every listing.  They are shown as DOM-M and DOM-P. They stand for Days on Market-MLS and Days on Market-Property. The first one, DOM-M, does reset when you relist your home with a new agent. Or, if your listing expires and then is put back on the market a week or two later. But the second category, DOM-P does not reset unless your home is off the market for at least 180 days. Since both of these fields are available to both agents and consumers in the data they see, it's pretty hard to fool anyone about how long your home has been for sale.

As with almost everything in life, prevention is the way to go here! Price it properly, make sure it shows well and odds are most homes will sell within the average days on market for this area.

A proffer is an offer of a fixed amount of money from a builder to a county or community, intended to offset the cost of increasing infrastructure to handle the expanding population associated with a new residential development. The amount of proffers varies by county here in Virginia, but here is a sampling:

*For single-family detached dwellings

In theory, proffers are voluntary. In practice it's easy enough for a county to find another reason to turn down a request from a builder for a new subdivision if they don't like the proffer.

Proffers have been in the news here lately because of the largest proffer ever by a builder to a county. Fauquier County briefly thought they'd won the lottery with a $22 million proffer. But that was subsequently withdrawn and negotiations are ongoing.

Proffers are a mixed blessing. Someone does, indeed have to pay for the infrastructure to support all the additional people that move into the new subdivision. There will need to be more schools, hospitals, sewers, firefighters and improved roads. But the builders are businesspeople, not charities, and will likely pass most of that cost on to the ultimate consumer, the purchaser of the home. This drives up the costs of homeownership and hurts affordability. But if not proffers, how do we propose to pay for the infrastructure? I'm not seeing anyone lined up to ask for increases in property taxes!

I'd love to hear your thoughts on this. It's a hot issue in Virginia and here locally. Who pays for the costs of development and how? Let me know your opinions!

The 30 year mortgage rates have now declined for four straight weeks! They finished this week at right around 6.5% on average, nationally. If you're a buyer, that's great news as housing continues to get more affordable! If you're a seller that's great news as some of those buyers sitting on the sidelines are going to be thinking about locking in these rates before they go back up!

Obviously none of us has a crystal ball, but it wouldn't surprise me to see a slight bump over the next couple of weeks in contracts written. In fact, if interest rates continue to fall, or even just hold steady, that could last more than a couple of weeks!

Keep your fingers crossed for no bad news on the inflation front!

While the sellers out there are in a fair amount of pain, buyers aren't feeling completely warm and fuzzy either!  It is true that they've finally got some negotiating leverage, really for the first time in years.  But there is also a lot of uncertainty among most buyers about whether to buy now or wait.  Will the market get even softer?  Will there be even better deals down the road?

My advice is generally that if you want to buy a house and you plan on staying in that house for three years or more, this is a great time to buy. The economic conditions are not such that we seem likely to see a prolonged market downturn or steep price declines over years. In fact, one reason the rental market is so overheated right now is that there are still tons of people moving into the area.  The economy here is strong and growing and most of those people coming in really do want to buy houses!

So eventually, this market will turn around.  What I can't tell you (what no one can tell you) is when!  You've probably heard what they call someone who tries to time the stock market....BROKE!  The experts can't do it in the stock market.  And I'll tell you that the professionals in real estate can't guarantee anything either!

You may save a few thousand dollars if you wait.  But you may not. The next economic report may push interest rates back down. Interest rates are already still at a relatively low point historically.  If rates start drifting back down again, the market is likely to respond to that with higher prices.  If you've been watching your dream house, waiting for it to get cheap enough to buy, you just might see it getting more expensive and out of reach!

So, if this is a home for your family and not an investment you're intending to flip, I'd say find what you want, use your agent's negotiating skills to negotiate a tough but fair deal, and buy the house you love.

For those investors out there, if you're buying to rent and hold for the longer term, there are some great deals right now.  That's why my phone is ringing with more investor calls these days!  But if you're buying to flip I'd say you need to sit on the sidelines a bit longer!