We’re one of the nation’s hottest markets | Real Estate Newsletter
And PHA’s buying private buildings.
The Philly area is often called an affordable market. (It’s all relative.) But Zillow is now also calling it one of the country’s hottest going into 2025.
What makes the Philly metro area hot? Competition among homebuyers.
And that’s thanks to something we’re not doing that other major metros are.
Keep scrolling for that story and more in this week’s edition:
From private to subsidized: Read up on a Philadelphia Housing Authority strategy that includes buying privately owned properties for tenants who need affordable housing.
Under pressure: Learn about a deal to preserve a century-old church camp in Chester County and shield it from development pressure.
Mansion on the Delaware: Take a peek at this local home for sale for $1.75 million.
Dreaming of Market East: Find out what fellow newsletter readers want to see happen in the heart of Center City.
📮How long does it take for homes in your neighborhood to sell once they hit the market? For a chance to be featured in my newsletter, email me.
— Michaelle Bond
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When Sanziana Penafiel, 24, and Mark Washington, 26, decided to buy their first house, they heard a lot of discouraging messages.
The market is very tough right now.
It’s gonna be a brutal process.
You’re gonna overpay.
They jumped into the market anyway. And they saw for themselves that in the South Jersey neighborhoods where they wanted to live, competition for homes was fierce.
“It was incredibly overwhelming,” Penafiel told me.
For example, the couple toured a house in Florence Township, and “as soon as we decided, ‘Let’s go for it,’ it was already off the market,” she said.
That level of competition is why Zillow is predicting that the broader Philly metro area is going to be one to watch this year.
We’re a popular place, and we have a housing supply problem.
Keep reading to see where the Philly metro ranks on Zillow’s list of hottest markets for 2025 and learn what other metros are doing that we aren’t.
For $20 million, the Philadelphia Housing Authority just bought two student housing buildings in University City that it plans to turn into subsidized housing. You can expect more where that came from soon.
PHA plans to acquire 2,000 units of housing from the private sector. And the housing authority will be going after buildings in desirable neighborhoods, or “properties in communities that have long denied PHA residents,” Kelvin Jeremiah, the housing authority’s CEO, told my colleague.
Buying private buildings is cheaper and allows tenants to move in faster than if PHA built new.
PHA’s moves are part of a broader strategy that includes a mix of:
buying and converting privately owned buildings
fixing its own older buildings
building new homes
Keep reading to find out why Philly landlords are asking the city’s housing authority to buy their buildings and how much PHA plans to spend purchasing properties in the coming months.
The latest news to pay attention to
Almost a million square feet of retail space in the heart of Center City was tied to the Sixers’ arena plan. What happens next?
Architecture critic Inga Saffron says Market East doesn’t need the Sixers arena to make a comeback.
Camden’s oldest house of worship faces an uncertain future.
A judge will decide whether to limit future uses of UArts buildings or to let the buildings in prime Philly locations go to the highest bidder.
A 130-acre, century-old church camp in Chester County will be preserved, shielding it from development pressure.
St. Joe’s is trying to sell its entire University City campus.
A group of life sciences and real estate professionals who supply manufacturing space for biotech companies says both investor cash and demand have slowed.
House of the week: For $738,000 in Center City, a three-bedroom townhouse that comes with a new roof.
We’re not going on our usual home tour this week. (Don’t worry. We’ll be sticking our noses into a neighbor’s home again next week.) Instead, let’s pretend we’re mansion shopping and step inside a home on the Delaware River that’s for sale for $1.75 million.
Some fast facts about the three-story home in Edgewater Park, N.J.:
It has seven bedrooms and 6½ bathrooms.
It spans 7,012 square feet of living space.
It has a tennis court and a pool.
It sits on three acres.
Diane and Sam Allen lived in the home for 43 years, but Diane, a retired New Jersey lawmaker, said they were ready to move on.
Peek inside the home and discover its ties to the early days of the country.
🧠 Trivia time
It’s been a year since a fire gutted the sanctuary of the historic Overbrook Presbyterian Church and destroyed treasures like stained-glass windows and a 1939 M.P. Möller pipe organ valued at $1.7 million. Luckily, the structure of the 136-year-old church stayed intact, and rebuilding is underway.
Question: What caused last year’s fire?
A) lightning strike
B) cleaning cloths that spontaneously combusted
C) knocked-over candles
D) arson
This story has the answer.
📷 Photo quiz
Do you know the location this photo shows?
📮 If you think you do, email me back. You and your memories of visiting this spot might be featured in the newsletter.
Last week’s quiz featured an old photo of the Reading Terminal Headhouse. Shout-out to Lars W., Charles D., and Bruce H. for being among the readers who got that right.
Bruce said, “You can see the railroad president’s quarter-round office windows just above the cutout notch in the front left corner of the building.
I worked in the PSFS building for the first 13 years of my legal career, and frequently saw this view out the windows from the library or a colleague’s office."
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Last week, I asked what you’d like to see happen next for Market East, whose fate is uncertain. Thanks for sharing your ideas and adding to the conversation. The Inquirer’s Opinion Desk also collected thoughts from 12 Philadelphians about what they think the city should do.
Below are thoughts from some of my newsletter readers.
Robert L: “I initially was in favor of the arena but after thinking about how many days per year it would be dark, I realized it wasn’t going to ‘activate’ Market East like some thought. The best way to activate Market East is mixed use with lots of residential condos/apartments to keep the area activated each and every day and evening too — which will also lower crime in the area.” He sang the praises of the East Market development.
Elizabeth A.: “Hands down — something like what Comcast proposed at the 11th hour — a biotech hub. The West bank of the Schuylkill has boomed with development. With proper strategic planning (something I am sorry to say is totally lacking from the current administration), revitalization would see hotels, restaurants, cafés, retail, etc. AND Jefferson station transportation hub is in the middle. A no brainer.”
Chris D.: “I disliked the prospects of a mammoth basketball arena on East Market Street, so I am glad that the arena has been canceled.
On the other hand, I do think there is a place for sports on East Market Street. A place for 2,000 to 4,000 fans to gather to watch games on very large screens. I am envisioning something like Xfinity Live. A place where people can take the subway to watch Philly teams playing away games with fans from across the region.”
Marcia W.: “Market Street East can rival the best boulevards and walking streets of Europe. A combination of fooderies, shops, musical venues, and street artists would welcome people. The Pennsylvania Horticulture Society would advise on colorful low maintenance plants.” She acknowledged that the city would need to improve traffic, sanitation, and safety.
There you have it. We’ll be watching Market East closely to see whether any of your ideas become reality.
Enjoy the rest of your week.
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