Mapping Philly’s modern architecture | Real Estate Newsletter
And athletes selling Jersey homes.
Philadelphia’s history goes way back. So it makes sense that colonial and Victorian buildings get a lot of attention from history buffs and preservationists.
But a group of local researchers wants to make sure another, younger architectural style gets its flowers: midcentury modern.
Read on to learn about the Center for the Preservation of Modernism’s latest project.
Keep scrolling for that story and more in this week’s edition:
Athletes’ homes for sale: The South Jersey homes of Bryce Harper and Robert Covington are on the market.
Development switch-up: Plans to redevelop a Walnut Street lot gutted by a 2020 fire will include apartments after all.
A nightmare house hunt: These homebuyers spent 2½ years searching for a starter home at the Shore.
Market update: Keep scrolling to see what homebuyers and sellers in our area were up to last month.
— Michaelle Bond
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The Philadelphian at 2401 Pennsylvania Ave. is Philly’s largest condo building. It’s also an example of midcentury modern architecture.
And it’s one of almost 700 modernist buildings across Philadelphia that are laid out on a new interactive map created by Thomas Jefferson University researchers and volunteers at a nonprofit devoted to modern architecture.
The director of Jefferson’s Center for the Preservation of Modernism called the architectural style one of the least understood and appreciated in Philly.
But she said modernism “creates Philadelphia just as much as colonial or Victorian or any other style.”
The map points to homes, hotels, schools, libraries, fire houses, and houses of worship in the city. It calls the Roundhouse “one of Philadelphia’s most iconic, and most contested, examples of modernism.”
Keep reading to learn more about sites on the map and the features that make a building midcentury modern.
South Jersey is a popular place for Philly athletes to live. (Unless you’re commuting by helicopter from New York like LeBron James.)
If you’re curious about what a Philadelphia sports star’s home looks like, the Phillies’ Bryce Harper and former Sixer Robert Covington are selling their multimillion-dollar South Jersey homes right now.
Harper’s home in Haddonfield is listed for $4.5 million. The 6,200-square-foot farmhouse has five bedrooms, a primary suite with two large walk-in closets, and a private suite for guests or a nanny.
Covington’s Cherry Hill house is almost 9,800 square feet and is on the market for $2.9 million. It has six bedrooms and is what the listing agent calls “Ritz-Carlton-inspired.”
The house includes a video-gaming area, a sauna, and an outdoor saltwater pool. The chef’s kitchen has heated floors.
For more details about the homes and to see the listings, keep reading.
The latest news to pay attention to
A former South Philly firehouse turned luxury residence is on the market for $2.5 million.
Plans to redevelop a Walnut Street lot gutted by a 2020 fire will include apartments after all.
A Philly task force found that the Office of Property Assessments is improving. City Council doesn’t agree.
An ambitious plan for 420 apartments and commercial space in a West Philly neighborhood has hit a snag.
A historic South Philly church is being converted into a hotel, not apartments.
The Voorhees planning board approved 120 affordable apartments on the site of a now-vacant concrete plant.
A developer has sued Upper Merion again over the rejection of his plans for a nearly 5-million-square-foot data center campus in King of Prussia.
Architecture critic Inga Saffron says Broad Street’s pricey new median planters take the Avenue of the Arts in the wrong direction.
House of the week: For $550,000 in Spring Garden, a two-bedroom condo that has a private backyard with grass.
Nicole and Dan Renish were renting a moldy apartment in Wildwood Crest when they decided to become homeowners.
But it wasn’t as simple as that. They spent 2½ years looking for a starter home in Cape May County that they could afford.
They got outbid on three homes. A fourth failed an inspection.
One day, the Renishes’ real estate agent got a call from someone who wanted to sell their home quickly. The house didn’t match their wish list, but they decided to snap it up before it hit the market for a lower price than it would have listed for.
Keep reading to find out how the couple made homeownership happen.
📊 The market
Last month, I talked about how elevated mortgage interest rates had helped to slow September’s housing market. Well, rates climbed higher in October.
Homebuyers in our region were less active last month than they were at the same time last year. Properties sat on the market longer, and there were fewer showings and sales.
Buyers with higher incomes were still in the game. First-timers and those with moderate incomes were more likely to stay on the sidelines.
In the Philadelphia metro area in October, according to real estate listing service Bright MLS:
🔻 The number of homes that went under contract — 5,376 — was down roughly 15% from the same time last year.
🔻 The number of closed home sales — 5,126 — was down about 6%.
🔺 The number of active home listings rose by almost 24% to 16,215.
📷 Photo quiz
Do you know the location this photo shows?
📮 If you think you do, let me know.
Last week’s quiz featured a photo of the Portal in the City Hall courtyard.
Shout-out to Al B. and Debra F. for knowing that answer.
And enjoy the rest of your week.
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