Orange county offers a friendly country lifestyle

Picture a beautiful rural setting with mountain views. Add some of our area’s finest wineries and some interesting historic sites and the result could very well be Orange County. Orange got its start in 1734 when settlers made it a legal entity, separating it from what was then Spotsylvania County and naming it for England’s […]

Decorating for the season

When fall came, Grandmother used to take down the lace curtains that drifted in the breeze from her oscillating fan when the summer breezes failed. In their place, she brought the heavy winter drapes out of storage and hung them once again to deflect winter drafts. The bright floral slipcover came off the sofa, revealing […]

Forest Lakes

Forest Lakes is conveniently located in Albemarle County across from Hollymead Town Center. Opened in 1989, it was this area’s first planned community, and has been a popular place to live ever since. Today it consists of two sections, North and South plus Forest Grove, a recently launched Ryan Homes neighborhood. Forest Grove homeowners will […]

Love it or list it

As home prices increase, homeowners are finding new options available to them. Many have regained the equity they’d lost over the last several years and this creates an opportunity to remodel or sell. For those still sitting on the fence, we’re offering some tips to help make that all-important decision. A basic starting point is […]

Handmade in Virginia: 20th Annual Artisans Studio Tour

If you want to see what “handmade in Virginia” looks like, hit the road this weekend for the Artisans Studio Tour – and allow yourself some time. “Two years ago we documented a 400 attendance figure with just shy of 3,000 studio’s visits,” says potter and tour organizer Nancy Ross. That means people who started the […]

Ten mortgage mistakes to avoid

Buying a home and going through the mortgage process can be stressful and have long-term negative consequences if you don’t avoid some of these common pitfalls. (1) Not getting a fixed rate loan Fixed-rate loans are no longer priced at record lows, so you might be tempted to grab an adjustable-rate mortgage. But unless you’re […]

The Virginia Film Festival: entertaining and engaging

To “educate and engage audiences on the art of film.” To “promote discussions between artists, students, academics, and audiences about the films and how they relate to the world in which we live.” And, not to forget, to “support the films and filmmakers of the Commonwealth of Virginia.” At the Virginia Film Festival, watching Oscar […]

Chimney safety starts with a clean sweep

From two Albemarle County Fire Rescue Press Releases: At 0839 hours on January 31, 2014, units responded to the report of a wall in flames inside a residence. The cause is classified as a chimney fire. The Fire Marshal’s office estimates the loss from this fire at $100,000. At 0047 hrs on March 4, 2014, […]

Buy a home with history

Our region’s strong connection to a long and distinguished past is one of many reasons it is a popular and special place to live. There are many historic sites just in the city of Charlottesville, which was formed in 1762 by an Act of the Virginia General Assembly that set aside 50 acres of land […]

Home Equity Loans can be a source of cash

Home equity loans can provide beneficial cash resource for homeowners considering home improvements such as additions, remodeling, modifications for a disabled person, or major appliance replacements. Other big-ticket items might be education expenses, paying closing costs to refinance a mortgage, or consolidating existing high-interest-rate loans such as credit card debts. Paying off expensive debts with […]