An estate is selling a home, price is agreed at $80,000, the township has a point of sale ordinance and after inspection insists the estate which has no cash available make $9000 in repairs, to sidewalks, etc, township refuses to issue a temporary use and occupancy certificate to buyer and insists all work is completed before they will issue a use and occupancy certificate. Buyer walks and estate is now stuck with a home they cannot sell. This is actually illegal in Pennsylvania, but many Main Line and surrounding area township ordinances are in breach of state law, state law says that a temporary certificate must be issued giving the buyer 18 months to make required repairs after settlement when a permanent use and occupancy permit can be issued.

This doesn't make sense.In a recent survey most homeowners 73% said they had seen, read or heard nothing about point of sale ordinances. Until a homeowner comes to sell their home they usually don't know if their township has a point of sale ordinance such as a use and occupancy certificate or not. As a buyer they did not care as the seller had to pay for any of those issues and it did not register particularly.

But why a point of sale ordinance does not make sense is that it can take decades for every home in a township to actually sell and therefore for important issues to be taken care of, and if you don't sell your home, you are not "forced" to make the repairs. Most homeowners also don't realize that these ordinances give the township the right to enter your home, make inspections and demand for repairs to be made. A recent example I had a buyer buy a home in Phoenixville, under the use and occupancy certificate the homeowner was required to make certain repairs, but it will take an estimated 35 years for every home to come up for sale in the township and therefore for important issues to be taken care of by every homeowner.

Suburban Realtors Alliance our local government affairs group recently launched this wonderful website www.ThisDoesntMakeSense.org which highlights the local townships and if they have a point of sale ordinance, if they do it estimates how long it will take before every home would be required to make repairs. It gives you the opportunity to contact your local township representatives and ask for them to remove point of sale ordinances and replace them with something better that does make sense and will deal with these issues in a common sense way.

There is also a very good video that explains why these point of sale systems are unfair to homeowners who are selling their homes and not requiring those who are not selling and may have bigger issues to avoid making any repairs. This is another reason why you should have good buyer agent representation and understand your rights.

Have a look and tell me what you think.

With the record low inventories compared to the last few years, whilst now is a frustrating time to be a home buyer, it is a wonderful time to be a seller.

Homes are selling quickly at all price points, buyers are motivated to act as they are aware of the lack of inventory and finding the right home, so when they do see something that meets their needs they are not hesitating and they are taking action, making offers acceptable to sellers and getting the homes under contract quickly.

So, now is a wonderful time to be a seller. Whilst it does not allow you to ask anything for your home, if it is prepared correctly, priced right you will see lots of showings, and a quick offer that meets your asking price or maybe even over it. With the multitude of homes at all price points going under contract and reaching settlement, appraisers also are having no problem finding the comparative sales to do their research for banks for mortgages to be approved on these sales.

So select your listing agent, someone who will market your home on the web effectively, with lots of photos and video even, like us, and price it right.

Then all you need to do as a seller is prepare your home, clean it, weed the beds, spread the mulch, clean the house, yes I know I repeated myself, one of the biggest turn offs for buyers is a home that needs cleaning, it implies the home is not cared for or maintained and gives the buyer a reason to continue looking. So make sure you give the house a really good clean, baseboards, stairs, steam clean the carpets, vacuum, dust, get rid of those spider webs in the corners, clean the windows, open the blinds and let the light in, wipe down the counters and don't leave the sink full of dishes, pick up the toys in the house and in the yard. If you have a dog, pick up the poop. Plant some colorful flowers to brighten the look and get out of the house for showings. Make sure all your appliances have been serviced and leave a letter out why you bought this home, why you love the neighborhood, where you shop, and any tips about good restaurants that are close by.

Getting a home sold and to settlement for the highest price the market will bear is not always about asking the highest price you can.

There is always this picture of sellers fighting with their listing and potential listing agents over price. The seller wants $xxx,xxx and the agent is shown as wanting to price the home at less than this price. The price a home sells for has nothing to do with what a homeowner paid for the house, what he spent upgrading it or what the neighbors house sold for, or how much the seller needs to buy his next home.

It has everything to do with what buyers in the market are willing to pay for this specific home. That is driven by the value they perceive the home offers and how many of their desires and needs it meets.

When you purchase a car and comparison shop, the car with the more options at the lower price is obviously the best deal. Likewise, buyers are comparison shopping your home with what else is on the market and what has recently sold. If it does not have the same or more options as other homes and the price is higher there is no perceived value.

Pricing your home to high may result in buyers not coming to see the home, or worse yet the wrong buyers not coming to see the home.

Another reason for pricing high is to leave room for negotiation, because all buyers want to offer less. Whilst this is a natural presumption, buyers are more aware of the market than sellers as they may already have missed out on purchasing a previous home, so their offers will be realistic in comparison to the state of the market.

So, to obtain the highest price in a market that is short on inventory is to price it such that it will attract the most buyers to the door and allow them to realize the potential and spur them to action. It becomes like an auction allowing you the seller to review a group of offers that should be in the same price bracket and really to then decide which is the cleanest most attractive offer from the strongest buyer and that may very well not be the highest priced offer.

Good luck, and if you need help with listing on The Philadelphia Main Line contact us and we will help you not just price your home but to get it sold as well.

Being a Realtor is being part of a team. We work with many people to help make a transaction reach settlement, our clients firstly but also these include contractors, inspectors, mortgage providers, title providers, insurance agents, the agent on the other side of the transaction plus all the people in the background from secretaries to township inspectors for Use and Occupancy certificates. It is building relationships with all these people that enables a transaction to close smoothly and on time.

We just had our office awards ceremony and I was not expecting to receive any awards this past year as we have a very highly producing office and although I was very happy with my production last year knew there were many others who had stellar years production.

Well I was very surprised when both Trudy and I received awards for production, and I received several awards for referrals to our mortgage provider, insurance provider, and a community award for my work as President of the local business association Berwyn Devon Business and Professional Association and fund raising in relation to my work for Surrey Services for Seniors chairing the Main Line Antiques Show where we raised $108,000 for the charity.

So I want to thank everyone on my teams, clients, contractors, committee members, boards of directors and all the providers I use for making it so easy to recommend you all.

Buying your Main Line home begins with deciding first your budget and then in which township you want to live. The Pihladelphia Main Line begins in Lower Merion Township, heads west and north through Radnor, Tredyffrin and Easttown Townships. Not so long ago, many would say it ended in Wayne, then it became Paoli, nowadays many people consider Downingtown the end of the Main Line.

Towns along the Main Line include Merion Station, Bala Cynwyd, Gladwynne, Haverford, Bryn Mawr, Rosemont, Villanova, Wayne, Devon, Berwyn, Paoli Malvern, Frazer, Exton and Downingtown.

There are many choices. Within each township people are loyal to their neighborhoods, often not venturing elsewhere to shop, many homeowners along the Main Line buck the national averages remaining in their homes for decades rather than the five to seven years so often quoted as the period of time home owners live in a home before moving.

So, your research includes, schools, neighborhoods, home styles and life style to name just a few of the things you most likely will consider when looking for a home along the Main Line.

All types of housing is available along the Main Line, from Revolutionary War period homes through Victorian homes to homes built in the sixties and seventies to modern day new construction homes built on lots purchased for such purposes. Colonials, ranches, contemporary and split level homes are available all along the Main Line. You have many options.

Whilst we have seen the housing market affected throughout the country with foreclosures and bank owned properties, whilst these have not been common along the Main Line, it has been affected with home prices fallingover the past few years although bottom seems to have been reached and the lack of current inventory is causing buyers to take part in multiple offer scenarios to obtain a home of their choice.

The Main Line brokers and agents prefer fully written offers to be accompanied by a mortgage pre-approval and a buyers financial form along with the completed paperwork required for making an offer in Pennsylvania.

After negotiation and acceptance of an offer, buyers have a set contingency period to make inspections and make full application of their mortgage as stated in the agreement of sale. Pennsylvania is a time is of the essence state requiring buyers and sellers and their agents to act within set deadlines as per the agreement of sale. After all contingencies have been completed, homes are marked pending till settlement. Only after settlement are the sales price and any seller concessions revealed so as not to weaken the sellers negotiating position should a deal fall apart for any reason late in the process.

We work all along the Main Line and some distance North and South of it. We sell homes at every price point from Luxury Homes to helping first time buyers discover the joy of the Main Line. Should you be searching for a home to purchase contact Nick@VandekarTeam to discuss your needs and to obtain our Main Line buyers guide. If you already live along the Main Line and desire to sell your property, now is an excellent time to list your property for sale for example the 24% fall in inventory since the last quarter in Chester County buyers are looking for new listings and making quick offers when properties are priced correctly. Our experience pricing and preparing a home for sale can help you achieve your goals. I look forward to hearing from you and helping you find or sell your Main Line Home

The real estate market in our area has noticed a  definite uptick in sales since the beginning of the year, and even at the end of 2012. Inventory has dropped and is sitting at a balanced position between buyers and sellers from past statistics. Generally the luxury home market homes priced above $1,000,000 has not improved at the same rate as the rest of the housing market. But since the beginning of the year in Tredyffrin, Easttown and Radnor townships there have been 19 luxury homes sold or marked Pending since January 1st.

This is definitely an increase and I have noticed even the last few weeks that several luxury homes I have seen on broker tours have gone under contract. These numbers above do not include those homes that have simply gone under contract but not moved through the contingency period as yet.

Of these nineteen homes, sixteen are pending sales, and three settled. This part of the market has lagged behind in sales over the last two to three years especially in these three townships, however this turn in this part of the market signals a real improvement in the overall housing market along the Main Line, especially in Tredyffrin, Easttown and Radnor Townships.

Inventory along the Main Line in all price ranges including luxury homes continues to shrink. Buyers are out looking to buy homes like yours, and making offers on homes in all price ranges including million dollar homes. The only home they are not making an offer on is yours if it is not on the market because you are waiting for the Spring Market.

For a confidential discussion about listing your home, and access to our easy cancellation guarantee call or email Nick at 610-203-4543 or Nick@VandekarTeam.com.