Newtown, PA Lions 5K Run and Walk for Sight-June 12th
Over the past fourteen years the Newtown Lions Club has sponsored the Lions 5K Run and Walk for Sight. The proceeds from this run have supported charities that provide assistance to the hearing and visually impaired as well as assistance to special needs children.
Don’t miss this great event!
Who: Anyone ready willing and able to participate and raise money for a good cause!
Where: Brian Gregg Park 40 North Congress Street Newton, PA - The Run begins and finishes at the Chancellor Street School running for 5K (approx 3.1 miles} through the streets of the Borough
When: Saturday,June 12th 9:30 AM -Sign in between 8:30 and 9:15.or register online at Active.Com. Call 215-968-2248 or email WrightRB@aol.com with Questions
5K Entry Fee $20.00 Kids 1 Mile Fun Run $10.00
Continue Reading > Add a Comment |Do you like Beer? Head over to Yardley Beer Fest, on May 22, 2010
Yardley Beer Fest
The place to be, this Saturday afternoon, will be at the 3rd annual, Yardley Beer Fest.
This years event, will be bigger than ever. The past couple of years have been so succesful, that the event has been moved to the grass field, next to Fitzgeral-SommerFuneral Home, at 17 S, Delaware Ave, in Yardley . It will take place from 1-5.
The Yardley Beer Fest is sponsored by the Yardley Business Association. (YBA)
As it has in the past, this year, a portion of the proceeds, will be donated to charity. Last year, the cause was the Bucks County Heroes Scholarship Fund, which benefits the children of fallen police officers, firefighters and emergency medical services personnel who gave their lives in the line of duty. The year before, some of the proceeds were donated to the Yardley-Bucks Disaster Mitigation and Relief Fund.
This year, a donation will be made to A Woman’s Place in Doylestown.
This year’s event will have more beer than the previous two years combined, with Earth Bread & Brewery, Sly Fox, Weyerbacher, Boaks, Stone Brewing Co., Dogfish Head, Heavy Seas, Magic Hat, Great Lakes Brewing Co. among the breweries attending this year’s Beer Fest. Clsoe to 50 breweries, are expected to participate in the event.
As usual, there will be great food and music.
The New Continental Tavern, High Street Grill, Righteous Pretzel, The Original Delancey Street Peanut Co., Kerrygold (Irish importer of cheese), and Yardley-based Churchill Cigar will all be selling food at the event.
Music will be provided by The Tune Dude, who is a friend of mine, and an excellent musician, and by Six String.
The day is all about good fun, good food, music and beer, as well as supporting a good cause. What doesn’t go to Women’s Place, will be used for other community programs and events that are sponsored by YBA.
Tickets can be purchased for $35 at the entrance and online at www.YardleyBeerFest.com. There are also, less expensive, designated driver tickets available.
Should be a great day!
Continue Reading > Add a Comment |Look at the real estate market update, for Bucks County & Yardley, through April
Although a dry subject, I do like to take a continuous look at market statistics, for our real estate market, in the Bucks County areas I primarily cover. We get our market statistical update, around the 12th or so, of every month.
Lets see where things stand, from a real estate perspective, after the first third of the year, for Bucks County. We will also review the Lower Makefield Township/Yardley area in this post.
- For most of the markets in Bucks County, (12 of 18 markets I track) volume of sold units was positive compared with last year, at this time.
- The county-wide growth rate increased by 21%, which is pretty impressive.
- Pricing was positive in most of the principal markets we monitor regularly, and there was positive appreciation for Bucks County. In fact, average sold pricing for the entire county, was up by 7.1%.
- Total unit sales in Bucks County through April, was 21% higher than last year.
- Probably the best forwarding looking indicator we have in real estate is the pending sale. Those are homes where the seller has accepted an offer, but that have not yet gone to closing.
- Most of our markets, as well as for Bucks County as a whole, saw higher levels of pending sales, than last year at the same time. Bucks County wide, shows a very strong increase of pending sales of 43.5%, over last year at the same time. In some of our markets the pending sale increase is huge, when compared with last year. For exampley, Buckingham Township is up by 113$, Upper Makefield is 100% higher, Lower Makefield is up 70%, Northampton is up 69%, Solebury is up by 63%, and Doylestown is up by 25%. These are actually impressive numbers.
- Inventory levels are higher than they were at the end of March, whish is to be expected, in most markets. However, when compared with the end of April, last year, inventory levels are down County-wide, and in most markets. With somewhat improving inventory levels, the number of months of inventory, has declined. Most markets are still above 6 months, which means conditions still favor buyers, but the trend has shown improvement.
- Average list pricing is down a bit, from last year.
- Sold/list ratios in most markets, have shown some improvement. We need to keep our eye on this statistic as we go through the spring market.
Lower Makefield Township Real Estate update
Here are some observations, through the end of April, for real estate, in Lower Makefield Township, and Yardley.
- Iventory of homes for sale at the end of April, 2010 was 236
- Inventory of homes for sale at the end of March, 2010 was 220.
- Inventory of homes for sale at the end of April, 2009 was 231.
- Unit inventory was up slightly, from last year, in Lower Makefield, and up by 7% from March.
- Average price of a home for sale at the end of April, 2010 was $500,000.
- Average price of a home for sale at the end of April, 2009 was $543,000.
- List price was down by 8%.
- 77 houses closed through the end of April, 2010.
- 48 houses closed through the end of April, 2009.
- This was a really impressive increase of 60.4% from last year. Unit sales for 2009, were up by 1.6% oover the previous year.
- Buyers are still achieving approximately 8% off the original asking price.
Charts
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Summary
For your reference, there was 6.5% unit growth in 2007, 33.5% decline in 2008, and an increase in 2009 of 1.6%. So far, 2010, has shown an increase of more than 60%. Lets see how the rest of the year plays out.
Inventory is still at 10 months. Inventory is said to be balanced, when it is 6 months, so conditions in Lower Makefield, still favor the buyers.
Thus far, sale pricing is down by 2.4%. Please refer to the pricing appreciation chart, to see how things have changed in many parts of Bucks County, and in Lower Makefield Township, in particular.
Average days on the market, is actually higher this year, than last. I suspect that this is because there are still many overpriced homes on the market. I have been involved in many recent transactions, where homes have sold extremely quickly. It is more important than ever, to price a home correctly.
Please feel free to contact me with any questions about any of the charts or statistics.
I will review additional specific markets, in upcoming posts.
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New Listing slideshow! Yardley, PA 3 bedroom home on over an acre!
Want a great, fun restaurant in New Hope…check this out
Italian Cucina, New Hope
For anyone looking for a really fun, wonderful restaurant, head up to New Hope, and try Italian Cucina.
We went with friends, on Saturday night, which was our second time, at the restaurant.
We had great food, and lots of fun, both times.
Italian Cucina, is right on Main Street, in New Hope at 95 S. Main. It is set back off the street, so it is easy to miss. It is very small, but the size and proximity of the tables, adds to the fun and ambiance. On Saturday, we were surrounded by fun people, and really had a great time sharing stories and jokes, with folkS that we didn’t know, until sharing close tables with them.
One of the fun aspects of La Cucina, is that there is not actually a formal, written menu. Either the owner, Joeseph Lombardi, or a server, will come to your table and let you know what is being prepared for the evening. There are great choices, and believe me, you will have a tough time deciding what to order.
On Saturday, everyone ordered something different, and we all shared, so we had a chance to try a variety of flavors.
Both times we were there, they offered a fish special. They have absolutely amazing pasta, with all sorts of sauce options. On Saturday, there was a crab cake special, as well as a special chicken dish, along with a shrip and scallop special with pasta. Everything we had, was outstanding.
Italian Cucina is a byob, and is a really fun place to spend an evening. Check it out, you will not be disappointed.
Continue Reading > Add a Comment |Yardley, Lower Makefield Township, real estate market update
In today’s post, I wanted to take a look at where the real estate market is, in Lower Makefield Township & Yardley, in Bucks County.
The end of April, represented a pretty important milestone, with regards to how real estate will perform, in the coming months. As everyone probably knows, the tax credit expired at the end of April. I also mentioned, in a previous post, that April for myself and my team, was extremely busy.
In my own personal experience, of the 10 or 11 transactions that we were invloved with in April, there was really only 1 that was particularly driven by the tax credit. Having said that, all of the national real estate statistics, are showing that April, like November last year, was extremely busy.
So where is the market heading, as we move into May, and into what is traditionally the height of the spring selling market in real estate?
My feeling about the real estate market in Bucks County, and specifically for the purpose of today’s post, in Yardley & Lower Makefield Township, is that we will continue to see relatively strong activity, at least in terms of the number of units that are sold. If you look at the charts that I have created, for the single family home market in Yardley & Lower Makefield, you can see how the buyer activity of the past couple of months, has impacted the average days on the market.
It appears from the charts, that median pricing is remaining stable, but there has been a very clear, downward trend in the amount of time that it is taking homes to sell.
I think that buyers today, are motivated by concern over the potential of rising interest rates. For those buyers who are on the fence, there is very real worry, that if they wait until next year, interest rates could be higher than where they are, currently. In the Lower Makefield and Yardley market, we are still seeing an inventory backlog of significantly more than 6 months, which means that conditions still favor buyers. I have seen neighborhoods where a couple of months ago there were 3 and 4 homes for sale, and now they are all sold. One of those neighborhoods, is Arborlea, in Lower Makefield. We had a couple of listings in Arborlea that sold in just days.
I think what the chart is showing, since inventory levels seem to be rising, is that there are a number of homes that are on the market, that are overpriced. They remain on the market for months and months and months, in many cases. Those sellers who are realistic, and want to sell, price their homes competitively, given current market conditions, and they often get strong offers, very quickly.
Check out the charts, and let me know what you think.
Yardley, Lower Makefield Township real estate inventory & days on market
Median price VS. Days on Market for Lower Makefield Township/Yardley
Newtown, PA Sunday May 9th-Treat Mom to a Mother's Day Carraige Ride at Tyler Park
Looking for something special this Mother’s Day. Why not enjoy the spring air and our wonderful Park system with an afternoon Carraige ride?
Treat Mother like the royalty she is! Private carriage rides for Mom and her family. Travel with her through the beauty of spring at Tyler State Park as the beautiful Belgian horses pull an open air carriage on the roads less traveled at the park. This exquisite carriage ride will make this a Mother’s Day to remember.
Carraiges depart from the Boat House area at Tyler Park and are provided by A Better Way Farm
Carriage can accommodate up to six people and several departure times are scheduled beginning at 12:00p.m. and ending at 4:40.
You are required to register for your time slot and it is advised that you arrive 10 minutes prior to departure time.
CLICK HERE FOR FULL DETAILS AND TO REGISTER
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