• Waterloo Gardens Pet Night With Santa – December 8, 2011 at the Exton and Devon locations from 6pm to 8pm. Bring your pets and a camera to have their photo taken with Santa. Children’s Photo’s With Santa December 10, 11, 17 and 18th from 1-3pm. Bring your own camera.
• The Longwood Gardens Christmas features a Gingerbread Fantasy this year. Note that tickets must be purchased in advance for a specific day and time. – November 24, 2011-January 8, 2012
• Breakfast With Santa At Longwood – December 10, 11, 17 and 18th 8:30am to 10am at the Terrace Restaurant for a breakfast buffet and a visit with Santa
• Festive Christmas Fountain Shows in the Open Air Theatre at Longwood featuring holiday music. Shows are every hour from 10:00am to 3:00pm and again at 10:00pm except for Sunday’s Show which is 9:00pm
• The annual classic Pennsylvania Ballet production of George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker is one of the greatest traditions of the holiday season at the Academy of Music – December 10 through December 31st at the Academy of Music 

• The Macy’s Holiday Light Show is a Center City Philadelphia holiday tradition featuring the historic Wanamaker Organ Concert and more than 100,000 lights – November 25th through Christmas Eve from 10am to 5pm. The Dickens Village brings the Dickens classic, A Christmas Carol to life with fully animated characters reenacting  the story.
• A special free call from Santa for your little ones when you enter your information into the Christmas Dialer.
• The Radnor Hotel host the Children’s Holiday Tea December 10 and December 17thy
• The Philadelphia Orchestra presents the Glorious Sound of Christmas Concerts December 15, 16 and 17th 2011 at 7pm. The Messiah will be performed December 18th at 7:30pm, an annual tradition since 1961.
• Washington Memorial Chapel in Valley Forge performs seasonal music of Advent and Christmas Saturday December 17th at 4pm.

Baking holiday breads, many varieties of cookies, gingerbread houses and in December of 2004 we added this fun to decorate and delicious to eat Frosty The Snowman Cake. What’s your favorite family tradition? Know of any other fun things to do in our neighborhood. Add them to the comments or send me an email and I’ll post them here.

Or feel free to call me, Judy Peterson 610-889-5509 with all your real estate questions.

Related posts:

1. Fun Things To Do December 2011 – Part 1 Holiday Fun Things To Do-Main Line Chester County PA  Gingerbread House...
2. Christmas Fun Chester County Main Line Area Christmas Holiday Things To Do Chester County Main Line Area...
3. Christmas Light Displays Chester County Main Line Area Share The Joy Visit some of these holiday places to...

Tredyffrin 

Median Sold and For Sale Prices Tredyffrin/Easttown Township: 

• Comparing November of 2010 to November of 2011, shows that the Median Sold price was up 14.5% from $380,000 to $435,000 in 2011, while
• the Median For Sale Price was down only .2% from $449,950 to $449,000.
• Our local Tredyffrin Easttown homes under contract compares favorably with the National Pending Home Sales Index for the month of October 2011. Updated stats will be available the end of this month. 

Months Supply of Inventory for homes Under Contract Increased 16.9% from 2010 to November 2011 in Tredyffrin/Easttown:

• 2010 Homes Under Contract was 9.9 months
• 2011 Homes Under Contract was 11.5 months

Months supply of Inventory For Tredyffrin-Easttown Sold Homes dropped 19.6%:

• 2010 Homes Sold MSI 9.6 months
• 2011 Homes Sold MSI 7.7 Months

In the past 12 months, 370 homes have sold in Tredyffrin Township and 133 homes have sold in Easttown Township, which once again illustrates how all real is Local. 7.7 Months for Sold Homes is still a Buyers Market but not as much so as a year ago. 

 Morning Moon Walk :

It was a beautiful, clear day for Daisy’s early morning walk as the sun was beginning to rise. Just as I turned around to follow Daisy, I was startled by the beauty of a silvery moon hovering over the trees. I ran for my camera hoping to capture a bit of the magical light emanating from the sun and the moon being in the morning sky at the same time. Thanksgiving and November – a good time to count blessings and be grateful!

Related posts:

1. Tredyffrin-Easttown Real Estate – 2nd Quarter Market Snapshot Tredyffrin-Easttown Township Real Estate – Median Sold Price, Average Days...
2. Tredyffrin Easttown Chester County Pa Houses Sold Tredyffrin Easttown Township Chester County Pa House Sold Prices This...
3. Tredyffrin Real Estate September 09 Market Report Good New For The Tredyffrin Real Estate Market? Should I...

It’s time to look forward to one of my favorite events The 7th Annual Tredyffrin Township Historic House Tour, Saturday, September 24th 12 Noon – 5pm. I always enjoy being an Historic House Tour Volunteer where I get to share some of our rich history with my neighbors on a beautiful Fall Day. Stop and say hello. But get your Tredyffrin Historic House Tour Tickets early since no tickets are sold at the door.

I believe that each of us stands on the shoulders of those who came before us in a way that often inspires a sense of gratitude. My family history has a few threads of it’s beginnings in Chester County and Tredyffrin Township. My Great Grandfather attended the Diamond

Rock One Room School House on Yellow Springs and Diamond Rock Road as a child. And my Grandmother related that she was engaged to be married at the Covered Bridge in Valley Forge Historic National Park, which I believe to be Knox Bridge.

Where:

Please Note ‘New’ Pick-up Location for House Tour Tickets:
Montessori Children’s House of Valley Forge-Ivy Hollow Farm
1630 Thomas Road, Wayne, PA 19087
(located in Valley Forge National Historic Park)
House Tour Ticket Pick-Up: 11 AM – 2 PM
House Tour Hours: 12 Noon – 5 PM

When: September 24th 12Noon – 5pm

Benefits: $35.00 Tour Tickets Benefits Restoration of the Jones Log Barn

Contact: Pattye Benson, President  610-644-6759 with any questions.

Related posts:

1. Tredyffrin Township~4th Annual Historic House Tour September 2008 Tredyffrin Township 4th Annual Historic House Tour~September 20, 2008 Tour...
2. Tredyffrin 5th Annual House Tour Historic Preservation Trust 5th Annual Historic House Tour -Tredyffrin Historic Preservation Trust Saturday...
3. Tredyffrin Preservation Trust Celebrates Spring “Come Celebrate Spring!” The Tredyffrin Township Historic Preservation Trust Tredyffrin...

I have always enjoyed photography. In fact I can well remember the Christmas morning excitement as a kid when I got my first “Brownie” Camera and three rolls of film.

I do my own Real Estate Photography and also sometimes do photography work for other Realtors®. Good Real Estate Marketing begins with good Real Estate Photography.

Real estate photography has become increasingly important with the growth of social media sharing sites like Twitter and Facebook and property search portals like Realtor. com, Trulia and Zillow. 98% of all home buyers begin their home search online. Home buyers browse for homes on the internet using mobile devices like  iPhones and other smart phones.

My Best Real Estate Photography Tips:

• Tip #1 is to calculate the time of day that the sun will be shining on the front of the house.  My favorite iPhone and iPad Apps for real estate photography are LightTrac and Focalware.
• For most homes the best time of day is in the morning before noon. I like to avoid what I call the Harry Potter look of cast shadows.
• Try to plan photos to show the best angle of the room. With the Sellers permission, we might do some light “staging” to remove distractions. If I’m working for another Realtor®, I share my “21 Tips To Prepare For a Real Estate Photo Shoot” beforehand.
• Sometimes Sellers have a favorite room or view and I ask about that and I try to include it.
• A Telephoto Lens comes in handy to feature unique architectural details.
• I’m constantly on the lookout for my reflection or flashback in mirrors, glass cabinetry, glass mounted photos and windows. What not to do was etched in my memory the first time I got home and saw my reflection in the otherwise perfect photo of the Dining Room.
• Open doors, especially French Doors, should be closed to avoid that about to take off, “flying room” look
• I’m usually shooting with my Wide Angle Lens and ALWAYS straighten and correct any vertical distortions in editing.
• MLS Photos look best if a little lighter and brighter than usual. While I don’t shoot RAW photos for real estate, I do the next largest file size because I want my photos fill the screen in good resolution when viewed. 
• Sometimes it seems like the best shot involves shooting near or into a window, so I use off camera flash to equalize the light.
• Photoshop helps me put the icing on the cake. It’s where I tweak and lighten, brighten and straighten every photograph and sometimes even remove cars and trash cans! But never power lines. That’s a story for another day. . .

I still have my first digital camera, a Kodak DC4800. It was better than any of the “point and shoot” cameras for real estate photography, but it can’t hold a candle to the Nikon Digital SLR’s and a wide angle lens. The Sigma 10-20mm Lens is so good, I feel like it can almost see around corners!

Call me, Judy Peterson Prudential Fox & Roach Realtors when you’re ready to buy or sell real estate in the Philadelphia Main Line areas of Chester County, Delaware County and Montgomery County. I love “making you look good”. 

Previous Real Estate Photography Posts:

• 3 Home Staging Mistakes To Avoid
•  Photography For Real Estate Listings

Related posts:

1. Photography For Real Estate Listings Hello Digital Photography Goodby MLS Books. Get Over It! The...
2. Realtor Tech Happiness Equals 320 Gigs How Western Digital Saved My Real Estate Life!|Have Gigs Will...
3. iPhone 15 Must Have Apps For Real Estate Agents Judy Peterson’s 15 Must Have iPhone Apps For Real Estate...

This week I’ll be getting smarter at my Suburban West Realtors Association in Malvern, Pa. Together with my fellow Realtors, we’ll be learning more about “Responsible Real Estate In An Electronic World”.

My real estate business has been online for the majority of my career. And I can tell you that there are ethical choices that come up every day in the life of a Realtor. Sounds like a very informative course.

I confess to being an “early adopter” when it comes to Technology. Some might call me a “Sneezer”. I love to explore and share my tech discoveries. Some might even whisper the nerd word. Nah! . . .well maybe. For example, Blogsy is my new favorite iPad App that I’m using to write this post. If you like to Blog and want to be more mobile, check it out.

There is no doubt that the use of technology and social media (Blogging, Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, etc) helps me offer a superior level of service to my clients past, present and future. There are rewards and there are risks. The phenomenal growth of Social Media is a real estate game changer that can be challenging even for us nerds early adopters.I think this is the second class and it will fulfill our NAR 2012 Ethics Course Requirement as well as meeting the SWRA License Renewal requirement for 2011-2012. 

Besides, its Summer, SWRA is air conditioned, and the chicken salad and crispy fries at Nudy’s are calling my name. What’s a Luddite? Kinda like a Troglodyte. Don’t worry. If you’re reading this, you’re probably not one.

Related posts:

1. 3 Ways Real Estate Is Like Scrabble Scrabble and Real Estate Perhaps you love to play Scrabble...
2. Real Estate Home Sales Indicators February 2009 Those of us living and working in the Chester County...
3. Photography For Real Estate Listings Hello Digital Photography Goodby MLS Books. Get Over It! The...

Perhaps you love to play Scrabble AND you have a penchant for the world of real estate like me. As a child I spent many happy Summer days playing marathon games of Monopoly with family and friends. And even today, a few running games of Scrabble on my iPhone helps keep the mental juices flowing. Now I would be the first person to acknowledge that I cringe whenever I hear someone refer to the “game of real estate”. Somehow it always makes me think of those sleazy get rich quick guys on late night TV.

We never want to think about buying or selling a home as a game, since it’s one of the most important financial and emotional events in our lives. But here are some similarities to both events that might give a little insight by way of comparison:

1. There’s a Playing Field

By a playing field I mean that there are parameters that define each and every real estate transaction. The edges of the game board for buyers and sellers are defined by some factors like Location, Condition, Motivation, the Season of the year and the Economy. And then, just to keep things interesting, there’s Luck. Just like when you have a Q but no U, is it just luck in real estate that your target Buyer is in the market at the same time you’re selling, for example? Or can you create good luck by working smarter? Is this pic of a recent Scrabble game an example of good or bad luck? Since I’m a glass is half full person, I’ll strategize and maximize my resources. And that’s exactly what good Realtors help their clients do! Just keeping the words of Winston Churchill in mind when he said, “never, never, never give up”.

2. Play By The Rules

I love that age in children when they have the most fun making up rules to play by. Children instinctively know that a game is no fun if you don’t play by the rules. It’s my job to keep my clients well informed and protected by knowledge of the laws and rules of Real Estate. A surprising number of players struggle with this one. You know who you are teehee! If you have a bad memory and can only remember one rule, make it The Golden Rule!

3. You Can Win Be Successful

Its called Negotiation. The art of giving a little to get a little. I find it helps to think in terms of a “successful” real estate transaction, especially in this economy. Of course every board game has a winner and a loser. (Jeeze I’m so old fashioned! Is it still a board game if it’s on my iPhone?). But what makes a successful transaction? I like to think that at the end of the day a successful transaction is where each party in the negotiation has gotten essentially what they needed. There is a critical difference between wants and needs, especially in a strong Buyers Market like this one.

Don’t ya just love Scrabble Real Estate?

Related posts:

1. iPhone 15 Must Have Apps For Real Estate Agents Judy Peterson’s 15 Must Have iPhone Apps For Real Estate...
2. 10 Ways Happy Home Buyers Plan To Buy Buyers Who Plan To Buy and The Realtors® Who Love...
3. Chester County Real Estate~Comparable Sold Property Chester County Real Estate Comparable “Sold” Properties Comparable sold properties...

The Third Quarter Tredyffrin Real Estate Absorption Rate is looking more like a normal real estate market instead of one drowning in inventory.

Some months I have felt like I needed a huge mop to soak up the excess inventory. And in some markets that’s still the image that resonates.

But here in Tredyffrin Township for the Third Quarter Real Estate Market, we’re showing signs of recovery. The months supply of inventory is down to 5.6 months.  Keep in mind that the MSI and the Absorption Rate is based on the assumption that no new inventory is coming on the market, which is never the case.

The Months Supply of Inventory and Absorption Rates are averages, so there are definitely properties selling within days and even some with more than one offer and others, especially in luxury home price ranges, that are languishing.

MSI and it’s second cousins, Days On Market and Interest Rates, are the only numbers we like to see coming down in real estate market statistics.

The MSI for September 2009 is down to 5.6 months in Tredyffrin compared to an MSI of 7.7 months in September of 2007. The Days On Market in September of 2009 is 81 DOM which is up from 34 DOM in September of 2007.

The DOM indicator is up 139% and the Months Supply of Inventory is down 27%.

Contact or call Judy Peterson Realtor 610-889-5509 Prudential Fox and Roach Devon Home Marketing when you need a professional Market Analysis for your home in areas like Tredyffrin Township, Chester County Philadelphia Main Line Pa.

Related posts:

1. Tredyffrin-Easttown Real Estate – 2nd Quarter Market Snapshot Tredyffrin-Easttown Township Real Estate – Median Sold Price, Average Days...
2. Tredyffrin Township~Town Home Condo 2nd Quarter Market Report Tredyffrin Township Pa Town Home-Condominium ~ 2nd Quarter Market Report*...
3. Tredyffrin Real Estate|3rd Quarter Median House Solds The Third Quarter Median House Sold Report for Tredyffrin Township...

2009 l Climate Change

Today is Blog Action Day 2009 l Global Climate Change is the topic that Bloggers around the world have agreed to write about with the goal of raising awareness on one critical issue that impacts each of us.  Climate Change and Climate Control are big issues! Big enough to be overwhelming. But we need to resist the temptation to do nothing. We each need to accept responsibility for the future our planet in big and small ways.

I’m a proud Mom who’s often inspired by my two children and 3 precious grand children. As a real estate agent I spend my professional life helping families. And so it’s no surprise to me that our children and young people are the hope of our future. We need to educate ourselves as well as support and follow the efforts of our Children For Climate Change.

When my children were young they loved the children’s literature  from a series called, “The Borrowers” by Mary Norton. The Borrowers were a secret society of subterranean little people who were responsible for  all of those “things” that seemed to mysteriously disappear. You know, like the disappearance of just ONE of all the matching socks from the dryer.

Children delight in the antics of The Borrowers,  in part because the little people became the heroes because “the big ones” had messed up. First they are charming stories. And second,  they satisfy our human desire to avoid or shift responsibility, to point a finger and say, “it’s not my fault”.  As a Mom, I loved the message of personal responsibility in these well written stories.

The National and International Climate Change Debate in Copenhagen 12/7/2009:

• The Pew Center For Global Climate Change has lots of information to help us get up to speed on the issues and to be informed about the National and International debate on Climate change that’s taking place in Copenhagen December 7th 2009.
• Learn about individual States Climate Change Initiatives and see what your State has done or is doing to reduce Green House Gas Emissions and this recent update by The Pew Center.
• Follow the meetings in December at Copenhagen to ensure that we reach a Global Climate Pact.

Global Climate Control In Small Pieces:

• Support State and local environmental initiatives.
• Find ways to be Green in our personal family living.
• Use environmentally safe products.
• Support “Green” practices in our own community.
• Support Sustainable Farming in our community.
• Recycle, redesign, reinvent.
• Help those who can’t help themselves.

“Lead, follow, or get out of the way” is another way of saying that nature abhors a vacuum. We can no longer wait for the emerging nations or “someone else” to take a stance on GHG Emissions. Our own National leadership needs to lead the way and support the work that many States have begun. It’s time to do the right thing.

The enduring popularity of The Borrowers illustrates to children, and each of us Adults, that the road to personal responsibility is, at times a difficult road to travel. Today we face a bigger challenge of losing life itself.

What to do with a big problem like Global Climate Change?

Make it smaller…many pieces smaller.

Join together with others in a world wide community of  awareness and action.

Pick up your personal piece of the Global Climate Change challenge.

Think small but start walking!

Vote Earth!

“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step” Confucius

Let’s be good “human beans” and not “witless” borrowers of the future of our children and grandchildren.

#BAD09

#VoteEarth

Related posts:

1. Blog Action Day-Survive To Five-Save The Children It was Winston Churchill who said, “You make a living...
2. Chester County Homes Going Green? The US Green Building Council Here in Chester County and...
3. Chester County Pa Tredyffrin Market Report March 2009 Tredyffrin Chester County Pa Real Estate First Quarter 2009 Real...

So here I am now 4 months into in-tech love with my iPhone. I keep rewriting this post about how wonderful the iPhone is for Real Estate Agents. And the reason for the constant editing is that it seems that every day I find another great App that comes onto the market that’s helpful to Realtors® in the daily practice of real estate.

It’s an awesome Christmas morning feeling when I see that little update light go on telling me that there’s a new exciting feature for one of my Apps. One of life’s simple pleasures!

Now, I have some good friends that I respect. They have brand x phones or hand helds. Are you a Realtor with a brand x phone/hand held?

Give it away.  Or sell it to your friend, sister, brother or neighbor who is not in real estate and get an iPhone. Do I really mean that? I do.

Ok, now on to the fun part. It took me forever to find out how to make these cool screen shots. So now I’m going to share it with you so you can write a post and share your favorite iPhone Apps.

Here’s how to copy your iPhone screen: Display the screen you want to capture, hold down the depressed button on the bottom and then click the top on/off switch once quickly, voila a copy of the screen is saved to your photo App. See, you prolly already knew that, but I didn’t. Then email the screen capture to yourself or send it to Posterous. Easy peasy!

Judy’s 15 Must Have iPhone Real Estate Apps:

Near Buy - one of the most ingenious and useful Apps for Realtors. Showing a house? Buyer asks, “how much is that house down the street”. Walking your adorable Bichon pup named “Daisy” (oops that’s me) and a neighbor asks about a house she saw? Look it up on the spot in Near Buy. You look really smart.

Around Me – tell your Buyers about all the lifestyle, interesting places around a neighborhood like hospitals, theaters, hotels, supermarkets, taxis, parking, etc. It takes much more than 4 br 2.5 baths to make a happy client.

Smarter Agent – Accurate, clean, well designed real estate app.  It really works like a Swiss Watch for looking up property, listing contact information, etc.

Trulia – Excellent Real Estate Property App. When I’m at an Open House, my iPhone is set to open in Trulia.  Guaranteed, that someone will ask me if there are any other open houses in the area or they will ask the price of the other two listings in the neighborhood.

Zillow – Check out the Zestimates as Zillow names them. They’re often not accurate in my area, but it’s good to know what clients are finding online.

Walk Score – Walk Score is becoming huge to City planners as more and more people seem to want a “town center” or walk to shopping. It just depends on your market. In some high end market areas it might not be a plus having a high “walk to” score. No question though, that the concept of a town center is a definite trend in housing.

My New Place – This one’s new on my iPhone. For many reasons, Rental properties may be trending stronger. Anyway, there’s always a need to share Rental costs with clients if only to illustrate the investment benefits of owning a home compared to financing the landlords real estate dreams.

Calcs Pro and Fast Figures – are two nice financial Apps that walk you through some of the important numbers that buyers and sellers need to consider. There’s no substitute for talking to a trustworthy Trident Mortgage Representative (call for the name and number of my fav), but these can help.

Evernote – is a powerful Organizer/Note taking App I learn more about every day.  You can send photo, voice notes, and to do’s to, even pdf files to Evernote. The Home Inspector hands you a business card – take a photo of the card together with the info and you won’t be searching through your pockets looking for the information when you need it.

Gas Buddy – Road Warriors can save money and find the lowest gas price no matter where you are.

Yelp – Long day of showing homes? Just open Yelp to find your clients favorite spot when you want to take a coffee or lunch break.

365 Holidays – Need to know if a contract day falls on a holiday? Of course you do.

Twitteralator Pro and Tweetie – I like both of these for keeping up with the latest and greatest on Twitter. If I had pick just one, it would be Twitteralator Pro. But I also like Tweetie because it’s simple and easy to flip through the tweets for a quick read.

Facebook – The iPhone Facebook App makes it easy to stay socially connected with friends and family and clients.

The iTunes Store has over 75,000 Apps for the iPhone and I have just 72 of them. My favorite Photo Apps will be the subject of my next iPhone post. I use my Nikon DSLR together with a fabulous wide angle lens for taking my listing photos and for my  jp Real Estate Photography service for area agents.  But a few great iPhone Photo Apps are a must have for every Realtor. You know, “a picture being worth more than a thousand words” or dollars in the case of real estate.

Stay tuned. Tell me about YOUR favorite Apps.

Buyers and Sellers, want to work with a tech savvy Realtor who will use every available real estate marketing and social media tool to get your Chester County Main Line Pa property sold or help you find you the perfect new home? Give me a call now, Judy Peterson, Realtor 610-889-5509, Prudential Fox and Roach Realtors Devon Home Marketing Center. I can help.

Related posts:

1. 6 Tips For Real Estate iPhone Love 6 Tasty Tips+8 Tempting Apps For Real Estate iPhone Love...
2. Podcast Audio Real Estate Feature Announced Main Line Pa Today is announcing a new Podcast Real...
3. 7 Real Estate Buyer Agent Safeguards Is Your Agent An Accredited Buyer Agent? A Buyer Agency...

Bring Canned Goods For REACT

The Deb Callahan Band Plus 15 other Bands will be performing in Paoli with a FREE Concert at the location of the Paoli Village Shoppes across from the Paoli Train Station and in other Paoli area locations such as Malvern Federal, Ace Paoli Hardware (my fav for kids toys and fix it help!), CVS in Paoli Plaza and the Paoli Design Center all sponsors of the event.

Bring some non-perishable food donations to support the REACT Food Closet. Valley Forge REACT, needs your help. REACT, together with assistance from the community and members of the Tredyffrin-Easttown Fire and Police force  assists area families in need every day and through the holidays.

Have fun and do good! A winning combination.

Saturday 10/3/09 12 Noon to 6pm RAIN OR SHINE!

Related posts:

1. Tredyffrin 5th Annual House Tour Historic Preservation Trust 5th Annual Historic House Tour -Tredyffrin Historic Preservation Trust Saturday...
2. Tredyffrin Township~4th Annual Historic House Tour September 2008 Tredyffrin Township 4th Annual Historic House Tour~September 20, 2008 Tour...
3. Tredyffrin Preservation Trust Celebrates Spring “Come Celebrate Spring!” The Tredyffrin Township Historic Preservation Trust Tredyffrin...