Suburban Philadelphia Real Estate News

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Take this holiday to spend some time with your friends and family.

Enjoy all the season has to offer.

And Have a Very Prosperous and Happy New Year!

SEPTA 101 Trolley Line Construction Update:

Just wanted to pass on a quick reminder that the 101 Trolley is now under construction.

Effective from December 14 through March 14, 2010, the SEPTA 101 Trolley Line will be temporarily closed for construction, maintenance, and repair along the tracks from the Woodland Avenue station through Media.  Temporary shuttle busses will be operating along the route during this period seven days a week.  This should add about ten minutes of travel time.

In addition, the SEPTA 102 Trolley construction is now completed and has resumed normal operation.

There will be additional closures on both lines in 2010 beginning in March as construction moves toward the 69th Street Terminal.

As always, if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to let me know or contact SEPTA.

Welcome to the Pine Ridge Station of the SEPTA 101 Trolley in Nether Providence PA just east of Media PA.

Pine Ridge is a nice small community just north of Baltimore Pike and west of I-476/ the Blue Route.  The entrance to the community is the first street  going north off Baltimore Pike west of the I-476 intersection.  The Pine Ridge  SEPTA Stop is one block north of Baltimore Pike adjacent to the community itself.  This station is one stop west of the Paper Mill Rd stop in Smedley County Park and the next stop west is Beatty Rd.

The SEPTA 101 Trolley runs from Media Borough east to the 69th Street Terminal.  The Pine Ridge station has a single shelter on the south side of the tracks and does have some limited parking adjacent to the station.  There is plenty of room for picking up or dropping off passengers either in the parking lot or on Pine Ridge Rd itself.  It is also within walking distance of some commercial office buildings along Court House Rd to the west.  The video will provide a bit better feel for the station:

Pine Ridge itself is a nice small development of single family homes encompassing a wide variety of styles and dates of construction from the 1800's to the present day.  With less than 100 homes, sales over the last few years have been limited.  Prices individually have been all over the board ranging from $250,000 to over $800,000, but the average prices have been more stable since 2003 varying from a low of $359,000 in 2005 to a high of $476,000 in 2007.

The Pine Ridge Station is a small convenient on demand stop on the SEPTA 101 Trolley serving the local community and should be a great commuting alternative for people living in the local area. 

As always, should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me anytime.

Welcome to Swanwyck, Swanwyck Gardens, and Swanwyck Estates conveniently located between Wilmington and New Castle in New Castle County DE.

These three communities are all nestled together south of I-295 and west of Route 9/ New Castle Ave/ Wilmington Rd.  I-295 is immediately accessible with direct access either north or south from Route 9 and there is a slip exit directly off I-295 north into the Swanwyck Gardens section  This location also provides direct routes from Route 9 into Wilmington and New Castle.  Just a short drive west, Route 13/ the Dupont Highway affords additional routes south to the New Castle County Airport and beyond.

Swanwyck was named after the original home in the area that was built in approximately 1819 and has been listed on the National Register of Historic places since 1977.   Very limited development and building began in the late 1930's & early 40's with some 2 story colonials and ranches being built along Landers Lane, Prince Ave, and Queen Ave.  This development was suspended during the war years but resumed in full force after the war with the vast majority of homes then built as ranch style properties during the 1950's.  This later development encompassed most of the area between Landers Lane and I-295 and to the west of the Eisenberg Elementary School and Route 9.  Today, per the public tax records, the three communities encompass over 460 properties.

Like many areas in the county, Swanwyck has seen quite a bit of price variation over the last few years.  Since 2003, the average sales price rose from $129,000 to $139,000 in 2004, $163,000 in 2005, $183,000 in 2006, and $186,000 in 2007.  During this period, activity remained remarkably stable with 24 sales per year in 2003-2006 and dropping to 13 sales in 2007.  In 2008, there were only 14 additional sales with the price pulling back to $173,000.

This year sales have recovered slightly but prices took a hit with an average sales price year to date of $144,000.  The good news is that on a monthly basis the pricing has been rising for much of the year as the overall economy has appeared to be on more solid footing.  Today there are 4 properties currently on the market with an average asking price of $173,000 and one home under contract with a list price of $189,000.

With its great location and solid housing, the three communities of Swanwyck, Swanwyck Gardens, and Swanwyck Estates should continue to be a solid choice in the area.  Prices should remain fairly stable from here supported by the current tax incentives and provided that the overall economy continues to regain some momentum.

As always, if you have any questions or are considering a move in the area, please feel free to contact me anytime.

Welcome to Garrett Hill PA in Radnor Township Delaware County.

Nestled in the northeastern corner of Delaware County in the center of the Main Line in Radnor Township, Garrett Hill is ideally located between Villanova and Bryn Mawr.  Garrett Hill is centered on the area south of Lancaster Avenue, west of Garrett Avenue, East of Lowrys Lane, and north of Conestoga, but is often used to reference the larger area including the surrounding developments.

This location puts Garrett Hill in a prime spot along the Main Line with easy access to the Blue Route/ I-476 running just to the west of Villanova.  It is also well served by SEPTA.  Bus lines run throughout the area and the SEPTA Route 100 High Speed Lines runs right through Garrett Hill with a stop between Lowrys Lane and Garrett Avenue.  It is also within easy striking distance of the R5 Rosemont stop just north of Lancaster Ave.

The homes and businesses in Garrett Hill were originally developed to support the workers, plants, and larger estates in the surrounding areas.  Today, the area has become a close-knit community, and the homeowners and businesses continue to support much of the area including Villanova.

Due to its original development, the real estate is a nice mixture of single family homes, twins, and newer row homes.  The area is surrounded by some of the most expensive real estate in the county, but within Garrett Hill, the homes are very reasonably priced.  Since 2005, the average sales prices have ranged in price from $290,000 to $315,000.  Today, there are 11 homes currently on the market with an additional 6 under contract.  This year to date, there have been 34 sales in the overall area with an average sales price of $304,000.

With its great location, easy access, reasonable pricing, Garrett Hill PA should remain a stable community for years to come and a great choice in the area.

As always, should you have any questions or need any additional information, do not hesitate to contact me anytime.

This is a bit off the real estate topic, but I think it is an important point of view that needs more consideration .....

Recently in a Health Care Opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal, Daniel Henninger got it right.

The Health Care System doesn't need any help from Washington;  it needs help from Apple.

At the end of the day, Americans want clarity, flexibility, and "limitless, self-defined choice".  Washington, by its very nature, wants control and to maintain power by limiting choice.  To achieve this, Obama & company have been madly trying to cut deals with all the powers that be so that they can limit any dissent and get a bill.  Toward that end, "the Old Hat People have created a health-care bill that is big, complex, incomprehensible and coercive - all the things people hate nowadays".  The only losers here are we, the voters, who will be paying the bills through higher taxes, reduced choices, and declining service.

Now -- Imagine the world based on Health Care Apps. Every person in the country receives them on their iPhone.  If you have a health issue, you search for the apps addressing that problem.  You then receive a wide choice of appropriate services plus the associated cost of each - and you choose what  is appropriate and affordable.  Every hospital and provider can compete in real time with the most innovative and cost effective solutions available.  By their very nature, the best solution will be the most popular driving down the costs for everyone - the free market at its best - and everyone can see this in real time.

The Health Care apps would provide a minimal barrier to entry for any provider with a better idea and become a continuous test bed for innovation.  Consumers would get to receive the best service, best pricing, and newest ideas in real-time. "Over time, with trial and error, a better system would emerge."

Of course, this openness reduces the power and control of the doctors, insurance companies, drug companies, government, and all the other powers that are trying to cling to their control today since we, the consumers, would now be running the show - but, isn't that the way it should be?

(All quotes above are from the October 29, 2009 Wonder Land column: "Obama and the Old Hat People" Opinion piece by Daniel Henninger in The Wall Street Journal".  Please be sure to read his complete column!)

Welcome to Toby Farms PA located in the northeast section of Chester Township with a Brookhaven PA address.

So how is the first time home buyer market faring? -- in one southern Delaware County community, very well - thank you.

Toby Farms PA is located just west of Upland and south of Brookhaven in the northeast corner of Chester Township just east of Chester Creek.  It is to the south of Bridgewater RD which becomes Brookhaven Rd to the north and 6th Street in Upland to the east.  Bridgewater Rd continues on a spur to Concord Rd running south to I-95 and north further into Aston.  This location provides easy access to I-95 both north and south as well as direct access north to the balance of Delaware County.

Toby Farms has a long history in the local area.  The development was built on land originally used as farm land by John P Crozer.  Toby Farms was named after one of Crozer's horses and was originally named Toby's Farm.  The first homes were built on the site in 1960 and construction continued through the 1960s until the latest construction in 1973.   The community also has its own Toby Farms Elementary School for grades K-5 which was originally built in 1963 and expanded in 1966.

Pricing has in the neighborhood has remained fairly stable.  Between 2002 and 2006, average home prices ran from the high $40,000s to reach $81,000 in 2006.  Since then the sales price has remained relatively stable with 45 sales in 2007 at $86,000, 37 in 2008 at $79,000, and 14 sales year to date at $85,000.  In addition, there are 3 pending sales with an average list price of $70,000 and 11 currently on the market with an average $95,000 asking price.  Generally, sales of fixers or bank owned properties have been in the $50's and $60s while standard resale have started in the $70,000s and have ranged over $100,000 depending on the size, condition, and amenities.

With the continued support of the $8000 tax credit and a stable or slowly recovering economy, it appears that Toby Farms has a solid chance of remaining fairly stable.  With its convenient location and housing stock, it should remain a strong community as long as the surrounding area also stabilizes and grows.

As always, don't hesitate to contact me with any questions or if you need any additonal information.

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Welcome to the Thompson Ave Station of the SEPTA 101 Trolley in Springfield PA.

This is one of the small on-demand trolley stops on the SEPTA 101 Trolley Line running from the 69th Street Terminal to Media PA.  It is located at the crossing of Thompson Avenue just to the east of Sproul Rd and north-west of its intersection with the Baltimore Pike. This is just one stop to the west of the larger Woodland Avenue stop and the next station west is the Springfield Mall trolley stop.

The station itself has a small shed on the south side of the track (there is only one track from Woodland through Media).  There is no dedicated SEPTA parking at this location and only limited areas on the adjacent streets to park or to drop off/pick up passengers.  It is conveniently located to several residential communities of mostly single family homes.  The video will provide a better idea of the immediate area:

There is a nice selection of homes throughout this area of Springfield.  On the far side of Sproul Rd are the Villas at Golf View, a recently completed active adult community of 194 single level homes.  Just to the north is the community of Mary Dell Farms containing mostly split level single family homes.  Toward the east and south is a nice community of mixed style single family homes.  Pricing in the area for homes currently on the market range from a low of $239,000 to a high of $379,000, averaging $297,000.  Sales in the last six months have ranged from $169,000 to $419,000 averaging $273,000.

As always if you have any questions or need any additional information, please do not ever hesitate to contact me.

Recently, I have had several questions concerning GFCIs.  After a quick search I found Reuben Saltzman in Minneapolis has put together a two part series which does a great job of covering all the basics.  Thanks Reuben!