Jennifer LeBow

What’s Included and What’s Excluded When You Buy a House?

February 27, 2017 by Jennifer LeBow Leave a Comment

philadelphia relocation home buying — Be very clear about what will and won’t be left at the property by the sellers.

Never assume. While the standard agreement of sale in Pennsylvania does explain that all personal property that is “not attached” to the structure is deemed the property of the seller (and, therefore, the buyer shouldn’t expect it to be left in the house), there are different interpretations as to what “attached” means. Some of the most commonly debated objects include bathroom mirrors that may have been hung on walls (but look like they are glued on), wall sconces, depending on how they are secured, “work benches” (those heavy tables that have often been in a house through many owners because they are so hard to get out of the basement), wall mounted tvs and their brackets, washers and dryers and extra refrigerators that are often in basements or garages, sheds, trampolines, and swing sets.

If both buyer and seller realize up front that anything that IS removed from a wall may require that the wall be repaired, it may help determine the fate of some of the items in question. While there is no definitive rule about how large a hole needs to be filled, most agents suggest that if it’s bigger than a nail hole, the seller should “patch” the wall. Well, how well does the patch need to match the paint? That opens up a whole new can of worms. If the the buyer is planning on painting, no big deal, but what if she isn’t? Can you see why it’s a good idea to think about these inclusions and exclusions prior to settlement?

Another item that comes up is oil that is left in an oil tank. Some sellers expect to be reimbursed for the amount that’s left, while many buyers figure that it “comes with” the house. You might also want to consider if there is anything that you’d like to ask for, even if you are certain it is the sellers’ personal property. Seller is moving to a condo? Maybe he’d be wiling to leave (or sell you for a low price) the patio furniture. Love the kitchen stools that are the perfect height for the island? Maybe the seller with throw them in rather than crediting you $300 for a plumbing issue (and you’ve priced stools and know they’ll cost you $1,200 to buy). This business of inclusions and exclusions can be messy if it’s not discussed early on and you may even be able to find a mutually beneficial way of handling certain items if you speak up. My advice is to discuss with your agent particular items you expressly do or do not want left behind by the sellers at the time you’re writing the agreement, or, at the latest, as part of your reply to inspections.

China’s International Ice and Snow Festival

February 22, 2017 by Jennifer LeBow Leave a Comment

China's Annual Ice and Snow Festival — China is the host of the largest ice and snow festival in the world.

You know the expression “If life gives you lemons, make lemonade”? In northern China, the Harbin Ice Festival follows the same theme: when you have cold weather, make ice and snow sculptures. This annual , month-long event is the largest of its kind and has been going on for more than 30 years. All over the city are illuminated sculptures, though there are three central themed areas showcasing large numbers of pieces–Ice and Snow World, Sun Island and recently opened Zhaolin Park, which showcases a dazzling display of ice lanterns (which have a long history in China). Most people choose to visit the festival at night as the LED lights add a whole additional dimension to the beauty of the artists’ work. Buildings made of ice two-three feet thick and enormous installations depicting monuments, mythical creatures or natural attractions (like Niagra Falls) are among the creations you’ll see. The ice comes from the nearby frozen Songhua River and the sculptors use ice saws, chisels and other equipment to craft their pieces. For more on the festival’s history and specifics about admission, etc., read more here.

Real Estate is Local, So Read Carefully

February 21, 2017 by Jennifer LeBow Leave a Comment

Don’t believe everything you read. That directive doesn’t mean you should stop reading, but, rather, that it might be prudent to read critically. What does reading critically entail? Not taking everything a face value. Questioning sources and statistics . Challenging assumptions. Processing conflicting information and deciding what it means. To illustrate what I’m talking about, here’s a good example. I recently read an article that a fellow realtor posted on a community Facebook page. It was titled “Why the Supply of Homes for Sale is the Lowest Since 1999”. So, being a realtor, I was curious, clicked on the link and began reading. Now, I was already skeptical as it is common knowledge that “real estate is local”, so sweeping statements with no specificity had me doubtful about the credulity of the article before I even started reading.

It starts out with a semi-hysterical declaration that there is very little inventory, providing a statistic that a marker called the months’ supply of inventory (normally about six months’ in a balanced market) is around three and a half right now. It even quotes a market “expert” who describes the demand for homes as “titanic”. While I’m certainly hearing my buyers say “there’s no inventory”, the numbers didn’t ring true to me, so I looked up stats for my local area, which is running about six or seven months’ supply of inventory. (so, normal). On a side note, I’d like to remind you that, as the saying goes, statistics lie. Here’s what I mean: when I looked up the MSI for my area, over a two-year period, I can look at the net change over the entire time period. I can look at what it was 24 months ago and then “skip” to what it is now and compare those two figures. The difference in the two numbers? about 30%. Yeah. When you look at the net change, it’s around 9%, but when you look at the one that compares January 2105 to January 2017, due to a particularly high MSA for January 2017 (an anomaly, as you can see from the chart), the math shows a change of 39.9%! So be sure that when you look at statistics, you understand the criteria and methods used to calculate them.

TThe next section explains that, due to a dearth of inventory to buy, “This means fierce competition for homes”. Ok. That makes sense, in markets where there’s low inventory. I can buy that reasoning. However, the author posits that with rising mortgage rates and every-stricter lender guidelines, fewer first-time buyers are able to even consider a purchase and that that specific segment of the buying population has dropped the most (making up less than a third, when it has historically been about 40%). So now the author is telling us that there is at least one buyer group that is not in competition for the few listings there are, because they can’t qualify for mortgages. Hmmmm.

In another paragraph, the author points out that the main reason for the lack of inventory is that the building industry is still rebounding from the recession and not building new construction as fast as it used to and that it is not keeping up with demand. She also says that with rising costs of labor and land, very little of that already depleted new construction is lower cost housing (in a first-time home buyer’s price range, she implies). Well, again, taken in a vacuum, that summary seems logical. And it is. The problem is that while the rising mortgage rates affect everyone nationally (they are federal, not local rates), what is being built and what types of buyers are in the marketplace is incredibly local.

I realized that this article just didn’t pertain to our area for a few different reasons. First, the Main Line is a very old area and we have practically no new construction at all–so a slow down in new building, or an even bigger slow down in lower priced new building was irrelevant. Second, while the first time buyer not being able to find any inventory to buy due to that building slow down was also not applicable as very few lower budget buyers ever look in our region because our values tend to be outside of their price range. So the first time buyer’s obstacles shouldn’t greatly affect the Main Line’s marketplace.

What is in high demand in our area is a specific feature: updatedness. With rates, still fairly low, most buyers can much better afford to finance an extra 100,000 for a house someone has fixed up than come up with that extra cash, to say nothing of the logistics (esp if owners both work and can’t be supervising big const projects) of remodeling. So it’s not that there’s no inventory; it’s that it’s low in the category people want. Also, consider this: not that many people sink $100,000 or more into updating and then sell. So the re-done houses are even that much more rarely available.

When I finished the article, I was so annoyed at just how poorly it explained anything, that I just needed to vent (hence this response). So, the takeaways? Real estate is hyper local and when you read, do it with a critical eye and a large grain of salt at the ready, particularly because statistics can be very slippery in terms of exactly what information they are actually representing.

Jen LeBow’s Kugel Recipe

February 16, 2017 by Jennifer LeBow Leave a Comment

This is a really easy kugel recipe that is always well-received.

Jen LeBow’s Kugel Recipe

Cook 8 oz. medium or wide egg noodles, drain and set aside.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine in large bowl:

3 well beaten eggs

½ stick (¼ cup) melted butter, cooled a little

¼ cup sugar

1 t cinnamon

1 t vanilla

Add in and combine:

1/3 cup yellow raisins

Cooked egg noodles

Pour into 8×8 pan.

Bake 35-40 minutes on 350.

Serve with sour cream and cinnamon and sugar. Freezes well.

What do Rising Mortgage Rates Mean?

February 9, 2017 by Jennifer LeBow Leave a Comment

What does the increase in mortgage rates mean to the real estate market?

Mortgage rates have been unbelievably low since the recession. Finally, though, they are starting to creep up over 4%. Still very low, to be sure, but higher. So what do higher rates mean? Well, it sort of depends on whom you ask. Some people think that they will drive down the price of homes; if the monthly payment for a loan of the same amount is now more than it used to be, buyers will not be able to afford to buy unless the price of homes falls. Ok, that is a reasonable argument. On the other hand, some real estate experts predict that since rates are still so low, the increase will simply knock out the buyers at the very bottom of the group, not significantly affecting home prices, just marginally reducing the competition. Their view is that prices will remain stable, but volume may drop a little. Still others believe that the job market is improving enough to spur a small improvement in the economy, perhaps enough to offset the higher costs of home loans. As always, economists make various predictions and the rest of us wait and see what actually happens.

Sleigh Rides Near the Main Line

February 4, 2017 by Jennifer LeBow Leave a Comment

Have you ever wanted to go on a sleigh ride? Now you can!

While Philadelphia and the entire Main Line have been (sadly, in my opinion) devoid of snow so far this winter, we may yet see some of the cold white stuff. One thing I’ve always wanted to do, but never have, is to take a sleigh ride through the snow. Not only do I not own a sleigh, but I never knew of anywhere I could book a reservation to do it. Until now. I recently discovered that, just a few miles north of Valley Forge,there’s a company that offers this service. Collegeville’s Northern Star Farms can take up to 12 people for an old-fashioned sleigh ride, complete with a warm quilt or a traditional buffalo hide (!) to keep you warm. Their sleighs are even equipped with wheels to take you across roads when there isn’t enough snow for the sleigh to do what it was built for.

What You Should Know About Moving to the Main Line

February 1, 2017 by Jennifer LeBow 1 Comment

philadelphia main line relocation — I polled my past clients to find out what they had to say about moving to the Main Line.

So I took a survey of past clients as well as other transplants to find out what their experience was like when they moved to the Main Line. I asked what they like most and least, what surprised them, what they wish they had known and what advice they had for me as a relocation agent to help me better serve my buyers.

Here are some of the things they liked:

Great schools.

Our public school districts, particularly Lower Merion, Radnor and Tredyffrin-Easttown regularly rank among the highest in the state and even in the nation. Many people who move to the Philadelphia area choose to live on the Main Line largely because of the schools. When you consider that, sadly, Philadelphia’s city school district is rated a 1 out of a possible 10, you will begin to realize why school district matters so much. From great facilities to extensive course offerings as well as robust arts, athletic, computer, and similar programs and amenities, this can be the starting point for some people’s search for a home.

Beautiful stone homes and very pretty, lush landscape with mature trees, winding streets and lovely neighborhoods.

It’s hard to beat the beauty of the topography or the houses.

Safe, quiet and peaceful.

We have very low crime and we have most of our commercial services clustered around Montgomery and Lancaster Avenues, so there are fairly large areas that are almost exclusively residential and tranquil.

Easy to get to NYC, DC and down the shore.

Either by road or rail (or even air), it’s very easy and quick to get to other major cities and destinations.

Easy commute to center city.

Getting to center city, especially from the eastern end of the Main Line is pretty easy, whether you drive or use public transportation (though it does help to have some intel on the “back” roads ways of getting there).

Parks, dog parks and trails.

From the Cynwyd Trail to the Chester Valley Trail with all kinds of parks, playgrounds and preserved outdoor space in between, we do have some great options (and don’t forget nearby Fairmount Park, the largest park within city limits in the country).

Here are some of the things they didn’t like:

Hard to meet people here as many people have lived here their entire lives; there aren’t that many transplants.

It is true that the Main Line, and Philadelphia area in general has what I like to refer to as an unusually high rate of recidivism. It’s true that most people in the area not only grew up here, but their parents, grandparents and often earlier generations did, too. One of the results is that people do, indeed, often have an established group of friends. However, some of the relocators I surveyed discovered that joining local groups (mommy and me, running, book clubs) and Facebook pages like the Lower Merion Community Network page made it much easier.

Not that many areas have sidewalks.

We don’t have a lot of sidewalks. Remember that the Main Line is old, and neighborhoods often grew organically, not according to a rigid developer’s plan, so considerations like that often fell through the cracks. While it is, admittedly, frustrating for people who like to walk or have young kids, many of the streets are wide and flat and drivers here are used to people walking on the streets. Obviously, should you could choose to walk on the street, you have to be more careful than if there were sidewalks. That said, the other side of that coin is that since our neighborhoods weren’t planned communities (like what people often refer to as subdivisions), they don’t have that cookie cutter look that often comes with them.

Many neighborhoods don’t have the walkability to shopping, restaurants, etc. that I’m used to.

Hard to argue the walkability complaint. That’s one reason why the towns that do have a sort of village center are so popular (Narberth, Wayne, Media, for example). When this area grew, services were mostly located along Montgomery and Lancaster Avenues so, unless you live very close to those major roads, you will often find it a challenge to walk to shopping and dining (especially with few sidewalks available). You need to expect to drive if you’re going to live on the Main Line. Period.

It seems like everyone here is rich.

There’s no getting around the fact that there is a great deal of affluence on the Main Line–“old money”, “new money”–yes, there are some very wealthy families. Might you encounter some entitlement? perhaps a little materialism or values you might not share? Sure. But guess what? You might also benefit from the philanthropy that exists here as well for the arts as well as other social causes. There will always be people who are not your cup of tea no matter where you live (unless you live in a completely homogeneous area where everyone is identical to you), so my advice is, no matter which type you gravitate toward, seek out the people whom you can connect with and relate to and don’t waste a lot of time on the others.

Here are some of the things they wish they’d known:

What the deal is with the school districts.

This is one of the most important factors affecting home values and home choice for buyers. In most areas outside of our region, all the kids in a given small town are districted to the same public school system. That is is not the case here. Many towns (Ardmore, Bryn Mawr, Wayne, Malvern) are parts of two or even three different counties (and, therefore, school districts). Because school rankings matter a lot here, the value of a property is greatly affected by which school district it is in. It’s also important if you care about being in a particular district, to be sure that you are not looking at properties which funnel to a different school system.

How high closing costs are.

Yeah, this is just an inescapable fact of purchasing in the state of Pennsylvania. Depending on how you structure your mortgage payment and how high the taxes on a given property are, you will probably spend about 4.5-5.5% of the purchase price in closing costs. That’s right–that money is above and beyond your down payment and, unless you roll it into a seller’s assist (click the link for seller’s assist and scroll to the third paragraph under “Nuts and Bolts of an Offer” to find out more about seller’s assist), it’s cash money (not financeable). So you need to be realistic about what you can afford and it’s best to know about that substantial cost before you define your price range and how much cash you have to put down.

More about what the different neighborhoods were like before buying.

Learning the different personalites of our communities is something I stress again and again to my relo clients and on my website; I even wrote a Guide to Main Line Neighborhoods to try to provide some general background. There are vastly different “flavors” depending on where you are; take the time to visit them and see what suits your family best.

How much the taxes vary from place to place.

I couldn’t agree more. There are certain pockets and some specific townships where taxes are very high. Radnor and Haverford Townships, for example are usually higher than Lower Merion and T-E, but there can be exceptions. Also, new construction in many areas (which we don’t have much of) can also be high. Ask your agent to help you figure out which areas have high taxes.

How old the houses are and that so many need updating, as well as what’s involved in maintaining an older home.

Many of our houses are old and may have the original bathrooms, kitchens that are not updated and typical features of their era like small closets and low-ceilinged basements. Recognize that it’s not cheap to make these kinds or updates, so be prepared financially. If you come from the land of new construction, you might be in for a shock when it comes to maintenance costs for older homes. Replacing an asphalt roof is costly enough, but do you have any experience with slate roofs? What does it cost to replace a boiler or install air conditioning in a house with no duct work? You’ve never considered replacement windows, have you? How about pointing exterior stone? Don’t forget tree trimming and snow plowing, which are unavoidable around here. These kinds of things may be surprises to you; be sure to discuss budgeting for home maintenance with your agent.

I am grateful to all my past clients as well as other transplants who took my survey as it was incredibly instructive to learn what people had expected, what they hadn’t and what, as newcomers, they noticed about the area, both good and bad. I will use the feedback I received to better and more accurately describe the Main Line to prospective relocators so that they can make as informed a choice as possible. No place is perfect, but not everybody is as suited to living in one place as another. So I will take what I learned and try to, as honestly and straightforwardly as possible, pass it along to my clients. If you have anything to add, please let me know!

If you are relocating to the Philadelphia/Main Line area, please go to my blog page and search for posts using the relocation tag. Contact me to discuss your Philadelphia area relocation! jen@jenniferlebow.com/610 308-5973

Moving Day Survival Kit

January 31, 2017 by Jennifer LeBow Leave a Comment

So you’ve been planning and organizing and packing–just before the day of the move is finally upon you, I’d recommend putting together the “must haves” to reduce the likelihood of (avoidable) frustration on that day. Think about having food and water, chargers for your phone, which you may be using for all sorts of things, tools necessary for unpacking and mundane household devices in the event there’s no power on or a toilet backs up. You’ll also want stuff to clean with and trash bags for garbage. Also consider the weather (need boots and gloves?) and if the heat or a/c is on in your new home. A change of clothes (and toothbrush!) is a good idea, too. Ask friends and family what things they were glad to have had (or wish they had had) when they moved. There’s no teacher like experience! If you’re relocating from afar, you might want to scope out the nearest convenience store, hardware store and a couple of restaurants. See here for more.

Jennifer LeBow

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