PHILLY HOME BUYERS HERE ARE YOUR CLIFF NOTES:

FIND YOUR PHILLY HOME AND GET YOUR TAX CREDIT  

Technorati: tax credit extended, 1st time home buyer, philly home buyer

posted by janice       SEARCH the Philadelphia MLS. No Registration Required!

Homebuyers ask us all the time about the amenities of a neighborhood and while we pride ourselves on knowing everything about the areas we sell once in a while we don’t know everything (hard to believe huh?) Walkshed Philadelphia allows users to input any address in the city and see the diversity of amenities within a one-mile radius.

Unlike WalkScore that measures the walkability of a neighborhood this site lets users prioritize the amenities they’d like to measure. Philadelphians and those that wish they were can score 19 different categories, ranging from a Philly CarShare pod, coffee shop, library, farmer’s market, and bus stops to tracking quality-of-life issues like instances of violent crime.

This is one more great tool for a well-informed buyers’ arsenal.

FIND YOUR PHILLY HOME

Technorati: philadelphia walkshed, philadelphia home buyers, relocating buyers, philly walkability

posted by janice       SEARCH the Philadelphia MLS. No Registration Required!

IS IT TIME TO GET SERIOUS ABOUT YOUR HOUSE AND THE MARKET? Pricing your home right from the beginning is 90% of selling it in a timely manner and marketing is the other 10%.

Make no mistake…understanding what the right selling price is from the beginning affects your bottom line.

The market sets the value. The market is the market. Plan and simple.

The #1 Most Common Mistake in Selling a House

“Testing the waters” by pricing your home high at the beginning and reducing it a few weeks later when it hasn’t sold. This is a deadly mistake.
The very most important time in marketing your house is the first 30 days.

Overpricing:

Eliminates the number of potential buyers that see your home

Encourages buyers who are shopping by comparison

Lengthens marketing time, costing you more in mortgage payments, taxes and insurance

Overpricing can result in a lower selling price as buyers often see homes with numerous price reductions as “stale” and less desirable

Agents lose interest when they know a property is overpriced or worse yet they use your home to sell a similar home that is priced for less

GET HELP PRICING YOUR HOME RIGHT THE 1st TIME

Technorati: price your home to sell, philly home prices, sell your philly home

posted by janice       SEARCH the Philadelphia MLS. No Registration Required!

PHILLY HOME BUYERS , SELLERS AND RAVING FANS…

GOT 15 SECONDS?

The Animal Rescue Site is having trouble getting  enough people to click on it daily so they can meet their quota of  getting FREE FOOD donated every day to abused and neglected animals.  It takes less than a minute (about 15 seconds) to go to their site  and click on the fund food for animals for free. This  doesn’t cost you a thing.

Their corporate  sponsors/advertisers use the number of daily visits to donate food  to abandoned/neglected animals in exchange for  advertising.

P.S. You can get on their mail list  and they’ll send you a reminder email everyday that has the link in it.  At the website, on the left side, click on ‘Daily Click Reminders’.

Please pass it along to  people you know. It’s so easy, and it helps to take care of our animal friends.

EMAIL A FRIEND

Do you have friends or clients who are buying a home? I’m a REALTOR who likes to give very different gifts, depending on whether my clients are buying their first, second or fifth home.

First time buyers are more apt to purchase a home that needs a little work.  They don’t have tons of money lying around – after all, they just spent most of their cash on settlement.  I’ve found that a gift certificate from Lowes along with a bottle of wine makes renovations easier. Other times, I choose a gift certificate to a nice restaurant in their new neighborhood.  In the middle of painting, they can get out, get a break, and enjoy a good meal without worrying about the bill. 

Second or third homes are less likely to need major work.  For these buyers, I might call Di Bruno Bro’s, the gourmet food shop in Rittenhouse Square. This way they can have a little bite to eat while they watch the moving truck unload. Odds are they haven’t eaten all day and they’re starving.  With a gift basket all they have to do is dig in.

Good luck to all homebuyers.  Hopefully these little gifts make moving day a little better.

HAVE HOT NEW LISTING DELIVERED FRESH TO YOUR INBOX

Technorati: 1st time home buyers, move up buyers, philly home buyers, closing gifts, philly realtors

posted by carolyn  REALTOR, Ecosociate™by Ecobroker International

SEARCH the Philadelphia MLS . No Registration Required!

Everybody, homebuyers that is,  gets a tax credit now (well almost everybody).

The new legislation includes extending the First-time Buyer Tax Credit of up to $8,000 and raising the qualifying income limits to $125,000 for single taxpayers and $250,000 for joint taxpayers, up from the current $75,000 and $150,000 income limits.

In addition, the legislation offers a new credit of up to $6,500 to qualifying EXISITING HOMEOWNERS who have resided in their homes for 5 out of the last 8 years and are buying a new home.

Agreements of sale will have to be signed by April 30, 2010 and settled by June 30, 2010

Homebuyer tax credit changes: Frequently Asked Questions (pdf)

FIND YOUR PHILLY HOME AND GET YOUR TAX CREDIT  

Technorati: 1st time home buyer, home buyer tax credit, philly home buyers, buy 1st home

posted by janice       SEARCH the Philadelphia MLS. No Registration Required!

Every REALTOR’s open house is a little bit of drama. We have the sellers clean up the homes, we put out signs, we put out balloons or flags, we put out info and a sign-in sheet, and then we wait.

That’s when the games begin.

Usually the neighbors are the first to show up. “We live down the block and just want to look”. “How much are they getting for this? Are they crazy?” “I love what they did with the kitchen but I still wouldn’t pay this much.” They’re always fun.

Then the “others” come in. Most are very pleasant. They ask questions. They want to know how long it’s been on the market, does it have central air, what are the taxes, what’s the parking situation.

Some people come in, look around and make no eye contact at all. They have that aura of “Don’t look at me, don’t talk to me, I’m not really here.”

But honestly, all I want them to do is sign in so I can let my seller know that people came in to look. I don’t want to marry them. I try to let them know that if they have questions they should ask, otherwise go look around and enjoy.

Yes, some homes actually sell because of the open house. I was just getting ready to lock up one house when someone walked in. They were driving by, saw the sign, found a parking spot and came in. They bought it a week later. Score!!

Anyway – if you decide to spend time walking around and visiting open houses, don’t be afraid of the REALTOR. We’re here to help, answer questions and try to get our seller’s home sold.

Don’t hesitate to come on in. We like the company.

LIST WITH US and give your home the exposure it deserves and GET IT SOLD

Technorati: philly open houses, sell your philly home, philly realtors

posted by carolyn  REALTOR, Ecosociate™by Ecobroker International  SEARCH the Philadelphia MLS .

Todays Mortgage Rates:

30 Yr Fixed – 4.875% (1 point) / 5.125% (0 points)

15 Yr Fixed – 4.25% (1 point) / 4.5% (0 points)

5 yr ARM – 3.5% (1 point) / 3.75% (0 points)

7 yr ARM – 3.875% (1 point) / 4.25% (0 points)

FHA – 4.875% (1 point) / 5% (0 points)

Investment – 5.125% (1 point) / 5.375% (0 points) – at least 25% down payment required

*Rates are based on 80% loan to value unless noted and 720+ credit score (with the exception of FHA) *Income and Asset verification required and must meet DTI guidelines *This is not a commitment to lend and other conditions may apply

This week brings us new employment numbers…and a chance to see if the labor market is showing signs of recovery. The employment news begins Wednesday with the ADP National Employment Report. Sandwiched between that report and Friday’s Jobs Report, is the Initial Jobless Claims report on Thursday.

The big news comes on Friday, when the all-important Jobs Report will be released. Last month’s report underscored the struggling labor market, as the Labor Department reported 263,000 jobs lost in September and an increase in the unemployment rate to 9.8%. The report due out this week is expected to show 166,000 jobs lost in October, which would be significantly better than the previous month if it happens. However, the Unemployment Rate is expected to continue its climb to 9.9%.

In addition to employment news, we’ll also see the ISM Index on Monday. This is the king of all manufacturing indices and is considered the single best snapshot of the factory sector.

Finally, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) holds its two-day meeting this week, with an announcement of the Fed Rate Decision and Policy Statement due on Wednesday at 2:15 p.m. (ET).

Remember: Weak economic news normally causes money to flow out of Stocks and into Bonds, helping Bonds and home loan rates improve, while strong economic news normally has the opposite result.

Technorati: philly mortgage, mortgage market, carina marchese, center city mortgage company

APPLY FOR A MORTGAGE ONLINE

Brought to you by our favorite mortgage broker:

Carina Marchese
Center City Mortgage
267.238.5785

email Carina for today’s rate

Forget advertising in the local newspapers and don’t depend on open houses. To successfully promote your property to the market it is important to know how buyers find homes.

Just how important is your homes presence on the internet? The Pennsylvania Association of Realtors track statistics of home buyers and sellers and every year release the information in report form: 2008 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers Pennsylvania Report (pdf).

37% of recent buyers reported that their first step in the home-buying process was looking online for properties for sale. 9% of first-time buyers and 21% of repeat buyers reported their first step was to contact a real estate agent.

89% of home buyers used the Internet to search for homes.

The typical home buyer searched for a home for a median 12 weeks and saw a median 10 homes.

90% of home buyers used a real estate professional during their home search.

Among home buyers, the typical Internet searcher was 36 years old and visited a median 10 homes. The typical home buyer who did not use the Internet to search for homes was 54 years old and saw a median 6 homes.

35% of home buyers first learned about the home they purchased from a real estate professional; 39% first learned about the home they purchased through the Internet.

Real estate agents were viewed as a very useful information source by 81% of buyers, and as a somewhat useful information source by an additional 16% of buyers searching for a home.

Your homes internet presence is the new curb appeal.

Our marketing strategies are designed to target the major buyer resources found in the consumer research chart above because they are most likely to result in a buyer for your home.  We deliver. Period.

Can your home be found online, or for that matter how about your real estate agent?

LIST WITH US and give your home the exposure it deserves and GET IT SOLD

Technorati: philly home sellers, curb appeal, marketing strategies, sell your home

posted by janice       Contact Us for a Hassle-Free Listing Consultation

So here’s the problem:  He wants to watch the game, she wants to go out and socialize with friends, and there’s only so much weekend time.

There is a way everyone can be happy – and that’s eating brunch. Eating always bring people together. And brunch doesn’t cut into major football watching time. 

I consulted with area foodies to come up with a list of 10 favorite brunch places.

Enjoy.

Top 10 Philly brunch places

Sauté –Queen Village
Cafe Estelle – Old City
Cochon – Queen Village
Royal Tavern – Bella Vista
Standard Tap – Northern Liberties
Morning Glory – Bella Vista
Las Bugambilias – Society Hill
Beau Monde – Bella Vista
Cafe Fulya – Queen Village
Marigold Kitchen – University City

Go out and enjoy yourself.  Eat, drink, watch football.  What a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

FIND A PHILLY HOME IN A GREAT NEIGHBORHOOD

Technorati: philly brunch, philly neighborhoods, top ten brunch

posted by carolyn
REALTOR, Ecosociate™by Ecobroker International

SEARCH the Philadelphia MLS . No Registration Required!