Andrew Smith

Dear Deborah Jo:

I have been in real estate for 20 years and can honestly say that I don't know a single agent who would hesitate to show a home listed with a discount broker. I assume that your home is in the multiple listing service and that you are offering to pay a commission to a buyer's agent.

We are in a market right now where things are selling - but buyers are taking their time and looking at everything that is on the market. Believe me, most agents would not discourage their buyers from buying your (or any other) home.

You did not mention how long your home has been on the market. My 5 most recent lisitngs have taken anywhere from 1 to 112 days to procure a buyer. Don't get discouraged. Good luck. - Fri Jul 25 2008, 11:42

I am an agent in Montgomery county (Jenkintown) and I have assisted many homeowners with the assessment appeal process. First, you need to determine if you have a case. Here in Montgomery county you convert your assessment to a market value by dividing your assessment by .508 (that's point 508). That is almost the same as simply multiplying it by 2. Then you compare that to what you feel your home is really worth. For example, if your assessment is 230,000 dividing that by .508 means that you are paying taxes on a value of $452,756. If you are sure that your home is worth more than that then you would not want to file an appeal as it means that you are under assessed. But lets say that you think your home is only worth $350,000 and recent sales of similar homes (within the last year) back up your opinion. Then you have a great case. Feel free to e-mail me for more information. Sincerely,
Andrew Smith Smith3637@msn.com - Fri Jul 25 2008, 11:32

I called St. Genevieve's rectory and asked regarding the boundries of their parish. The woman I spoke with explained that Church Road is one of their boundry lines. The number for the rectory is 215-836-2828. You might want to call for more specific information.

In working with a local realtor you should determine geographic boundries on your own and then provide your agent with those boundries. Agents are very good with working with geographic boundries such as, streets, zip codes, neighborhoods, townships, etc. We do not have the ability to access specific parish boundries - and, unfortunately, due to fair housing laws being the way the are - we are very hesitant to answer questions in that regard even if we know the answer. If you want to purchase a home in a specific parish - you should determine that parish's geographic boundries on your own and then provide those boundries to your agent. It is fine for an agent to look for homes for you within a defined geographic area that you provide. In that sense, you would say - we want a home in the Custis Woods section of Cheltenham - or we want a home on one of these streets.... or, you could even draw on a map for the agent and say we want a home in this specific area - then we can help you. But we could get ourselves in trouble by attempting to define your search for you by your telling us a specific parish that you want.

I hope this helps. - Thu Apr 24 2008, 06:30