Latest News
If You Had $1,000,000
Each year I like to take a look at the area to see what $1,000,000 can buy you in Philadelphia and the surrounding suburbs. Here’s what I found… In Philadelphia, $1MM can get you this stylish, luxury Contemporary in Chestnut Hill with 5 bedrooms, 4.5 baths and 4,336 SqFt of living space. … [Read More...]
Agent Alert!
AGENTS! Spring is here and these warmer temperatures will only help to heat up the Spring Selling Season. If you haven’t done so already, now is the time to take a hard look at your older listings and think about how they will compete in the Spring market. Perhaps, it’s time to do a little … [Read More...]
HELP! My Condo Shrank!
Last week, while looking at condo in Center City, the owner showed me a copy of her tax record which indicated that square footage of her unit was 3,155SF. She was concerned because a previous appraisal stated that the unit was 2,678SF. In her mind she was sold (and was paying taxes on) a unit … [Read More...]
Is 2012 the Year of the Foreclosure? Let’s ask Realty Trac!
The Realty Trac (www.realtytrac.com) website does a really great job of tracking foreclosure properties across the US. Below is a heat map from their site that shows you exactly where the foreclosures were locally and throughout the US as of December 2011. Give it a try. Hover over a state for … [Read More...]
Why is an appraisal needed during Bankruptcy?
During bankruptcy the debtor (the person or entity defaulting) is required by the court to demonstrate the worth of their assets. Since the debtor’s real estate holdings are, oftentimes, their largest asset a real estate appraisal is required. In Pennsylvania, a bankruptcy appraisal by a State … [Read More...]
Neighborhoods
AppraiserNews.com Reports No Housing Recovery until 2014
In an email released this morning, AppraiserNews.com reported that there is mounting evidence that there will not be a housing recovery until 2014. They cite several recent articles and surveys that have been released by noted market analysts and research companies that follow the real estate … [Read More...]
Montgomery County Quick Stats
Now that the first quarter of 2011 is officially behind us, we will be using the next few posts to examine the current market relative to that of 2010. Below is a chart illustrating the market stats for March 2011, in Montgomery County. Based on these numbers, March 2011 is looking a … [Read More...]
Mount Airy Trends
Being located in Erdenheim, just outside the city limits, we are frequently asked to appraise properties in northwestern Philadelphia, especially Chestnut Hill, Mount Airy, Roxborough and Manayunk. The other day we received our first question for the Ask PAB! section of the site. It was … [Read More...]
Camden’s Woes
Walt Whitman once called Camden, "A City Invincible". Undeniably, Camden is far from invincible at this point; perhaps, “unprotectable” would be more appropriate. Despite last minute efforts, ongoing negotiations and political wrangling, the fact remains that, Camden, New Jersey, laid off … [Read More...]
TReND Distressed Sales Report
TReND, the Multiple Listing Service that serves the Greater Philadelphia Markets, does a great job of publishing timely and relevant reports about real estate trends in the Philadelphia area. Below is the report that they released this week showing the affect of Distressed Sales on the local … [Read More...]
Case Studies
Thousands Saved in Property Tax!
Appealing your tax assessment can be very appealing! One homeowner that we worked with this past September found this out first hand. He received a 43% reduction in his overall assessment. How does that translate into actual tax savings, you might ask? Well, in this case the house was … [Read More...]
Potential 32% Reduction!
A property owner in Whitpain Township contacted our office about doing an appraisal of his property for tax assessment appeal. As we do with all of our assessment appeal clients, we ran the public records on the property and searched for any prior MLS data on the house. This gives us a … [Read More...]
Another Reason to get a Pre-Listing Appraisal
Just the other day, I received a phone call from a Mortgage Broker friend of mine. Yes, appraisers and Mortgage Brokers are still allowed to be friends. He wanted my input on a situation in which one of his former clients found themselves. Let’s call them the Utley’s. (For the privacy of … [Read More...]
Manayunk, Philadelphia
We've received a number of calls from real estate agents in the Philadelphia market, including Montgomery, Bucks, Delaware and Chester Counties who have been inquiring about our Listing Appraisal Service. Many have asked to see some case studies. We thought it was a great idea and will be … [Read More...]
The Lanesborough
Purchase Decision – The Lanesborough, Rittenhouse Square, Philadelphia This was an interesting appraisal assignment. We were contacted by a perspective Buyer to help determine whether or not he was going to purchase the condo unit that he was currently renting. The unit was located on one of … [Read More...]
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