Prudential Homesale Makes 2011 REAL Trends 500 List

May 22, 2011 Leave a comment

The REAL Trends 500 is an annual research report which identifies the country’s largest and most successful residential firms as ranked by closed transaction sides and separately by closed sales volume.  This report represents the most trusted standard of measuring the performance of the nation’s leading realty service firms.

Prudential Homesale Services Group continues to be a major force in Central Pennsylvania by once again making this prestigious list.  According to the recently released 2011 REAL Trends 500 survey, Prudential Homesale ranks number 62 in closed volume and number 38 in closed transaction sides.

Congratulations to everyone in our company for continuing to work hard for our clients.  “We help people achieve their dreams!”

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The Race For a National MLS is On

November 23, 2009 Leave a comment

 

Within the last two weeks, the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) unveiled its vision of a national property database called the REALTORS® Property Resource (RPR) that would be available to its membership starting in the second quarter of next year.  After I watched NAR’s online presentation of the RPR the first thing I concluded (read my post here) was that they were going to build a national Multiple Listing Service (MLS) even though they stated numerous times during the presentation, “This is not a national MLS.”  I didn’t buy their statement two weeks ago and I’m not buying it today.  I wish they would just call a spade a spade and get on with it.

While the NAR and the oodles of MLS’s serving their membership haggle over how they’re going to tweak or preserve the status quo, Google is busy blowing up the old model and rewriting the rules of the game.

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Debunking the Objections to Smart Growth and Traditional Neighborhood Developments (TND’s)

October 11, 2009 2 Comments

I found a recent online editorial in the Lancaster New Era/Intelligencer Journal by Jeff Hawkes on “Smart Growth” very interesting.  Hawkes was writing about a workshop that he had attended recently that expounded on the virtues of “Smart Growth” and that Lancaster County needs to embrace this concept as it moves into the 21st century.  Overall I thought the piece was well-written and made a number of good points.  What caused me to sit down in front of my laptop and fire off a blog post was actually what was written after his editorial in the “Comments” section.

. . . and I quote:

“Smart Growth is dense development in townships that are not compensated by other townships for the havoc caused by traffic snarls, added services, and infrastructure needs, not to mention higher school taxes.”

. . . and then there was this little gem:

“ . . . don’t call it “Smart Growth”.  There is nothing “smart” about it, except for the folks to stand to profit off of the development. Its delusional to think that this type of development is in anyway “smart” in the long run, or saving farmland.  Continued development of this nature will bring the infrastructure of the county to its knees, and the taxpayers will be left to pick up the tab.”

Huh????????????

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Lancaster’s Central Market – A Jewel at the Center of It All

October 7, 2009 Leave a comment

The American Planning Association (APA) recently named Lancaster’s Central Market as one of American’s ten great public spaces.  If you have never been to ‘Market’, you’re missing out on an experience that is uniquely a Lancaster landmark and tradition.

The APA’s Great Places’ program celebrates places of exemplary character, quality, and planning.  Locations are selected annually and represent the gold standard in terms of having a true sense of place, cultural and historical interest, community involvement, and a vision for tomorrow.  In short, they are considered enjoyable, safe, and desirable and places where people not only want to visit; but to live and work every day.  They are defined by many criteria, including architectural features, accessibility, functionality, and community involvement.

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Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Central Pennsylvania Construction and Real Estate But Were Afraid to Ask

September 4, 2009 1 Comment

The Central Penn Business Journal (CPBJ) just published its Fall “Construction & Real Estate” report.  CPBJ claims it’s the beginning of the end after more than a year in recession for Central Pennsylvania.  CPBJ focuses on why the construction and real estate industries are key economic indicators and what effect the federal government’s stimulus package has had on the mid-state.  You’ll read about companies that got creative to weather the recession and the state of our region’s commercial, residential and rental real estate markets.

Lots of good ‘stuff.’

Related articles of interest:
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Safety or Freedom – Pick One

August 25, 2009 Leave a comment

A couple of weeks ago, the Lancaster Community Safety Coalition started installing surveillance cameras at strategic locations throughout the city for the purpose of watching unscrupulous activity.  There was an uproar then, as there is today, about whether the cameras violate citizen’s privacy rights.  I stated at that time that although I’m concerned about the potential for abuse, I thought the benefits outweighed any downsides.  My rationale was that the cameras are watching PUBLIC spaces, not PRIVATE bedrooms.  When I walk downtown, I’m seen and watched be literally hundreds of people if I walk more than a block or two.  What’s the difference if there is one more set of eyes peering at me?

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How To Explain the Accuracy of Zestimates® To Consumers

August 15, 2009 Leave a comment

Image courtesy of Flickr

I remember a couple of years ago when Zillow first hit the real estate scene.  Consumers embraced the web site almost immediately because of the web site’s cool, on-line tools.  One tool in particular caught their fancy:  the Zestimate.  This single, funny-sounding word would grow to strike fear in the heart’s of REALTORS® everywhere.

But what is a Zestimate?  A Zestimate is an estimated market value of a home based on Zillow’s proprietary, mathematical formula.  The home data they compile to generate a Zestimate home valuation varies by location.  Some geographic areas provide all the data Zillow could hope for, but others are lacking such key things as the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, or, in some cases, the square footage of the home.  The theory says that the more data Zillow has, the more accurate the Zestimate.  They even made it easy for users of the site to help them improve accuracy by incorporating edited home facts into their Zestimate calculations.  In some areas, Zillow can’t produce a Zestimate at all, but they do have some basic information on the homes.

Why did REALTORS® dispise Zillow?  Because they claimed that the tool that produced Zestimates oversimplified the valuation process and gave inaccurate results.  Regardless, Zillow shot up the popularity charts and in no time at all it was firmly entrenched as one of the top ten real estate web sites in the world.  REALTORS® looked at the new kid on the block as a threat to their own personal fiefdom as experts on property valuation.  They exclaimed, “How dare they hand out FREE property estimates!  They’re misleading consumers.  Why can’t consumers see that the accuracy of  Zestimates is atrocious?”

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U.S. Women’s Open in 2015 Will be a Boon to Lancaster

August 14, 2009 Leave a comment

Lancaster Country Club

Lancaster Country Club

What an incredible coup for Lancaster Country Club (LCC) to pull off securing the venue for the 2015 U.S. Women’s Open!  Just to get the staid United States Golf Association’s attention takes some doing.  So earlier this year when it was announced that not only did LCC get their attention, they actually impressed them beyond all other suitors, I was stunned.  I can’t begin to imagine what it took LCC to pull this off; but one thing I do know, it will provide a huge financial windfall to Lancaster.

I’ve had the privilege many years ago to play the course, and let me tell you, it is as visually stunning as it is challenging.  The history of the course will surely be discussed over the next couple of years.  The Old Course was originally designed by the famous architect William Flynn, and opened for play in 1920.  A course revision to bring it very near to the original Flynn layout was completed in 2007, under the guidance of Ron Forse.  The club features three nine-hole courses, a six-hole course, a practice range, and a separate short game complex.  The course is known for its rolling topography and is intersected by the Conestoga River, which comes into play on seven holes.  Their highly contoured greens, canting fairways and a mixture of elevation changes, are all hallmarks of this classic design.

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