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Archive for August, 2006

Notable Price Reduction

Monday, August 28th, 2006

2026-2030 Chancellor Street - $550,000 (was $575,000)

This is a spectacular carriage house condominium at one of the best addresses in town.  Just a block off the square, you have a completely renovated unit featuring all of the finishes you would expect.  Beyond the usual 10-year tax abatement, the developer convinced the city to add another 3 years, for a total of 13 years.  Best of all, the unit has a 1-car attached garage.

At about $550/sq.ft., this is one of the best deals in town.  The most recent sale on the street (less than one year ago) sold for the same price per square foot and needed to be completely renovated.

As the market is changing, most buyers are starting to negotiate more aggressively.  However, the smart ones are still looking at the market to find those gems that just make sense.  Quite simply, this condo is one of them.

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Posted in Hidden Gems | No Comments »

South Bridge - a breath of fresh air (literally) at 700 Schuylkill Ave

Friday, August 11th, 2006

If you ever find yourself around the South Street Bridge, you’ve no doubt been staring at the blight of a building that used to house some of the administration for the Philadelphia School District. However, thanks to Switzenbaum and Associates (along with Venturi, Scott Brown and Associates), this perpetual eye-sore is being turned into one of Philly’s most exiting renovations.

Aptly named South Bridge, the building is exhibiting some of the most forward thinking and green architecture that Philadelphia has yet to see. Just some of the amenities:

  • 1-car parking included with every unit and you park on your floor
  • A “green” roof garden available to everyone in the building
  • 24-hour concierge with refrigerator and freezer for your grocery deliveries
  • Olympic length swimming pool and 4,000 sq. ft. exercise room

The units themselves are going to have custom teak flooring made from a renewable teak plantation. Every unit has a laundry room and many have separate storage rooms. The ceilings are approx. 11 ft throughout, with floor to ceiling windows. The kitchens and bathrooms will be incredibly high end, on par with projects in the $600+/sq.ft. range.

So what is so interesting about this project? Priced at $400/sq.ft. (including that parking space), you get more for your money here than any other new construction project around. Delivery is aimed for fourth quarter of 2007.

Please, e-mail us with any questions that you might have.

Posted in Hidden Gems, New construction | No Comments »

Glut in the market?

Tuesday, August 8th, 2006

There has been a lot of discussion in the media about a glut of condos and townhomes in the Philadelphia market.  To help answer this question, I took a look at data from May and June for the Rittenhouse Square area (zip code 19103).  The graph below shows the number of active listings on the market for the two months.

Chart of Home Sales

Conclusion? Though it may feel as if there is quite a bit more inventory out there, the numbers say otherwise.  Home and condo sales in the city are continuing at a good pace, even if somewhat slower than the frenzy of the past few years.  When you factor in the seasonal lull that typically occurs during the summer, this assertion is even more strongly supported.

So what does this mean to you?  If you’re a buyer, though you don’t have to write a check on the spot, don’t think that you have a week to think things over.  Act decisively - a good agent should be able to contractually protect you should you suffer from “buyer’s remorse.”  If you’re a seller, don’t accept “The market is changing” as an excuse from your agent.  Homes are selling just as frequently, assuming they are priced correctly.

Posted in Market stats | No Comments »

About us

Saturday, August 5th, 2006

PhiladelphiaCityRealty.com is the brainchild of David Friedman, a real estate agent with Coldwell Banker Preferred in center city Philadelphia. Frustrated with the limitations on most websites available to his customers, David created PCR in order to give not just his customers, but all of Philadelphia, a great real estate experience.

The most differentiating aspect of PCR from the many other websites out there is simply that we make it easy to find the properties and information that you want. Our goal is to provide the most real estate information to the Center City community - even to those people who may never choose to use our brokerage services.

We don’t believe that you should have to fill out long registration forms just to find out what is on the market. Nor do we believe that just because you want to know how much that house down the street is listed for, you should be harassed by some agent you’ve never met and don’t want to talk to.

PCR is built around a belief in good customer service and non-pushy sales. To that extent, PCR has created a network of like-minded agents who help serve the PCR clients who decide that they are ready to buy or sell their home. Openness, honesty, and great customer service are the hallmarks of their practice.

In short, PCR is about having a great real estate experience, whether you are buying and selling, or just browsing to see what’s out there.

Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

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