Philadelphia, Bucks and Montgomery Counties Real Estate. Tips for home buyers, home sellers by Gita Bantwal,Realtor at ReMax Centre Realtors.

Montgomery County is  located North west of Philadelphia.  Norristown is the County seat. According to Census bureau its total area is 487 square miles .

Some of the major employers are Abington Memorial Hospital,  Aetna,  Merck, Rohm and Haas, Motorola, Johnson and Johnson , Holy Redeemer Hospital and many more. This is not a complete list and some major companies might not be on this list. Please feel free to email me if you would like me to include any company.

There are 22 public school districts in the County. Students in some bordering municipalities may attend public schools in another County. Please call the school district directly for more information.

Here is a link to the Schools http://www.montcopa.org/public.htm

If you are relocating to Montgomery County and would like to see homes in the area , visit my web site www.gitabantwal.com and look up homes for sale  in multiple listing service. I can show you all available homes including those listed with other real estate companies. I can also show you new construction as your buyer's agent.

 If you are relocating to Philadelphia area and  would like information about Philadelphia, Bucks and Montgomery counties please contact me . I will send you my relocation package. I have lived in Bucks County for over 30 years. I live within 10 minutes of bordering Philadelphia and Montgomery Counties.

Some people who work in New York city live in Bucks County. They can take the train from Trenton, N.J or bus from Doylestown.

To check out the demographics and population go to www.census.gov

The school districts have their own web sites. Click on the links below for information.

1. Bensalem School District :  www.Bensalemschools.org

2.Bristol Borough :    www.BBSD.org

3. Bristol township : www.bucksiu.org/btsd

4. Centennial School District : www.centennialsd.org

5. Council Rock School District : www.crsd.org

6. Morrisville Borough : www.mv.org

7.Neshaminy School district : www.neshaminy.k12.pa.us/

8.New Hope Solebury School District: www.nhsd.org/

9.Palisades School District : www.palisades.sd.org

10.Pennridge School district : www.bucksiu.org/pennridge/psd/psd

11.Quakertown Community : www.qcsd.org

12.Easton area school district : www.eastonsd.org

13. Souderton School District : www.soudertonsd.org

14.Bucks county intermediate #22 www.bucksiu.org

The above information is deemed to be accurate but subject to errors and omissions.

If you are moving to Bucks County and would like information about the housing market please email gita01@aol.com.

Look up all available homes at www.gitabantwal.com

You can register on my web site to be notified of new listings that match your criteria.

Warminster Township Bucks County is located in Centennial school district.

People love living in Warminster as there is plenty of shopping. The Ben Wilson Senior Center is located in Warminster and the Five Ponds Golf Course is located in Warminster.

Based on information in multiple listing service Trend , 27 residential  homes were pending settlement in September 2007 and they were on the market for an average of 47 days. The average price of these homes was $257,226 with the highest price being $394,900 for a 4 BR 2.5 baths single home  and lowest price was $81,900 for a 1 BR 1 bath condo in Meadow Wood Condominiums . These homes were under contract so the sale price is not known.

32 homes settled in September 2007 and they were on the market for an average of 69 days. The average price was $305,141, the high price was $455,000 and the low price was $113,500.

This analysis is subject to errors and is not to be construed as an appraisal.  This does not include homes not listed in mls and some new construction not reported to mls.

I will provide  monthly market reports for townships in Bucks and Montgomery counties .If you would like to subscribe to my blog email me at gita01@aol.com

If you want to read the report for August 2007 go to

http://activerain.com/blogsview/208517/warminster-township-bucks-county

Several area builders are offering great incentives to buyers of new construction. There are some model homes for sale in some developments and there are quick delivery homes priced for quick sale.

Builders like to sell as many homes as possible before winter and now may be a good time to find bargains. If you are looking for new construction and want a buyers agent to represent you, you should go to the development with your agent. The builder's agent represents the builder.

You may want to read :     Five Biggest Mistakes Buyers Make When Looking For Houses  . http://activerain.com/blogsview/163600/five-biggest-mistakes-buyers

         and           Five Biggest Mistakes Buyers make When Looking For New Construction http://activerain.com/blogsview/208440/five-biggest-mistakes-buyers

If you are looking to buy a house and need an accredited buyers representative please call me .Visit my web site www.gitabantwal.com

There is a lot of new construction going on in Bucks County and winter is round the corner.  Demand has not been as good as  in previous years and builders are offering incentives to home buyers. Builders usually build homes after they receive the down payment from buyers but they also build a certain number of homes before they receive an offer to buy , so that if a buyer is looking for a quick delivery home, they can accomodate the buyer. these are called spec homes.

Many builders in the area have quick delivery homes for sale at bargain prices. Some builders may want to be sold out by winter and are offering incentives to buyers. If you are looking for new construction now may be a good time to look for a good buy.

Before you look for new homes , you may want to read http://activerain.com/blogsview/208440/five-biggest-mistakes-buyers

Five Biggest Mistakes Buyers make When Buying New construction

and http://activerain.com/blogsview/163600/five-biggest-mistakes-buyers  Five Biggest Mistakes Buyers Make when looking for houses.

If you are looking to buy a house , you can visit my web site www.gitabantwal.com and look up 1000s of available homes in multiple listing.

We have  a sump pump and are thinking of getting a battery back-up sump-pump. Someone recommended a second electric pump instead, saying that the chances of a power outage are less than chance of the current pump breaking down and that the battery back up ones are good only for a few hours.

The person recommended a pedestal pump above the current one, so that it can take over but it will not be good if there is no power.

What is your experience with sump pumps? Any suggestions.?

based on information in multiple listing, there were 14 homes that went under contract for sale in Buckingham in September 2007. These were priced between $348,900 and $799,000. The average price was $498,115 and they were on the market for an average of 67 days. ( the number of days from listing contract to time it went under contract for sale. ) these do not include sale by owners and new construction not listed in mls.

In September 2007 22 homes settled  and they were on the market for an average of 60 days. The low price was $291,000 and the highest sale price was $1,800,000  and the average price was $646,707 .

This analysis is not perfoemed in accordance with Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practise and is not to be construed as an appraisal.

I will provide monthly market reports for townships in Bucks, Montgomery and Philadelphia  Counties. If you would like to receive reports by email please email me at gita01@aol.com

You may look up all available listings at www.gitabantwal.com

There are several sites to post your listings, but not many for just open houses.

We can post open houses on AR.There is a group for open houses . I just came across a new site today and posted my open house. I thought I would share it with AR .

It is www.locateopenhouse.com.

It is relatively new but it is free so why not try it?

If you know of any other sites for open houses please share it with us.

I still use the classified section of newspapers for open house , but if there are enough sites, I may cut back on it.

We can also post the open house in multiple listing and this way other agents can send their buyers.

This site is open to FSBOs too.

Based on information in multiple listing service Trend, there are 6 homes pending settlement in Warwick township  at a low price of $209,000 , high price of $564,900 and average price of $365,583 and these have been on the market for an average of 50 days.

12 homes settled in September 2007, with an average price of $ 368,158 , high price of $640,000 and low pric e of $210,000 These were on the market for an average of 48 days, from date listed to date they  went under contract .

The above information is not an appraisal and is subject to errors.

Of the homes sold, the one that sold for $210,,000 was a  townhouse in Stover Mill and the one that sold for $640,000 was a 1 year old single house in Pulte Built Bridge Valley at Furlong with 4 BR and 3.5 baths and finished basement.

The homes are located in acclaimed Central Bucks School District . See my blog about Central bucks School district or see the web site at www.cbsd.org

I provide monthly market reports .If you would like to receive the info please subscribe to my blog or email me at gita01@aol.com

You can look up 1000s of  available listings in mls  at www.gitabantwal.com

1 . A few years ago,, it was a Seller's Market. Anyone could put a sign in their yard and sell their house. The market has changed and there are fewer buyers looking. Some of the buyers who are looking may not be aware that they may not qualify for a mortgage based on stricter qualifying criteria. An experienced real estate agent knows  more about the market conditions than you do.

2.  If you are going to devote all day to market and show your house it is wonderful, but chances are you have another full time job. The agents can show your house during the day, when you are  at work , if there is a lock box.

3. You will probably put a sign in the yard and advertise in the newspaper. The agent has access to the muliple listing and this way all agents in the area will know about your house. Agents usually list on multiple sites as well.

4. Buyers feel uncomfortable when the seller is following them around when they are looking at the house. Most agents suggest that the seller leave the house during showings. But if there is no agent , you have to be there.

5. If a buyer is interested in putting an offer on your house, you may not have the negotiation skills necessary. You may be too emotional about your house and be offended if they want to offer less. The buyer may hesitate to make an offer directly with you. They may not trust you enough to give you a deposit. You can ofcourse use an attorney and escrow agent.

6. If you are thinking of saving the commission by selling on your own, please remember that the buyer is looking for the same savings. Why else would a buyer go to a seller selling 'by owner' when going to an agent will not cost him any more.?

7. You may not have the skills necessary to determine if a buyer is qualified. He may bring a prequalification letter from someone but there is more to it than prequalification.

8. An agent can attend inspections and negotiate buyer's requests.

9.An agent can keep up with all the things needed between agreement of sale and settlement like appraisals,titrle reports,mortgage payoffs, tax certifications etc.

10.An agent will attend settlement and the final walk through on day of settlement and take care of issues that come up.

   If you are thinking of selling on your own because you think the fees are high, please note that in most cases the agent sells for more and also that the commission is negotiable. Please make sure that you know what your home is worth so you can get a fair market price and get an attorney to help you.

 If you are thinking of selling your house in Philadelphia, Bucks or Montgomery Counties I will be glad to give you a market evaluation of your home and my detailed marketing plan to get your house sold.

Visit my web site www.gitabantwal.com