Erie Real Estate

Millcreek supervisors approve zoning

Millcreek Township supervisors approved a rezoning request today for the former Value City store, 2207 W. 12th St., clearing the way for the property to be redeveloped.

The property was rezoned from light industrial to a business classification for retail stores, restaurants and offices.

Millcreek - rezoning for 12th & Pittsburgh area

It's been over a year since the Value City department store on West 12th & Pittsburgh Ave closed.  

It's now time to change the zoning and architecture.  That shopping area is expected to take the first step toward joining the 21st century today.

Millcreek supervisors are expected to approve a zoning change for the closed store at 2207 W. 12th St. from light industrial to a ''D'' business classification.

That new zoning would give the owners the flexibility to put in retail stores, offices and restaurants, said Julie Maggio, Millcreek assistant zoning administrator.

The owner plans to renovate the facades in the shopping plaza, including the facade for the Big Lots store; improve the parking lot; and add landscaping.  The former Value City store will become a multi-tenant, integrated shopping center.

What stores would you like to see here?

Erie Shrine Hospital to stay - OPEN

Delegates at the Shriners International Convention in San Antonio voted Monday to keep all 22 Shriners Hospitals for Children open. The vote is not considered final until the annual meeting ends Thursday.

Six of the hospitals, including the Erie facility, had been targeted for closure as part of a major restructuring of the nonprofit system of 22 hospitals.

Shriners International officials will not discuss the vote until Thursday.

Delegates will now consider proposals to save the hospital system without closing facilities. Those include cutting hospital budgets by 20 percent or more, and starting to charge patients' health insurance for treatment.

Shriners hospitals currently provide orthopedic and burn care at no cost to patients.

More here.

33 months for Conti

Francis R. Conti, of Waterford, was sentenced to two years and nine months in federal prison this morning for his role in a widespread local mortgage fraud case.

U.S. District Judge Sean J. McLaughlin sentenced Conti on fraud and conspiracy charges during a 50-minute hearing at the federal courthouse in Erie.

McLaughlin also sentenced Conti to four years of supervised release after his prison term, and ordered the defendant to pay $46,183 in restitution to victims of the fraud scheme.

Conti is the last of five defendants in the case to be sentenced. Four other defendants have been sentenced to prison terms that range from one year and one month to six years and four months.

Were the sentences just  Too lienant?

Extreme Makeover - 650 E 21st

The recipient of Erie's first "extreme" home is Clara Ward, the founder of the former Youth Development Center for abused and neglected children.

"Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" will demolish her home at 650 E. 21st St. and build a new one from the ground up -- all in 106 hours.

More here.

City gets $2.1 million grant

The city has received a $2.1 million grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development's Neighborhood Stabilization Program, part of $57 million being allocated to communities across the state in the wake of the national foreclosure crisis.

The money will be used to purchase blighted and foreclosed properties for demolition or renovation in three areas:

-Between State Street and East Avenue, from East Fifth Street to the bayfront. The area is largely covered by the Bayfront East Side Task Force, or B.E.S.T., a nonprofit neighborhood-revitalization group.

-The Little Italy neighborhood, between Cranberry and State streets, from West 19th to West 12th streets.

-The central city/midtown neighborhood. For the purposes of the grant, it's an irregularly shaped area that runs from State Street as far east as Elm Street, as far north as East 12th Street and as far south as East 33rd Street.

The full article is here.

New Peach St. WalMart - finally approved

The site plan for the store to be built behind Quaker Steak and Lube was approved by Summit Township's board of supervisors Monday night.

If construction begins as planned, the new store will open in late 2010 -- nearly two years later than originally proposed.  The project was originally scheduled to start in the fall of 2007, with the store opening in late 2008. However, it was delayed three times because Wal-Mart changed the new building's footprint.

Nancy Agostine, Summit's zoning administrator, said she expected to record Wal-Mart's plan on Tuesday, and after that the corporation could begin building.

Wal-Mart is expected to start the bidding process within weeks.

The new supercenter building will be built about a quarter of a mile south of a smaller Walmart on Peach Street, which it will replace.

More here.

How's the market?

The Greater Erie Board of REALTORS MLS stats through May show that new listings coming on the market are still down from 2008 and 2007.  15.9% less and 26.7% less, respectively.  YTD through May, 1,514 new residential listings have come on the market.

Currently there are 1,314 homes available for sale in the MLS.  The average days on the market (DOM) is 134.  Average list price is $152,591. 

Here is how a few markets compare:

City of Erie:  Available - 357, DOM - 124, List Price - $105,067

Millcreek:  Available - 259, DOM - 112, List Price - $254,580

Corry:  Available - 52, DOM - 144, List Price - $138,548

North East / Greene:  Available - 56, DOM - 95, List Price - $261,907

Albion:  Available - 52, DOM - 139, List Price - $116,630

Want to know about a specific community or neighborhood, just let me know and I'll get the information to you.

I'm seeing this low inventory lead to many multiple offer situations and back-up offers.

Radon - what is it?

Most home buyers and few home sellers have heard of radon.  However, most really are not sure what it is.

The Pennsylvania DEP has this to say:  Radon, the second leading cause of lung cancer, is a radioactive gas that comes from the natural breakdown of uranium in soil and rock and gets into the air you breathe. It moves through the ground and into your home through cracks and other holes in the foundation where it can accumulate to unsafe levels. Because it is odorless, colorless, and tasteless, testing is the only way to know if you and your family are at risk from radon.

Here are some good resource links that will be able to answer most if not all your radon questions:

• What is radon?
• What You Should Know About Radon - pamphlet 
• EPA map of radon zones 
• Who can test of fix your home?
• Home buyer's and seller's Guide to Radon 
• FAQs 
• Instructional Videos 
• Bureau of Radiation Protection 
• Other radon websites 

   The good news is that there are simple ways to fix a problem if needed.

No minimum credit score - PHFA

With the mortgage market increasing it's credit scores, PHFA is going the other way.  No minimum credit score is required under the FHA and Conventional 95% LTV loans.  I personally don't know that this is a good thing.  However, it doesn't much matter what I think.

The PHFA also offers a  Tax Credit Advance Loan (TCA).  The TCA is an interest free loan that can be used towards down payment and/or closing costs.  $5,000 for existing homes OR 10% of purchase price, whichever is less.

• If TCA is repaid by 6/30/10, the borrower pays no interest for this loan.
• If TCA is not repaid by 6/30/10, it becomes a 10 yr. loan.
• Must be 1st time homebuyer.
• Fall within Federal first homebuyer tax credit income guidelines and PHFA limits.
• Loan must close prior to  12/1/09.

 The PHFA does have income limits and purchase limits for 1st time buyers.  If you would like to know these limits, just drop me a line and I'll get the information to you.