In the mood for a little Trick or Treat? Here's a press release I sent to our local news organizations about one of our more interesting listings.

Things that go bump in the night!

Realtors hoping to ‘Scare Up a Buyer' for historic Gordon Landmark

If you've ever passed through the tiny town of Gordon, Pennsylvania, you probably won't remember much. It's not very memorable. There's no town square, no shopping center. Heck, it's hard to even get a cup of coffee after 6 p.m.

If you've ever visited the tiny town of Gordon, Pennsylvania, you probably didn't stay long. But there are some who did. You might even say their presence remains long after they've passed on.

At least that's the opinion of paranormal investigator Chris Skelly, founder of C.A.S.P.E.R. (Clarity Awareness Spiritual Paranormal Exploration & Research). Skelly and a dozen or so of his co-researchers gathered Saturday night at the former brick school house, which stands at the end of East Biddle Street. Their goal was to investigate a possible spiritual presence at the old school house.

For Skelly, it was his second visit to the building. A previous investigation with another paranormal investigative team in 2002 yielded photos of what Skelly claims is the vision of a small girl with a bow in her hair. The girl was captured on film in an area of the basement next to an old coal bin. According to one member of the research team, that area of the building used to be the janitor's room and when the children misbehaved in school, they were sent to the janitor's room. In another 2002 photo, Skelly says, the outline of a young boy through a white streak of light near the main door is clearly visible.

The school, now privately owned and vacant (at least by anyone of this world), is currently for sale and both the owner and her realtors, The Property Shoppe, LLC. Of Jim Thorpe, are hoping that there's a buyer out there just looking for a haunted or allegedly haunted property to open a business or even renovate and turn it into a home.

The building is a 2,200 square foot, 2-story solid brick building, built in 1890, according to the cornerstone in Italianate style with tall windows and a central split staircase. The building's interior has been gutted to the studs, but the hardwood floors, carved woodwork and even a blackboard or two remains. An addition in the rear, obviously added after the original construction is in dyer need of a roof. "I guess you'd call it a handyperson special, but the building is solid and has good bones," said Jason Larsen of The Property Shoppe, LLC, the property's listing agent.

"It certainly commands a presence the way it sits majestically on that small knoll," proclaimed The Property Shoppe's Broker Kelly Fisher, "it would make a great office or shop."

"Presence" is precisely what the paranormal investigators were looking for last Saturday night.

On this latest exploration, the team began the evening with a protection prayer, said to protect those who visit from any harmful spirits. Next, they spread out in search of any spiritual presence, which might be residing in the building. Armed with an electronic sensor, Skelly circled the area watching for any sign of electromagnetic waves. Since the power was disconnected to the building, one member explained, there shouldn't be any electro magnetic activity, but still, the sensor was activated over and over, glowing red and beeping.

As members scattered throughout the building, flashes from digital cameras were the only lights, but the sounds were everywhere. They were the sounds of "I got some orbs," "over here," "ectoplasm." The members called to each other and shared photos of round white splashes of white they call orbs - thought to be a concentrated area of power. Bob Fanaro of The Property Shoppe even captured an orange orb on film - very rare according to the group's members. There were even sightings and photos taken of ectoplasm, a vaporous or ethereal substance associated with spiritual manifestations.

Next, Skelly setup a voice recorder while his wife, Loriann and others asked questions of the spirits from "what's your name" and "why are you here" to "can we do anything for you?" Some members of the team claimed to hear whispered responses, for the rest of us, we heard only the sound of rain outside and the occasional barking dog.

Little has been written of the building's history. But, according to The History of Pottsville and Schuylkill County, by Joseph H. Zerbey, The six-room schoolhouse was built in 1890 after fire destroyed the former school, which was located across the street. N.M. Frank was the first principal and teacher of the high grades. Teachers typically received a salary of $25 a month and according to one teacher, Miss Bertha Hubler, "we built our own fires and swept and dusted our rooms three times a week." Zerbey's accounting goes on to say that students were absent quite often and discipline was a problem, likely since the schoolwork was the same day in and day out. Later, new subjects were added and attendance became mandatory and the teachers agreed that school became much more enjoyable and truancy became a thing of the past. The first graduation was in 1892 and had four graduates. Until 1928, there was only one teacher for the entire high school. That teacher also served as principal.

Not much else is known of the school, but the building's current owner said that a neighbor told her that there was an influenza outbreak in the 1920s, which claimed many lives in the small town. It wasn't possible to dig graves fast enough to accommodate all of the victims, so the school, as well as a local church, was used for a time as a ‘storage house' for the bodies waiting to be buried.

"So is that who's supposedly haunting this place?" Fisher asked one of the investigators, "or are the children still here?"

Whatever remains - if there's any spiritual presence remaining is still a mystery. Skelly and his team will analyze the recordings made on the EVP (Electronic Voice Phenomena) recorder, as well as photos taken by the group on this outing. Will they be back again for more investigating? There's no plan right now, but for now, the old building waits patiently, perched up on that knoll, for the next live inhabitants who will buy the building and bring back the "spirit" of the old place.

As the investigations winded down, the group gathered once again in a downstairs classroom and joined in a soul recovery prayer before they disappeared into the rainy night like ghosts.

Chris Skelly of C.A.S.P.E.R. may be contacted at 570-473-7448. For information on purchasing the building, please call Jason Larsen at 570-640-7511 or The Property Shoppe, LLC at 570-325-3302.

Last weekend, I had an appointment to show 2 houses in Tamaqua, Pennsylvania. Now, I've always thought of Tamaqua as a "nothing ever happens there, old coal mine town that time forgot." But, in recent years, some very positive things have been happening there. There are new sidewalks and street lights and former vacant store fronts are alive and open for business. The old train station now houses a charming restaurant, and there are great one-of-a-kind shops, like the Company Store and a quilt shop -- even an art gallery. There is a library, parks and clean streets.

On this particular Saturday though, the town was hosting a firemen's convention, complete with a 4 hour parade around the main historic district. Parking was a bit of a hassle, but the weather was gorgeous, so we elected to park where we could and walk from house to house -- sometimes finding ourselves right in the center of the parade.

It was amazing to see the number of folks lining the streets enjoying the parade -- I swear, the whole town was there cheering and waving. Well, I said to my buyer, it certainly is a happy town. She agreed! There was so much positive energy there -- I could not have stage it better.

The house that we were most interested in seeing was tenant-occupied -- usually this makes me nervous. Tenants can sometimes kill a deal, but, again, we found the tenants cooperative and friendly. They even went to the owner's house to obtain information they did not know. The owner came over, answered all of our questions without being pushy or obnoxious -- instead, she was a pleasure to be with. The entire experience was fun.

And yes, my buyer bought the house!

I accept the local business challenge, but with some hesitation. I have lived and worked in real estate in the same area for 20 some years and in all of those years, I have been cautious when it comes to referring a builder. The Poconos has long had a (bad) reputation for fly-by-night builders. Granted, some have earned the reputation. But there is always an exception.

One of my first encounters with Bryan Moyer (Bryan D. Moyer, Inc) was many years ago, while I was working as a secretary for a real estate developer. It seemed Bryan had been advised by one of his previous clients that an Anderson patio door he installed several years earlier had leaked and so Bryan wanted to check all of the doors in all of the houses where he had installed those same doors -- just to make sure there was no problem. Now, no one else had complained of a similar problem and he had no reason to think the doors might all be defective, but he just wanted to be sure.

I asked him, "are you nuts? who does that? Most builders were offering a one-year warranty and good luck collecting on that if there truly was a problem. Who would inspect a door that was installed several years before and without even being told to do so? Well, Bryan would. He explained that it was HIS REPUTATION at stake and if he had just one unsatisfied customer, whether or not he was at fault, that bad publicity would get out and hurt his business.

When Bryan left the office with a handful of house keys, I thought, wow, a builder who actually cares about his customers and takes pride in his work... that was a long time ago and I still tell that story whenever anyone asks me who I would hire to work for me.

Bryan has been around for a long time (about 40+ years). He started as a kid and learned building from his father. Now, his son Brad works along side and they still enjoy the same reputation for quality, reliable worksmanship.

Call him old fashioned, but Bryan's business comes to him mostly through work of mouth. No website or flashy ad campaign. And, speaking of word-of-mouth, Bryan always has something to say. There's no such thing as a quick word with him. He takes the time to get to know his customers, answer any questions or just chew the fat. He's equally at home with a stay-home housewife or a Wall Street Exec. It doesn't matter who you are, Bryan is always himself and people instantly feel at ease in his company. Some have jokingly called him "the mayor" because he is constantly out socializing with the citizens. And, oh yeah, he's always happy to share pictures of his new grandbaby or his latest hunting trip or scenes from Colorado or all three. Look for the bright blue pick up with the dogs in the cab -- or just give him a call if you want the best contractor around. 570-646-7958 or cell 570-350-6802. Tell them Kelly recommended him!

I showed a foreclosed home today to a previous client. He was looking for a potential rental property in an area where houses will (eventually) appreciate in value since he may be looking to sell the house down the road. He chose Albrightsville, Pennsylvania. He has access to an entire construction crew and has bought fixer-upper homes before which turned out to be good investments for him. I found a winner -- good neighborhood, big house, only a few years old and repairs needed are minimal. The price was unbelievable -- couldn't believe it hadn't been snatched up after 6 days on the market. A steal at asking price and even though I knew he'd insist on a septic inspection, the sellers were open to it. My buyer had just refinanced his house and pulled out money precisely for such an opportunity. Yet, he wanted to lowball his offer. I couldn't believe it! He had lost out on a good deal a few weeks ago, even though he offered full price.

My buyer was not used to the low interest rates available to him. He was calculating that his monthly payment would be much higher than it actually is.

I have recently started a practice of showing prospective buyers different financing scenarios as they are viewing my listings. I've hooked up with a local mortgage banker to provide flyers showing 3 financing options -- 0% down, 20% down and 3.5% down - amount needed for closing; monthly payments, etc. and included pictures of the house. I posted these charts in each house and provide extras that the buyers may take with them. I think they are always pleasantly surprised by the smaller-than-expected monthly payments.

I work with a group of investors who purchase tax sale and foreclosure properties. Some of the homes are rehabbed before being placed back on the market, but many of the lower end homes are just listed cheap and I attempt to resell them "as-is." Many of these homes are in such a state of disrepair, they are uninhabitable - vandalized, garbage filled, roofs or floors collapsing, leaking roofs, you name it. After selling so many, I have become de-sensitized as to what is really BAD. Being the forever optimist I am, I try to find something good about each property, but sometimes I am at a loss for words entirely.

I recently advertised a group of these fixer-uppers in a local magazine and decided to be completely honest in my descriptions. Funny, the house that got the most attention was the one which ran with a headline, "Beware: The House!" The asking price was only $5,000 and although it is just short of a tear-down, what can you really expect for $5,000? It hasn't sold yet, but we have put 3 $8,000 listings under contract.