Newtown Square, PA

Still wondering if now is the time to buy? Confused on the available tax credits? Questioning future interest rates?

Today:

- The $8000 Tax Credit For First-Time Homebuyers has been extended.
- A New $6500 Tax Credit is available for move-up and repeat buyers.
- Housing affordability is at an all time high.
- Prices have moderated.
- Mortgage rates are at historic lows.

The President of Long & Foster, Jeff Detwiler, and Barry Redler CMO have put together a short video explaining some key points:

If you are considering a move, now remains a great time to take advantage of this market and the available tax credits. The combination of affordabilty, low interest rates, an expected increase in home inventory, and the available tax credits make this a unique opportunity to purchase on favorable terms.

As always, if you ever have any questions or need any additional information, please do not hesitate to let me know anytime

David Henke
Long & Foster Real Estate Inc - Newtown Square,PA/Bear, DE
Office: 610-353-1199/Direct: 610-359-3853/Cell: 610-618-0808
www.DelawareCountyPennsylvaniaHomes.com

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Take this holiday to spend some time with your friends and family.

Enjoy all the season has to offer.

And Have a Very Prosperous and Happy New Year!

After five years of review and planning, Newtown Township has approved the revised plans for the development of the Ellis Preserve at Newtown Square.

After years of work, meetings, and evolving plans, the Ellis Preserve Town Center is now closer than ever to fruition. The township will still submit some additional conditions to BPG that must be addressed, and another builder is contesting the approval, but the project looks like it should be proceeding.

The Ellis Preserve at Newtown Square will include a mixture of office, retail and residential uses. The Ellis Preserve Town Center should be a great addition to the township and provide a more traditional town center to the area. In addition to the commercial center concentrated by the intersection of Routes 252 and West Chester Pike, there will also be additional office space along West Chester Pike and various residential options concentrated to the north as you head toward Goshen Road.

For more complete information, be sure to check out the complete Daily Times Article on the meeting itself and the embedded links to take you directly to the developers site.

As always, should you need any additional information, feel free to contact me anytime.

Burlap and Bean in Newtown Square is everything you wanted in a superior local coffee house - and more.

Opened in November 2006, Burlap and Bean has quickly established itself as a great hub of activity in the local Newtown Square PA area. The owners have committed themselves to running an enlightened establishment and are committed to the community - with even its own running team. It is a family owned business dedicated to their motto of "Roasting Coffee ~ Brewing Harmony". They are open six days of the week (closed on Sunday) and roast all their coffee on site so that it can be the freshest possible.

Burlap and Bean Coffeehouse promotes global awareness through Fair Trade and is 100% Fair Trade Organic. "The Fair Trade Label guarantees that a product was grown and traded in a socially and environmentally responsible manner." Now, after tons of additional work, they are Pennsylvania Certified Organic as an officially certified Coffee Roasting Facility using only the finest fair trade organic coffee. They also meet all the requirements of the USDA's National Organic Program.

The owners go well beyond a coffee shop with their support of the local music scene and the arts. Every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, they transform themselves into an intimate music venue. Thursday night is Open Mic Night with performances starting at 7:30 and lasting for 15 minutes each. Burlap and Beans is one of the local venues participating in the Summer 2009 Battle of the Open Mics. Contestants will battle through August 9th to be one of 2 representatives from each venue to go to the finales at the Steel City Coffee House August 19th.

They continue their commitment to music with a long standing program of live performances every Friday and Saturday night. Hosting a wide variety of entertainers and styles, the series continues to grow in popularity with many sold out dates in 2009. Their site lists the upcoming performances and provides tremendous details and backgrounds of the various artists. All taking place in an environment enhanced with a rotating display of local artists works displayed on the walls of the space and even a book exchange.

Whether you are looking for some great organic coffee, the newest live music, local art, or just a spot to sit back and relax for a bit, you need to check out Burlap and Bean in Newtown Square PA.

Questions on the local area? Don't hesitate to contact me anytime.

Luxury Home sales in Delaware County PA have continued to maintain their leisurely pace as we head into the summer.

As we have seen in many areas of the county, the Luxury Home sales rate (those homes listed for $1,000,000+) peaked in 2007 with 132 closed home sales with an average price of $1,737,000. Average pricing has remained relatively consistent from 2003 through 2008 with pricing ranging from a low of $1,642,000 in 2006 to a high of $1,758,000 in 2004. The actual highest individual home price peaked in 2005 with one $5,000,000 sale. Since then we have seen the top price decline to $4,250,000 in 2006, $3,799,000 in 2007, $3,300,000 in 2008, and $2,200,000 so far this year.

Year to date, we have seen 19 completed sales at an average final price of $1,836,000, a slight price increase from the average seen in prior years. In addition, there are 24 homes pending with an average list price of $1,516,000 so the average sold price would be expected to move down. At this sales rate, it appears that we can expect another decline from the 93 completed home sales in 2008. There are an additional 167 homes currently on the market with 5 listed for over $5,000,000 and with the highest two properties listed for over $9,000,000; both are located in Radnor Township. If we maintain the current sales pace, there is an almost 2 year supply of homes now on the market.

Overall, it appears that new home construction continues to be favored in these price ranges. Nine of the homes settled year to date are new construction and 11 of the pending properties are also new construction. Of the additional 167 homes currently on the market, 68 are listed as new construction. Luxury buyers appear to continue to appreciate the flexibility and convenience of the new construction opportunities.

Bottom Line: Although the luxury home market activity has actually increased a bit from the extremely slow pace of the fourth quarter, economic and financing issues appear to continue to weigh heavily on the market.

As always, if you have any questions or need any additional information on any of the properties available, please do not hesitate to contact me anytime.

(All statistics are from the TrendMLS System and believed accurate but not guaranteed.)