Erica Ramus - www.move2pennsylvania.com - Schuylkill County PA Real Estate

In Schuylkill County, July means Stuff the Bus! Companies and individual patrons are asked to drop off back-to-school items in the school vans located inside of the Fairlane Village, Cressona, and Schuylkill Malls running the entire month of July beginning Mon., July 6.

Help support over 800 local children and families. Stuff the Bus Community Appreciation Day is on Tuesday, July 14th from 1:30 to 3:30 PM at the Fairlane Village Mall. For every item you bring to Stuff the Bus, you get an entry form to win exciting prizes including: Passes to either H2Ooohh!, The Reading Phillies, Dutch Wonderland, Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom, and many, many others. The day of fun hosts free child-friendly crafts and games provided by each of the 15 partner agencies.

New this year is “Stuff the Bus, Stuff Your Face” at the Fairlane Village Mall on Wednesday nights in July beginning on the 8th. From 5 to 9 PM, Roman Delight will donate 10% of your bill to the Schuylkill United Way to help purchase backpacks.

Plus, donate a school supply item and gain access to a FREE movie beginning at 6 PM in the Mall Theater. Scheduled movies include Paul Blart: Mall Cop, Taken, Marley & Me, and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

For more information, please call the Schuylkill United Way at 570-622-6421.

All I can say is at least it's not raining.

It's JULY and where is the "pool weather?" Come on already! Let's start dreaming ... here's a quick rundown of what you'll find if you're looking for houses with pools in Schuylkill County

$129,000 ... Barnesville 4-bedroom home in the country with aboveground pool

$132,500 ... West Mahanoy Township single with pool

$440,000 you get a classic 6-bedroom Pottsville home with an inground pool

$599,000 ... besides a pool you get a 10-car garage in the Tamaqua area

$774,900 ... Schuylkill Haven stone farmhouse with pool house on 25 acres

$899,000 ... a 1800s stone farmhouse in Wayne Township on 17+ acres

$1.2 mil ... Ridgeview beauty in Orwigsburg

Recession? What recession? As long as you're dreaming, dream big!

There is a really interesting article this morning in the POCONO RECORD regarding Pennsylvania's private communities and a movement in Harrisburg to address the situation where homeowners in these gated communities pay state and municipal and school taxes... yet receive less benefits than homeowners NOT in private communities. Read here:

http://www.poconorecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090705/NEWS/907050330

I lived in a gated community, Lake Wynonah, for 11 years and it never occurred to me that I was paying dues to the association + all my other taxes, yet not reaping the benefit of community services such as municipal police, public road paving etc. I wanted to live there, and so that's how it operates.

Here is a quote from the article I found paticularly interesting:

"Nobody knows how many private communities there are in the Poconos, or in all of Pennsylvania. By some estimates there are as many as 175 in Monroe, Wayne and Pike counties, ranging from a few homes with an agreement to maintain a common driveway up to big operations such as A Pocono Country Place, with thousands of residents, internal security, and a variety of shared amenities that range from community buildings to animal control services.

A study has never been done to accurately measure the presence of community associations in Pennsylvania. And that's a problem, according to Stephen Washington, chief of staff for state Rep. John Siptroth, D-189. It's a problem that complicates all the other problems private communities find themselves facing, from lack of full police coverage to road repair and trash pickup."

Now it looks like Harrisburg is moving to try to figure out a way to compensate homeowners in private communities for NOT taking advantage of public services, such as a tax rebate or credit on your taxes. Strage, in this same time when Ed Rendell will probably enact a HUGE HIKE in taxes to make up for our budget deficit.

I cannot believe we're already half way through 2009! I just pulled the Jan-June 2009 statistics for the Pottsville, PA 17901 area and here's where we stand right now.

I pulled Pottsville homes for sale (single family) and there are 169 homes for sale right now in the School District, which is higher than norma, and 32 of those are pending.

63 properties closed in the past 6 months, ranging from $6000 to $320,000!

Average selling price: $57,443 and average Days on Market: 118.

Compared to a year ago, we sold 66 houses in the same time period in 2008 (so very similar). But the difference kicks in when it comes to the other stats:

Average selling price: $70,414 was a year ago, with DOM only 97.

So in the past year, we've seen a serious drop in sales price (18.4% -- which is in line with national statistics) and a corresponding increase in days on market (22%).

DIAKON LIVING & LEARNING SUMMER COURSES

You’ll Want To Check Out These Courses For Your Artistic Side!

Scrap Booking 101: Thursday, July 16 / 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. / Schuylkill Haven / $10.00

Oil Painting: Saturday, August 15 / 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. / Mahanoy City / $50.00

Have You Always Dreamed Of Seeing Your Name in Print? The Nuts & Bolts of Getting Published: Tues. July 14, 21, and 28 / 6:30 - 8 p.m. / Pottsville / $40.00

Recapture your dreams – Refocus – Balance – Carve out some time for yourself – Recreate your future Your Life is Now Series / Mahanoy City / 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. / $25 per workshop

Appreciate Yourself: Wednesday, July 22nd. When You Think About Your Future…What Do You See?: Wednesday, August 19th. Who Am I Now...Now That I’m a ‘Grown Up’?: Wednesday, September 23rd.

Computer Courses - Tremont / $50 three day class

Introduction to Email and the Internet: Tues., Aug 11, 18, 25 / 2-5 p.m.

Introduction to Computers: Tues., July 14, 21, 28 / 6 - 9 p.m. and Tues., July 16, 23, 30 / 2 - 5 pm

Microsoft® Office Word 2007 Level 1: Mon., July 13, 20, 27 / 2-5 p.m.

Microsoft® Office Word 2007 Level 2:Thurs., Aug 13, 20, 27 / 2-5 p.m.

Microsoft® Office Excel Level 1: Mon., Aug 10, 17, 24 / 2 - 5 p.m.

eBay: Saturday, August 15 / 11 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. / Pottsville / $25.00.

eBay - Beyond the Basics: Saturday, August 15 / 1 - 2:30 p.m. / Pottsville / $25.00

Yoga For the Rest of Us: Mon. July 13 - Aug 17 / 10 - 11 a.m. / Mahanoy City / $36 six weeks

Early Harvest: Sunday, August 23, 12 p.m. First UCC (Rte 61) Sch. Haven / Admission is free Explore unique ideas for your bountiful harvest and how to prepare your garden for next year’s planting season. Vendor spaces available. Call Susan for information 570-624-3018

A Night in Morocco: Friday, Aug 28 / 6 p.m. / Pottsville / $60 Come to our Casablanca and experience the exotic foods of Morocco, the spirited music and the colorful atmosphere of this North African country.

Visit www.diakon.org/LL50/ for up-to-date news and course descriptions. Call 570-624-3018 or 1-800-621-6325 to join a class or for more information