Monthly Archives: October 2010

Lewis Center is growing some more

Posted on 10/09/2010 | Leave a comment

If you haven’t driven north on Rt 23 to Delaware for many months, you’ll be surprised to see all the businesses now located at the intersection of Rt 23 and Lewis Center Rd.

Olentangy Crossing, Lewis Center, OH 43035 A few years ago, homes began being built at Olentangy Crossing, an upscale subdivision. They’re very nice homes, with those further back into the community having treed lots. There are lots still available if you want a new build home. The building at the entrance (in photo) is one of two banks in the area.

Kroger Marketplace, Lewis Center, OH 43035 Across the road (Rt 23) is the large Kroger Marketplace strip center. Various other businesses have now located here as well. The parking lot is usually pretty full. I’m sure the residents of all the neighborhoods along Old State Rd near Alum Creek Reservoir are finding this new center to be extremely convenient.

On the southern portion of the center, OSU Medical Center will be opening a care center. This will be wonderful, since southern Delaware County has few medical facilities. Currently there is one in Powell and one in Westerville, off Polaris.

Kroger Marketplace, Lewis Center, OH 43035 One of the outlots is a Dairy Queen (YEAH!!) It has just opened and is hiring. I suspect it will be a popular spot for the nearby Olentangy high school students for lunch.

I am so glad to have this new shopping area. Currently I either drive to Powell or to Powell Rd & Rt23 to get groceries or gas. This will be a little bit closer when I just need to pick up something quickly … or when I need a Blizzard fix.

Copyright © 2010. Elaine Reese, Real Living HER. Reproduction of any portion of this blog post or the images is prohibited by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. If this post is being viewed on any site other than www.ReesesPiecesOfRealEstate.com then the material has been stolen without permission. Violators will be reported.

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Posted in Central Ohio, Delaware County, Delaware Ohio, Homes, Homes for sale, Lewis Center Ohio, New home builders, Powell Ohio

Tagged central ohio real estate market news

This week’s foreclosure news … simplified

Posted on 10/08/2010 | Leave a comment

Home foreclosures have been in the news for a couple years now. It’s an awful situation. Many people early on lost their homes because they had put no money down when they bought, and with the declining property values, they were unable to sell for the amount of their mortgage. They had no “skin in the game” so they walked away.

Click to view Jon's foreclosure explanation

Now we’re seeing more people lose their homes because they’ve lost their job. With such high unemployment and no relief in site, this is a sad situation. This week 23 state Attorney Generals, including the one in Ohio, brought suits against some banks for the way they had been processing the foreclosure paperwork. Last night, Jon Stewart did a bit on the whole foreclosure issue leading up to this week’s events. It’s really a good analysis of what happened, but sadly it’s really, really funny. It shows what a mess we’re in.

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Posted in Central Ohio, Home selling process, Homes, Homes for sale, Humor, Lenders, Sellers

Tagged central ohio real estate market news, Jon Stewart foreclosure crisis

September YTD Home Sales in Delaware & Franklin Counties

Posted on 10/06/2010 | Leave a comment

Now that September home sales have been recorded, I’ve updated the sales charts on both my web site and a page on this blog. See what is happening your school district or your subdivision.

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Posted in Central Ohio, Delaware County, Delaware Ohio, Dublin Ohio, Franklin County, Galena Ohio, Hilliard Ohio, Home prices, Homes, Housing stats, Lewis Center Ohio, Powell Ohio, Worthington Ohio

Tagged central ohio real estate market news

October is the time to save the ta-tas

Posted on 10/04/2010 | Leave a comment

Click to view the site

By now you probably know that October is Breast Cancer Awareness month. Many events are being held to raise money for the cancer research and to promote early detection via mammograms.

I am so fortunate that no one in my immediate family has had breast cancer, but of course, I’ve known women who have. After the age of 40, we’re supposed to have mamograms annually.

I had been a bad girl and went several years without having one. I corrected that in August and went to the Ohio Health facility near Westerville for my appointment. For those who may be hesitant like I was, let me tell you that the equipment is much better now. The technician told me that the new digital imaging means less “compression”, so no soreness or bruising. It was a piece of cake and I was in & out in about 20 minutes. The cost was reasonable even if you don’t have insurance. The bill – before insurance payment – was less than $300.

So if you’re past due for a mammogram, take it from me that it’s easy, so spend the money to have it done. Your ta-ta’s will thank you.

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Posted in Central Ohio, Commentary, Delaware County

Tagged mammogram, Ohio Health Westerville OH

Delaware County Home Sales Thru 3rd Qtr

Posted on 10/03/2010 | Leave a comment

This has been an interesting year in real estate. The first part of the year was busy as buyers took advantage of the Gov’t Tax Credits. Once that deadline expired, interest rates dropped to extremely low levels so buyers were able to buy “more home for the money”.

Now that September is over, we can see the effect that both of those market conditions have had on sales in Delaware County. The following chart is for Delaware County and shows the number of single-family homes sold each month. The dollar value, shown in each month, is the average price of the homes sold that month.

Delaware County Ohio Jan-Sep 2010 Homes Sold

Click graph to enlarge

The Gov’t Tax Credit called for buyers to be in-contract by April 30. So sales for Jan-May could have been influenced by buyers taking advantage of the credits.

The caveat to this chart is that in most years, the May-Jun-Jul months are typically higher sales months as families move when school is out, which triggers movement of other sellers. This chart might indicate that sales moved up a month due to the Tax Credits.

The interest rates dropped in early May to counter a possible decline after the Tax Credits expired. That’s when we see an increase to the average price. The low interest rates allowed buyers to shop for higher priced homes without substantially increasing their monthly mortgage payment.

The average price figures are influenced by the southern portion of the county which mainly consists of the Olentangy school district. The highest average price for the southwest (Powell area) was $429K in May. The highest average price for the southeast area (Lewis Center/Galena) was $361K in August. For Delaware City, the highest price was $147K in January.

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Posted in Buyers, Central Ohio, Delaware County, Delaware Ohio, Galena Ohio, Home buying process, Home prices, Homes, Housing stats, Lewis Center Ohio, Powell Ohio

Tagged central ohio real estate market news

What makes a good turn-around driveway???

Posted on 10/02/2010 | Leave a comment

Don't turn around in my driveway I’ve seen some homes post a “No Turns” sign at the end of their drive and wondered why they object to people using their drive to pull in and turn around to drive the other direction. Sometimes I’m surprised that their drive would be one that people select frequently to use for a turn-around.

I have found over the years, that I have one of those driveways that people choose. I’m not sure why as my home is the 7th home in from the main street and it’s after a curve. Is it because there are no extra cars parked in my drive? There are other homes before mine that often have empty drives, so why mine?

I’ve always been a “people watcher”, intrigued by what makes people do or act the way they do. That may be why I loved my former career as a Marketing Manager. I would go to places like Home Depot or Lowe’s on Saturday mornings to observe customers shopping my product lines to try to determine why they selected certain brands based on the package copy. After they made their selection, I would ask them why they chose one product over the other. It was very interesting.

I do the same thing now at open houses. I like to hear the guests’ perceptions of the home as it can lead to changes I need to have the seller make so their home is more appealing. I once listed a smaller home with around 1500 sq ft, where the stairway was pretty close to the front door. The first time I held it open (during the winter), I noticed that people had to step aside by the stairs in order to be able to shut the entry door. They then commented that the ‘house was too small’. I suggested that the seller have a full-glass storm door installed so the main door didn’t have to be closed (due to the cold temps). Buyers and their agents were able to walk in the door and go directly back the hall to the family room. We got the home in-contract within a week after he installed the door and it only cost him $200.

Maybe I need to stand at the end of my drive and ask the turn-around folks what makes my driveway the most appealing. I’d love to know as I haven’t been able to figure it out.