Main Line Homes Blog

When choosing an agent to represent you what should you be looking for? Professionalism, integrity, skill yes they should exhibit all of these but what else?

Is your agent working at this full-time? Do they know the market and the price bracket you are budgeting? What I mean by this is that one township can have very different markets at different price points. For example in our own township the statistics show that homes priced below $400,000 are in short supply and the market is still a seller's market as there is a shortage of homes in this price range. But homes priced over $1 million are in over supply which means that it is a buyers market. In fact if you examine each township around us in different price brackets you will get different results. Does your agent know this or are they just telling you that it is a buyers market because that is what the national press says? How many homes do you need to loose before you realize they do not know the market. Do they even know how to put this information together for you and explain it to you?

Can your agent recommend a selection of mortgage brokers and bankers, home inspectors, plumbers, electricians and contractors? Can they recommend a good restaurant for a special occassion? Do they know interior designers or stagers? What about if you need some one to plow snow? In other words are they a local expert or just an order taker having no real interest in providing a high level of service to their clients.

How experienced is your agent, are they comfortable explaining the paperwork and the process to you? Do they have support if needed? What happens if they or a family member get sick? Will someone else cover for them or will you get dropped and forgotten?

How good is your agent at listening and answering your questions? Do they talk and never ask you questions? Are they interested in what you like and dislike about a house? Do they show you different houses or do they just show you the same thing over and over, even when you have said this is not what you are looking for?

How good are they at communicating with you? Do they even ask what is the best method or do they presume how they will communicate with you?

What diffentiates your agent from everyone else? Do they have testimonials? Can you talk to previous customers of theirs?

These are just some of what you should be considering when choosing an agent? What is important to you?

After many months of low inventory in our area, Radnor, Tredyffrin and Easttown townships in Pennsylvania we are seeing an abundance of homes being placed on the market. Amazingly in our area we are also seeing a large number of homes for sale by owners.

So what sells a home?

There are many things that sell a home, pricing it right, preparing it for sale correctly, maintenance of the home, having the correct paperwork prepared, and marketing of the home correctly. It is a combination of all of these not just any one of them. Dropping the ball in one can hinder and slow down or even prevent a sale. Buyers are still very particular and even with a low inventory there are plenty of stories of buyers walking away from from properties that have issues at inspections that can not be negotiated or resolved.

More agents are holding Sunday Open Houses as well as other days and evenings because we have been seeing a lot of buyers looking on their own before finding an agent to represent them. Sellers also believe the agent is doing more by holding Open Houses and is more involved in the selling of the property.

But these last few weeks with summer approaching, even with these low temperatures this week, we are seeing more houses come on the market as this is the time of year to sell.

But remember, it is a combination of those points above that will sell your home, so if you are considering selling in the near future find an agent who knows how to market and can advise you correctly on what sells a home.

For the second year running John McClintick a local painter in the Berwyn Area organized a builders competition giving several local builders a chance to contribute to the Hurricane Relief in Louisiana. Last year three teams particiapated and this year that increased allowing more homes to be framed and sent down to Habitat for Humanity to use in building homes for those in need. What is great about the whole process is that it raises funds for the local Habitat for Humanity chapter as well.

The competition has gathered great support from local builders and trades suppliers as well. Times vary for the 12 man teams to frame a house from about 5 hours to just over 2 hours. But here is John Mclintick himself to tell you a little about the competiton: -

After many delays our son Jeremy arrived home from Iraq. We were unaware till later that evening just how lucky we were to have him home in one piece. Their first mission his humvee hit an IED and miraculously no one was hurt. This is just a short clip of his welcome home. Sorry, as it was late the light was not excellent, but I think you can tell we were pretty excited.

Well we are now home, he is visiting one of his brothers this weekend and will be coming home soon on leave. In the meantime he has begun the process of preparing the paperwork for his leaving the Marine Corps after 4 years of service and two deployments to Iraq. If you keep an ete on YouTube in the weeks to come he will be posting some of his videos of this tour. Search under t-cup pictures and you should find his stuff. Thanks for all your support whislt he has been away.