Michaelle is off this week, so I’m here to talk real estate with you. And we’ve got good stuff to get into this week.
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First up: our weird real estate market. That’s not my word choice. It’s what real estate agents told Michaelle when she asked them how things are going.
They told her that market has become much less seasonally predictable than it used to be and they shared what it could mean for homebuyers.
Keep scrolling for that story and more in this week’s edition:
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It’s that time again: Philly property tax assessments have gone out. See which neighborhood was hit hardest.
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Whiz wit?: A Temple University professor has a new book out about public bathrooms.
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How he bought his house: Moving in with roommates made homeownership possible for this Philadelphian.
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Baptism by beer?: A former church is slated to become a brewery in South Philly.
— Erica Palan
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It’s ‘weird’ out there
The real estate market used to follow typical seasonal patterns: slower in the summer and winter, busier in the spring and fall. The pandemic shook that up a few years ago and according to some agents, it still hasn’t quite come back.
Weird is the word that two separate real estate agents used to describe the current market. They said Philadelphia homes that sat on the market for months last fall suddenly went under contract in the winter.
There areseveral reasons why this is happening.One is the ripple effect of the “golden handcuffs” created by pandemic-era low interest rates that have left some homeowners hesitant get back into the market.
Michaelle has more on how buyers and sellers are acting right now — and what it could mean if you’re looking for a new home.
How he bought his house
Short-term pain, long-term gain? That’s the philosophy that programmer Dylan Foglesong took when it came to purchasing his first home.
The 28-year-old renter was paying $2,600 a month for his apartment when he decided he wanted to buy. So he moved into a shared house with friends for $600 a month. Before long, he was ready to live alone again — in a home he owned.
That wouldn’t work for everyone, but Foglesong said it was worth it: “You take that little compromise for a couple of months and all of a sudden you have $11,000 in your bank account.”
Find out more about his new home and how he financed it in the latest edition of the How I Bought This House series.
📮 Did you recently buy a home in the Philadelphia area or South Jersey? Share the story of how you did it. Email Inquirer real estate reporters at [email protected] or just reply to this newsletter.
The latest news to pay attention to
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Property values in Kensington went up more than any other Philly neighborhood this year.
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A historic church at 42nd and Pine will become apartments after Penn declined to buy the building.
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A Temple University professor delves into America’s long and troubled history with public bathrooms.
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St. Peter’s Village in Chester County is going up for auction. Will it be preserved, or developed?
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Forty new apartments are coming to Jenkintown at the site of the former Helweg funeral home.
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Media is planning for diversified housing options, safer streets, and more retail.
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The historical Jericho Farm estate in Bucks County is on the market for $18.8 million.
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House of the week: A three-story brick home in Graduate Hospital for $675,000.
Home tour: A gut remodel by the owner
Everything about Caleb Zimmerman’s story makes me anxious. He bought his home off Craigslist for $82,500 in one day. The place needed a full remodel. And he was planning to do it all himself.
But he pulled it off — and the results are impressive.
Zimmerman installed hardwood floors throughout and a custom staircase. He upgraded the bathroom.
And he added some pizazz: The home’s centerpiece is a trap door that conceals the basement and opens with a pulley system and remote-controlled actuator.
See more bespoke details in this tour of the Kensington home.
📷 Photo quiz
Do you know the location this photo shows?
📮 If you think you do, email me back.
Several people guessed the new-again Filbert Street Greyhound Station was last week’s featured image. A good try, but cue the wrong answer buzzer.
The quiz featured a photo taken at the Olney Transportation Center and reader Chantele A. was the first to correctly get it right.
📹 On the street
The former church at 1800 Tasker St. is on its way to becoming a brewery, an unusual transition for a historic property in Philadelphia. (Though it’s happened before. I love grabbing pizza at the Church Brew Works in Pittsburgh when I visit my Yinzer in-laws.)
Join the conversation on The Inquirer’s Instagram.
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A few weeks ago, The Inquirer reported that a South Philly home with an acclaimed Keith Haring mural was available for rent. Now, the mural is up for historic designation, which has some preservationists antsy about the precedent it could set. It’s making me think deep thoughts about what should get protected and why.
If you have strong feelings, email me at [email protected].
By submitting your written, visual, and/or audio contributions, you agree to The Inquirer’s Terms of Use, including the grant of rights in Section 10.
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