There are headlines, and then there’s what’s REALLY happening in the hypermarkets of Philadelphia and surrounding burbs. We asked our agents for insider real estate tips based on real-life experience in this market.
Not Everything Is a Bidding War
“I recently had a stunning listing in a hot neighborhood. Many that came through the open house fell in love but didn’t submit an offer because they assumed it was “100% going to go over ask” and they wouldn’t be able to compete. In the end, my sellers accepted a very fair offer that was right at the listing price. My advice is, don’t be afraid! Sometimes properties aren’t as competitive as you may assume. The worst-case scenario is that you put an offer in and it isn’t accepted. It’s also a great way to get your name into the pot if the current deal falls through, you are right there at the top of the list. I have a number of clients who have found their dream home because the original offer from other buyers didn’t work out.”
Lean into your realtor’s advice
“The market isn’t reacting the same way it was a year or two years ago. Pricing is more important than ever. I’ve found success in giving my sellers a full scope and understanding of the key differences between pricing strategies. Lean into your agent's advice. We live the market every single day. We use comparable properties that have recently sold, not homes that sold a year ago in a different market. We know which neighborhoods and suburbs will respond to a higher-priced home. Pricing effectively and confidently with numbers to back it up is a great strategy and has worked for my clients. Also taking a hard look from the buyer’s perspective is something I remind my sellers. Higher interest rates do make a difference in the buyer's bottom-line payment. Their monthly mortgage is going to be higher than what you’re paying now. That may be a factor we consider in the pricing strategy.”
Be One Step Ahead
“There is a social media buzz going around (thanks to Barbara Corcoran) that echoes what I have been talking to both buyers and sellers about for the past year. Many of my buyers want to wait out the high-interest rates and buy when they drop. Once those rates drop, the floodgates will open and competition will be high. I’m counseling my clients on the value of buying the home they want now while competition is low. It even comes with advantages. For example, we may negotiate a lower offer or seller's assist. Once the rates drop you’ll be able to refinance in the home you already love.”
Know where to look
“I am seeing an advantage with my buyers that are looking at new construction homes, or homes that have been sitting on the market for a while. There’s an opportunity with new construction because they’re not occupied, and developers are often motivated to sell. Sometimes they even offer extra incentives such as buying down the rate! You also have a tax abatement with new construction that can result in big savings for your monthly mortgage payment. Homes that have been on the market for a while may also be willing to accept a more flexible offer. Often the seller has already purchased their new home or may have a contingency, so selling in a timely manner is important to them.”
Be flexible and You may Just fall in love
“To keep monthly payments affordable, I’m finding my clients are more open to looking at other options aside from complete turnkey-ready homes. They’re more willing to sacrifice two of the five must-haves on their list, look at the neighborhood just next door, or possibly take on a home that has light projects. You can really open up the options with some creative thinking. My buyers are able to build their equity in a home that they still love!”
No Lackluster Listings
“The cute homes often go under contract faster. It takes a lot to get a buyer out of the house for a showing, so make your visual presentation irresistible. That means a combination of excellent photography, marketing, and staging. Don’t forget to hire a professional for a deep clean, it can make all the difference and will help you stay on point to keep things tidy between showings. One last thing is to consider renting a storage unit to stash your bigger bulkier furniture, seasonal items, and knick-knacks that you don’t need until you’re in your new home. This will help declutter significantly and $100 bucks a month is worth not having your home sit for 6 months.”
Find Your Match
“Selecting an agent to represent you as a fiduciary is a critical first step in the homebuying process. While it's a great idea to collect recommendations from family and friends, an agent who was a perfect fit for your cousin's girlfriend may not be the best match for you. The ideal realtor is someone who listens to your dream and supports it enthusiastically; who sets accurate expectations about the market of the moment; and who can provide the data, information, and resources you need to make decisions with confidence. We’ll be spending a lot of time with each other house-hunting or chatting about your listing. You’ll want someone that you can be yourself with, after all the home journey should be a pleasant one”
We keep our Market Blog updated quarterly. Tune in to see how the local markets are reacting in your neighborhood. Better yet, give us a call and come on into our office for a chat. If you’re thinking of listing your home, we’ll come by with stats and comps to make sure you hit the market ready for a fast and smooth sale!
In the past ten years, Newbold has gone through a host of changes with new development, resident-led initiatives, and an influx of food and drink destinations. We’ve put together our favorite Newbold-ish neighborhood spots for you to check out.
March 2024 - We've combined statistics from the past few months and our experience working with clients to give you a market update for the city and the suburbs.
Inspired by our recent field trip to the Wagner Museum, we realized the Philadelphia area has so many gems we've been missing out on. Here is a quick list of museums left out of the tourist guides that will shake up your routine!
Updated Vintage Furniture Guide! If you are searching for the mid-century lamp or postmodern coffee table of your dreams, we’ve put together a directory and cheat sheet on shopping for vintage furniture in and around Philly.
Typically a pocket neighborhood is an intentionally planned community with its own registered community organization, identity, marketing, events, or brand. We’ve put together a list of pocket neighborhoods you can find right in Philadelphia.
You’ve found your dream home. It’s amazing, has everything you want, within your budget and so much more. The thing is…it's not built yet; it only exists on paper. So now what? Here’s how to navigate the intricacies of buying a home pre-construction, aka before it’s built, and sometimes before the ground is even broken.
House hunting, staging, negotiating, and celebrating with clients takes a lot of energy! That’s why our team of PHG Realtors are also experts in secret spots to relax. Spend an hour or the entire day basking in the recommendations of places in Philadelphia (and beyond) to relax and treat yourself!
Saving money for a downpayment and closing costs is the # 1 reason people are holding off on purchasing a home. PHG agent Rachel Shaw came up with a trusty list of some of her favorite homebuyer assistance grants and loan programs. With a little help, your dream of owning a home may not be as far off as you thought!
When we heard about this local, women-owned, socially conscious business, we had to meet them. Livelihood is a Philly based financial services firm that bills itself as financial planners offering advice for idealists, dreamers, and skeptics.
Have you ever been in a supermarket in Pennsylvania that has a bar and you thought… who goes there? We decided to do a deep dive and bring the people what they want; a comprehensive list of grocery store bars worth visiting when you need that carton of eggs and a lager.
What exactly does a buyer’s agent do? We asked three PHG Realtors to give us a peek into the care and expertise they offer clients along their home buying journey.
Recently, we spent an afternoon exploring the secret pocket named Paradise. In this Philly neighborhood we saw familiar and new faces, all welcoming in sharing their experience of being a part of the community.
The Philly Home Girls love movies and we love real estate. Everyone knows about scary movie season around Halloween, but how about REAL ESTATE movies? They feel like nightmares to us! This list involves movies that have the house (or realtor) as a star. Some are goofy, downright spooky and there may be a couple of stretches in the connection to real estate, but we’ve included them anyway!
We made a list and checked it twice - local shops, makers, and artists, naughty and nice! PHG is here to help you find gifts for even the most difficult person on your list.
Did you know Pennsylvania has a longer and more varied fall foliage season than any other state in the nation—or anywhere in the world? Here are some suggestions across the state to take in the changing leaves.
There are headlines, and then there’s what’s REALLY happening in the hypermarkets of Philadelphia and surrounding burbs. We asked our agents for insider real estate tips based on real-life experience in this market.
We’re covering types of loans, explaining PMI in a nutshell and highlighting the four things all first-time homebuyers should keep in mind.
Northern Liberties is perfectly placed with walkable access to Fishtown, Olde Kensington, Poplar and Old City. It’s also chock o 'block with restaurants, bars, retail and small businesses that the community relies on. We put together the perfect Nolibs itinerary that will get you lost in the streets (in a good way!).
If you are a doctor (MD, DDS, or DMD) in the early stages of your career, you could take advantage of a doctor loan program. Find out how you can purchase a home with a 0% down payment, no PMI, and a 3% seller assist.
What do you do when you’ve inherited a house? How do you sell a home from a loved one’s estate? What will happen with your home after you pass away? These are common questions we get in this industry. To help answer them, we sat down with Steven Zelinger, an attorney that specializes in estate planning and probate.
What better way to enjoy the great outdoors then with a walking tour of the Meredith School Catchment? Meredith Elementary School is not just a fabulous school, it’s a bright, vibrant, and family-friendly neighborhood with a ton of conveniences. Let us show you by walking you along the grid east to west, south to north.
Whether you’re new to the Fishtown/East Kensington area or have lived here for a while, this list is for you. Come take a walking tour with us, we started at Norris and headed up Frankford Ave- a strip we’re calling “North of Norris”.
Naming and defining the different sections of the 19125 zip code is a controversial thing to do. The names, lines, and boundaries have shifted over time. As a rule of thumb, it’s ok to pick your own nick names and boundaries and go with what you believe.
If you’ve been outside today you know it’s hot enough to fry an egg on the sidewalk. Before you go jump in the Schuylkill to cool off (not advisable), here’s the low-down on where to get your swim on in Philly.
The perfect treasure-hunting weekend is only 1.5 hours away. Head to Adamstown, PA in Lancaster county and enjoy a visit to the antique capital of the US.
Almost all of our business comes from referrals. This means our clients are so happy with our service that they refer us to their friends, family, and colleagues. While many are local to the Philly area, we can also assist in introducing agents who work in a similar style to ours and align with our values, anywhere across the county and around the world.
You may have heard the term “seller’s assist” in the real estate world. It can be a powerful tool for buyers and sellers. Here are some facts about what it means and how it’s applied to parties on both sides of the deal.
We were newbies in a competitive market but she never faltered and after putting in 4 offers over a few months we were able to snag a great home perfect for us.
I have so much gratitude and also many warm fuzzies because of the caring and patient manner with which Pete and PHG team demystified and broke down a process that I initially thought would be confusing and overwhelming.
Even with some minor hiccup, she made this experience as stress-free as possible. Excited to recommend her to friends and family in the future!!
Allison made sure that everything ran smoothly in the sale of my home. She is an efficient and thoughtful realtor.
Peter Brooks was always very responsive, organized, and worked quickly (literally within hours) to draft a competitive bid (against 3 other buyers) that ultimately won us our house.
It is my first time buying a home and Erin's cadence, communication, and overall expertise was great.
Through it all, Allison was extremely on top of what needed to be done, advocated on our behalf, and was always communicative with us even when the listing agent was not providing timely updates.
She made our home buying process very smooth and kept us sane throughout all of the ups and downs of finding a new home.
Peter's recommendation helped us get the home of our dreams against multiple offers, and the whole team was so responsive, personal, and all around wonderful!
Sara's communication style is top-notch, and she consistently went above and beyond to ensure we felt comfortable and well-informed, empowering us to make informed decisions.
She exhibited immense patience, guiding me through every step of the process with ease. Thanks to her expertise and dedication, my home-buying experience went smoothly.
When the time came to accept an offer, he was very clear about next steps, and everything was handled smoothly and efficiently. I would recommend Philly Home Girls and Peter to anyone in the market to sell a home in Philly.
Erin Larkin was hands-down the best we could have hoped for. She stuck with us for over a year -- helping us not only obtain an apartment while we house hunted, but also navigate a cross-country move, and finally the through the home-buying process for out-of-staters!
Allison was incredibly kind and informative, giving us guidance every step of the way; additionally, she was so responsive and communicative. When an offer was put in on the house we were very interested in, Allison immediately contacted us and set in motion everything we needed to do to place our own offer, making sure our mortgage lender was looped and scheduling calls that fit with my wife’s travel schedule
We also had a very quick closing (less than one month from offer) and Kate and her team were diligent with all of the paperwork to get things expedited. Kate is also just a pleasure to be around and made the whole home buying process fun!
We knew as soon as she found out something, she would get back to us ASAP. We were never left wondering what was going on. This open and transparent communication greatly contributed to a smooth and stress-free experience.
Negotiated a great contract—she kept all parties moving and accountable during the closing process. I can't imagine buying a house could go much smoother.
As first-time home buyers, she guided us through what was feasible for our budget, connecting us with a lender, what to look for in a property, making a reasonable offer, and going through the inspection and closing process.
With Clare's advice, we ended up with several offers over ask price within a few days of listing the house (and one open house). She did a great job guiding us through the process of selecting an offer (turns out there's more to it than just picking the highest number sometimes).
She is exceptionally knowledgeable about the area and was always very quick to respond. Can't recommend PHG and Kate enough!
I wholeheartedly recommend Allison to anyone in search of a knowledgeable, compassionate, and dedicated real estate professional
We look forward to working with Kate in the future!
Not only did she help me navigate the process from start to finish, she made me feel confident in my new journey while exuding extensive knowledge of the area and typical Philadelphia structures. to working with Kate in the future!
It was a master class watching her navigate through the negotiation process when we were ready to put in an offer. I now recommend her to anyone who will listen!
She answered all my questions about the process, successfully negotiated the price I wanted, and kept me informed about each step in the purchase.
I cannot emphasize how challenging my transaction was. Sara handled each problem with a level of professionalism that is so hard to find these days. She kept the deal together, and all throughout, she was good-natured, patient, and just an absolute joy to work with.
She was also so thorough and timely with all of her responses to our many questions. I would recommend her to anyone, both experienced and inexperienced buyers!
Sara was patient with us and recognized we knew what we were looking for and just needed to keep helping us see homes til the match was made!
She was very professional. she was able to help me find a house in the area, price range and the top 3 things I needed in a home.
With its current moniker of Philadelphia’s “Little Italy”, Bella Vista prides itself on celebrating the best of Italian history and culture. In recent years, the neighborhood has become even more diverse, with growing Vietnamese and Mexican immigrant populations. The history of Bella Vista is vast, and one of the neighborhood’s modern highlights is the availability of different cuisine options.