The Story of 151

We all know that Nelson county is rightly famous for its mountain views, trout fishing, Wintergreen Resort and the Blue Ridge Parkway. However, like most things in life, there is more to the story. It all starts with the Economic Development Authority. This appointed board was given the task by the Board of Supervisors of how to bring more revenue into the county. The one requirement was that the rise in revenue was not to produce population growth and the resulting growth in dollars for new schools, roads and the like. The EDA went to work in 2006 and came up with a plan called agri-tourism. Make Nelson a day trip destination. Tourists, not residents was the objective. Now after almost fourteen years we see it paying dividends. Wineries, breweries, and cider operations plus food service have grown and continue to grow.

What has all this done to the real estate market in Nelson?

For starters, there is very little commercial property left along 151. What little is left is commanding ever higher prices as businesses try to gain a foothold on access to the growing traffic on the road, sometimes referred to as ” Alcohol Alley”. We at Virginia Estates prefer to call it ” Spirit Trail”. The residential market is robust, but higher prices discourage first time buyers. Inventory is low by historic standards and the fact that investors have cleaned out the lower priced homes and converted them to long term rentals or air b and b’s. Banks still are cautious about funding spec homes by builders taking a one at a time approach. This has served as a brake on the residential supply. There are still opportunities and we at Virginia Estates can help you reach your goals be they residential or commercial.