Starting a new business? Check out these excellent local tools.
"Change of Use" for a building, means you need to adhere to new ICC building code standards.
BUYING real estate… interest rates are fantastic and prices are great! excellent time to BUY. A good first-step is to speak with a lender on monthly debts & income, to help determine what $$ range will be most comfortable for you
residential mortgages – local banks:
610.332.7121 Michelle Auld, with lafayette bank * holds local loans *
610.746.5142 merchants bank
610-336-6600 Mike Bower: Broker Banker, The Mortgage Company
610-533-3151 cell /610-717-1469 fax
610.252.7431 unity bank
610.997.7180 ext. 1003 Todd Brown -or- eileen dunn with Wells Fargo
610.366.8090, ext. 237 Romulo Guzman, with Bank of America
investment property or commercial mortgages:
610.746.5142 merchants bank commercial agent kathy yost, www.merchantsbangor.com * holds local loans *
610.821.6870 morgage broker jeff barber with www.lehighfinancialgroup.com
Local Realtors’ association Resources for buyers & sellers
. . selling tips for home-sellers
• #1 GET RID OF CLUTTER!!! ‘less is truly more’ if you can’t bear to throw extra ‘stuff’ out or donate it to a thrift shop, go ahead and rent storage – it’s worth it; clutter creates STRESS and potential buyers just see STUFF. From the buyer’s perspective, it becomes very difficult to visualize yourself and YOUR stuff in someone else’s space that is over-loaded with personal items.
Stuff to ‘unload’? Some charities will come pick furniture, etc. up…
american family thrift, behind dunkin donuts on wm penn hwy: 253-1290
children’s home thrift, opposite Giant in Forks township: 258-7723
via thrift shops
www.freecycle.org
salvation army: 258-9531… and for truck/furniture pick up: 570.823.4191
‘safe harbor’s furniture bank (transitional apts for those moving on): 258-5540
good shepard’s ‘replace’ services: 709-0205
buy storage/pod for those ‘extras’ you simply cannot part with (but get it out!)
• clear kitchen countertops – don’t use it? lose it (store/ donate it…) Clear fridge of clutter on front.
• paint – if walls are filthy, this is an inexpensive improvement. patch any dinks and pick bright/neutral colors.
• landscape – clean up the yard and plant some flowers… cheerful gardens are always helpful. also, remove any dead plants from yard & house.
• clean carpets and drapes if they look dingy.
• remove any odors in the home, consider getting an odor removal team in – people get turned off by overpowering smells.
• get an opinion from local real estate agents on price… a comparative market analysis is usually a free service. beware of the high-flyer — sometimes when a price is overblown (to get a listing) the house lingers on the market too long and may get stigmatized …buyers are quite educated on the local market today and they do get to know what’s over-priced rather quickly when they are looking.
If you would like me to do a FREE comparative market analysis on your home for a current pricing recommendation, just send me an email with your address and we can set up a time.
A recent NAR (nat’l association of realtors) survey found that most sellers earn about 16% MORE, when they use a realtor rather than sell it themselves.
