Wouldn't you want to live here? More information at 437.oldforgecrossing.com    Located in a preferred location in Old Forge Crossing , this single bedroom Main Line second floor, end unit condo overlooks the community reflecting pond, with views of trees and water. One of the largest condos in the Old Forge Crossing development it has recently been updated with newer heater, a/c and newer energy efficient windows all saving you money on utilities. It also has hardwood parquet floors, new carpet in the bedroom, newer kitchen cabinets, recently updated bathroom and a large bedroom with two walk in closets. Condo has a washer and dryer in your condo, so no having to carry laundry to get it clean. There is plenty of storage throughout this condo, with a nice open floor plan. Gas cooking, g... 07/20/2020

Clients who I just helped sell and buy just left this great review about me."We have bought 2 and sold 1 house with Nick and it was a pleasure to work with him. We can only recommend to engage with him and let him guide you thru the process(es). He is very responsive and literally always available :-)"khanke2010  As I said earier this week, repeat clients say a lot about you, your level of service and how well you do your job. 07/10/2020

I have been thinking or pondering about this recently on my walks. What am I looking at? Is it the whole picture or just a part? I had seen some photos of a listing recently, selling a life style they were wonderful, selling the house, not so much as they were all close ups of a wonderful bed with beautiful sheets and pillows, but that was all you could see, not the room at all. Sometimes we need to focus on the details, and other times we need to step back and see the whole picture. A small detail can derail a whole transaction if it is allowed to become the focus, but when you zoom out it shows for what it is a samll detail not worth worrying about. Negotiations for a house can get bogged down in the small minutae of detail, you are buying a $500,000 home and are willing to walk away ... 07/07/2020

We all know things are going to be different. But how different they will be, is just starting to reveal itself as we are allowed to show homes in PA. Remember those days, when you would preview a home on a Thursday with showings beginning at the weekend with an open house on Saturday and Sunday with maybe 30-70 groups coming through each day.  FORGET IT!  But imagine, as we have in PA, a regulation to leave time between showings, in other words limited showings per day. Now, what do you do with that "hot property"?   You need to have special forms completed and keep records. Do you let everyone in before accepting offers? You need a schedule to be completed making sure there are spaces between showings. What if the agent has to be present? Where does the seller go for the day?  It is o... 05/29/2020

Mixed news out of Harrisburg yesterday. A bill to re-open real estate was vetoed by the Governor, but at the same time, he announced that real estate, regardless of the colour phase your county is in can resume under specific guidelines. Red, Yellow or Green is no longer relevant for real estate related activities.This means we can get back to work helping you, our customers and clients. What are those guidelines: Only three people maximum can be in a house at a time, and all must wear masks and stay 6 feet apart. Do not linger in the house to discuss the house, that must be done outside. As much that can be done remotely must be. Showings are spread out with 30 minutes between showings at least and anything a buyer has touched should be wiped down before the next showing, hence buyers ... 05/20/2020

As we all sit at home, many may be wondering what is real estate going to look like when things improve and we can begin to get back to normal. What is that new normal going to look like? Well, like the image to the right, there are a lot of different routes that can be taken.  Most will not lead to the destination you want to arrive at, but if you are careful making your way through the junction you won't get lost and you will arrive at your destination. During this enforced stay at home period I have managed to bring homes to settlement.  Getting one to appraise for substantially more than a previous sale where the appraisal caused it to fall through and obtaining my sellers an increased return. In fact both homes which settled, suffered from bad initial appraisals and we got both to ... 05/12/2020

I shared recently how one of my clients asked me to step in when they had made the mistake to use another broker and the home although it sold failed to appraise. On reviewing everything it didn't make sense as the comps were defintiely there for the home.Anyway, we re-listed the home for a higher price, quickly obtained an offer, navigated our way through inspections, negotiations and the second appraisal for a higher price and settled last week.  Today, my clients posted the following review of me. "Our experience with Nick has been great! He is very accessible, knowledgeable and very communicative and always maintains a positive demeanor. The house we last sold did not appraise when using another brokerage and not only did Nick get it to appraise he also got us more money and the sal... 04/28/2020

Often how you look at a problem will lead you to the answer. After Roger Bannister ran a mile in under 4 minutes many others now felt it could be done and achieved similar results. If we believe someone like ourselves can achieve something we want to attain, we will be able in our minds to overcome all the objections. How many of you who are brokers know people who outsell others simply because they believe it can be done and you are surprised by those who you think will be wonderful but never acheive the results you expect. It is all mental. My middle son, as some of you know went into the Marines. He said all the training was mental. He knew the drill sergeants were all noise, they weren't going to kill you and even when he went into Special Operations training he knew it was all ment... 04/27/2020

As many of you know, I used to be in the antiques business, it was family run and I was third generation. A photo of my dad is below at an antiques show in London. My brother is still dealing and I am still attached, running antiques shows for local charities.This post was inspired by Ron and Alexandra Seigel post this morning Marketing Savvy - The Importance of details well worht a read. As I was leaving a comment it reminded me of an event from when I was actively dealing in antiques.I was on a trip to Hong Kong and walking past a shop with a friend we saw some figures that were quite late, very dirty but attractive. We went in, inquired about the price negotiated and purchased them together. Once they arrived in the UK and we cleaned them, we had to decide what to do with them. My fr... 04/24/2020

These are different times. And every day we are adapting as rules change. I decided to host a Virtual Open House at a listing as my clients really want the house promoted. Initially I was going to go to the house and do it with the husband. But, then we got a stay in place order and our State Association told us we must not be having any one on one meetings with clients as part of that stay in place order.What to do? Well I made my client an admin on my Facebook Business Page, you can find it by searching Facebook for either Nick Vandekar, Long & Foster Real Estate. or @BuyingAMainLineHome, in Facebook it is all lower case, not sure if that matters. My clients asked me to advertise it as much as possible and enter it in the MLS so that an alert would go out via sites like Zillow etc. So... 03/28/2020

Old Forge Crossing Condominiums in Tredyffrin Township, Devon PA saw 23 sales last year, same as 2018. These Devon condos remain popular being in the Tredyffrin Easttown School district selling on average in 9 days.Full data is below, but a quick recap those 23 homes sold for a total of $4,026,405 after concessions to buyers, homes sold for an average of 99% of list price, and the average square foot price was $201. Four of the listings were 2 bed 2 bath apartments, two were town houses with 2 beds and 2.5 baths and the remaining 17 were 1 bed 1 bath apartments. Generally those in better shape got higher prices, even more than some in lesser shape which had a den.Condition matters to buyers today, as does updated mechanicals, windows and kitchens and baths. Those which are updated will ... 01/31/2020

One of the joys of living in the Tredyffrin Easttown part of the Main Line is being able to enjoy Jenkins Arboretum. There is always something going on and the early spring is a wonderful time to enjoy the Azaleas and Rhododendrons for which they are famous.Recently, a new executive director was appointed, Tom Smarr, and he will be sharing the history of the arboretum at a lecture at Easttown Library, another favourite place of mine located on First Avenue in Berwyn on Tuesday January 28th at 11.00 am. Register here.The property was originally home to H. Lawrence and Elizabeth Phillipe Jenkins and since then has been under the care of many wonderful gardeners. Jenkins Arboretum is famous for hybridizing new azaleas and rhododendrons. Tom Smarr will discuss some of the unusual and intere... 01/21/2020

I love adventure and being on a quest, part of the fun is enjoying the journey not just reaching the destination or goal.I am currently visiting a friend in Germany. She is still working so I have a couple of days to entertain myself during the day. Yesterday, I decided to go to Ratzeburg, where I have been before and know how to get there using the local bus system, or thought I did.I duly caught the right bus, and knew I needed to change and transfer to a different bus in the next village. However, my bus driver decided I needed to learn a different way to get to my destination. At first as he drove off, not letting me off the bus where I needed to change I was concerned. Then, I decided this bus goes to another small local town and most likely there will be another bus to where I wan... 12/20/2019

The only purpose of this precise post is to wish you Happy Holidays, whatever you celebrate.I wish you a time of peace, rest and reflection of your blessings. Every one of us, whatever is happening in our lives has things we can consider are going right. Whilst the holidays can be a time of stress for many people, focusing on those things that are right and good in your life will allow you to enjoy the people and events around you, coping with the hiccups or bumps in the road which inevitably happen over the holiday period.It is also a time, when hopefully, you have a little bit of time away from the pressures of work and can relax and enjoy where you are and where you want to be. Maybe you realize you want a little more space, or possibly less. Whilst the tiny house movement is taking ... 12/20/2019

Every year we host the US Marine Corps Toys for Tots campaign out of our office in Devon Pennsylvania. We are located at 92 Lancaster Avenue, Devon PA 19333, the blue dot on the map below marks our office. Our parking lot is behind our building off of S Valley Forge Road and the entrance is right there off the parking lot.We have just placed our bins, one in the lobby of our building, as I mentioned just off the parking lot behind the building and another in our office itself. Drop off unwrapped gifts for children in the bins and they will be collected by the Marine Corps Reserve who store them and wrap them for distribution next year. Last year we were told was the most successful year to date serving the most children. Make a child smile with a well deserved gift for those who need it... 11/22/2019

It is my birthday month and several friends and clients have offered to treat me to lunch or dinner. Yesterday, a client took me to lunch at the NEW Nudy's Cafe in Devon on Swedesford Road close to the intersection with N Valley Forge Road, next to Wells Fargo bank. Located close to Old Forge Crossing and Chesterbrook from what I saw yesterday they have plenty of customers willing to visit.Originally an Asian Restaurant and Bar they have transformed the space, making it open and bright, whilst it is a little noisy, I think it is worth a visit.The menu is American, breakfast options and plenty of sandwiches, and salads, you will find something worth eating. I went with the Mushroom Cheesesteak and was not disappointed, would definitely order it again, but there are as I said plenty of ot... 11/08/2019

Old Forge Crossing October 2019 Market ReportWouldn't you want to live here? Old Forge Crossing has been very active throughout this year with sales happening quite quickly when apartments or town homes have come on the market. Demand has been sustained throughbout the year mainly for two reasons; one it is a wonderful location for everything in the area, secondly it is a great price point with many amenities for owners and renters. Located just south of Route 202 there are just over 500 units in the development, it was originally constructed as a rental complex then converted to condominium ownership. It is built on over 40 acres of land with walking trails and has a community swimming pool, tennis courts, club house, and gated access to the Chester Valley Trail. There is plentiful par... 11/07/2019

Due to this property having a tenant in place, we did some pre-marketing using the Coming Soon option in the Bright MLS and marketing the property on our website and through video.We had a terrific response, with several calls from agents asking questions ahead of the On Market date of November 1st. Come the day, an appointment at 9.00 am and an agreement later that afternoon. Some minor negotiation around dates and this awesome 1 bed 1 bath condo with DEN and wood burning fireplace is waiting for its new owner.  And not surprising with wonderful location, surrounded by plenty of easy to access restaurants, bars and coffee shops, with a great assortment of top quality supermarkets like Wegman's, Trader Joe's, Whole Foods and plenty of other shopping close by in King of Prussia Mall.If y... 11/04/2019

Why be an ostrich?As a Tredyffrin Easttown or Main Line seller it is easy to ignore an issue in your home before you list it for sale. So you are in control of the process and the cost I suggest in many istances to sellers to have a home inspection before listing to identify any major issues and get them fixed before listing .A home inspection report issue will always cost more than fixing an item before hand due to being on a deadline and having someone else, a buyer,  demand how it is repaired and sometimes demand you need to replace rather than repair an item.But, even more than general home issues when dealing with stucco or stone cladding why wait for an issue to be identified by a buyer who then demands you repair every side of a home when there may only be an issue on one side.Ch... 10/30/2019

A past client called out of the blue a couple of weeks ago. What was the value of their condo which they were renting to a tenant? They were interested in selling and the tenant might be interested in buying and could I handle the sale and the paperwork? It turned out the tenant is not ready yet to purchase. So, they decided to put the unit up for sale. The tenant said it will be able to be shown during the last month of his tenancy. So November 1st 463 Old Forge Crossing, Devon, PA 19333 will be available for showings but you can click the link for a virtual tour before that. We used old photos when the unit was vacant as the tenant is already packing up. Old Forge Crossing in Devon, sits just under two miles from the Devon train station providing easy access to Philadelphia on what wa... 10/19/2019