About

• Roy Kohn – REALTOR Extraordinaire 
• Burke and West Springfield Area
• This Web Site / Blog
• Martial Arts
• Fitness
• Accolades

To add to the “About Roy” blurb →

I joined Shannon and Luchs in Olney, Maryland in 1994 after seeking career advice from a friend who was in the business. Shannon and Luchs soon became a different company (my former Broker). Within two years, that Broker hired me to work for the company as their technology trainer. I had a good ten years training real estate agents how to sell homes, how to prepare of wide variety of analyses and how to integrate technology into their work, all the while, I continued to sell real estate.

It was all over after the market went bad at the end of ’05. One day I woke up and learned, without warning, that I was once more a full time REALTOR and no longer the Director of Technology in MD, DC and VA. In hindsite, it was the best thing that could’ve happened to me professionally. I did miss the appreciation and admiration from the students/agents and it was nice having friendly, familiar faces in the 50+ offices in the DC area but I was truly meant to help people and famlies sell and purchase real estate. I was  a good trainer but I am a great REALTOR!

Early in 2009, I finally switched Brokers. I’m now with RE/MAX Allegiance, the largest RE/MAX franchise in the world. I had zero “down time” during the transition. I feel completely at home and I wonder why I didn’t make this fantastic change MUCH sooner. If you’re an agent considering a change, feel free to contact me if you have any questions about RE/MAX or the transition.

Fitness has always been a part of my adult life, especially through martial arts and weight lifting. I’m admittedly out of shape and have been for a couple of years but I know what I have to do and plan to do it. The way I rationalize it is a gall bladder removal and new baby put me on hold for a little while. The new baby is now… er… um… 5 years old ; )
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The Springfield area

is dominated by the interchange of I-95, I-395, and the Capital Beltway (I-495), known as the Springfield Interchange or Mixing Bowl. The center of the town is at the intersection of Route 644 (Old Keene Mill Road / Franconia Road) and Route 617 (Backlick Road) adjacent to the interchange. A significant commercial district exists around the interchange area, but the rest of the community is primarily residential in nature.

Springfield has four primary ZIP codes:
22150 (unofficially referred to as “Central Springfield”)
22151 (”North Springfield”)
22152 (”West Springfield”)
22153 (Also “West Springfield”) Wikipedia refers to it as “Burkefield” due to its proximity to Burke, Virginia
22015 (All of Burke)
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This Web Site / Blog

With the internet and GPS it has been much easier to sell homes in a very wide footprint. Don’t be deceived by the url, the Burke area is my headquarters but I am very comfortable selling and have sold, all over Northern Virginia and Maryland. Here are some of my buyer agent sales or listings sold, over the last year or so.

• Montgomery County Germantown Garage Town Home – Pending Sale and Price Placement
• Fairfax County Fairfax Town Home $250,000
• Anne Arundel Crofton Condominium $253,000
• Spotsylvania Fredericksburg Brand New Home $259,900 (Spear Builders)
• Prince William Manassas Town Home $260,000
• Fairfax County Springfield Town Home $295,000
• Fairfax County Springfield Single Family Home $300,000
• Prince Georges Bowie Town Home $303,000
• Prince Georges Bowie Town Home $315,000
• Fairfax County Lorton Town Home $319,000
• Fairfax County West Springfield Town Home $325,000
• Prince Georges County Bowie Single Family Home $338,000
• Fairfax County Fairfax Condominium $350,000
• Arlington Grove At Arlington Ridge Brand New Home $358,500 (The Mayhood Company)
• Fairfax County Springfield Town Home $389,000
• Fairfax County West Springfield Single Family Home $403,560
• Prince William Bristow Brand New Home $410,000 (Centex)
• Prince William Manassas Brand New Home $413,500 (Pulte)
• Fairfax County Kingstowne in Alexandria Town Home $420,000
• Fairfax County Burke $423,500
• Fairfax County Alexandria Single Family Home $445,000
• Prince William Manassas Brand New Home $480,000 (Pulte)
• Fairfax County Burke Single Family Home $480,000
• Alexandria City Townes at Cameron Park Garage Town Home $510,000
• Fairfax County Fairfax Brand New Home $544,078 (Stanley Martin)
• Fairfax County Autumn Chase in Alexandria GarageTown Home $554,000
• Fairfax County Fair Chase in Fairfax Town Home $575,000
• Fairfax County Kingstowne in Alexandria Garage Town Home $576,000
• Fairfax County Alexandria Mt Vernon Single Family Home $630,000
• Arlington Barcroft Single Family Home $735,000
• Fairfax County Fairfax Station Single Family Home $745,900
• Fairfax County Centreville Single Family Home $750,000
• Fairfax County Alexandria Mt Vernon Single Family Home $815,000
• Fairfax County Fairfax Brand New Home $1,043,273 (Basheer & Edgemoore)

Here are some recent rentals

• Fairfax County Mt Vernon $2,825
• Fairfax County Burke $2,300
• Fairfax County Burke $2,600
• Fairfax County Fairfax Station $2,750
• Fairfax County Fairfax Station $2,795
• Fairfax County Burke $1,900
• Fairfax County Burke $2,500
• Fairfax County Springfield $2,595
• Alexandria City Alexandria $1,100
• Fairfax County Falls Church $3,400
• Fairfax County Falls Church $1,450
• Fairfax County Springfield $2,595
• Fairfax County Falls Church $1,450

As you can see, I’m in a wide area and in a variety of price ranges. This is fairly recent activity. I’ve sold many, many other homes in other places over the years.
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Martial Arts

For more than 15 years, I’ve very much enjoyed a variety of martial arts. My primary training has been in Taijutsu, which is traditional Japanese Kobudo. It has a very nice mix of throws, joint locks, grappling and acrobatics.

I started training at Scott Teagues Academy of Martial Arts in Olney, MD. Mr Teague is a fantastic instructor with vast knowledge of our style. I received my 1′st degree Black Belt from him in 1998 after several years of training. There were four of us and our test/demonstration was held in an old church with no AC and it had to be close to one hundred degrees that day. It took a good couple of hours and I don’t think I’ve ever been that drenched from a workout.

Some time after that my teacher made the decision to change affiliations and joined the Jinenkan organization. I made the transition with my Teacher, Mr. Teague into the Jinenkan where we started out fresh as un-ranked students. I currently hold the rank of Sandan (3′rd degree Black Belt), with the Jinenkan organization.

For several years I also trained in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu with a great school in Silver Spring . I made it to blue belt and competed in area grappling events. That training got me in the best shape I’ve ever been in.

After relocating to Northern Virgina, I started training at another  fine school in Alexandria. I’m fortunate enough to be very busy selling houses but I still teach and train several times each week.

I recommend that everyone consider enjoying a Martial Art. I train as often as I can. I often fantasize about starting a small training group in the Burke/Fairfax Station/West Springfield area. So, if you’re interested…

→ For more pictures and/or videos, click here ←

The Martial Arts have been and continue to be a great passion of mine.

The picture to the left is a picture of me, Scott Teague and Bill Swaim (in that order- picture taken March 2009). Bill and I have tested for almost every belt we’ve ever recieved from Mr. Teague or from Manaka Sensei (The main person in our organization). I owe so much to Scott Teague for introducing me to the martial arts and making me part of the “family”. I’ve trained and been one of the main instructors at his school for many years. I value my small part in the success of his dojo and it’s my hope to return to a more regular training and teaching schedule at the school. 

 Scott Teagues Academy of Martial Arts is a fantastic place to participate in the martial arts. If you’re anywhere close, you should check him out. I’ll probably see you on  Tuesday or Saturday. That’s when I make my way back up to Olney, MD to teach and train with my friends.
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Fitness

For about a decade, I was a regular in Fitness First and mostly worked out with my buddy Pat. Pat has been a trainer in his past but now earns a living as a CPA. He taught me about working out different muscle groups and every once in a while, changing the regimen to shock the system a little. I learned many different excersizes for each muscle group with both free weights and machines and I was pleased and amazed over the transformation my body went through.

After relocating to Virginia, I joined Jungle Gym for 3 years and they have an excellent facility. These days, I have nice equipment in my basement and can also be found at the South Run Rec Center lifting and swimming.
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Accolades

Over the past four months, we’ve had the pleasure of working with Roy to find a home for our family. We had seen first hand how pushy some realtors can be, but we were pleasantly surprised by Roy’s willingness to do everything he can to make our experience comfortable. As first time home buyers, we were not in a hurry to buy just any house, so we took our time, and Roy did not mind at all.
I had special requests and circumstances because my in-laws were going to live with us. Roy understood our concerns and went out of his way to make sure we found the right home for us.
Roy’s kindness, openness, and honesty assured us that we had chosen the right person to help us make the biggest decision we’ve made since our marriage.
When we finally settled on a house, Roy spent hours there making sure everything was functioning correctly and that we would be getting the best deal possible. When our families came to visit the house, they all mentioned how nice Roy was to them and how he made them feel so comfortable.
Roy– we really appreciate your time and effort in helping us navigate the often complex house buying process. You made our visits enjoyable, and gave us the freedom to think about our choice for as long as we wanted. Our indecisiveness did not frustrate you, and your patience helped us get through the last four months.
Thank you again for everything, and we look forward to having you over in our new home!
Warm regards,
Tuqa & Ahmed

We want to thank you for the excellent service provided to us in finding a property that met our needs, our expectations and our budget. For you, providing this type of excellent service is something that you do every day; it is part of your work ethic and an enjoyable part of your job. But our situation was nothing run-of-the-mill or ordinary! Yet you made it all seem so effortless. Our situation was that we were temporarily residing in Warsaw, Poland on a State Department assignment and wanted to find a property for our son to live in while he is in college in Maryland. Neither my husband nor I were going to be able to actually view the property until it came time for closing, if even then! We wanted the property to be in an area we were familiar with, which was convenient to our son’s college and work locations, and met our investment value criteria. The property had to be not too small and not too big – as a young adult with school and work obligations would be the primary resident, and we didn’t want the property to become the nesting grounds for all of his friends. It had to be just right. Sounds like a familiar children’s story, doesn’t it?We received your name through a mortgage broker recommended by a close family friend whose advice and recommendation we hold in very high esteem. You met every expectation we had based upon that recommendation. The task of finding the “just right” property for us was, however, not uncomplicated by trying to obtain and provide information timely from such a long distance. But you rose to the challenge and overcame the extreme distance between us by making liberal use of technology in the form of sending and receiving scanned documents via email, working with our son and close friend to schedule convenient viewings of the properties, and by being a true advocate for us by advising them and us on the pros and cons of each property. You also made and took many phone calls at odd hours to keep us informed all along the way.
Additionally you were an integral part of the price negotiating process for the property we eventually selected. You provided expert advice and explained, in layman’s terms, why one price offer option was better than the other, and through consultations with the mortgage broker, were able to help us understand how each negotiated price would affect the amount of our mortgage. In the end, this resulted in the seller agreeing to our offer and in us successfully purchasing the property we wanted.

Finally, your endearing personality, second only to your vast experience as a realtor, made it an absolute pleasure to work with you. You provided expert advice in a congenial and understandable manner that made it easy for us to have complete trust in you – a very important aspect of working with any realtor, but especially notable given that we didn’t have the opportunity to meet you face to face during this entire process.

Sincerest thanks,
Jan and Susan

“While everyone thinks buying a house can be stressful, that was not the case for us. Roy actually made it an ENJOYABLE experience – imagine that! So much that, even though we are settled comfortable in our new house, we miss our outings with Roy!
Roy’s knowledge of the market, while providing patient reassurance is a welcome change in the real estate industry. Throughout the entire process we knew he was truly committed to helping us find the “right” house, rather then getting us “into” a house. His dedication to service while providing warm hospitality made all of our appointments with Roy fun and something to look forward to. Roy stands out as a gem in the sea of real estate agents for the Northern Virginia area.”
Thank you Roy – we look forward to working with you again and referring you to our friends, family and colleagues! We’ll be sure to send pictures after we have the baby! 

Kelly and Chris

We continue to be very pleased with our new home and the quality customer service you provided every step of the way during the search and closing processes.Having arrived in the area after a lengthy period overseas with very outdated information of the DC metro area market, your no-pressure, friendly personality and detailed knowledge of the area’s fluid real estate market were very reassuring to us. You went out of your way to ensure that we understood each step of the process, allaying our fears and dispelling misconceptions which put us both at ease.

We were impressed with your ability to take our requirements and turn them into viable options. Your selections gave us locations and suggestions that we had not thought of before. It was very convenient to review your suggested selections on-line before we saw the homes.

You went out of your way to work with both the for sale by owner and us in order to get the best deal for all parties. Ultimately, we always knew that you were our agent and our confidence and trust in you was well earned. Your continued reassurances and quick response to every one of our concerns was very helpful.

Roy, you did an outstanding job in getting us this home and we will certainly recommend you to others would want to buy or sell a home. Your continued follow-through and support are most appreciated. Many thanks for all that you accomplished on our behalf.

Sincerely,
Jack and Rosemary

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