Q: My home has been for sale in Rhawnhurst too long. I wanted to move before the kids started school, so I put it up for sale at the beginning of the year. No bites. I really want to move! How can I help it to sell faster?

A: Currently, there are 1,640 homes for sale in Northeast Philadelphia. Not counting the almost 350 pending sales, that’s still more homes on the market than have sold in the past six months. Even if zero homes went up for sale for the rest of the year, it would take more than six months to sell out the current inventory. Yours is one of them. continue reading »

Q: I lost my job and can no longer afford my home in Wissinoming. I don’t have any money to bring to settlement, so selling it for less would be problematic. My agent listed my house for sale in January for $94,900, because I owe $83,000 and I needed to make sure the sale covers my closing costs. No one is even coming to see it. My agent tells me the average sale price for the same house in my neighborhood is about $78,000. Can I try for a short sale?

A:  Short sales are not easy, and, despite their name, they are anything but short in process. There have been many homes that didn’t make it through the short sale process and have ended up in foreclosure.   Contact the Loss Mitigation department of your mortgage company to find out what documentation is required to apply for a short sale. Usually you will need the following items, among others: continue reading »

Getting married can be the most exciting time in someone’s life.  Thinking about personal financial issues during this time is not often high on the list of priorities, but it should be at least on the totem pole.

The merging of two lives from a financial standpoint can be complex, and should be discussed before the couple gets married.  This is an even more complex discussion for couples getting married for the second time, especially if children are involved.

Some of the most basic decisions revolve around budgeting.  Who will be responsible for paying the household bills?  Will the couple have separate bank accounts or one joint account?  Does the couple have the same approach to money . . . is one person a saver and another a spender, and have they discussed how they will manage this once they are married?  continue reading »

I always forget about it every year – forget about it, of course, until I receive a call from my mom around noon or pull up to the street on which I grew up only to be met by road partitions and a cruel reminder that I have to drive a few blocks to find a place to park.
Both of those things happened this past weekend when I drove down to Northeast Philly for the weekend on Saturday and realized that the annual block party for the section of my childhood street was in progress. continue reading »

Q: I am buying a home in Bells Corner, and I’m supposed to settle this Friday. My mortgage lender is telling me now it might not happen on time. She said the underwriter needs more paperwork, and I might even need a co-signer. I was pre-approved and have given everything they’ve asked for, why do they need more two days before closing?

A: More and more I have seen missed settlement deadlines and underwriters asking for more information and taking longer to review files. Getting mortgage loans in time for settlement has definitely been a nail-biter lately. I advise my clients to make sure all their paperwork and verifications are in as early as possible so the lender can do their job. continue reading »

So, uh, 12th and Harold streets are now in Northeast Philly.

According to this Fox29 headline, anyway.

A shooting involving a Philadelphia Police Office occurred at the intersection — about a block from the North Philadelphia Regional Rail stop — over the weekend. And though the story correctly identifies the neighborhood as North Philadelphia, the headline says NE. continue reading »

Q: I want to buy a three-bedroom house in Morrell Park to be close to my parents. The problem, is I am only approved for $120,000 and most of the homes I like cost more. Should I wait and see if the market gets better, or should I just look elsewhere?

A: The average price in Morrell Park today is $186,000. It will be extremely difficult to find a home in Morrell Park for $120,000, especially since the lowest price for a home right now is just under $150,000. Just so you know, only four homes have sold in the past year for less than $150,000. continue reading »

Do you live west of Roosevelt Boulevard and south of Rhawn Street?

Then you live in Oxford Circle, according to CBS3. As little knowledge as the mainstream media have about the Northeast, they seem to be in particular need of a geography lesson on the west side of Roosevelt Boulevard. Because as many have done, and as CBS3 proves with this story, they tend to just label everything as Oxford Circle. continue reading »

Are you considering applying for a mortgage or a car loan sometime in the near future?  Have you checked your credit report recently?  It is better to know ahead of applying for a big loan.  There would be nothing worse than getting your hopes up to make that big purchase only to find out that there are some unexpected items on your report.  The lending environment has not really improved much despite the improvements that we have seen in the financial sector since the market downturn in 2008-09.  In order to secure good lending rates, your credit score has to be in excess of 700-720. continue reading »

We’ve received two tips today from readers in the 8th District — one dealing with crime, and the other with a sewage issue. Below is the information they sent to us. NEast Philly is working with the appropriate authorities to bring you more information. continue reading »