Yardley, PA real estate market update
So what is happening in real estate in Bucks County, and Yardley?
First quarter real estate market results are in, so lets take a look at what is happening.
First, looking at Bucks County real estate, what is really striking, is that the number of houses for sale, was more than 7% lower at the end of March this year, than last year at the same time.
I have blogged a couple of times recently, about the changing dynamics in the market. It seems as though more houses are selling faster than they were last year, and based on the decrease in inventory levels, that makes sense.
The other extremely striking statistic, in the Bucks County real estate market, is in pending sales. Pending sales represent homes where the seller has accepted an offer, but the house is waiting for closing. Pending sales in Bucks County were up by an incredible 26% at the end of March, compared with last year.
I am not quite sure what to make of that number, yet. I sense that buyers are more motivated, and more buyers are coming to the realization that 4% interest rates will not be around forever.
Check the chart, for Bucks County real estate details.
Bucks County real estate market in a shapshot
Yardley Real Estate
In the Yardley, Lower Makefield Township real estate market, the number of homes on the market is actually about 2% higher at the end of March than it was last year at the same time.
Inventory was up by almost 12% from the end of February, which is to be expected, as we entered the spring market.
I think that there are still an abundance of houses in Yardley that have been on the market for a long time, because they are overpriced, given current market conditions. Even though inventory levels are higher, there is definitely more activity in the real estate market right now.
It is also interesting to note that the average price of a house on the market in Lower Makefield Township was $476,000 thie year, compared with $481,000 last year.
In addition to that, it may surprise people to know that the average price of a home sold in 2011, increased slightly in 2011, and is up by 5% this year, so far.
In Lower Makefield Township, there still is about an 8 month inventory supply, which indicates that factors are still favorable for buyers. We consider the real estate market to be balanced, when there is about a 6 month supply of homes on the market.
Yardley real estate appreciation chart
In summary, the real estate market in Bucks County, and especially in the Yardley-Newtown areas, is showing the most encouraging signs that I have seen in about 4 years. There are still homes that have been on the market for months and months, because they are overpriced. However, homes that come on the market that are priced realistically, based on current market conditions, are selling much fast than they have at any point in the past 4 years. If you are getting ready to put your house on the market, please ask me for a copy of my ebook, 450 ideas to help get your home sold quickly. Send me your email, and I will email it to you. My email is: Marty@MartinMillner.com.
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Continue Reading > Add a Comment |3 Quick Home Improvement Ideas for Spring
The warmer weather and longer days of spring may have you thinking about adding some new life to your home. Here are three easy home improvement ideas that can give your home and your spirits a quick lift.
Spruce up your kitchen: You spend a good part of your life in the kitchen, and after a year of use, it may be crying for a quick and easy makeover. Although a complete kitchen renovation can cost you big dollars, there are a few inexpensive ways to give yours a lift.
Start with the cabinets. A year’s worth of dust, grease and oils from handling can dull your kitchen cabinets bring down the overall look of the room. Use a cleaner with orange oil to break down the grime and let your cabinets shine again. Be sure to test the cleaner in an inconspicuous place first to be sure that it will not harm the wood finish. If you want to change your cabinets without the big investment, try adding some molding to your flat panel cabinet doors to give them some depth. You can match the finish to your cabinets, or go bold with an accent color.
Add a new backsplash. If you are looking for a different fun project, buy some ceramic tiles, grout, a trowel and a tile cutter and brighten your kitchen with a new backsplash. Whether you are a seasoned DIY-er, or a beginner, there are many resources online that can help you with this venture. Check out Lowe’s home improvement’s article for a detailed step-by-step instruction.
Get the garden ready: Landscaping projects easily add aesthetic value to your home, and can add dollar value to your selling price if your house is on the market. Your garden may have been hiding under mulch this winter. Now is the time to bring it back to life and get it ready to shine this summer. Remove the remains of winter from your flowerbeds, trim back plants, remove old mulch and let the warmth get to the soil. Adding some inexpensive bedding plants will add some new life to your exterior without breaking your wallet.
Secure your dryer from fires: Ok, this is not so much a beautification project, as a safety project to protect your home investment and your family’s lives. The main cause of dryer fires is not a wiring problem, but an over accumulation of lint that combusts. A few preventative measures this spring can make all of the difference.
Always clean the lint screen in your dryer after every use. Vacuum behind your dryer on a regular basis to remove excess lint. And at least once per year, use a dryer hose lint brush, like the Brushtech B68C 10-Feet Long Dryer Vent Duct Cleaning Brush, to completely empty your connector hose. Also, it is best to use an aluminum hose instead of a plastic one, as plastic heats up easily and can catch fire.
I hope that these three quick ideas can help you bring new life to your home this spring without the time or money of a major improvement. Contact me if you are interested in more ways to enhance your real estate and get it ready to sell.
Continue Reading > Add a Comment |5 Things to consider when making an offer on a Yardley area house.
The real estate market in the Yardley area in Bucks County, is showing very encouraging signs of life this spring. I have had 7 or 8 Yardley area houses, in the past couple of weeks, that have gone on the market and sold in just days. In a couple of cases, we received more than one offer!
Yesterday, a prospective buyer, who found my profile on-line, sent me a very interesting questionaire. He was basically conducting an interview, to see if we would be compatible. I am happy to say, that I am meeting he and his wife on Saturday, so I passed the first step in the interview process.
One of the interesting questions he posed, though, was how I would help them with making an offer on a house, once we found the right house? That question got me thinking about the steps to take in preparing an offer on a Yardley area house. There is no doubt in my mind, that the more information you have, the better off you will be in making an appropriate offer.
There is so much information available online, and your realtor should provide a tremendous amount of additional information.
1. In evaluating a sellers asking price, the first thing that I look at, is how long the house has been on the market, and whether there has been price adjustments. Markets find their proper balance, and if a house has been on the market a long time, it generally means that the asking price is too high. I realize that sellers may dispute this, but in my opinion, if the asking price is correct, for market conditions, then the house will not sit on the market for weeks and weeks.
2. Evaluate activity in the neighborhood. This can sometimes be difficult, depending on how large the neighborhood is, assuming the house is in a neighborhood, and also whether there has been a lot of recent activity in the neighborhood. The strongest comparison, which we would refer to as a comparable, would be a similar house in exactly the same neighborhood. If there have been recent sales, you would have a very solid frame of reference for structuring an offer.
3. Next, I would suggest looking beyond the exact neighborhood, for houses that are similar to the one you are looking to make an offer on. If you can find houses that are close to the same size, with similar amenities and upgrades, again, you are armed with useful information for an offer. This is very similar to the process that an appraiser would go through. When looking for similar houses, it would be important to stay within the same township and school district. Yardley housing is different from Newtown, for example, so homes in Yardley and Newtown, would not be priced the same, even if they had similar amenities.
4. Pay close attention to condition of comparable homes. Remember, a low priced home that needs lots of upgrading, may not be such a great deal, if the cost to do the upgrades makes the price higher than homes in a similar neighborhood that have been upgraded. Other vital elements to consider include location within the neighborhood. If a particular house backs to a busy road, clearly there will be a significant impact in the price.
5. Finally, armed with all of the above information, plan your negotiating strategy. I help buyers all the time, with this process. Depending on how the house is priced, the art of drafting an offer, from the buyer perspective, is to be as aggressive as possible, without being insulting to the seller, assuming the house is priced realistically in the first place. If you start the process with an offer that is perceived to be unrealistically low, you run the risk of not getting a counter offer back from the seller. Obviously if the house is significantly overpriced, then I would not be too concerned about that.
I work very hard to make sure that buyers have as much information as possible, so that we can make realistic offers, that buyers are comfortable with. I would be happy to discuss this further, and can be reached at 215-519-1399 or Marty@MartinMillner.com
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