West Grove, PA

At the turn of the last century, this home was known as The Buttonwoods, after the giant sycamore trees on the property. One of them is on the National Historic Tree Registry. This 5 bedroom historic home sits on 4 acres and not only contains a house, but a gristmill, whose exterior has been restored and interior reinforced. It is in a country setting, but not far from a shopping center with a new supermarket, restaurants, and a coffee shop. On the banks of the Big Elk Creek, which is on the southern edge of this lovely piece of land.

Here you see the Ruston/McDowell Mill, which is said to have ground flour for Washington's army. This magnolia was blooming outside the front door in June, right next to the cherry trees in bloom the month before.

MLS 5733724

Price: $410,000

Website: www.psre.com/9412

Welcome to 6 Keno Lane - Danielle's newest upcoming foreclosure in West Grove PA.

Recently, there have been fewer foreclosures in Delaware County PA as the activity appears to have become more concentrated in Philadelphia and down in Delaware. To continue our foreclosure series, this is one of the latest of Danille Mateu's foreclosures that is coming up in Chester County PA.

Located in Penn Township, Keno Lane is a small cul-de-sac off Corby Rd just west of its intersection with Jennersville Rd. This location affords the owner easy access to much of the region. Just north on Route 796, Route 1 provides quick access toward Oxford to the west and West Grove/Kennett and Delaware County to the east. Just to the west, Corby Rd intersects with Route 896 which leads to Lancaster to the northwest and Newark/ Wilmington DE to the southeast.

This is a nice example of newer Chester County ranch home construction from about 29 years ago. Keno Lane itself is a 3 bedroom 1.5 bath one story ranch with a full unfinished basement. The property is located right at the corner of Corby and Keno and the house is situated on the top of a rise over the intersection. The video will provide a better look at the home itself:

The pricing for this house has not yet been set but overall in zip code 19390, there are currently 116 properties on the market with an average list price of $359,000 and 24 are under contract with an average list price of $258,000. As has been seen throughout the area, both the activity and pricing have pulled back recently in this zip. Activity reached a peak in 2006 with 185 closed transaction while the pricing reached a peak in 2007 with an average sales price of $312,00. Both sales and prices have been drifting down for the last couple years resulting in 87 sales so far year to date in 2009 with an average sales price of $263,000.

This appears to be a great opportunity to obtain a home in the area for a good price without being a major fixer. As with all foreclosures any buyer should be prepared to put in money and time into the property before being able to move in. A potential buyer will only be able to perform limited inspections and must be prepared to buy in as-is condition with solid financing.

As always, if you have any questions or would like to be notified when the property can be shown, please do not hesitate to contact me anytime.

West Grove, Pennsylvania-A Well-Preserved Town

At the intersection of Evergreen and Prospect Streets in historic West Grove, Pennsylvania, you can get an idea of what it must have been like in 1893, when this Borough was incorporated. Named after the West Grove Quaker Meeting House, the town was a center of local trade dating back to 1731, when John, Thomas, and Richard Penn granted 5000 acres to William Penn, grandson of the Founder of Pennsylvania, subject to the rental of 'one red rose on the twenty-fourth day of June if demanded.' This payment has been made almost every year since. Usually a direct descendent of Penn had been present to receive the red rose. This is done in a public ceremony, generally on the Saturday following Labor Day, and attracts a large crowd.

Below: The Historic West Grove Quaker Meeting, Evergreen and Prospect Intersection, and Former Train Station turned Ice Cream Shop

The Penn Township Park is located in Jennersville, next to the Jennersville Regional Hospital, and across the street from the YMCA. There are gazebos and picnic tables for rent in the park by contacting the Township office. The Jennersville YMCA was a beehive of activity around the kiddie and adult pools on a recent summer Sunday.

A more quiet scene (at least on the surface) was across the road at the Jenners Pond retirement community. Residents have full use of the YMCA, plus their own walking trail, health center, dining rooms, a library, activity rooms, and even a pub!

And just down the road, is the 59 bed Jennersville Regional Hospital, with its own emergency center, and 85 licensed physicians. And all you have to do is turn around, and see that you are still in the midst of the peaceful countryside of Chester County. Jennersville's postal address is West Grove, so you can see that West Grove is still a very rural community.

The West Grove postal area includes many communities, the most populated is probably Jennersville. With activities centered on Old Baltimore Pike and the Route 1 expressway, lots of activity is found centered on the intersection with Route 796. Here can be found a large modern shopping center which is a study in contrasts. Within a few yards of one another, you can see a Starbucks with a drive-in window and hitching posts for the Amish community and their horse carts. A neighbor tells me she has only seen one horse ever tied up there, and we wonder how often the Amish go to get coffee or shop at the Giant Food Store (never?).