nick vandekar: Pennsylvania shares the Wawa experience - 05/30/12 01:27 PM
When I moved to Pennsylvania over twenty years ago I had never heard of Wawa, or the hoagie. The hoagie was my introduction to Wawa, known as a sub in other places, a baguette in Europe and various other names elsewhere, it was reliable as a place for a quick but fresh lunch. Whilst it is not my first choice for a hoagie as I do prefer my bread to be a little crunchy like a baguette, but since beginning to eat vegetarian for health reasons last year I have discovered that Wawa has several veggie options for sandwiches, including … (0 comments)
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nick vandekar: A rose in Berwyn, PA - 05/24/12 02:39 PM
We got this rose as a gift, it was in a small pot intended to be displayed inside. Well like all good gardeners, Trudy decided it needed the great outdoors. We have done nothing to coddle it, it had to styand on its own, and this morning it just looked glorious.
… (0 comments)
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nick vandekar: First time buyers find success with a VA loan in Exton Station - 05/21/12 02:12 PM
First time buyers Jason and Dana outside their new home they purchased and settled on this last Friday in Exton Station. Jason a Navy Veteran used a VA loan, provided through Prosperity Mortgage to purchase the home. VA loans have many benefits for buyers who qualify, allowing them to obtain a 100% loan, with no mortgage insurance premiums, and if the Veteran has any disability rating even as low as 10% the funding fee can be waived which is a significant saving. It also allows some seller assistance as well which can be helpful for young buyers purchasing their first … (2 comments)
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nick vandekar: Easttown Township new construction opportunity - 05/15/12 10:24 AM
Today, there are fifty five homes on the market available for purchase in the award winning Tredyffrin Easttown School district, rated as having the 3rd best high school, Conestoga in the state, that are priced over $1,000,000. These are all luxury homes, with the majority of the highest priced homes being in Easttown.
Easttown has always been considered the more expensive of the two townships, but there are locations in Tredyffrin that command multi-million dollar prices, such as lots on Valley Forge Mountain and close to Valley Forge National Park.
However, as mentioned above, Easttown Township has generally been considered the … (0 comments)
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nick vandekar: Interesting historic home currently for sale in Tredyffrin Township - 05/14/12 02:12 PM
Today, there are fifty five homes on the market available for purchase in the award winning Tredyffrin Easttown School district, rated as having the 3rd best high school, Conestoga in the state, that are priced over $1,000,000. These are all luxury homes, with the majority of the highest priced homes being in Easttown.
Easttown has always been considered the more expensive of the two townships, but there are locations in Tredyffrin that command multi-million dollar prices, such as lots on Valley Forge Mountain and close to Valley Forge National Park.
This home in Tredyffrin is of more interest, and I think … (2 comments)
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nick vandekar: Open Houses today - 05/06/12 08:06 AM
Many agents are quick to dismiss Open Houses believing they are used more to generate buyers for the agent than actually selling a home that is Open. Over the last couple of years we can point to open houses being the reason the majority of our listings have sold. With 93% of buyers looking on line and many of them not having an agent, many turn up at an Open House to check out a listing they have seen on line. Often they already know of an agent, or have been reccomended and agent by a friend, so this is not … (0 comments)
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nick vandekar: Home! - 05/04/12 08:05 AM
I was thinking about my mother this week who died just about two years ago. You know how thoughts go, you start in one place and end up in another. Last year we visited England and my home town. there is that word, HOME. It got me thinking about what home means to me.
Firstly, following the deaths of my sister a few years before my mother, and my mom, my home town did not feel like home. My brother lives like I do in America. It really surpirised me to think about this feeling this week that the town … (3 comments)
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nick vandekar: To offer or not to offer that is the question? - 04/18/12 12:47 PM
Buyers are out in force, new listings are coming on every day this Spring along the Main Line and when a buyer finds a home that meets their list of requirements the next question is "To offer or not to offer". Some buyers don't want to compete with others feeling it will encourage them to pay too much. Some don't want to offer because it is the first home they have seen. Some want to just wait, in case they reduce the price.
Several times in the last few weeks I have heard of properties that have received multiple offers, … (0 comments)
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nick vandekar: 528 Foxwood Lane, Paoli, PA 19301 for sale - 04/13/12 11:26 AM
528 Foxwood Lane in Paoli, a large end unit town home in the Foxwood development. Tredyffrin Easttown School District, Easttown Township. Open Sunday April 15 2-4 pm. three beds with a loft that could be a fourth bedroom or a home office. Main floor with a den, living room, kitchen and dining room, slider to deck, basement with walk out slider to private patio area. close to shops and Paoli train station with trains to Philly and direct to New York.
… (0 comments)
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nick vandekar: Multiple offers? Yes. Full price? No! It is not always about price. - 04/05/12 06:49 AM
In the last week along the Main Line I have made an offer on a home for a client, and visited two other listings where I learned that each had multiple offers. These were different townships and different price points. Buyers are out and active. But, what I am noticing from homes that are settling is that buyers are not offering full price, even where multiple offers are happening.
Sellers have definitely got a better handle for the market and are pricing their homes accordingly, but buyers are very wary still of making full price offers and are holding firm on price … (2 comments)
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nick vandekar: New listing in Charlestown Oaks, Malvern PA - 04/04/12 11:52 AM
Another great listing you can view right here with a YouTube video. Charlestown Oaks is one of the better town home developments in our area, built by Iacobucci Builders it sits a little out of the way, but only minutes from shops, transportation and plenty of restaurants. Homes in this development are always desirable, but this one with a cul de sac location and two car garage, with plenty of other upgrades, two fireplaces, granite counters and upgraded cabinets and a princess balcony over the family room. Check it out, and if you want to stop by this Sunday, yes April … (0 comments)
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nick vandekar: Are you thinking of living on the Main Line, PA? - 03/24/12 08:34 AM
Are you thinking of living on The Main Line? I wrote this blog as a guest writer for Dale Siegel on her blog Diaries of a mad mortgage broker
Devon is part of the Main Line to the west and north of the city of Philadelphia. Perfectly located with easy access to many major road and train routes, both north and south, and east and west with a well developed International airport it has become home to many National and International Corporations.
Before the 1600’s Lenni Lenape Indians called this area their home. In the 1600s William Penn sold land to … (0 comments)
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nick vandekar: This is the view you will have at 437 Old Forge Crossing - if you rent it. - 03/19/12 02:46 PM
Probably one of the best views in the development, this one bedroom condo has just become available for rent at $1050 per month. One of the larger floorplans for one bedroom units at 1025 square feet, this end unit on the second floor overlooks the reflection pond and has recently had all the windows and heater and a/c updated providing low cost utilities for the new tenant.
The kitchen is a good size with a breakfast bar leading to an open plan layout that allows easy movement between living room, dining area and kitchen. Every unit here has its own … (2 comments)
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nick vandekar: Why selling is not always the best option. - 03/19/12 02:34 PM
It may seem obvious but selling a Main Line home and buying a new one, larger or smaller costs money.
Selling your Main Line home the costs include the commission which is negotiable but probably your largest individual item, this is divided between both the listing broker and the broker representing the buyer. Fees for obtaining certificates of tax bills, sewer bills etc having been paid, a notary fee for the closing officer, transfer tax as charged by the county and the municipality and any use and occupancy certificate fee. These most likely will run about 6-8%.
As a buyer … (2 comments)
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nick vandekar: 10 Tips for choosing the right agent to list your home for sale. - 03/09/12 10:17 AM
A home for many people is their biggest investment or potential investment. So choosing the right person to list your home for sale is important. Where ever you are things have changed, especially with Main Line Philadelphia Real Estate. Here are 10 tips to bear in mind as you select the right agent to not only list your home but to sell your home.
The size of the broker is irrelevant! Yes, it is shocking but true. The internet has leveled the field not just for retail, travel and other industries but also in real estate. An agent from a … (1 comments)
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nick vandekar: How buyer agency has changed real estate? And why that is good for you! - 03/08/12 01:17 PM
Several years ago, well 1988 to be exact buyers were allowed to have their own agent represent them in a real estate transaction. It seems amazing, a little like women being given the vote, or equal rights for all! But before this buyers were not represented, all agents in the transaction represented the seller. Regardless of what broker they worked for they were a sub-agent for the seller. So, even if you thought you were being represented you were not. Sort of like having one lawyer represent both parties in a divorce.
Today, many buyers want to remain un-represented as long … (41 comments)
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nick vandekar: Selling the Main Line - Wayne, Radnor Township, PA - 03/05/12 08:29 AM
People often ask what makes one township more desiarable than another, and to frankly everyone is looking for something different. Wayne is a town loved by many along the Main Line because of its victorian homes, walkability, small town feel, easy access to Philadelphia, and the choice of coffee shops, restaurants, bars and chich and stylish shopping available all within walking distance. Check out this short video of downtown Wayne in Radnor Township and let us know what you think.
… (1 comments)
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nick vandekar: Why you won't buy what you want...exactly. - 03/05/12 07:18 AM
Every buyer along the Main Line has a list of what they want from a home. Regardless of price point. The $150,000 one bedroom condo buyer and the multi-million dollar single family luxury home buyer. Many things on those lists actually are similar, just different scales. But every buyer also has a list of things they are willing to compromise on when they buy a home.
The want list you put together is very logical. What you buy is very emotional. Many buyers walk into a house and just know this is the one! Then they qualify it logically, ticking … (11 comments)
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nick vandekar: Artesano Iron Works in Wayne - 03/01/12 02:34 PM
I have driven past Artesano Iron Works for the past couple of years, always meaning to stop off as this shop just looks so cool from the outside. Well today, I had been out taking some photos for a new rental listing that is coming in Wayne, a 1 bedroom 1 bath condo on the ground floor and was on my way back to the office when I grabbed the opportunity to stop off and see what Artesano Iron Works was all about.
I got to meet Igor Roa, yes that is his name and he is delightful, and is … (0 comments)
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nick vandekar: Are home prices really as low as 2002? - 02/28/12 01:14 PM
Once again, national sales data is not truly reflective of local real estate markets. Plus these reports lag the market, so when the reports are made they are already behind what is happening in the market today.
The Case Schiller Report referenced above is based on sales back in the fall, not even winter. All I know is that in the last two weeks as I call to make appointments I am hearing often, "Sorry, that went under contract this morning."
Now, prices have definitely dropped, but as I have mentioned before, you can have prices falling on one street … (0 comments)
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