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Archive for November, 2009
Sunrise
Nov 30
As of this November 29, 2009
What do these statistics mean?
- Inventory Units = Total homes for sale in Chester County, PA
- Average Sold/Month = Average number of homes sold over a 12 month period in Chester County, PA per month in the corresponding price range
- Months of Inventory = Inventory Units divided by Average Sold/Month
When Months of Inventory is greater than 6, it’s a buyer’s market.
When Months of Inventory is between 3 and 6, it is a neutral market.
When Months of Inventory is less than 3, it’s a seller’s market.
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Overall Inventory decrease of 39 units and an increase in sales of 36 units account for an overall improvement on inventory velocity by .2 months over last week. Net decrease in inventory in the 0-400K account for most of the improvement. My outlook for this range of inventory is positive but I expect the market to slow through the holiday season.
With the extension of the federal tax credit and weakness in prices I expect a moderate to strong spring market.
I love red delicious apples.
Nov 29
Today is Thanksgiving day, and as I have been doing for the last 35 years or so, I will go to visit my Mother. This year, we won’t be having Thanksgiving dinner at Mom’s house, we’ll be going to a relatives home and enjoying the feast with the extended family. For all but a handful of my 54 years, Mom put the Thanksgiving feast on the table. The clan converged on that tiny little house and 20 of us would squeeze around the table that was only designed to seat 10. Of course, the kids would sit at the card table in the living room and their mom’s would keep an eye on them. I sat at that card table myself when I was a boy.
I lost my Dad in May of this year. My sister and I are trying to help my Mom decide what to do with that tiny house that they lived in since I was 6 months old. Still in the door jambs are the pencil marks that measure our height as my sister and I grew up. Inside of the closet door of the back bedroom is my sister’s crayon masterpiece. The outside of that door was repainted a long time ago but no one looks at the inside of the door, right? That cabinet door under the kitchen sink still comes off the hinges when you pull it open. It’s done that for over 40 years, since I was a 12 year old running through the kitchen and ripped it off it’s hinges because I wasn’t watching where I was going.
And there, in the dining room, is that rickety old dining room table, where so many thanksgiving dinners had been served in years past.
Is selling a house personal? You betcha it is.
I urge my colleagues to remember their own family histories when they visit their clients. Yes, one must be rational, one must offer the home at a price that will allow the seller to reach what could be a very difficult conclusion. Just do it with tact, love, and sensitivity. It may be a business to you but that house is somebody’s living, breathing home. All those little defects don’t add any value to my Mom’s house but they make that it priceless in her (and my) eyes.
Please, remember where you came from.
Peace.
Trusted Advisors
Nov 24
In the course of my real estate practice, I have come in contact with many excellent service providers and tradesman, people who I have referred to my clients with the full confidence that they will do a great job. In order to become a trusted advisor on my team, there are a few requirements:
- You must always put the needs of the client first.
- You must charge a fair price for your services.
- You must be dependable.
- You must not be influenced by any outside factors.
- Did I mention you must put the needs of the client first?
I have found that most people are happy to work with professionals that I recommend to them. You will make very important decisions about your real estate transaction based on the advice you receive. Here are some things you can do to help you choose a trusted advisor.
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If your real estate pro recommends an advisor, ask for more than one referral. Your agent should have several to choose from.
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Call them and ask them what you can expect from their service.
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Ask them for references and check them if you feel it’s necessary.
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Raise any concerns you may have with your real estate professional. A good agent has your interest first and will reconcile any issues.
I wish you the best of luck. If you wish to contribute to the conversation, please feel free to comment here.
Peace.
Great advice this morning from Seth Godin
As of this November 22, 2009
What do these statistics mean?
- Inventory Units = Total homes for sale in Chester County, PA
- Average Sold/Month = Average number of homes sold over a 12 month period in Chester County, PA per month in the corresponding price range
- Months of Inventory = Inventory Units divided by Average Sold/Month
When Months of Inventory is greater than 6, it’s a buyer’s market.
When Months of Inventory is between 3 and 6, it is a neutral market.
When Months of Inventory is less than 3, it’s a seller’s market.
| Price Range | Inventory Units |
Average Sold / Month | Months of Inventory |
| $0 – $200K | 484 | 80.58 | 6.0 |
| $200K – $300K | 805 | 133.58 | 6.0 |
| $300K – $400K | 743 | 78.67 | 9.4 |
| $400K – $500K | 475 | 43.50 | 10.9 |
| $500K – $600K | 247 | 20.42 | 12.1 |
| $600K – $800K | 302 | 15.00 | 20.1 |
| $800K – $1M | 174 | 5.25 | 33.1 |
| $1M – $1.25M | 74 | 2.42 | 30.6 |
| $1.25M – $1.50M | 74 | 1.50 | 49.3 |
| $1.50M – $2.00M | 71 | 1.25 | 56.8 |
| $2.00M + | 70 | 0.33 | 210.0 |
| Total | 3519 | 382.50 | 9.2 |
To all my friends in Chester County, PA, please circle May 1, 2010 on your calendars and then read on. I have a story to tell.
We built a brand new home here in North Coventry in April 2004. Like many of you, we watched with great concern and unhappiness as the value of our home plunged through the bursting of the housing bubble.
To make matters worse, unexpected changes in employment status left us very few options to relocate without losing a boatload of money. Furthermore, we really like here in Chester County and we really didn’t want to move.
We had to find a way to tighten our belts and reduce our expenses. When we moved into the house, we filed for an appeal of our tax assessment and we were able to reduce the assessment by quite a bit.
Property tax assessments in Pennsylvania are calculated by a formula called the Common Level Ratio (CLR) which is applied to the fair market value of the property. The CLR is recalculated annually and by 2008 it had reduced been significantly from our first appeal. The reduced CLR combined with the decreasing fair market value of our home led me to believe that we might be able to reduce our property tax assessment even further.
We filed the appeal, hired an appraiser to determine the fair market value of our home and appeared at our assessment hearing. The hearing went very quickly and smoothly and a few weeks later we were notified that the assessment had been reduced.
Now, for the good news!
We, like many people, escrow our tax payments with our mortgage company. While the assessment was reduced, the new tax bills weren’t processes by our lender until January and July 2009. This week the lender recalculated our escrow requirements. Since our tax liability had been reduced, they sent us an escrow refund of $4750! Furthermore, the escrow portion of our monthly mortgage payment reduced by $350/month!
So, what’s the significance of May 1?
That is the start of the period in which the County Board of Tax Assessment Appeals accepts appeal applications. The last day of appeals is August 1. You can find more detailed information about the tax appeal process at The Official Chester County Website
If you have any questions about the process, feel free to ask your questions in the comments or you can ask me directly via any of the links found in the “See my Vcard” tab found on the right.
I will remind you all when we get closer to the May 1 date so keep checking back here for more information.
Peace.
Chester County Chronicles
Nov 20
It is with great pleasure that I bring to you my weblog. My name is Joe Sheehan and I am a REALTOR® in Chester County, PA. I live in North Coventry Township and have been lived here since 2004.
I love our beautiful county and will share with you some of the treasures to be found here. I’ll keep you apprised of current events, interesting things to do, and cool places to visit.
As I said, I am a real estate agent, so you can also expect to find valuable information about real estate markets, government programs that effect the market and effect buyers, sellers. and owners of homes, tips to help you if you are thinking of buying or selling your home, and information pertaining to maintenance or “care and feeding” of your home.
I also encourage you to comment on the information you find here. If there is a topic you would like covered, an event you would like to announce, a restaurant or entertainment venue you would like to plug, please feel free to do so. You can either leave a comment on a related post, follow me on twitter by clicking the link on the left margin of this page, or send me an email at jsheehan@chestercountychronicles.com.
Finally, please feel free to contact me if there is anything I can do to help you. That is what I am here to do and it will be my pleasure to respond to your needs.
I look forward to our future conversations here and wherever our paths may cross.
Peace.
