How much does a Berks County home cost? The question seems simple enough. The answer is not that easy. The answer is even more complex if there is a mortgage involved. The National Association of Realtors states that approximately 65% to 70% of all buyers obtain a mortgage to purchase their home. The first thing we need to find out is the interest rate and term of the mortgage. For this example I will use a mortgage amount of $100,000(easy math). Our interest rate will be 3.75% and the term of the mortgage will be 30 years. The principal and interest payment is $463.00. What this means is for every $1,000 borrowed the cost is $4.63. This is the “COST FACTOR”. Ok, just to make sure this is clear…If you take a mortgage of $250,000 at 3.75%  interest and 30 year term the principal and int... 01/27/2014

Pricing A Berks County Home Part #2 My Third Berks County home value consideration is intrinsic value. This is what I think buyers will think of the home, or something like that. It would be weird if things were different. The internet has educated many home sellers as to the true value of their home. This does not mean that it is not fun to play a lottery ticket now and then. After all somebody, somewhere always wins….I think? My goal here is to bring reason to the forefront, while not losing my sense (or a prospective buyer's) of what looks, I mean sells well. Items like granite kitchen counter tops, stainless, built-in appliances, tile & hardwood flooring, great decor & comfortable lighting all have value. The trick is to put all the components together in a way that complement each... 01/27/2014

Pricing A Berks County Home Part #1 My hope is that this article will help you understand factors that I use when valuing a home in Berks County. It is one of the most difficult and criticized things any real estate professional deals with in his or her career. Price a home and it sells within a week. The seller may think it was under priced, and they could have gotten more. Okay, it doesn't sell in a week. Matter of fact, it still has not sold 6 months later. The seller may think the agent is not doing their best to sell it or have overpriced the home. Sounds like a no win situation. Sometimes it is. Following is an example of how to assess the value of homes in Berks County: My first Berks County home value consideration is a market analysis. This is an analysis of homes that are pen... 01/27/2014