Tips & Ideas

From pumpkin patches and fall festivals to ghost tours and family-friendly Halloween fun, here are some of my favorite ways to celebrate autumn in the Williamsburg, Yorktown, and Hampton Roads area. Fall is one of my favorite times of year in Yorktown and Williamsburg! The cooler temperatures, changing leaves, pumpkin patches, and festive community events make this season especially fun for families and visitors alike. As a local Realtor who has spent nearly 20 years helping

Spoiler alert: The real estate market doesn’t care what any of us thinks. It doesn’t care what your neighbor’s house sold for three years ago. It doesn’t care what you paid for your home, how much you spent remodeling the kitchen, or what an online estimate says it should be worth. It doesn’t care what buyers wish homes cost or what sellers need to walk away with at closing. The market decides. And in the 2026 real estate market, understanding that reality can make the differ

After nearly 20 years as a Realtor in Yorktown and Williamsburg, Virginia, I’ve learned that honest pricing is one of the most important things I can offer my clients. Even when they don’t want to hear it. Unpopular opinion: I will not list a home for sale if the asking price is unrealistically high. And believe me, I know how controversial that sounds. Over the years, I’ve been cussed out, had doors slammed in my face, and lost potential listings because I wouldn’t agree to

Have you ever heard of “The Starbucks Effect?” No, it’s not about how many lattes are standing between you and a down payment. The idea is pretty fascinating: Homes within a quarter-mile of a Starbucks increased in value by 96% between 1997 and 2014, compared with a national average of 60% over the same period. But here’s the part I find really interesting: It’s not necessarily the coffee shop causing home values to rise. Starbucks has a real estate team dedicated to identify

From relocations to downsizing to first-time buyers to finding their forever dream homes, I've done it all. I’ve even helped 28 families stage their homes to sell for top dollar (and quickly)

Technology has changed nearly every aspect of buying and selling a home. From AI-powered property searches to automated marketing campaigns and electronic signatures, today's real estate transactions are more efficient than ever before. Many of these innovations are genuinely helpful. They save time, simplify paperwork and make information easier to access. But there's one place where I believe technology should never replace the human touch: answering the phone. Real estate

A stranger came up to me last week and said, “Oh, I see you on Facebook all the time—I thought you’d be way taller than you really are.” People build all kinds of assumptions online. And in real estate especially, there’s a lot of messaging out there designed to make people believe they absolutely cannot survive a transaction without an agent.

One of the most common questions I hear from sellers is: How much work do we need to do before listing?

While we were at the home inspection for Eric's parents, Christina described her perfect house and neighborhood to me. Fast forward one year, and the perfect home that Christina had described to me came on the market.

Since I'm the #1 selling individual Realtor in York County for existing-home sales (third year in a row, actually!), I know a thing or two about listing homes here. I'm even a resident right here in Running Man.

If you’re thinking about selling your home in York County / Yorktown, Williamsburg, or anywhere on the Virginia Peninsula, I’m going to give you my best free advice.

I always promote using small, locally owned businesses over the national chains. As a real estate agent, here's who I recommend to my clients: Handyman/Contractor Inside/Out Home Maintenance & Repair LLC or Powerhouse Services for everything home. They are my go to for it all! If they can’t help, Darryl (Inside Out) or Brian (Powerhouse) knows someone who can. Both are great guys! Exterior Cleaning Veterans Exterior Cleaning for all things exterior, mulch, yard clean up,

I am so thankful to once again be among the top Realtors in Hampton Roads. I absolutely LOVE what I do and I could not do it without all of you.

This job is so much more than just real estate to me. Buying or selling a home is a huge deal, and I never take it lightly when someone chooses me to guide them through it. I’m honestly so thankful for that trust.

This is my son, Noah. I'm so dang proud of him. Here's why: I've always tried to teach my kids to be the type of people who bring their cart back to the cart return station when shopping. Raising a kid who grows up with a sense of initiative DOES make the world a better place.

If you’re looking for a place to go see Christmas lights this month, here’s a list I put together for the Yorktown/Williamsburg area! My family has been to many of these. Let me know which ones you end up going to!

A brown sugar oatmilk cortado at Starbucks costs $5.62. Meanwhile, the median price of a home in the United States is around $400,000 right now. That means if you skipped one coffee per day, you could save up enough cash to buy your dream house in... just under 200 years. This is why I think it's pretty dumb advice to tell people to skip out on simple luxuries to save for a house. The math just doesn't "math." It's better to focus on the BIG things in your budget (car payment

Okay, I have a confession to make. When you’re selling your home, staging matters… BIG TIME.

Happy Halloween! Do you ever wonder if you're being tricked by a Realtor? What are you actually paying for? Yeah, paperwork and a sign in the yard. When you hire me, though, I can tell you exactly what you're paying for.

“Hey, Ashley, do you charge a higher commission than other agents?” I’ve had a few people text me the same question in the last month, so I figured I’d just publicly answer it here: NO.