February 2026 Note from Jim | How many houses actually suit you? Less than you think.

We can’t make the snow melt faster; might as well accept it radically.

Much of what I’ve been thinking about this month comes down to the same thing: connectivity, growth, and the slow, human work that nothing can replace.

One of the best things I’ve done lately

This seems like a small thing, but it was important to my clients. My buyer clients were interested in a neighborhood; I couldn’t provide a “lived experience” perspective because I don’t live there. I have a few clients who live nearby, so I connected new clients to previous clients, they talked, and my new clients made the right decision for themselves. And it makes them feel better, which is important.

Whether or not they went into contract is less important to me than whether I gave them access to the information/people that helped them make that decision; that is my role.

Writing by hand

My wife gave me a new notebook for Christmas, and I love the ethos:

Writing by hand is thinking on paper.

Thoughts grow into words, sentences and images.

Memories become stories. Ideas are turned into projects. Notes inspire insight. We write and understand, learn, see and think – by hand.

I love my notebooks. I write. I make lists. I sketch cards for my clients. I draw maps. I think in words. There are apps for that, but writing is more meaningful. And slower.

Ask better questions

A potential buyer client recently hired another agent. They did what I have long advocated: they interviewed multiple officers.

After our first conversation, they chose to work with another real estate agent. And because I’m always sincerely trying to get better at what I do, I asked them why.

They replied kindly. It wasn’t about my experience. It wasn’t about my knowledge of the market; they were confident that I knew the neighborhoods, the companies and the process. They chose the other agent because of something that was much harder to quantify: that agent asked questions that helped them see possibilities they hadn’t yet articulated.

The other officer didn’t just listen to what they said they wanted. They dug deeper. They challenged assumptions. They helped this couple discover needs they didn’t know they had—and apparently painted a picture of a future they were excited about.

I’ve thought about this a lot. Because this is what it’s all about: me did ask questions. But I asked the questions I always ask. Basic questions. Those are good questions. Necessary questions. But they are not enough.

The questions I missed were the questions that would have revealed the truth Why under the What. Not just ‘how many bedrooms’, but ‘what does home feel like to you?’ Not just “what’s your budget,” but also “what are you willing to trade off, and what’s non-negotiable in ways you may not have thought about?”

So I’m working on this. I take things a little slower in those first conversations. I express my curiosity – something I do during the process, but haven’t done yet during the first meeting.

A final reflection (for this segment): I find that I’m more comfortable meeting clients in coffee shops and not in our conference room, and that’s something about me that I don’t think I’m going to work on changing.

On Silence

I was having dinner with my youngest daughter and I showed her something I was planning to publish, noting the possible downsides of expressing this opinion. She read it, looked at me and said, “Dad, you have to post this. You can’t be silent.”

I have never hidden my politics or beliefs. And I don’t remember ever putting a politician’s bumper sticker on my car.

That said, we are in different times that transcend “parties.” Silence is not an option. This is not a political conversation, it is about human rights.

I posted a version of this on RealCrozetVA, the Crozet community blog and a version on RealCentralVA.com.

In response to one FB response, I posted 🙁edited for RealCentralVA)

RealCentralVA’s focus remains information about the Charlottesville and Albemarle real estate markets, and tangential issues that impact how and where we live. And yet, we are at a time in history when silence in the face of what we are seeing across the country is no longer acceptable.

This is not “political”: it speaks to the fundamental rights of everyone who lives in this country, including Charlottesville, Albemarle and Central Virginia.

We are currently seeing documented events that circumvent basic constitutional protections – most notably our First, Second, Fourth, Fifth, and Tenth Amendments. See quotes below. When federal operations involve the use of deadly force against civilians without due process, including killing Americans in the streets without accountability, breaking into private homes without warrants, dragging people – civilians and otherwise – out of cars, and arresting journalists, we no longer discuss policywe are discussing human rights.

Recognizing these events is a matter of constitutional importance and public safety, relevant to all of us, regardless of our political beliefs.

We see people being attacked, besieged, murdered and threatened, and that is not okay. As mentioned, you may not be a racist, you may not attack people yourself, but if you remain silent, you have come to the conclusion that you are okay with these things.

I’m not okay with all this. Silence is not an option.

Part

Shifting MLS culture

It’s never about the technology, it’s about the people and politics. The real estate world is entering a new phase, with one giant brokerage threatening the way we search for and find homes for sale. The MLS system is the only uniform system in the world and the best. (Ask my clients who have left the United States.)

I recently featured 5 houses.

• There are 2 listed in the Cville MLS: easy to prove.
• 1 is offered by an unrepresented seller: not easy to show because I had to search for their number and then they said showings were not allowed.
• 1 is listed on the VA Beach MLS: This one wasn’t easy because the number on the MLS was the main office number and no one responded. I had to dig online to find the officer’s cell phone.
• 1 is listed in the Cville MLS by an out-of-area agent and they chose not to have the listing appear publicly: it was actually under contract and the agent had not changed the status.

All listings were found on Zillow.

Add to that deliberately breaking the MLS, and we face challenges. I rarely include the writings of others in the body of my note, but Chris’s post, Velvet ropes versus open doorsjustifies such a call. His comments about dual agency, reduced transparency and monopolistic data practices are important.

Fun with data – how many fit?

I do these level-setting exercises with many of my buyer and seller clients. Helping buyers understand their market segment and helping sellers understand their potential competition, which is crucial when pricing your home. The stories are from 2017; the logic remains the same.

1. How many homes are coming on the market in Charlottesville that are right for you?
2. How many homes are coming on the market in Albemarle County that are right for you?

A few graphs I put together after manually retrieving data

I like looking at market data and occasionally find my way down rabbit holes. Often these gaps lead to useful insight.

What I read

What I listen to

Talked to Greg about real estate