Archive for the ‘East Falls’ Category

If you have a family with young children and want to raise them in  area with excellent schools, great parks, and plenty of child friendly places to visit on the weekends than look NO further. Philadelphia is full of fabulous neighborhoods for families which is why Magazine Philadelphia investigated the city’s recent baby boom .

Society Hill- Society Hill has been a great place for families for the last 200 years!  This neighborhood features many spacious historic federal homes with grand gardens perfect for large families. In addition, there are 3 excellent elementary schools in the neighborhood: the city’s most elite private school the 177 year old St Peter’s School, the highly acclaimed  St Mary Catholic School and one of the best public schools in the city McCalls.   In addition, it is home to some stellar private pre-schools and the cutest toddler playground, # Bears Park  you will ever visit, if you can find it.

East Falls – This pretty neighborhood, where Grace Kelly grew up, borders the river and offers plenty of gorgeous housing options. The scenic view from Kelly Drive is great to take your children for an afternoon walk and there are also plenty of fun attractions, including the Philadelphia Zoo, Valley Forge, the library’s main branch and lots of museums.

Queen Village – This residential neighborhood features safe and quiet streets, traditional Philadelphia real estate, and plenty of parks. There are also tons of great schools, including the highly desirable Meredith,  in the area that have camps for your kids to attend during the summertime.

Rittenhouse & Fitler Square – Located in the heart of the city, Rittenhouse is Philadelphia’s premier neighborhood with plenty of parks and fun attractions for your self and your kids. While Fitler Square is the quieter, more residential area. Both located in the 19103 zip code are within walking distance of another great Philadelphia elementary school Greenfield School and the city’s most progressive school The Philadelphia School. Located across the street is one of the best playgrounds in the city and several playing fields at Taney Park.

East Passyunk Square – Located right outside of Pennsport, East Passyunk Avenue is a great little neighborhood with tons of shops and plenty of parking. The three-story houses have spacious backyards for kids to play in and a very Old Philadelphia neighborly feel to it.

Art Museum – Situated right on the Parkway, the Art Museum area is great for families with artistic inclinations. You’ll be in the center of the city’s museum district and enjoy tree-lined streets that are great for bike rides and evening strolls.  It is also home to the #1 Public High in the state of Pennsylvania & #61 in the USA Masterman High School.

There is a very thorough section in philly.com about the 2011 Home Price Survey for Philadelphia Real Estate that is worth checking out.  They have analyzed more than 376,000 sales in the Philadelphia region from April 2005 – June 2011.

Here are the top Median Home Prices by Area in Philadelphia:

Median single-family home prices in Philadelphia’s neighborhoods, especially Center City, have fallen 15.8 percent – much less during this downturn in housing than the last one in the late 1980s to mid-1990s – said Kevin Gillen, vice president of Econsult Corp., who collected and analyzed data from 376,257 sales regionwide from April 1, 2005, through June 30, 2011.

But lower-income neighborhoods have suffered more than their upscale counterparts, Gillen said, as the struggling economy has edged out less-well-off buyers.

“The tightening of credit has skewed home sales toward the upper end of the market,” Gillen said. “So when you compute the average price decline for the entire city, versus computing the average price decline across all zips [zip codes] in the city, you get two different numbers.” – Philly.com’s In Center City, home prices holding their own

They also have a very insightful interactive map that is worth playing around with:

This is brought to you by Philadelphia Real Estate Blog

To view every Philadelphia Real Estate Listing, including Philadelphia Condos visit www.CenterCityRealEstate.com

Photo courtesy of crossingbroad.com

I had the pleasure of attending the miserable NLDS Game 5 between the Phillies and Cardinals on Friday night.  While Ryan Howard lay on the field, writhing in pain after making the final out (2nd year in a row) and simultaneously blowing out his Achilles, the St. Louis Cardinals celebrated their advancement to the NLCS right next to him.  I was as stunned, disgusted, and upset about the way the 2011 Phillies season ended as everyone in the ballpark, but the last thing I thought about doing was throwing my trash onto the field.  That’s exactly what many of my fellow fans did think to do as you can see in the above picture.  It’s a pretty low rent way of expressing oneself.

There happens to be an unrelated article on philly.com today called LITTER-ALLY DISGUSTING about the littering that goes on in Philadelphia.  One major issue is the businesses that shove circulars, menus, and printed ads into door cracks and mailboxes.  They usually wind up blowing away into the street.  The other big problem is the people who blatantly just drop their trash on the ground and then go about their business (or throw trash on a baseball field to express anger and frustration.)

More than 100,000 fines were issued for trash-related violations in 2011.  More than 600 tickets went to business that ignored residents with the no-circular sticker.  21,219 tickets were issued to people not separating recycling from trash and 1,429 littering tickets were given out.

Among the several difficulties in the struggle to enforce litter laws, [Deputy Streets Commissioner Carlton] Williams said, is that it’s hard to fine people for littering because offenders must be caught in the act. SWEEP officers have partnered with police to keep tabs on high-grime areas, Williams said.  Although officers could sit in high-traffic areas watching and waiting to issue people tickets for littering, Williams said that that type of stakeout would be impractical.  “It is very difficult to sustain such an operation because of the tremendous amount of resources needed from the Streets Department and the Police Department to change and deter this behavior long-term,” he said. -Philly.com – LITER-ALLEY DISGUSTING

Come on people… it’s 2011, there are trash cans and recycling containers on every corner of the city, please stop littering already!  Here are some more tips from Philly.com on how to play a part to keep Philly clean: A cleaner city? it comes down to you

1 Become a block captain. Or if there’s already a block captain, find one for a neighboring block. The city has programs that are available only if there is a block captain to take the reins. For one, “Adopt A Basket,” the block captain takes responsibility for maintaining a trash can on a residential block.

2 Keep an eye on your trash collectors. If your block is dirtier after the truck comes on trash day, call 3-1-1 to report it. Every truck comes with a broom and dustpan, and it is every crew’s job to pick up after themselves. And keep your 3-1-1 tracking number. Without it, you won’t be able to check progress on your complaint.

3 Get a “circular-free-property” sticker. The sticker is supposed to deter businesses from putting fliers in your door, railing, etc. You can get the sticker by calling 3-1-1, or by going to philly.com/pickitup. When it doesn’t work – and it won’t – complain to 3-1-1 and the business will be fined $100.

4 Enlist your local school. The Streets Department’s Litter Free School Zone program recruits students to pick up around their schools. They also run assemblies that teach kids not to litter and about the benefits of a litter-free life. The school district has committed to promote the program this year, but parents should contact administrators at their kids’ school and urge them to participate.

5 Pick up after yourself – and others. The UnlitterUs antilitter program sponsors blocks and commercial corridors that have shown a dedication to sweeping up after themselves and others. Contact them at 215-686-5560 or call the Philadelphia More Beautiful Committee at 215 685-3981 to coordinate regular neighborhood cleanups, and UnlitterUs will give you signs declaring a Litter Free Zone. Or, when you see a piece of trash on the ground, pick it up. -A cleaner city? it comes down to you

This is brought to you by Philadelphia Real Estate Blog

To view every Philadelphia Real Estate Listing, including Philadelphia Condos visit www.CenterCityRealEstate.com

There are many factors to consider when selecting a neighborhood that is right for you. Below are just a few of the many factors — you may think of others that are important to you.

Neighborhoods have characteristic personalities designed to best suit single people, growing families, two-career couples, or retirees. 

SCOUT THE NEIGHBORHOOD!

• It is important that you scout the neighborhood in person. You live in more than your house.

• Talk to people who live there.

• Drive through the entire area at different times of the day, during the week and on weekends.

• Look carefully at how well other homes in the area are being maintained; are they painted, are the yards well cared for; are parked cars in good condition, etc.

NEIGHBORHOOD FACTORS TO CONSIDER

• Look for things like access to major thoroughfares, highways, and shopping.

• Listen for noise created by commerce, roads, railways, public areas, schools, etc.
• Smell the air for adjacent commerce or agriculture.
• Check with local civic, police, fire, and school officials to find information about the area.
• Research things like soil and water.
• Look at traffic patterns around the area during different times of the day and drive from the area to work.
• Find out if the neighborhood is near parks, churches, recreation centers, shopping, theaters, restaurants, public transportation, schools, etc.
• Find out if the neighborhood belongs to a Homeowner’s Association.

Here is a list of links to more information about specific Philadelphia Neighborhoods:

Art Museum Area, Avenue of the Arts, Bella Vista, Chinatown, Fishtown, Fitler Square, Graduate Hospital, Logan Square, Northern Liberties, Old City, Powelton Village, Queen Village, Rittenhouse Square, Society Hill, University City, Washington Square, East Passyunk, Girard Estate, Marconi Park, Newbold, Packer Park, Passyunk Square, Pennsport, Whitman.

This is brought to you by Philadelphia Real Estate Blog

To view every Philadelphia Real Estate Listing, including Philadelphia Condos visit www.CenterCityRealEstate.com

According to a new report, since 1993 the rate of people moving into Philadelphia has steadily increased while the rate of people leaving has dwindled.  This report was released on Wednesday by the Pew Charitable Trusts’ Philadelphia Research Initiative, based on IRS data.

The number of people moving into the city has steadily increased from 31,837 in 1993 to 52,096 in 2008.  Population growth in Philadelphia is due to a greater number of births than deaths and an increase of immigrants and empty nesters moving from the suburbs to the city.

These trends point to a reversal of long-term decline in the city’s population.  For six decades people generally fled Philadelphia for the surrounding suburbs.

Check out Philly.com for more on this story.

This is brought to you by Philadelphia Real Estate Blog

To view every Philadelphia Real Estate Listing, including Philadelphia Condos visit www.CenterCityRealEstate.com

Philadelphia real estate residential sales activity for East Falls Area from September 2008 – August 2009.

The following is the address of every home that sold in the first half of 2008 in East Falls

Lowest Price     Highest Price
$127,500         $480,000

Read the rest of this entry »