When Lee Costic approached a real-estate agent about selling his parents’ house in Virginia Beach’s Thalia neighborhood last fall, he thought it’d take months to sell.

South Hampton Roads often adheres to a motto best summed up thusly: The status quo is mediocre but good enough. It's maddening. The people in charge know something isn't working well, but they're too stuck in place or unimaginative to change the situation. That's why it's so stunning when somebody dares to do things differently.

WHEN AN IDEAL unit became available at Lake Prince Woods, Carol Robertson of Suffolk nabbed it. Downsizing to the senior community would free up her lifestyle, but not before selling her townhouse in Harbour View.
Given today's economy, Robertson knew that could take months.
Three weeks later, however, Realtors Sandy Nance and Nora Edwards presented a contract.

By Toni Guagenti
Flowing and open. Practical and comfortable. Energy-efficient and money-saving.

That's what locals who work in the housing industry say homeowners want in the place where they eat, play, relax, sleep and perhaps even work.

 
DATABASE | Search to find out if real estate assessments have risen or fallen in your neighborhood.
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PORTSMOUTH

The Old Dominion football team received a commitment Saturday from linebacker Brad Bradley from Varina High in suburban Richmond. The 6-foot, 190-pound Bradley picked the Monarchs over Norfolk State. He'd also received recruiting interest from Delaware State, Coastal Carolina and Monmouth.

Import cargo volume at the nation's major retail container ports is expected to be up 8 percent in January over the same month last year, according to the monthly Global Port Tracker report released this week by the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates.

Don't be surprised if you see about a bunch of executives from S.L. Nusbaum Realty Co. sporting shiny bald heads in the coming weeks.

By Nora Firestone

A trip through the housing market leaves some house hunters wondering if they've arrived in a bygone world via time machine.

First-time buyers rushing to take advantage of the now-extended federal tax credit continued to drive home sales in Hampton Roads in October, according to a report released Monday.