Philadelphia Real Estate Blog

…shouldn’t I “call ‘em as I see ‘em”?
 
Shouldn’t your Philadelphia Realtor have the B*lls to give his honest opinion on condos you are seeing? If a particular condo association has no money in the “Kitty”, and the building is clearly in need of maintenance- from hallways to elevators, I think I would not be doing my job if I didn’t point out (what I believe to be) the obvious.
 
Some condos in town really are pieces of crap. From condo associations’ finances, to building construction, to owner-occupancy ratios, to staff, future saleability, to perhaps better, easily identified comparable condos in Philadelphia.
 
My Point- If you are my customer, and you give me the green light, I am going to tell you what I believe are each condo’s strengths and weaknesses. And I will try to keep the snarky comments to myself- but no promises .

Mark Wade
www.CenterCityCondos.com
Prudential Fox and Roach REALTORS®
530 Walnut St., Suite 260 Philadelphia, PA 19106

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…that are pointless in a Philly High Rise Condo.

I love it when some dumbass developer takes up a large chunk of a 20th floor condo with a huge soaking tub.  Always good for a laugh. Pointing out the foilbles of some newbie condo builder is one of my favorite pasttimes. Under the theory of “When In Rome….” fireplaces and those giant soaking tubs are soooo out of place in a high rise Philly condominium.

I know of NO ONE who actually uses those giant oversized tubs. I am not talking about a regular bathtub….I am referring to those big dumb soaking tubs that can fit an army of regular sized people. NOTE TO DEVELOPER- grow a brain. Such an amenity is a huge waste of space. I always point to them and tell my buyers- You will use this on the first day you move in, then you will never use it again. They ALWAYS agree.
And wood burning fireplaces here in  Rittenhouse Square 19103 condominiums? Now where the heck is my buyer going to store the wood needed to fuel such a spectacle? Better question- where the hell is he going to get the firewood? It is not like there is some lumber jack who lives at 9th and Spruce Street who chops down trees and sells split wood.

Developers installing such amenities are spending money, and taking up valuable space for items that are really a negative to many Philadelphia condominium buyers. Trust me, this ain’t suburbia. This is urban downtown Philly, and such amentities don’t fly with the condo buying set.

Mark Wade
www.CenterCityCondos.com
Prudential Fox and Roach REALTORS®
530 Walnut St., Suite 260 Philadelphia, PA 19106

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…then explain the value difference between these two Philly condo buildings:

These are two actual side by side buildings on Spruce St. in Washington Square West.

So you have a big brain, and you think you are going to take a look at Trulia, Zillow, or one of the many fine real estate websites out there in CyberSpace, and you are going to come up with the true value of any given condo. Really?

You can’t tell me that condition does not play into value. How about showing ability? You go into the public records and find a two bed, two bath in such n such zip code should sell for say $500,000. Really??? What was the condition of the Washington Square West Condo?  Was the building well maintained?

My point is, sometimes you need a realtor who knows his or her market to help you make valid decisions. There are many issues that affect value, that reading a webpage about any given Philadelphia condo may NOT tell you…

Mark Wade
www.CenterCityCondos.com
Prudential Fox and Roach REALTORS®
530 Walnut St., Suite 260 Philadelphia, PA 19106

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 …when the truth is more than enough:

 

Mark Wade
www.CenterCityCondos.com
Prudential Fox and Roach REALTORS®
530 Walnut St., Suite 260 Philadelphia, PA 19106

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Per many Philly condo associations, the backside of your curtains and blinds may need to be white in color. You may ask why…but drive by any poorly managed condo association who does not enforce such a rule, and you will see why. The building ends up looking like an unattractive collection of cheap, and often unattractive variations of ugly looking blinds/shades/curtains. From Mauve, to Sea Foam Green, the rainbow of cheap shades is not an attractive sight.

And If I were king of the world, or even a developer of a Philadelphia high rise condo, I would go as far as to include a high end line of blinds/shades into my sale price. Because the visual uniformity is going to be important in the overall impression a building gives off when viewed from street level. We have all seen, or perhaps even been guilty (usually in our college years) of using a bedsheet as a curtain. And god knows bedsheets come in some funky colors and patterns. Not the best look, when trying to visually highlight a condo building from a distance.

Mark Wade
www.CenterCityCondos.com
Prudential Fox and Roach REALTORS®
530 Walnut St., Suite 260 Philadelphia, PA 19106

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You call THAT an upgrade?

 
Since when are closet inserts an upgrade? When one buys an $800,000 condo, should you not be able to expect that some sort of clothes hanging mechanism would be included? Even the cheesy cheap wire mesh systems? I have seen developers try to pass off even the basic necessities as upgrades, and it is insulting. Perhaps Mr. Developer, you think my $800,000 buyer just fell off the back of a turnip truck? How the hell do you think he or she got to the point in their life where they could afford such a condominium without a brain cell or two? Dumbass.

And please stop with the patronizing “and you get lovely carpet in the bedrooms at no extra charge”. Again, you are an idiot.

And touting the virtues of a dishwasher, a garbage disposal, and/or doorbell for each condo unit?Yippee…where does my buyer sign?? If developers could take a minute or two to tour some of the condo offerings in Center City Philadelphia, and realize that the buyers I am bringing to your front door have seen almost EVERYTHING on the market, then maybe that developer could wise up, and compare apples to apples. Tell us about the significance of your location, the quality of your construction, or the fact that you are priced competitively. My buyers are not stupid, and I will not allow them to be uneducated. So wise up, and let’s make a deal. Because until you (Mr. Developer) come to your senses, my buyer’s desire to write an offer on one of your condos is going to be severely limited.

Mark Wade
www.CenterCityCondos.com
Prudential Fox and Roach REALTORS®
530 Walnut St., Suite 260 Philadelphia, PA 19106

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Seen rising above the Barnes and Noble bookstore on the north side of “The Square” is the new premier Rittenhouse Square condominium project, 10 Rittenhouse.

ARC Wheeler, the developer of 10 Rittenhouse in Center City, is saving the historical façade of the old Rittenhouse Club, and the new five-story structure will have three mega-condos. In a nod to preservation, the building will incorporate three landmark structures while adding a new 33-story red-brick and limestone tower behind them.

Ten Rittenhouse Square is a $300 million luxury condo tower under development in Center City Philadelphia whose residential tower will have street frontage on the 1800 block of Walnut Street, South 18th Street and the 1800 block of Sansom Street. According to the website, 10 Rittenhouse will feature:

• One Bedrooms from $714,000 – $856,000
• Two Bedrooms from $1,300,000 – $3,400,000
• Three Bedrooms from $1,900,000 – $4,500,000

In addition there will be six 10,000-square-foot penthouses priced near the $12,000,000 mark.
Needless to say, 10 Rittenhouse will be the paragon of luxury high rise living here in Philadelphia. With Miele and Sub-Zero kitchen appliances and marble baths with BainUltra tubs. Ceiling heights from 8.5′ to 12.5′ accompany window walls, spacious private balconies, terraces and Juliet  windows (in some homes). Building amenities include a garage, concierge service, a restaurant, a pool, spa and fitness center and a shared roof garden.

Barneys Co-op – a part of the high-end New York City department store Barneys will occupy the  first two floors, totaling 10,000 square feet. The Center City’s hip-ometer has officially begun registering some activity.

Barney’s AND living at 10 Rittenhouse?! That is a dream made in heaven.

Interested in living the dream? Contact Mark Wade at Prudential Fox and Roach realtors and lets investigate the possibilities!

Mark Wade
www.CenterCityCondos.com
Prudential Fox and Roach REALTORS®
530 Walnut St., Suite 260 Philadelphia, PA 19106
267.237.3404 (That is my cell phone. And this is the first and only time you will see my personal cell phone number listed on a blog entry. THAT is how serious I am about loving this project.

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Congrats…you are in a minority! A good minority to be in, as parking, regardless of cost, has proven to be a great amenity for resale. But a lot (TONS) of realtors are WRONG when they advertise “Deeded parking”. Or they tell their buyers that the parking is “deeded” when indeed that is not the case. Parking can be described in the condo docs, and on one’s deed as “assigned” or as a LCE (limited common element) with the full right of use and enjoyment to unit # whatever.

Which is preferred? Some Philadelphia Realtors incorrectly assume that deeded parking with a Philly condo is preferred. I would argue otherwise. You see, with deeded parking, although you can sell your condominium off to whomever, you have to hope whomever also wants your parking space.  If the potential buyer of your Rittenhouse Square Condo doesn’t want your deeded parking space you are left with the headache of deciding whether to reject their offer because it will leave you with a parking space that will do you no good when you move into your Old City Loft.  Not to mention you’ll be stuck paying taxes on that space you won’t be using because you not only pay taxes on your condo, but you have a separate tax bill for that “other” deed…the one for your parking space.

An assigned condo parking spot has no separate tax bill, as the condo and the parking are on one deed. Really, in my eyes, whichever way the parking is set up by the declarant (the condo developer in most cases), will not affect the value of your condo. The value is in having parking in the first place. But please be aware when you hear the words “Deeded parking”…as your parking space may not be deeded at all. If I had my choice….I would choose NOT to have deeded parking, rather assigned parking to my unit, whose rights of ownership transfer to whomever buys my Philadelphia condo.

Please feel free to leave a comment on this post.  I’d love to hear your thoughts! 

Mark Wade
www.CenterCityCondos.com
Prudential Fox and Roach REALTORS®
530 Walnut St., Suite 260 Philadelphia, PA 19106

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Bridge View Place in Old City Philadelphia is an old warehouse building that used to be the home of Thomas Scientific supply. I think they used to manufacture the microscopes and various apparatus that many elementary schools used back in the old days. When made into  approximately 121 apartments by Historic Landmarks for living in the late 1970’s, the units were carved out in such a way that make the condos an easy sell. Very few of the units are dark, almost all have oversized factory styled windows, and all floors have good ceiling height. The original physical characteristics of the building lend themselves to user-friendly condominiums in Old City to this very day.The mix and size of units are appropriate as well. Someone really nailed it back in the 70’s when they decided to make a the building into a fair number of 900+/- square foot two bed, two bath units, to which I say, “way to use your brain”. Throughout the past ten or so years here in the Philadelphia condo market, there has always been demand for such a product, especially an Old City condominium that has the ability to sell with on-site parking, which of course BridgeView possesses.

With interesting common areas, lots of exposed brick, oversized windows, and good ceiling height, as well as underground and outdoor parking lots adjoining the building, and the being one of the few mid-rise doorman condo buildings in Old City, I find that 315 New St. has always been a fairly easy sell. The condo association has many attributes that sell well in today’s market, and I am sure will continue to be an asset to the building in many years to come. For a moderately priced studio, one or two bedroom condo unit in Old City, I have often found BridgeView Place to be the destination of choice for many Philadelphia condo buyers.

If Bridgeview sounds like the place for you, give me a call at 215.521.1523 or drop me an email at Mark@CenterCityCondos.com and I’d be happy to show you around one of my favorite buildings here in Center City Philadelphia. 

Mark Wade
www.CenterCityCondos.com
Prudential Fox and Roach REALTORS®
530 Walnut St., Suite 260 Philadelphia, PA 19106

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Most buyers are unaware that buying a condo in Center City will not cost them much of anything. The way the system generally works is that the seller pays the realtors fees (the listing and the selling agent) and that buyers may contact a realtor, and not have to pay him or her for their services.

The possible exception to that rule may be a $275 administration fee. At least that is the case with myself, and Prudential Fox and Roach Realtors. My fees, as your realtor, are paid for by the seller. You can use me, my knowledge, insight, and I will not charge you for my services. And I don’t charge you the $275, nor do I benefit from that fee-it is a fee that my agency charges. I hate that fee. I think it is stupid.

I will shuttle you around from Center City condo building to condo building, and sometimes even spring for coffee at the local Wawa. I will put money in the parking meters, or park illegally on the street and risk being towed. I might even pick you up at your place of residence, and drop you off there as well when we are done with our tour. All for free!

Now that doesn’t mean that there are not costs associated with buying a condo-on the contrary, as there are closing costs when you buy a Philadelphia condominium. It is just that my services are not charged directly to you.
So, if you are in a “Ready, willing, and able” state of buying your new Philadelphia condo…let’s roll!

Looking to hop into a car, and start your Center City condo shopping? I am ready when you are! Just drop me a note, and let’s chat! And let’s go look at some condos, and have some of that good Wawa coffee in the middle of our tour!

Mark Wade
www.CenterCityCondos.com
Prudential Fox and Roach REALTORS®
530 Walnut St., Suite 260 Philadelphia, PA 19106

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