Chester County Real Estate Blog

Just want to pass along my two new listings for anyone looking to buy in the Norristown, PA Montgomery County area.

1) 10 Sawmill Run Norristown, PA 19401

2) 1441 Astor Street Norristown, PA 19401

Tax credit ends this friday…schedule an appointment and get your $8,000!

Since the tax credit was originated I have had the opportunity to work with many great first-time home buyers in Chester County and the surrounding areas. What I have learned about these property virgins is that they all are very similar.

Here is what I have learned about working with First-Time home buyers that will probably surprise anyone.

Most Are Married. Most of the first-time home buyers are married (49 percent). Single females comprise a quarter of the first-time home buyers, and single males account for just 12 percent.

They’re Young. More than half, 53 percent, are between the ages of 23 and 34. About 12 percent are younger than 23 years of age.

They’re Diverse. About 22 percent are from a minority group, compared with 13 percent of repeat buyers. Less than 10 percent speaks a language other than English. And 12 percent were not born in the United States.

They Like The Suburbs. Surprisingly 52 percent of first-time home buyers purchase in the suburbs, with only 22 percent going into the urban areas.  The third most spot is a small town.

They Take Their Time.  Now this was surprising to know but almost every first-time home buyer had or has the patience it takes to find the right home. They take on average 12 weeks to find their dream home, compared to 10 weeks for repeat buyers.

They’re Not Afraid Of Foreclosures.  Eleven percent of first-time home buyers bought a foreclosure home. Surprisingly also many home buyers consider foreclosures before anything else.

They’re Most Likely To Use A Referral.  About half of the buyers found their agent through a referral compared to 36 percent who sought the services of their previous agent.

With about a month left before the tax credit expires, all first-time home buyers who are on the fence about purchasing a home should consider all the money they will be leaving on the table if they don’t . It can be nerve racking to make such a purchase but with so many great deals and such a large incentive sitting their for the picking, you should definitely take advantage of this opportunity.

If you need help finding a home in Chester County or surrounding areas please call or email me at your earliest convenience. Time is running out so don’t miss out!

Since the year begun I have had the opportunity to acquire a few eager investors in Chester County looking to purchase mulit-family units.  For most of today I previewed a handful of properties and I am now convinced these type of properties are a gold mine! If you are looking to invest in real estate focus on opportunities that will be rewarding and most importantly smart.

There are many ways to get started in real estate investing. For the beginner, a good strategy might be to purchase a multi family unit to rent out. Four families or less per building is the ideal size to look for. This will allow you to still acquire a building with a residential mortgage, taking advantage of the lower interest rates. Here are some great reasons why investing in a multi family building can be less risky than other types of housing.

First is competition. There are going to be more investors going after those single family houses. This can drive the price of those houses up to a point where they will not cash flow for you. Do not depend on appreciation to create cash flow. You need your properties to be cash flow positive right out of the gate. If you are considering being a landlord, you might as well purchase a unit that has more than one tenant option.

Then there is the fact that you have more than one unit to rent out. If you purchase a single family house and the tenant skips town, you have to cover the entire mortgage payment until you get it re-rented. With a multi family, it would be highly unlikely that all of your units would be unoccupied all at once, giving you a bit of a cushion. If you have a four unit building, having one tenant gone may not even put you in negative cash flow! This could make all the difference in the world for your yearly profit.

Multi family units bring you more money per month. Depending on your market, duplex or triplex properties can be around the same price as a single family house. However, you can get more rent from 2 units than a single unit. So, you will be getting more money per month for approximately the same mortgage payment. Which means more positive cash flow – the most important aspect of real estate investing!

Repair costs per unit average out to be less. If you have 3 single family homes and need to replace the roof on each one, that is a lot of money per unit. However, if you have a triplex that needs a new roof, you are in effect replacing 3 roofs in one, making the cost per unit decrease. Same thing goes for maintenance, it’s less travel time to go from unit to unit, maximizing labor costs.

As you grow your real estate portfolio, the increased cash flow given to you from your multi family units will allow you to be able to afford a property management company if you want. This will free up your time to find other deals, or do whatever you want!

We are about a month and half a way from the tax credit officially coming to an end and buyers are scrambling to find a house. With buying a house comes the responsibility of coming up with a sizeable down payment. Well PHFA has made that a little easier for all you first-time homebuyers with a tax advance loan.

Here are the details:

Why PHFA Authorized The Tax Credit Advance Loan Program?

Only first-time home buyers can qualify for this federal tax credit. These first-time buyers are eligible for an $8000 tax credit. This tax credit is paid through the 2010 tax return if the house was purchased in 2009. This Advanced Loan Program enables buyers earlier accessibility to their tax credit, due to the actions of the PHFA, intending to better serve Pennsylvania home buyers.

This PHFA tax credit advance loan program is not guaranteeing anything, but is intended not to require any loan payments or interest charges until June 2010. This should allow enough time for the home buyer to receive his 2010 tax credit refund and then use the funds to repay this PHFA advance loan before any payments or interest is due

PHFA Tax Credit Advance TCA Loan Program Guidelines

1. The TCA Program only applies to first-time buyers getting a PHFA first mortgage through the Keystone Home Loan and the Keystone Home Loan Plus assistance programs.

2. It can be used through PHFA Access Modification Program and the Purchase Improvement Program, which are special mortgage plans.

3. In actuality, the TCA is a lien against the house which must be paid off when the homeowner sells or refinances.

4. The minimum loan amount is $500, but the TCA can be either 10% of the home’s sales price up to $6000 for a newly built house and a resale house up to an amount of $5000.

5. Those PA homebuyers wanting to take advantage of a TCA loan must be occupants in the acquired home.

6. There’s no interest fee or loan payment due until June 2010. If the TCA is not repaid by that date, then the TCA converts to a 10 year loan and the interest percentage the same as that of the first mortgage.

7. This TCA cannot be used with any of the other programs which offer closing costs and down payment assistance.  These include Keystone Assistance Loan, HOMEstead, or the Access Downpayment and Closing Cost Assistance Programs.

8. Time extensions for paying back the TCA by June 2010 are not granted. The interest free and no payment due conditions end at that specified date.

9. The TCA is not allowed in any arrangement when buying a home from a parent or other family member.

There are requirements for income and house sales price which are dependent on the federal tax credit income guidelines or where the PHFA income and purchase price guidelines apply. This choice depends on whichever is more limited or restricted.

With the weather now changing and sellers eager to get their home off the market a great open house will be the key to getting that property sold.  Spring is right around the corner and in chester county especially there are alot of buyers that will be actively seeking a great open house to go too.

Sellers here are a few tips that you could use to spice up your home for the busy season approaching.

If you’re trying to sell your house, there are some things that you can do to help make sure that your home makes the best appearance possible for your visitors. The very first and foremost task is to give your home a good, thorough cleaning. If you want to leave an outstanding impression on the minds of your prospective home buyers, then you must make your home appear outstanding as well. If for any reason you don’t have the time to do such a thorough cleaning job, then investing in a house cleaning service will be money that is well spent.

An enemy of successful open house showings is any foul or mysterious odor in the home. The sense of smell is very powerful, and it can have a direct effect on our emotions, both for good and bad. If there are foul odors in your home, most likely very few of the other positive aspects of your house will be remembered more than the negative memory of the odor. So enlist the help of someone who doesn’t already live in your home to help you identify any foul odors, and then get rid of them as soon as possible.

When showing the inside of the house try to keep the appearance as uncluttered and clean as possible. If there isn’t a good reason for something being out in the open, store it and get it out of sight. If some of your rooms are small, remove any nonessential furniture to help them appear larger and more inviting. And if you have children, ask for their help to keep their toys and belongings stored neatly away.

Now is a good time also to take a fresh look at the walls in your home. Are there any areas where the paint is chipping, or are the colors outdated? Giving your walls a fresh coat of paint is a very cheap and easy way to brighten up the appearance of almost any home quickly and easily.

Other ways to liven up the appearance of your home and set a warm, inviting atmosphere is to bring in flowers and place them around in strategic locations. Or perhaps make some bread or cookies and let that wonderful smell permeate the entire house. The use of music can be very beneficial too as long as it is kept quietly playing in the background. Classical or jazz music are good choices that appeal to a lot of people. Basically, try to think of your open house as showtime for your home, and then set the stage accordingly so that it makes for a pleasing, inviting experience.

Of course, open houses are usually arranged most often for a specific period of time on certain days. But you’ll also no doubt receive requests for showings at odd times as well. These requests may be inconvenient, but they often also turn into offers to buy your home. So you need to try to be as flexible as possible and accommodating for the varied schedules of your visitors in order to get the best results.

Finally, if you remain at home while others come through to view it, resist the temptation to follow them around and sell them on all of its features. You may want to point out a few outstanding areas at first, but most people will feel pressured if you don’t allow them some space of their own. Of course, always be available to answer questions that may come up.

If you live in Chester County or any other surrounding counties in the Delaware Valley selling your home by yourself can be very stressful.  Sellers are reluctant to  Realtor to sell their home with the belief they can do it themselves.  I am not saying that many homeowners aren’t skillful enough to sell their home, but trust me it is no cake walk either. For you brave souls who want to sell your home on your own, here are a few tips that might help you along the way.

1. Keep A Positive Mind – If you’ve done your homework, priced your home right, learned everything you have to do at closing you are ready to sell your home yourself. Be confident it that.

Now is the time when negative individuals are sure to come to you with horror stories about themselves or people they know whose sale by owner attempts were a disaster. They may try and convince you that it’s too hard to sell your house yourself or that you’re not ready. Don’t buy into it. If the stories they tell seem true bear in mind that those people obviously did not properly prepare to sell their home and that you are prepared.

It is a little scary the first time you sell a house yourself but you must remain confident, and appear to be professional to all interested buyers. If you’re not confident the at least act as though you are. One of the key steps to selling your home yourself is to stay in control of the situation. Showing a lack of confidence or nervousness now will open the door for a buyer or his agent to take control of the situation. You can’t allow that.

2. Talk Like A Pro – One of the keys to a good sales person is to continually put the focus on the buyer. You do not want to talk about what you did in the house but rather what they can do. “You will love the pool”. “Here is where you can do your laundry”. Help them see themselves as the home owners.

Listen very closely to the questions they ask, and try and figure out what it is the really want to know before answering. If they ask you if there is a park nearby, find out if they have kids or grandkids first. You may assume that they are hoping for a park, but in reality may not want to live near a park for fear of the noise. Once you know what they’re looking for you can answer accordingly. “Yes, there is but the children in this neighborhood are very well behaved and you can barely hear the park.”

3. Look Like a Pro – When doing a sale by owner, or FSBO, property sale you do not want to show up to sell your home in your sweatpants and a dirty T-shirt.Buyers may already be a little concerned buying directly from the owner, if they stop by to see the home and you have to stop mowing the lawn to show the property and are covered in sweat, you’ll make it worse.

This also goes back to them not seeing you as the home owner but as the person that is here to help them buy the property. Dress nice but not like a high dollar trial lawyer.

4. Think Like a Pro – If you’ve done your research, you should know all the correct steps for selling real estate. Use that knowledge to think like a pro. Get yourself geared up before each showing. Remember that you know the house better than anyone else, you can answer any questions they have and that you are here to sell your house and that they are ready to buy it. And if they choose not to buy it then someone else will. Keep that confident thinking throughout the process.

5. Act Like A Pro – A professional real estate agent is helpful, provides guidance to the buyer and never does the hard sell. Always greet your buyers with a handshake, get their first names and you their first names often in your conversations. An old trick to getting prospective buyers to find you relaxing.

When they are looking at your home start them off in by doing an initial walkthrough to the key features of the house but quickly allow them the freedom to explore the home unsupervised so that they can talk freely. During your initial walk ask a few questions about them, like where they are living now etc, items you can make small talk about. Let them know where you will be if they have any questions.

Make sure they leave will any printed information that you have about the house, especially where they can reach you if they have any questions. Always be polite and never be defensive about any flaws they find in the home. It’s not personal, don’t react like it is, it is simply part of the buying process.

Over the past few weeks while showing homes to my clients throughout Chester County, I started to see a regular pattern in vacant homes. They were completely empty! I am not saying I haven’t shown a few home that were vacant with nothing in it, but of late many homewoners and agents have deserted the fact that staging a house is a major part of selling it. Why do agents take on a listing that is completely vacant? A few furniture pieces gives prospective buyers a more comfortably feeling when walking through the home. It doesn’t take much money only creativity. Statistic show that a house that is staged correctly sells three times quicker than a completely vacant home. Here are some tips on how to stage your home.

• Clear all unnecessary objects from furniture throughout the house. Keep decorative objects on the furniture restricted to groups of 1, 3, or 5 items. In general, a sparsely decorated home helps the buyer mentally „move in‟ with their own things. • Rearrange or remove some of the furniture in your home, if necessary. Many times home owners have too much furniture in a room. When it comes to selling your home, thin out overcrowded rooms to make the rooms appear larger.
• Clear all unnecessary objects from the kitchen countertops. If it hasn‟t been used for three months…put it away! Clear refrigerator fronts of messages, magnets, pictures, etc.
• In the bathroom, remove any unnecessary items from the countertops, tub, shower stall and commode top. Keep only the most necessary cosmetics, brushes, perfumes, etc., in one small group on the counter. Coordinate towels in one or two colors only.
• Take down, reduce, or rearrange pictures and objects on walls. Patch and paint all walls, if necessary.
• Review the house interior, room by room, and:
1. Paint any room needing paint.
2. Clean carpet and draperies that need it.
3. Clean windows.
• If you need room to store extra possessions use the garage or rent a storage unit.
• Leave on certain lights during the day (your agent will show you which ones). During showings turn on ALL lights and lamps.
• Play light FM music every day in the house, for all viewings.

• Go around the perimeter of the house and move all garbage cans, discarded wood scraps, extra building materials, etc., to the garage or, if applicable, take them to the dump.
• Check gutters and roof for dry rot and moss. Make sure they are swept & cleaned.
• Look at all plants. Plants are like children…they grow so fast. Prune bushes and trees. Keep plants from blocking windows: “You can‟t sell a house if you can‟t see it!”
• Remove any dead plants, weed all planting areas and put down fresh mulching material.
• Keep your lawn freshly cut, edged and fertilized during the growing season.
• Clear patios or decks of all small items, such as little planters, flower pots, charcoal, barbeques, toys, etc.
• Check the condition of the paint on your home, especially the trim and the front door. The first impression, or „curb appeal,‟ is very important.

Try to look at your house “through a buyer‟s eyes,” as though you‟ve never seen it before. This exercise will help you see what needs to be done. Any time and money invested on these items will usually bring you the return of more money and a quicker sale.

It is no secret we are in a recession in this economy. With that comes restless sellers who have to endure the long months of seeing their homes sit on the market.  Truly, the main reason why homes sit on the market so long besides the fact there aren’t enough qualified buyers out there, is due to homes not being priced correctly.

Sellers here are a few things to remember when listing your home with an agent.

Don’t waste time floating a high price out there just to see if you get a nibble. “You have to stay more current than in the past, so your broker should show you the prices of comparable homes that have gone into escrow in the past month, not three months ago,” Veneris says. And if you don’t get an offer in four to six weeks, he says, drop the price 4 to 6 percent.

Think round numbers. About 80 percent of people buying and selling homes today get information by searching online multiple-listing sites like Realtor.com, which is run by the National Association of Realtors. To conduct a search on that site, buyers specify a price range, beginning and ending with round numbers. So if you price your home that way, more people will see it.

Pick the right improvements. You might want to update your kitchen or a bathroom for your own comfort, but don’t expect to recoup the project’s whole cost when you sell your home. In today’s market, you might get the best return if you spruce up the outside of your home by adding a wood deck, energy-efficient windows, or new siding, according to a nationwide survey of real-estate professionals conducted last year by Remodeling magazine.

Consider the type of listing. If you’ve decided to go with a real-estate broker, there are two common ways to list your home, and that decision can affect how much money you’ll eventually walk away with. You can designate it as an exclusive agency listing, which means you have one broker but can still sell it yourself and save the commission. If you instead opt for an exclusive right-to-sell listing, only the broker you designate can offer your home during the listing term (often six to 12 months), and you can’t sell it yourself.

Interview more than one agent. Ask around for recommendations and meet with several possible candidates. They should clearly explain how they would market your property and should describe how they handle open houses and newspaper and Internet advertising. Ask whether there will be any advertising costs, transaction fees, or other incidentals that you will be expected to pay. Transaction fees in particular are negotiable. After you select an agent, make sure the marketing plan is part of the listing agreement, so if the plan is not followed, you will be able to cancel the listing and take your business to another agent.

If you are  a first-time home buyer in Chester County PA you are probably scrambling around trying to figure out how to begin the process of finding your dream home with the tax credit deadline quickly approaching.  There aren’t any concrete  rules  out there about how to go about finding a home but I thought why not come up with a few tips that all buyers could use.

I have helped alot of people find homes in Chester County and in every transcation there are some nervous moments before getting to the closing table.  Here are my top 10 tips on what first-time buyers should know.

1) House prices tend to rise over time, so a house is one of the best investments you can make. Home prices in the U.S. have risen three percent to six percent a year for the past 20 years. That trend is likely to continue. So if you buy a home now, you’ve put your capital in a safe investment where it is likely to grow.

2) You’ll pay less tax. You can deduct the interest you pay on your mortgage from your taxable income. The value of this tax break depends on factors like your personal tax bracket, the size of your mortgage, the rate of interest you pay on it and how long you’ve held the mortgage. As a rule, the newer the mortgage, the greater the amount of interest you pay each month and the bigger the tax break. Therefore, recent buyers with young mortgages tend to get the greatest benefit.

3) You’ll be buying a piece of real property rather than putting money in a landlord’s pocket each month. The real cost of renting is higher than the monthly payment. There is also an opportunity cost equal to the amount you would gain by using the money to purchase a home instead. Even if the house you purchased did not appreciate in price, you would be able to sell it and recoup some of the money you put into it.

4) Interest rates are still historically low. This makes it relatively inexpensive to take out a mortgage. The lower the interest rate, the less you actually pay for your house and the sooner you can pay the mortgage off. Our loan calculator can show you how different interest rates affect the total cost of your mortgage and the time it takes to retire it.

5) You’ll be able to use the equity in your home for low-cost loans for other purposes. You can access the paid-up equity you accumulate in your home in the form of a home equity loan or a home equity line of credit. Because they are secured, home equity loans and lines of credit generally carry a lower interest rate than other types of consumer loans, such as auto loans. The interest on them is generally tax-deductible, as well.

6) You’ll have the stability and emotional security of owning your own home. No more worrying about dictatorial or negligent landlords, rent increases or the possibility your building will be sold and redeveloped or turned into a condo. You’ll be able to live in your house as long as you like, fix your monthly payments for as long as 30 years and you’ll be in charge.

7) You’ll be able to redecorate and renovate any way you like, any time you like. Rules about the paint colors you can use will be a thing of the past. And you’ll be able to tear out walls, install a powder room and make any other improvements you want. Best of all, if you decide to sell, you’ll recoup at least part of the cost of the improvements.

You can have a garden. This is one of the big pluses of ownership – a little piece of land you can call your own, where you can grow tomatoes or roses, barbeque, and play with your kids and pets.

9) You’ll be able to put down roots in a community. When you’re a homeowner, you’ll get to know your neighbors, participate in street sales, meet potential baby-sitters and play Saturday-morning touch football in the park. Renters tend to live more insular lives.

10) You’ll have a greater voice in community affairs. Local homeowners generally have more clout – individually and through ratepayer’s associations – when it comes to development proposals, school issues, changes to traffic control and routing and the like. Because renters tend to be more transient than homeowners, they have less influence on policymakers.