Yardley Hunt is a wonderful Lower Makefield Township neighborhood

Yardley Hunt was built over several years, primarily by Toll Brothers, starting in 1977. There were about five basic floor plans, with the average house size being about 2650 square feet.  Floor plans include ranch, split and colonial style homes.  Lot sizes are generally just under 1/2 acre. Because of the age of the neighborhood, there are large, mature trees, which give the neighborhood some character.  There are two banks of tennis courts that are actually owned by Lower Makefield Township, within Yardley Hunt.  Yardley Hunt is in a great location, very close to 95 for commuting, and within walking distance of shopping, Yardley Boro, and Lower Makefield Township community facilities, including the Township pool complex.

Below, you will find all current homes for sale in Yardley Hunt.  OR  Click on this link, to register for automatic updates on homes in Yardley Hunt

Showing properties 1 - 5 of 5. See more Yardley Hunt Homes .
(all data current as of 2/9/2012)

1. $424,900 : 930 Pickering Dr, Yardley
   
   4 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths

   Home size: 2,766 sq ft

   Lot size: 16,683 sq ft

   Year built: 1977

   Parking spots: 5

   Listing with: Prudential Fox & Roach Realtors-Yardley1
2. $479,900 : 1207 Madison Dr, Yardley
   
   4 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths

   Home size: 2,734 sq ft

   Lot size: 16,509 sq ft

   Year built: 1978

   Parking spots: 5

   Listing with: Coldwell Banker Hearthside-Yardley
3. $409,000 : 1393 Knox Dr, Yardley
   
   4 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths

   Home size: 2,964 sq ft

   Lot size: 17,772 sq ft

   Year built: 1980

   Parking spots: 5

   Listing with: RE/MAX Advantage
4. $464,900 : 930 Hamilton Dr, Yardley
   
   4 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths

   Home size: 3,152 sq ft

   Lot size: 16,727 sq ft

   Year built: 1978

   Parking spots: 2

   Listing with: Keller Williams Preferred RE-Yardley
5. $449,900 : 1084 Randolph Dr, Yardley
   
   4 beds, 2 full, 1 part baths

   Home size: 2,846 sq ft

   Lot size: 16,466 sq ft

   Year built: 1979

   Parking spots: 5

   Listing with: RE/MAX Advantage-Yardley

Listing information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Read full disclaimer.

This morning Gabe Schick, who is the business insurance professional that I refer to on a regular basis, gave us a great presentation that I thought would be worth sharing, since I often work with people who are moving because of business start ups in Bucks County. Gabe is with the Makefield Agency in Yardley.  This morning, he shared with us 10 insurance considerations for every new business owner to consider.  This list is not all inclusive, but it is definitely a great place to start for anyone considering starting a new business.

1.  Consult a licensed insurance professional during the business planning phase.  The time to work on structuring insurance is in the planning stage, not the day your business will open.

2.  Make sure that you consider the physical condition of the building that you are about to buy or lease.  Things like square footage, age, flood zone, construction type, condition, etc, can all directly affect your premium.

3.  Workers Compensation.  Gabe suggested that you should assume that you will need it.  The information and classification rates can be found on the State website, but it is important that you speak with an insurance agent as well as an accountant and/or attorney in the state in which you’ll be doing business.

4.  Have a general idea of what you anticipate your gross annual sales and payroll will be.  This will help your insurance professional determine your business interruption and workers comp coverages.

5.  Call an insurance professional at least one (1) week prior to signing a mortgage or lease.  More lead time gives the agent a better chance to find the best possible rates.  Many real estate transactions have been delayed due to insurance requirements not being met.

6.  Consider elements of your business that may be better left to vendors, sub-contractors or even competitors.  For instance, if you are opening a restaurant, you can save a huge amount by establishing a BYO as opposed to a full service, liquor-licensed establishment.

7.  Will your business have a board of directors?  Special coverage may be necessary to protect the board from suits brought by employees, shareholders, etc.

8.  Do you hold a professional license, designation or credential?  If so, you may need errors and omissions insurance.

9.  Should your car be titled in the company name?  Again, this may be a question for your accountant or attorney, but commercial auto rates tend to be 18-30% higher than personal rates, according to Gabe.  Will employees be required to use your vehicles, or their own, on the job?  Those questions will effect rates.

10.  Make a list of risks to your industry that you are aware of.  Share the list with your insurance professional so that you are sure you are being protected.

As I mentioned, I have worked with personally and referred many clients to Gabe Schick at the Makefield Agency.  Gabe and his agency are absolutely wonderful to work with. Click on the hyperlink at Gabe’s name, to get to the agency website.  His direct number is 215-321-0281.

If you are considering starting a business, or are buying a business, I hope that this information is helpful.

Time to take a look at what happened in our real estate market in Bucks County and Yardley in 2011.

As noted on the Bucks County real estate chart below, we can see that the number of houses sold in all of Bucks County was 3% less than the number of houses sold in 2010.  (There were still 4423 homes sold in Bucks County in 2011).  The number of homes sold in December of 2011 though, was 11.6% higher than in December of 2010.  This was the sixth consecutive month that unit sales in the County were higher than the previous year.

Prices of homes sold in 2011, in Bucks County, fell by 5.5%.  As you will see in the Yardley data, home prices in Yardley/Lower Makefield Township did better than that in 2011.

Pending sales remained about the same as they were a year ago at the same time.

Bucks County real estate inventory is 9.2% less than it was a year ago, and more than 10% than it was in November  of 2011.

Finally, the average listing price of a home for sale in Bucks County, is down by 3.5% from a year ago at this time.

Lower Makefield Township Real Estate review

Looking at the real estate charts for Lower Makefield Township, note the following:

Inventory of homes on the market is almost identical to where we were last year at this time.
Inventory of homes for sale, were down by over 16% from the previous month.
The average price of a home on the market in Lower Makefield Township, is down by 2.5% from last year at the same time.  It is currently $487,000.
The number of homes sold in 2011 in Lower Makefield Township,  was 7.8% less than 2010.
The average price of a home sold in Lower Makefield Township in 2011, was actually 0.6% higher than it was a year ago.

What does this all mean?  Specifically for Lower Makefield Township, there is now a 7.2 month inventory supply.  We consider a market to be balanced, when inventory is about 6 months.  It seems as though in the Yardley area, we are getting closer to balanced market conditions.   Average days on the market is 87 right now, compared with 72 last year.  Buyers are still negotiating an average of 8% discount from original asking price.

As I suggest on a regular basis, market conditions demand that sellers who are serious about selling, be realistic in their asking price. I see it over and over again, that over priced homes, help the realistic sellers get their home sold!

I have worked with buyers, who erroneously feel as though the real estate market in Yardley is similar to the real estate market in Arizona. Those buyers often think that they can take an asking
price and immediately knock off 15% because in their mind, sellers are desperate.

I have represented sellers who are on the receiving end of these low ball offers.

So, the question for today is, if you are selling your house in Yardley and you get what you perceive to be a low ball offer, what should you do about it?

1. Leave your emotions at the door! I can’t emphasize this enough. I have been involved with successful transactions, where the initial offer was literally tens of thousands of dollars lower than what we ended up agreeing to. Part of my job as an agent representing a seller, is to try and take the emotion out of the process. An offer means that someone wants to buy your house. Considering the competition, that is a good thing.

2. Counter! Again, as I mentioned before, I have seen Bucks County real estate transactions go to closing, where the initial offer was thousands of dollars less than what was ultimately accepted. Without a counter offer, you never really know what the buyer is willing to do. There are buyers in today’s real estate climate who feel as though they are expected to make very low offers. As long as buyers and sellers are communicating, and getting closer to an agreed-upon price, progress is being made. Don’t close the door, by refusing to counter.

3. Consider more than just the price. Make sure, when evaluating an offer, that you consider the terms. Is the closing date good for you? Is the buyer bringing a lot of cash to the transaction, so that the appraisal may be less of a factor? Although it doesn’t always seem so, there is a lot more to an offer than just the price.

4. Evaluate comps. As a seller, if you get what you consider to be a low ball offer, use the offer as an opportunity to re-evaluate what we refer to as comps. Basically that means taking a look at other houses in your neighborhood which may compare with the house you are selling to try and make sure that your asking price is realistic.

5. Don’t be desperate. Sometimes, buyers take signs like an empty house as an indication of desperation. If your house is empty, you may want to consider staging, or leaving some furniture and clothes, so the house doesn’t look empty.

If you have reviewed the comps with your agent, and you are confident that your price is realistic, given the market, then you should make your best effort at negotiating the low offer, but if it isn’t realistic, be prepared to move on.

I think everyone would agree that the worst investing advice in the world would be to buy high, sell low!  To me, that is the very definition of losing money on an investment.  Not too smart, if you can help it, right?

So, my question for those considering buying real estate in Yardley, or Newtown, or anywhere in Bucks County,  is why would you wait for the housing market to improve, before buying a house?  Seriously, I understand that there is a lot of uncertainty out there right now.  Job security is still questionable, unemployment is too high, and there is general fear about getting approved for a mortgage.  it can be scary.  But, here’s the thing.  In my opinion, letting fear dictate your financial stragegy for the future is a guaranteed way to pay too much for a house in years to come.

Put fear aside for just a moment, and consider:

• Interest rates are at or close to all time historic lows.
• Prices for homes have plunged to the lowest levels we have seen in a generation.
• There are distressed property sales.
• Rents are rising, and in most cases, rental inventories are shrinking, which limits rental options

Shouldn’t you, rather than a landlord, be the one who benefits from owning a home?  In my opinion, right now is the “buy low/sell high cycle!  I love helping renters and first time home buyers explore their purchasing power.  People are often surprised at just how qualified they are for home ownership.

If you are curious, simply email me at Marty@MartinMillner.com or call me at 215-519-1399, and I would be happy to discuss your home buying options with you.

Don’t know where the year went.

For me, it was a productive and successful real estate year.  For that,  I am totally grateful and thankful for the buyers and sellers who trusted me to handle their real estate transactions, and I am also extremely thankful and appreciative of the colleagues, friends and clients who referred real estate business to me.  I work really hard at what I do, and feel truly blessed to have so many people allow me to be a part of their lives during the real estate process, and beyond.

My personal outlook for real estate in the Yardley and Newtown area, and for all of Bucks County, is cautiously optimistic.  I have written previously about the fact that we have a lot less distressed property sales in Yardley and Newtown,  and in most of Bucks County, than in many other parts of the country.  There is clear evidence right now that prices for non-distressed homes are holding very steady.

While I don’t envision a sudden shift in the market, I do think that we will see, in 2012, in Bucks County, a market that becomes more balanced than it has been.  I think that sellers who are realistic about pricing will not have difficulty selling in 2012.  I think that there will continue to be excellent value in the market for buyers of homes in Yardley and Newtown in 2012, but I also think that buyers need to be realistic about our market, as well.  What I mean by that is that I know that there are buyers who feel as though they can make virtually any offer they want, and often expect that sellers will take anything.  Remember, the average discount from original asking price in Bucks County is about 8%.

More sellers are becoming more realistic about the market, and I think that will continue in 2012.  If sellers price homes realistically, given the current market conditions, then it will take a much shorter period of time to sell, and it will reduce opportunities for low ball offers, as well.

I have been able to enjoy a bit of down time over the holidays, which I always appreciate.  I have gotten in some basketball, which I do all year long.  We have seen a number of movies, including, “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo,”  “We Bought a Zoo,” and “Young Adult.”  I loved “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo,” although I thought the books were better because they went deeper than is possible with a movie.  We also totally loved, “We Bought a Zoo.”

Also had a chance to get into New York to see a show and have dinner.  We saw Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, which was wonderful.  Amazing costumes, great acting and music.  I love being so close to both Philadelphia and New York.  It is one of the great aspects of living in Yardley.

Finally, I wanted to wish you all a very happy, healthy and prosperous new year!  Enjoy New Year’s Eve celebrations, but stay safe, and I will see you in 2012!

I know that today is a holiday for many, but the wonderful world of real estate never sleeps, so I had an appointment to show one of my listings to a buyer.  Turns out, the buyer was a very nice, young, first time home buying couple. The listing they were seeing is a great house, very updated, and priced extremely competitively.  Buyers have potential interest, but they had a question. Their question was: “We are new to the process, and don’t even know where to start.”

I really enjoy working with first time home buyers.  I know that for most first time home buyers, the home buying process can be stressful, intimidating and confusing.  I very much enjoy helping those buyers learn everything possible about both buying and owning a home.  I welcome the chance to provide as much information as possible, so that by the time a first time buyer makes an offer, they are completely comfortable with the process and the decisions they make.

I think it is a great time to buy a home.  There are lots of houses to choose from, and interest rates are incredibly low.  It is a buyers’ market, which means that factors in the market clearly favor the buyer.

So, the buyers I met this morning asked, “Where do we start?”  Great question.

I would suggest to a first time home buyer looking for a house in Yardley, Bucks County, or wherever they are looking to buy, that they find a reliable mortgage person, and learn as much as possible about the process of obtaining a mortgage.  Any reliable mortgage person will be happy to speak with a prospective home buyer, so that the buyer can understand what type of  mortgage they will qualify for, and what steps they will need to take to obtain that mortgage.

I also remind buyers that I work with that in some cases, you could be approved for a mortgage that represents a higher monthly payment than you are comfortable with. That’s okay.  You should never take on a higher payment than what you are comfortable with, but at least you will have a clear understanding of where you stand.

By starting the home buying process with a lender, you will not fall into a trap of being disappointed with a house that you are not able to purchase.  You will focus on a price range that is realistic for you.  Just to be clear, there should be no cost and absolutely no obligation for the initial discussion with a particular lender. The mortgage person will ask a series of questions regarding your income, and debt and will get permission to run a credit report.  I could do an entire post on credit scoring, but for purposes of this post, based on your income, assets, debts, etc., the lender will be able to tell you exactly how much of a loan you would qualify for, and what terms the loan would take.  There may be several options, regarding the mortgage.  From this initial conversation with a lender, you will know exactly what price range to focus on, in trying to find that most perfect first home.

Contact me at 215-519-1399 or Marty@MartinMillner.com if you would like mortgage contact recommendations.

Hard to believe that we are just a week away from Christmas!

From a Yardley real estate perspective, we are now 11 months into data for 2011. Let’s see where we are, both with Yardley real estate and Bucks County real estate.

Bucks County real estate

Units Sold: Looking at numbers for all of Bucks County, the number of units sold this year is about 4% lower than a year ago at this time. For those who suggest that no real estate sells in Bucks County, although the number of houses sold is a bit lower, there have been 4,052 homes that have closed through November this year!

Pricing: The average price of a home for sale in Bucks County is down by 5.5% from last year at the same time.

Pending Sales: This is the best forward indicator of real estate activity, and the number of pending sales has trended up for several months.

Inventory: This is also an extremely important metric, when considering Bucks County real estate market conditions. The number of houses for sale in Bucks County is 7% less this month than last month, and more than 11% lower than it was at the same time last year! This still represents more than 11 months of inventory in Bucks County. We consider a market to be balanced when there is about a six month inventory, so you can see that factors are still favoring buyers. It is important to note, that the average days on market has also increased this year, from 88 to 101.

Observations for Bucks County real estate market

My observation from all of these statistics is that the market, while still favoring buyers, has stabilized a bit in Bucks County. I posted an article the other day comparing distressed and non-distressed real estate sales. In the article, I pointed out that both locally and nationally, prices of non-distressed properties appear to have stabilized. In looking at Bucks County real estate, it is important to note that we have far fewer distressed property sales than in many other parts of the country. Houses can and will sell, if they are priced correctly, marketed properly, and if appropriate steps are taken to ensure that they show as well as possible.

Yardley Real Estate Information

As I have pointed out many times in the past, real estate markets are very local, often varying from neighborhood to neighborhood. Let’s look at what is happening in the Yardley and Lower Makefield Township real estate market.

Inventory

• Inventory of homes Nov 2011 204
• Inventory of homes Oct 2011 226
• Inventory of homes Nov 2010 194

Although inventory is a bit less this month, compared with last month, it is higher by almost 10% from the same time last year. This is a bit of a contrast to the County as a whole.

Pricing

• Average price of a home for sale Nov 2011 489,000
• Average price of a home for sale Nov 2010 499,000

Asking price of a house for sale in Yardley/Lower Makefield Township is about 2% lower this year.

Units sold

• 261 homes sold through November this year
• 291 homes sold at the same time last year

It is also interesting to note that homes selling this year sold at an average of 92% of the list price, while they sold at an average of 93% of list price last year. Please note that when comparing the sold price to list price, we use the original asking price, where the price is reduced.

There is currently about a nine month inventory of homes for sale in Yardley. This is actually a bit better than for all of Bucks County.

Observations

There is no question that, looking at all of this information, it is still a buyers market. However, whether you are a buyer, seller, or just curious about real estate in Bucks County, or Yardley, houses are selling. Interest rates are at historic lows. Despite public perception, buyers are getting mortgages, and real estate is selling. If you are a potential seller, it is critical that you be realistic about pricing. It has never been more important to make sure that your house shows as well as it possibly can, and that it is marketed properly and thoroughly. I have a real sense that, especially for non-distressed homes, the market is a bit more stable right now, than it has been in quite a while.

If you think wiping down counters and fluffing a few pillows in advance of the guest onslaught will land you on Santa’s “nice” list this holiday season, maybe you should check that to-do list twice. You

Scrub your entryway. Wipe down your front door, give the doormat a good shake, and make sure dust and dirt haven’t collected on floors and furniture legs. These are the first things guests will see when they arrive, so keeping them clean will guarantee a good first impression.

Focus on the kitchen. People tend to gather around the food during the holidays, so make sure your kitchen looks and smells nice. Don’t forget to dust the light fixtures and flush sink drains with boiling water.

Whatever you do, don’t neglect the loo. Don’t just wipe surfaces; break out the stiff-bristled brush and scouring powder to really scrub things clean.

Sniff out bad smells. If you clean your home and something still doesn’t smell quite right, brew some coffee. The aroma will cover it up.

Give your garbage disposal some love, considering how much it will “consume” this season. To cut down on odors, chop up a whole lemon — rind and all — and let the disposal gobble it up. Throw in ice cubes to sharpen the blades.

Make sure you can see the guests coming. Keep windows clean and streak-free on the cheap with an easy mixture of vinegar and water in a spray bottle. Wipe down windows with a reusable microfiber cloth.

With all your holiday cooking, stove tops and ovens are bound to get dirty. Baking soda and water make a simple scouring solution that can scrub off that baked-on gunk.

What are your tips for keeping your Yardley home guest-ready during the holiday season? Leave your comments below!

From a Bucks County perspective, why is this article so interesting?

There are always articles written that talk about how bad the real estate market is.  I have written pretty extensively about the real estate market in and around Yardley and Newtown, and all over Bucks County.  I have pointed out on numerous occasions, that our market is nowhere near as dire, as in other parts of the country, like Arizona, Florida, etc.

This Journal article is the first article that I have seen that makes a distinction between distressed sales, and non-distressed sales.  I think this could be a critically important distinction, because, as the article points out, according to CoreLogic, an important emerging trend is that home prices are actually stabilizing after excluding distressed sales.  If you are not familiar with the term, “distressed sale”, it essentially refers to bank owned properties, and/or short sales, etc.

It is clear, according to the statistics, that prices of non-distressed properties are actually stabilizing, even as the prices of distressed properties are still falling.

The reason this becomes so important to the real estate market in Bucks County, is because for Bucks County real estate, the percentage of distressed property sales, is very significantly lower than the national average.  In fact, for all of Bucks County, the percentage of distressed property sales is about 13% or so, while the national percentage is 28 to 30%.  I would actually suggest that in the Yardley, Newtown, Washington Crossing real estate market, that percentage is even lower.

In fact, many people are really surprised to learn that for the entire real estate market in Bucks County, following the height of the market, which was in 2007, prices fell by 6.7% in 2008, they dropped by 6.8% in 2009 and believe it or not, they actually went up by 4.3% in 2010.  Those statistics are based on the change in the average sold price, each year.

So, if you live in or are interested in real estate in Bucks County, spread the word!