May 2024 City Transactions: Seven residential properties in Charlottesville sell for over $1 million; UVA Foundation picks up three buildings on Arlington Blvd

More than six months have passed since the Charlottesville City Council adopted a new Development Code that increased the amount of residential density that is allowed across the city. It’s way too early to tell what effect that will have on the long-term, but worth keeping the new rules in mind while looking at every single transaction. 

One of the concerns opponents have expressed is that developers will buy up property to develop more units that will be sold at market-rate. Proponents of the upzoning have argued that’s precisely the point because a lack of supply is driving up prices. Some also would say the city’s investments in affordable housing will help ensure more places for people with lower incomes to live.

What’s actually happening? For three and a half years now I have been writing up transactions for this newsletter as a way of trying to separate the theoretical and the actual. Paid subscribers get a first look at the details followed by them being posted to the Information Charlottesville. 

Another item I want to draw people’s attention to is how sharply assessments have gone up since 2020. Why is that? Is it a lack of supply? Did the publication of the Future Land Use Map in early 2022 influence the market? Some other reason? 

Either way, the increase in assessments has led to significantly more money being available for the City of Charlottesville to spend. Well, that coupled with a two cent increase on the real property tax from $0.96 per $100 of assessed value to $0.98. 

I do not make an attempt to draw a trend. Every transaction is its own story, and each story adds up to form a mosaic of sorts to be interpreted. I make my living paying attention to this stuff and really appreciate all of the paid subscribers who make it happen. 

Brief highlights:

• Seven single-family residential properties sold above $1 million this month, not counting one that will likely be the site of an apartment building sharing the space of a historic structure
• At least six properties sold to out-of-town companies 
• Property values at condominium complexes such as 1800 Jefferson Park Avenue and the Cedars continue to increase, though not always! 
• Two properties that were built as part of Habitat for Humanity’s Sunrise Park development sold with one apartment selling at 47.6 percent above assessed value
• I wrote two stories for C-Ville Weekly based on transactions in May and one for this newsletter
• One company bought three properties on East High Street

The paywall helps keep me in business and for now this is the only content that asks for paid subscriptions. This will be posted to the other site on July 6, 2024, but if you’ve come to rely on the information I’m writing, now might be a good way to contribute to keep me going.

May 1, 2024

• A three bedroom single-family attached house on Orangedale Avenue in the Fifeville neighborhood sold for $120,000. That’s over 48 percent below the 2024 assessment of $234,500, but this is a sale within a family so it will likely not count toward the calculations for the 2025 assessments. (Residential Neighborhood-A, 0.079 acres) 
• A three bedroom house on North Baker Street in the Fifeville neighborhood sold for $360,000. That’s 7.66 percent above the 2024 assessment of $334,400 and 62.24 percent above the 2020 assessment of $221,900. This house last sold in May 2020 for $250,000. (Residential-A, 0.248 acres)
• A four bedroom house on Cambridge Circle in the Barracks / Rugby neighborhood sold for $879,900. That’s 51.81 percent above the 2024 assessment of $579,600 and 114.66 percent above the 2020 assessment of $409,900. A page on realtor.com states the property was “comprehensively renovated” but none of that shows up in the city’s development portal. (Residential-A, 0.47 acres)
• A 1,262 square foot two bedroom condominium at 820 East High Street sold for $300,000, which is 46.14 percent below the 2024 assessment of $557,000. (Node Mixed Use 8, N/A)
• A 564 square foot one bedroom condominium at 1800 Jefferson Park Avenue sold for $265,000. That’s 27.83 percent above the 2024 assessment of $207,300 and 74.69 percent above the 2020 assessment of $151,700. (Corridor Mixed Use 8, N/A)
• A 766 square foot one bedroom condominium at 1412 Carlton Avenue sold for $188,500. That’s 47.61 percent above the 2024 assessment of $127,700 and 73.25 percent above the 2020 assessment of $108,800. This was built as part of the Sunrise Park development shepherded by Habitat for Humanity of Greater Charlottesville. (Corridor Mixed Use 3, N/A)
• An entity called Redame LLC purchased 1401 Foxbrook Lane in the Greenbrier neighborhood for $1.252 million. The structure is a four bedroom house built in 1968 that has four bedrooms. The sales price is 27.49 percent above the 2024 assessment of $982,000 and 71.74 percent above the 2020 assessment of $729,000. (Residential-B, 0.33 acres)
• Moby Dick LLC of Warrenton, Virginia, is the new owner of 702 Castalia Street in the Fry’s Spring neighborhood. This is a two bedroom house built in 1945 and this transaction is 1.94 percent below the 2024 assessment of $382,400 and 25.88 percent above the 2020 assessment of $297,900. (Residential-A, 0.072 acres)

May 2, 2024

• A two bedroom house built in 1952 at 2548 Woodland Drive in the Fry’s Spring neighborhood sold for $37,322, which is 87.84 percent below the 2024 assessment of $306,800. A North Carolina entity called AKJ Groupe LLC purchased the property. The seller had purchased the house in July 1992 for $77,000. The transaction was recorded by Vesta Settlements. A new gas furnace was installed in 2017 at a cost of $3,000 according to a building permit search. (Residential-A, 0.184 acres)
• A three bedroom house built on Meridian Street in the Belmont neighborhood 1962 sold for $90,000 which is 72.87 percent below the 2024 assessment of $331,700. This is a sale within a family and likely won’t count toward calculation of 2025 assessments. (Residential-A, 0.18 acres)
• A two bedroom house built in 1920 on Blenheim Avenue in the Belmont neighborhood sold for $520,000. That’s 53.39 percent above the 2024 assessment of $339,000 and 91.39 percent over the 2020 assessment of $271,700. The previous owner paid $158,000 for the property and made several renovations estimates at over $100,000 in 2019. (Residential-A, 0.13 acres)
• A three bedroom house built in 1989 on Gentry Lane in the Barracks / Rugby neighborhood sold for $603,000 which is exactly the 2024 assessment. In 2020, this property was assessed at $433,400 making this sales price 39.13 percent above that figure. (Residential-A, 0.231 acres)
• A three bedroom house built in 1951 on Westwood Road in the Barracks / Rugby neighborhood sold for $715,000. That’s 5.96 percent above the 2024 assessment of $674,800 and 49.46 percent above the 2020 assessment of $478,400. (Residential-A, 0.205 acres)
• A three bedroom house in the 700 block of Hinton Avenue in the Belmont neighborhood sold for $950,000. That’s 27.36 percent above the 2024 assessment of $745,900 and 68.02 percent above the 2020 assessment of $565,400. (Residential-A, 0.073 acres)

May 3, 2024

• A three bedroom manufactured home on Smith Street in the Locust Grove neighborhood sold for $407,000. That’s 25.62 percent above the 2024 assessment of $324,000 and 79.61 percent over the 2020 assessment of $226,600. (Residential-A, 0.144 acres)
• A 656 square foot one-bedroom condominium in the Charlottesville Towers at 511 1st Street North sold for $235,000. That’s 7.26 percent above the 2024 assessment of $219,100 and 52.5 percent above the 2020 assessment of $154,100. (Residential Mixed Use 5, N/A)
• The Point Church has purchased the former Mount Zion Baptist Church on Ridge Street for $1.3 million. That’s 22.11 percent below the 2024 assessment of $1,669,100. I wrote an article about this transaction for C-Ville Weekly in mid-May if you want to read it. (Corridor Mixed Use 5, 0.16 acres)
• One reason I continue to do this parcel-by-parcel look at properties is to get real-world data on recently adopted policies. The city’s new zoning has a district that restricts property rights in historically Black neighborhoods in order to dissuade gentrification. Royal Blue Properties LLC of Austin, Texas, purchased 231 4th Street SW in Fifeville for $757,000. That’s 28.41 percent above the 2024 assessment and 81.88 percent above the 2020 value.
  
  There are two structures at this address. One is a three bedroom house built in 1925 and the other is a one-bedroom accessory dwelling unit built in 2014. This property has traded hands several times in the past 15 years with one person paying $9,116 in June 2010. That individual built the accessory structure in 2014 and then sold the property in September 2020 for $479,000. (Residential Neighborhood A, 0.07 acres)

May 7, 2024

• A vacant lot at 122 Apple Tree lane in the Jefferson Park Avenue neighborhood sold for $188,400. The purchaser is Yevam LLC. That’s 17.75 percent above the 2024 assessment of $160,000 and 100.85 percent above the 2024 assessment of $93,800. (Residential Mixed Use 3, 0.207 acres)
• Yevam LLC also purchased 127 Piedmont Avenue N which is immediately adjacent to the above property. The structure is a three story house constructed in 1937 and the sales price was $651,600. This is 25.55 percent above the 2024 assessment of $519,000 and 73.71 percent above the 2020 assessment of $374,900.  Yevam LLC is registered to an address in Glen Allen, Virginia, according to the State Corporation Commission. (Residential Mixed Use 3, 0.207 acres)

May 8, 2024

• A four bedroom house built in 1973 on Yorktown Drive in the Greenbrier neighborhood sold for $790,000. That’s 43.77 percent above the 2024 assessment of $549,500 and 93.53 percent above the 2020 assessment of $408,200. (Residential-A, 0.32 acres)
• A three bedroom house on Carter Lane in the Greenbrier neighborhood sold for $499,999. That’s 8.39 percent below the 2024 assessment of $545,800 and 23.76 percent above the 2020 assessment of $404,000. (Residential-A, 0.401 acres)
• A three bedroom house built in 1953 in the Woolen Mills neighborhood on Meade Avenue sold for $480,000. That’s 4.9 percent above the 2024 assessment of $457,600 and 28.51 percent above the 2020 assessment of $373,500. (Residential-B, 0.172 acres)

May 9, 2024

• The building that currently houses SugarBear Gourmet Ice Cream and a lot next door sold for $685,000 to an entity called Rivertown Circus LLC. The structure used to be home to Charlie’s as well as the Double Horseshoe Saloon. The vacant lot is part of the entryway to the city-owned property on which the Rivanna River Company operates. The sales price is 12.31 percent above the combined 2024 assessment of $609,900 for both properties. (Corridor Mixed Use 3, 0.35 acres)
• A four bedroom house built in 1972 on Glenn Court in the Greenbrier neighborhood sold for $775,000. That’s 23.64 percent above the 2024 assessment of $626,800 and 75.1 percent above the 2020 assessment of $442,600. (Residential-A, 0.37 acres)
• A three bedroom house built in 1971 on Marie Place in the Greenbrier neighborhood sold for $597,500. That’s 20.95 percent above the 2024 assessment of $494,400 and 61.62 percent above the 2020 assessment of $369,700. (Residential-A, 0.39 acres)

May 10, 2024

• A two bedroom single family attached unit on Rives Street built in 2018 as part of the Sunrise Park development sold for $362,500. That’s 1.77 percent above the 2024 assessment of $356,200 and 30.3 percent above the 2020 assessment of $278,200. (Residential-B, 0.03 acres)

May 14, 2024

• A three bedroom house on Greenbrier Drive sold for $517,000, which is 6.47 percent above the 2024 assessment of $485,600 and 43.41 percent above the 2020 assessment of $360,500. (Residential-A, 0.384 acres)
• A single-family attached unit on Amherst Street in the Barracks / Rugby neighborhood with three bedrooms sold for $350,000. That’s 4.99 percent below the 2024 assessment of $368,400 and 31.43 percent above the 2020 assessment of $266,300. (Residential-A, 0.12 acres)

May 15, 2024

• A three bedroom townhouse on Melbourne Park Circle in the Locust Grove neighborhood sold for $465,000. That’s 12.51 percent above the 2024 assessment of $413,300 and 61.46 percent above the 2020 assessment of $288,000. (Residential Mixed Use 3, N/A)

May 16, 2024

• A one bedroom condominium in the Cedars Court complex in the Meadows neighborhood sold for $179,000 to Landonia LLC. That’s 23.96 percent above the 2024 assessment of $144,400 and 88.42 percent above the 2020 assessment of $95,000. (Node Mixed Use 5, N/A)
• A three bedroom house built in 1957 on North Avenue in the Locust Grove neighborhood sold for $439,500. That’s 6.52 percent above the 2024 assessment of $412,600 and 54.48 percent above the 2020 assessment of $284,500. (Residential-A, .209 acres)
• A two bedroom condominium in the McGuffey Hill complex in North Downtown sold for $802,700. That’s 14.85 percent above the 2024 assessment of $698,900 and 33.45 percent above the 2020 assessment of $601,500. (Corridor Mix Use 8, N/A)

May 17, 2024

• A two bedroom house on Little Graves Street built in 1938 in the Belmont neighborhood sold for $607,400. That’s 44.96 percent above the 2024 assessment of $419,000 and 100.2 percent above the 2020 assessment of $303,400. There were several upgrades made in 2014 but nothing recent according to the city’s development portal. (Residential-A, 0.084 acres)

May 20, 2024

• A two bedroom condominium at 1800 Jefferson Park Avenue with 921 square feet sold for $410,000. That’s 14.81 percent above the 2024 assessment of $357,100 and 29.79 percent above the 2020 assessment of $315,900. (Residential Mixed Use 5, N/A)
• A three bedroom house in the 900 block of St. Clair Avenue in the Locust Grove neighborhood sold for $492,000. That’s 9.33 percent above the 2024 assessment of $450,000 and 61.36 percent above the 2020 assessment of $304,900. (Residential-A, 0.25 acres)
• A five bedroom house on Brandywine Drive in the Greenbrier neighborhood sold for $410,000. That’s 21.18 percent below the 2024 assessment of $520,200 and 5.94 percent above the 2020 assessment of $390,800. (Residential-A, 0.35 acres)

May 21, 2024

• A four bedroom house built on Lyons Avenue in 1949 and remodeled extensively in 2023 sold for $1.725 million. That’s 15.47 percent above the 2024 assessment of $1,493,900. That assessment came after a series of permits were filed in 2023 for renovation work estimated at $350,000. That work was completed in May, though a final building inspection daily on the first day of that month. In 2020 the house and the property was assessed at $817,400. (North Downtown, 0.32 acres)
• A three bedroom house built in 1966 on Ricky Road in the Meadows neighborhood sold for $431,500. That’s 19.63 percent above the 2024 assessment of $360,700 and 65.64 percent above the 2020 assessment of $260,500. (Residential-A, 0.349 acres)

May 23, 2024

• A three bedroom house on Winston Road built in 1954 in the Venable neighborhood sold for $1.42 million. Renovations estimated at $262,000 were made in 2020. The sales price is 55.75 percent above the 2024 assessment of $911,700 and 108.58 percent above the 2020 assessment of $680,800. (Residential-A, 0.36 acres)
• A single-family attached house built in 2012 on Roades Court in the Burnet Commons section of the Ridge Street neighborhood sold for $600,000. That’s 18.02 percent above the 2024 assessment of $508,400 and 57.19 percent above the 2020 assessment of $381,700. (Residential-B, 0.06 acres)
• A two bedroom house on Calhoun Street in the Locust Grove neighborhood sold for $492,000. That’s 10.94 percent above the 2024 assessment of $443,500 and 59.48 percent above the 2020 assessment of $308,500. (Residential-B, 0.195 acres)

May 24, 2024

• A five bedroom house built in 1928 at 31 University Circle in the Venable neighborhood sold for $1,762,500. That’s 16.61 percent above the 2024 assessment of $1,511,500 and 39.41 percent above the 2020 assessment of $1,226,700. (Residential-A, 0.33 acres)

May 28, 2024

• A four bedroom house built in 1956 on Rugby Avenue sold for $1.35 million. That’s 20.39 percent above the 2024 assessment of $1,121,400 and 81.5 percent above the 2020 assessment of $743,800. Several renovations were made in 2017 and 2018 including an addition estimated at $25,000. (Residential-C, 0.36 acres)
• A three bedroom house in the 1800 block of Chesapeake Street in the Woolen Mills neighborhood sold for $595,000. That’s 6.14 percent above the 2024 assessment of $560,600 and 38.53 percent above the 2020 assessment of $429,500. A deck was put on in the last year by the previous owner. (Residential-A, 0.265 acres)
• A 604 square foot one bedroom apartment in the 1800 Jefferson Park Avenue sold for $234,000. That’s 4.51 percent above the 2024 assessment of $223,900 and 35.57 percent above the 2020 assessment of $172,600.  The new owner is Four Clover Real Estate LLC based out of Allentown, Pennsylvania. (Residential Mixed Use, N/A)
• A three bedroom house on Meadowbrook Road built in 1956 in the Barracks / Rugby neighborhood sold for $925,000. That’s 4.12 percent above the 2024 assessment of $888,400 and 86.27 percent above the 2020 assessment of $496,600. This house last sold in February 2023 and those owners put in $200,000 in renovations in the bathroom and the kitchen. (Residential-A, 0.87 acres)
• A three bedroom house on Swanson Drive in the Meadows neighborhood sold for $481,500. That’s 31.99 percent above the 2024 assessment of $364,800 and 66.26 percent above the 2020 assessment of $289,600. There are no building permits in the portal. (Residential-A, 0.43 acres)

May 29, 2024

• A four bedroom house built in 1900 on Lexington Avenue in the Martha Jefferson neighborhood sold for $1.135 million. That’s 31.02 percent above the 2024 assessment of $866,300 and 54.91 percent above the 2020 assessment of $732,700. There are no recent  (Residential-B, 0.14 acres) 
• A four bedroom house built in 1946 on Greenleaf Lane in the Barracks / Rugby neighborhood sold for $729,900. That’s 21.25 percent above the 2024 assessment of $602,000 and 67.49 percent above the 2020 assessment of $435,800. (Residential-A, 0.228 acres)
• In February 2020, Aspiring Developments LLC purchased a single-family attached house in the 700 block of Prospect Avenue for $70,000. They flipped it to Witcher Investments three months later. A couple purchased the three bedroom unit for $294,000 which is 34.74 percent above the 2024 assessment of $218,200. That’s 113.2 percent above the 2020 assessment of $137,900. 

May 30, 2024

• A three bedroom house in the 1100 block of Elliot Avenue in the Belmont neighborhood sold for $391,000. That’s 7.27 percent above the 2024 assessment of $364,500 and 77.08 percent above the 2020 assessment of $220,800. (Residential-B, 0.2 acres)
• Rivertown Circus LLC also bought 1522 East High Street which is where Hogwaller Brewery operates. The entity paid $485,000 which is 20.56 percent above the 2024 assessment of $402,300 and 56.96 percent above the 2020 assessment of $309,000. A kitchen hood and a new plumbing system were installed in 2023.  (Commercial Mixed Use 3, 0.16 acres)
• A two bedroom house on Cambridge Circle built in 1951 sold for $795,000. That’s 47.25 percent above the 2024 assessment of $539,900 and 215.85 percent above the 2020 assessment of $251,700. Renovations including a new kitchen have occurred this year. These had an estimated value of $50,000. Plumbing work was estimated at $3,500 and electrical work was estimated at $5,000.  (Residential-A, 0.429 acres)
• Covaba Holdings LLC of Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, is now the owner of an 802 square foot condo at 602 Cabell Avenue in the Venable neighborhood. They paid $290,000 for the two bedroom unit. That’s 10.06 percent above the 2024 assessment of $263,500 and 47.51 percent above the 2020 assessment of $196,600. (Residential Mixed Use 5,  N/A)
• A five bedroom house built in 2015 in the 800 block of Rugby Road sold for $2.128 million. That’s 4.41 percent above the 2024 assessment and 40.36 percent above the 2020 assessment of $1,516,100. (Residential-B, 0.42 acres)

May 31, 2024

• The Wertenbaker House built around 1830 at 1301 Wertland Street is what gave the roadway’s name. In January 2023, the Board of Architectural Review approved a certificate of appropriateness for a proposal to put a second structure on the property to serve as an apartment building. The property sold for $1 million. That’s 70.91 percent above the 2024 assessment of $585,100 and 82.35 percent above the 2020 assessment of $548,400. A building permit for that project is not yet in the development portal. (Residential Mixed Use 5, 0.4 acres)
• A 771 square foot unit with two bedrooms at the 1800 Jefferson Park Avenue complex sold for $215,000. That’s the 13.1 percent below the 2024 assessment and 18.52 percent above the 2020 assessment of $181,400. (Corridor Mixed Use 5, N/A)
• A four bedroom single-family attached unit built in 1981 on 7 ½ Street sold for $250,000. That’s 15.63 percent above the 2024 assessment of $216,200 and 69.84 percent above the 2020 assessment of $147,200. (Residential Neighborhood A, 0.095 acres)
• In November 2023, JLM Homes LLC purchased a single-family attached unit in the Orangedale section of the Fry’s Spring neighborhood for $170,000. This unit used to belong to former Charlottesville Mayor Charles Barbour and the transaction was under assessment.
  
  On this day, a couple bought the three bedroom unit for $290,000. That’s 51.67 percent above the 2024 assessment of $191,200 and $133,100 above the 2020 assessment of $133,100. (Residential Neighborhood A, 0.177 acres)
• Both sides of a single family attached house on Gentry Lane in the Barracks / Rugby neighborhood sold for $395,000 to a company called Foothold Properties. That’s 5.68 percent below the 2024 assessment of $418,800 and 31.54 percent above the 2020 assessment of $300,300. (Residential-A, 0.226 acres)
• The University of Virginia Foundation bought three buildings on Arlington Boulevard for $10.5 million. The seller is the University of Virginia Community Credit Union. The transaction is 38.27 percent above the combined 2024 assessment of $7,593,900.
  
  Two questions to conclude this edition: What will UVA do with this property? How long will it take them? I wrote about this transaction the week it happened for this newsletter.  

Before you go: The time to write and research of this article is covered by paid subscribers to Charlottesville Community Engagement. In fact, this particular installment went out to people who have paid through Substack ten days before posted here to Information Charlottesville. The goal is a week, but there was a holiday.

To ensure this work continues and that this enterprise can be grown, please consider becoming a paid subscriber or contributing monthly through Patreon.