The Top 3 Middle Schools for getting into Thomas Jefferson HS (TJHSST)

April 19 by Marina Brito

Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technhology (TJHSST) is currently ranked as the # 1 High School in Virginia and the #2 High School in the Nation.

Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology (TJHSST)

How to have the best chance to get into Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology (TJHSST)

Amy worked hard in school

A few years ago, I remember my young neighbor Amy coming back from middle school later than most middle school kids in the neighborhood.  I asked her if she was in after-school programs and she said that she came home later because she attended Carson MS instead of our neighborhood-assigned middle school.

A few years later, she had to get up even earlier and come home even later than her High School friends in the neighborhood because she was attending Thomas Jefferson High School.   Now I realize that she was following in her brother’s footsteps and pursuing a Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) path toward college.

What is TJHSST? Continue Reading…

How to find a home to buy in a sellers’ market (in Fairfax County)?

April 11 by Marina Brito

It’s a seller’s market in Fairfax County; does this mean that there are no homes to buy?

La, la, la, la, la… STOP!  When the music stops, everyone runs to find a vacant spot… but inevitably, someone ends up standing without a place to sit.

Fairfax County Real Estate buyers

Fairfax County Real Estate buyers

Buying a house in Fairfax County can feel like a game of Musical Chairs. A bunch of homes go on the market, loads of buyers flock to visit them and make an on-the-spot offer on their preferred one.

But, at the end of the weekend, more than one buyer ends up without a new home for yet another week.

This musical chairs situation is caused by too many buyers and not enough listings

The result of having more buyers than homes for sale is lots of buyer traffic as soon as a home is listed, multiple offers on a home, and “bidding wars”.

This overflow of offers allows the seller to select the best one for their needs (the one with the higher price, the least number of contingencies, and the best financing terms).

When sellers have multiple choices, they can afford to negotiate for higher prices. Some sellers even choose to price the home higher to start with. But, as with anything, there is a limit.

Even in a seller’s market, there is such a thing as an overpriced listing – at least in Fairfax County Continue Reading…

Fairfax County Schools: The VIP awards 2013

March 28 by Marina Brito

“I got the job, and we’re moving to Fairfax County!”, said Harry. Sally was excited to hear the news but apprehensive at the same time.  She had moved several times before and it was always so stressful… were there any good Fairfax County schools for their 4 children?

She scoured the web and found that Fairfax County had a select number of schools that were recently in the news for having won a “VIP award”.  That sounded like a great thing, but… what exactly is a VIP award?

The Virginia Index of Performance (VIP) awards

Rocky Run Middle School won the highest award

Rocky Run Middle School earned the highest VIP award

The VIP awards are earned by a few schools in Virginia who meet high standards of learning and who achieve excellence goals established by the Governor and the Board.

The awards are divided into three levels:

  1. The Governor’s Award for Educational Excellence,
  2. The Board of Education Excellence Award, and
  3. The Board of Education Distinguished Achievement Award.

The Governor’s Award for Educational Excellence

To win the Governor’s Award for Educational Excellence, a school or division must meet all State and Federal achievement benchmarks for two consecutive years and achieve all applicable excellence goals that the Board and the Governor have designated.

This year, there were only 2 schools in the entire State of Virginia who earned this award, and one of them is Rocky Run Middle School in Fairfax County.

About Rocky Run Middle School  Continue Reading…

How is the Fairfax County Real Estate Market? (Feb 2013 Update)

March 20 by Marina Brito

Spring has sprung in the Fairfax County Real Estate Market

Spring has come to Fairfax County Real Estate

Spring has come to Fairfax County Real Estate

This morning, as soon as I woke up, I heard the birds singing.  I opened the curtains and saw the daffodils blooming.

But when I opened the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) statistics, I found the telltale sign that it was Spring:

Homes are flying off the shelf!

Homes are on the market for just a few days

Throughout the past few weeks, while helping several buyers make offers on their desired properties, I noticed that there was barely any time to make an offer before homes went under contract.  But this was anecdotal evidence and I wanted to know if this was happening across the entire Fairfax County Real Estate Market. Continue Reading…

Fairfax County Schools (FCPS) Boundary Study 2014 – Update March 2013

March 8 by Marina Brito

You may recall our post from January of this year Fairfax County Schools FCPS Boundary Study Changes 2014 bringing this boundary study to your attention.

And, as the famous Greek philosopher, Heraclitus, said: “Nothing is permanent except change.”

So, as we move forward into this boundary study, we don’t have any definite answers yet, but we do have a little bit more information.

Now, a little over a month later, we have more information about the 2014 boundary study

But first, let’s recap.

This boundary study primarily affects Fairfax High School as well as Lanier Middle School.

The reason for the study is to alleviate future overcrowding of these two schools which belong to The City of Fairfax (and currently also accept students from the adjacent area in Fairfax County).

To remedy the situation, the Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) board initiated a boundary study involving the following adjacent High Schools to Fairfax HS:

FCPS 2014 boundary study

FCPS boundary study of Fairfax HS & surrounding schools

Note that the following adjacent (and close-by) schools are NOT affected by this boundary study: Continue Reading…

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