Posts in category 'The Sun'

With gyms closed this spring, and summer activities canceled, we've had more time in and around our homes. If you're like me, you've walked/run/biked your neighborhood streets like crazy. Sunday mornings, Friday nights, sometimes in the middle of the night, I've been up and down the streets of  Hershey. I've gotten to know where the sidewalks dip, where hedges bulge and where you better look twice for cars. As a realtor, I love looking at the styles of the homes, the yards, the small touches that make a house a home.

I have my definite favorites in the neighborhood; "charm" being the number one criterion.

One of these favorites is 20 Maple Avenue, owned by Dennis and Betsy Phillippy. I've never had the guts to walk up to their door, knock and say, "I just love your house. Please tell me about it." B...

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Pricing a home is one of the toughest things I do as a real estate agent. It's an art, much like hitting a curveball or knowing what shoes to wear with skinny jeans. And like these examples, it's wrought with pain if done incorrectly.

An asking price too high can, after a messy bout of price drops, cause the home to sell for less than market value. Yet a price too low may cause you to miss financial gain.

You  may assume the best approach to pricing is to list higher than you expect to receive, like listing for $350,000 but really expecting $340,000. This may have been true in past markets, but in today's climate with homes selling in single digit days, pricing at (or even below) the true market value could sell your home for more than market value. Why? This price point will attract the most buyers, increase marketing momentum,...

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Will your home sell quickly when that time comes? The short answer: It depends where you live.

A few key statistics help determine how fast a home will sell. One of these indicators is the average "days on market," or DOM within a given geographic area. This number is determined by citing the first day a home is "active" on the multiple listing service (MLS) and counting the days until it is sold, or goes "under contract." Looking at the DOM is a quick way to grasp the temperature or liquidity of a market. The lower the DOM, the hotter the market.

Recently released statistics now available at www.EileenVoylesRealtor.com indicate that North Londonderry Township (Lebanon County, Palmyra Area School...

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Flip on the news and you'll see stories of economic mayhem; anxiety levels and loneliness are up and 401ks are down. Through it all, Sun Country real estate is taking its COVID-19 punches like a prizefighter.

Virtual tours, sight-unseen addendums, and creative workarounds to deal-making are prevailing over consumer fear and indecision. While activity lags, prices and "days on the market" improves.

Christian and Holly Schlitzer, new Derry Township residents, bought and sold homes during the quarantine.

"We listed our home in Hampden Township (Cumberland County) and made an offer on a home in Derry Township prior to the COVID-19 issues," Holly Schlitzer said. "We were in the middle of those transactions when things started shutting down. We saw n...

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Don't jump into mortgage forbearance without counting the cost.

Homeowners in Sun Country are struggling; furloughs, layoffs and business closings surround us. Our government is trying to help, bless their heart, but accepting Uncle Sam's offering of mortgage forbearance could leave us feeling all sorts of blue.

Let's back up.

In response to COVID-19's economic impact, Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which includes a mortgage forbearance option for homeowners of up to 12 months. While this might initially seem a great option for relief, looking closely (and metaphorically), the cure could be worse than the disease.

Why?

The CARES Act does not provide mortgage forgiveness, only forbearance, a temporary postponement of p...

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