Author: PoP Sponsor (a)

Is your New Year’s resolution to buy a home in 2019? Let us simplify the home buying process for you!

Stop by our First Time Homebuyer Workshop this weekend, grab some refreshments, and learn from our team of industry experts. The workshop is centrally located at GreenLine Real Estate’s NEW office at 2216 14th Street, NW — between W Street & Florida Avenue

The class is happening Saturday, Jan. 12 from 11 a.m.-1 p.m.

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Dear PoPville readers:

Why aren’t there more gnomes and goats roaming around Shaw? Since we opened our doors a few weeks ago on 9th Street near Nellie’s we’ve noticed that there is a real dearth of gnomes and goats. So we put our donut masters to work to solve this pressing concern.

We love the reception our fresh, store-made donuts and coffee have received. In addition, the excitement for our new, hidden bar, Nocturne, has been amazing.

We picked Shaw for a simple reason. We are strong believers in community and want our hand-made donuts to not just make folks happy, but to also strengthen the community by helping out local causes and group and generally bringing people together. Different types of fried dough brings people together in just about every culture around the world. A good donut should be something you can share with others. Not some frozen or shipped in thing. It should be fresh and from your community. It should help you meet new people. Handing out donuts to people is a pretty great way to make people smile.

Oh right, back to the goats and gnomes. We are inviting you to participate in a little scavenger hunt that runs October 1-31. All around our neighborhood we are hiding little gnomes and goats. If you find one, bring it to us and you’ll get free stuff. It’s that easy and a good way to meet people and enjoy some time outside. You can follow us on Facebook (@SugarShackShaw) or Twitter and Instagram (@SugarShackDMV).

Thanks, and happy hunting.

Rob
Owner

P.S. This is an advertisement, but if you bring it in our Shaw store this week (print it out or pull it up on your phone), we’ll give you a free house donut, as long as we don’t run out. Only one per person so we can spread the donut goodness.

This weekly column is written and sponsored by D.C. real estate agent and Edgewood resident Jessica Evans. Email her questions at  [email protected].

It can seem like every day there is a new announcement about a development or project update, and it can be hard to keep track of it all. In this series I will be highlighting larger development projects (or clusters of projects) taking place in neighborhoods around the city and the impacts of these projects on the neighborhood housing market.

This week, the focus is on Fort Totten. While some of the development projects have been in the works for the better part of the last decade, 2017 is going to be a big year there with many of the buildings delivering and new businesses and retail opening. From army fort, to Metro station to urban walkable neighborhood, the landscape of Fort Totten has transformed over the last century and will continue to change as it becomes a major economic hub in NE DC.

Major Projects

• Fort Totten Square: Phase 1 construction was completed in 2015, and includes 345 residential units and 130,000 square feet of retail including the anchor tenant Walmart. Other recent retail announcements include Counter Culture Coffee, Petco Unleashed, and Five Guys, who are all expected to open in the next several months.
• Arts Place: Mixed use, 502 apartments (The Modern at Art Place) and 105,000 square feet of retail. Developed by the Cafritz Foundation. The project will also include a children’s museum which is scheduled to open in 2019.
• Fort Totten Metro: Mixed use, 345 unit building with 10,000 square feet of retail by Donatelli Development

Other News

• Metropolitan Branch Trail Expansion – DDOT announced an RFP to continue the trail which will connect Brookland to the Fort Totten Metro Station

Housing Market

In addition to the numerous new apartment offerings at the metro station, two of the residential neighborhoods in the surrounding area include:

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This column is written and sponsored by Alan Lescht & Associates, PC, an employment litigation firm in Washington, DC, that handles cases involving contract disputes, wage and hour issues, discrimination and retaliation, wrongful termination, whistleblower retaliation and security clearances.

You’re filling out a job application and get to the section about job references. Who do you list? A good job reference can make all the difference in you getting a new job.

What you may not realize is that your former or current employer doesn’t have to give you a good reference. Generally speaking, your boss is free to tell your prospective employer the truth about what kind of employee you were. If it is true, your former employer can say that you were fired for misconduct, that you quit without giving notice, or that your last performance review wasn’t so great.

How can I prevent my employer from giving me a bad job reference?

In most cases, a valid contract is the only way to limit what your employer can say about you. For example, a settlement or severance agreement may guarantee you a neutral reference that includes only certain information, such as your dates of employment and job title.

However, even a signed agreement will not guarantee a neutral reference for security clearance and government suitability determinations. Despite a valid contract, the law requires employers to provide honest information in connection with security clearance and suitability investigations.

What if my boss gives me an unfair job reference?

Your current or former employer has the right to provide truthful information to prospective employers. However, they don’t have the right to falsely criticize you or lie about your performance or conduct. If a former or current employer lies about you, he or she may be liable for defamation (i.e., making a false and harmful statement about you to someone else).

Do you have questions about job references?

If you have questions about job references, employment contracts, or security clearances, contact Alan Lescht and Associates today. Call us at (202) 463-6036; send us an email; or visit our website and blog. Our 13 attorneys have vast experience in all areas of employment law. Super Lawyers, Washingtonian, Newsweek, AVVO, and others have recognized us as a leading employment firm in DC.

DISCLAIMER: This article is for general information purposes and is provided only to permit you to learn about Alan Lescht and Associates, P.C., and its services. This information is subject to change, may not apply in all cases, and does not constitute legal advice. Contact an attorney to obtain legal advice about your case.

This weekly column is written and sponsored by D.C. real estate agent and Edgewood resident Jessica Evans. Email her questions at  [email protected].

Ahh September, some days you feel like summer and others you make us long for the sun. Congress is back in session, kids are back in school, and we’ve officially entered the fall real estate market. While we don’t have a crystal ball to predict exactly how things will go this fall, we can look at the seasonal trends of the past few years and anticipate similar conditions this year.

Here’s what we expect:

• Renting? September isn’t quite as crazy as August when the DC rental market hits its peak. There is some carry over demand this month from people who haven’t quite secured their long term rental option, and demand will remain high through September. If you are thinking about moving and can wait until October, I think you will find less competition, more availability and potentially more negotiable rental rates.
• Buying? After a bit of a lag in late August, we should see a strong influx of new listings this weekend and throughout the rest of the month now that the holiday weekend is over. Some markets are more seasonal than others (ie. single family homes, suburbs, etc) but throughout the DC area we should see an increase in new listings from the August lull. If you are looking to move before the end of the year, September will be the month where you will have the greatest number of options to choose from, new listings will decline through the rest of the year and we won’t see new listing volume levels this high until next spring. That doesn’t mean you should rush, but if you find the right place, you may not to wait on it either.
• Selling? One of the reasons for the strong influx of listings in September is that the end of the year is quickly approaching and sellers who want to have everything wrapped up before the holidays should think about listing now. The period of time between Thanksgiving and New Years historically tends to be one of the slower, lower demand times of year, and having your home on the market then can require more patience and perseverance than other times of the year. That being said, if you know your home is going to be a “home run” and you plan to price it in line with the market value, there really is no bad time to list since. Buyer demand continues to exceed supply and there are ready, willing, and able buyers who will continue their search through the depths of winter (when their real estate agents will pull out their snow boots for another season of fun).

Looking for more? Check out our full blog post here (complete with colorful graphs). Or, reach out here and we would be happy to send you any data or info you are looking for.