Fishtown homeowners fight back | Real Estate Newsletter

Michaelle Bond, your usual emcee, is on a well-deserved vacation this week, so she handed the mic over to me for a few sections of the newsletter. I’m Erica Palan, the deputy business and built environment editor. My husband and I bought our first home in 2020. (I never expected to be house-hunting during a pandemic. It was ... weird.) Since then, I’ve been gobbling up real estate stories as I learn more about being a homeowner.

Our first story today is about a group of homeowners who fought back against what they considered to be shoddy development — and collectively won $3.2 million in damages. Is it a cautionary tale against buying new construction or an inspiration to fight for your rights? Maybe both.

I also have some other great reads for you, including new-to-me (and maybe you?) history about Ocean City’s first Black residents, the latest in the seemingly never-ending drama surrounding some local mall owners, and a home tour in Graduate Hospital that turned what the owners described as a “frat house” into a family-friendly haven.

📮Speaking of the home tour, those homeowners chose to ditch their formal dining room. That would’ve been a deal breaker for me since I love to host family dinners. Is a formal dining room important to you? For a chance to be featured in the newsletter, email me.

📋 It’s our last reminder to fill out an anonymous 10-15 minute survey about this newsletter. Tell us what you like and what you want to see. Everyone who completes it has a chance to win one of three $75 American Express gift cards.Take our survey about the real estate newsletter here. — Erica Palan

Buying a home is stressful for anyone. Some buyers try to alleviate that anxiety by looking at brand-new construction — with the hope that a just-built home will require less maintenance.

But for a few homeowners who bought in Fishtown in 2015, just the opposite happened when they discovered extensive water damage. Each homeowner had to pay almost $200,000 in repairs — and that’s on top of the more than $500,000 they each paid for their properties.

They sued Streamline, the Philadelphia development company that built the homes, and on Friday, the jury awarded the four households almost $3.2 million, finding that Streamline was negligent in its professional duties.

Streamline is not the only developer facing such charges. Read more from Jake Blumgart on how these types of issues have cropped up before and what it means for Streamline, and homeowners.

I love Ocean City, N.J., where my family vacations each summer. My husband and I even got married at the historic Flanders Hotel on the boardwalk. That’s why I read my colleague Amy Rosenberg’s piece on Ocean City’s Black population so eagerly. Despite my own history at the family-friendly Shore point, I’d never heard the story of Westside, the neighborhood that was the home to Ocean City’s original Black community.

Amy’s story includes fascinating details, including:

Loretta Thompson Harris, a fourth-generation Ocean City native, has chronicled all this history and more in a new book titled The Westside: Ocean City in True Color. I am definitely adding it to my summer reading list.

Do you dream of buying a home while avoiding mortgage interest rates that are much higher than they were during the last few years? Just pay cash.

For most of us, that’s a dream, too.

But one out of three home purchases nationally in April were all cash, according to a report released this month by the online real estate brokerage Redfin.

That’s the highest level since 2014.

What’s the main reason that a larger share of buyers are paying in cash? Higher mortgage rates.

These rates are keeping buyers who need mortgages out of the market. Although cash buyers don’t take out home loans, high interest rates may deter some of them, too, because they may decide to put their money into other investments such as bonds. But rates are less likely to keep away all-cash buyers than those who need loans.

Competition among buyers fighting over a low supply of homes for sale also is motivating buyers to offer to pay cash to win bidding wars. — Michaelle Bond

Shelby and Dan Stamm, owners of a Graduate Hospital rowhouse, faced a challenge that’s common for many owners of older Philly rowhouses. The homes may still be structurally sound and look nice, but they weren’t built for 21st century living.

So the Stamms have completed major renovations to turn a two-bedroom, 1½-bath home into a place for them and their three young children.

Work included tearing down the wall that usually separates living and dining areas in rowhouses.

In the mudroom and living spaces, they added floor-to-ceiling built-in storage units that extend to the kitchen. They sacrificed a formal dining room and improved the home’s lighting.

Take a peek at a home that used to look “like a frat house” and is now a family space. — Michaelle Bond

Lynnewood Hall, a long-neglected 110-room Gilded Age mansion in Elkins Park, saw some activity this month. The nonprofit Lynnewood Hall Preservation Foundation, which is in negotiations to purchase the 123-year-old house, said the property could host more events in the future.

Question: What took place at Lynnewood Hall on June 5?

A) an art show

B) a fashion shoot

C) a vintage car show

D) a fundraising gala

This story has the answer.

Philly unveiled its first Juneteenth mural on Monday. Can you name the neighborhood where it was painted?

📮 If you think you know, email me back.

Shout out to Judy P., who has been paying attention to some of our quirkier coverage and knew that last week’s photo showed a “boob garden” popup exhibit on a vacant lot between Washington Avenue, Eighth Street, and Passyunk Avenue in South Philly.

Thanks for letting me visit your inbox this week! Michaelle will be back next Thursday.