John Badalamenti - Prudential Fox & Roach Realtors, Wayne, PA

People buy things for its "utility": the pleasure or service received from a product or service, be it gas, food, clothing, a wide-screen TV, a cell phone, a hair cut, a manicure,  etc., etc.

I can attest first hand to the fact that when I show potential homebuyers a home, I do not hear: "Oh look honey, we can make $15,000 on this kitchen when we go to sell it in 7 years", or, "Wow, this wonderful back yard will net us $50K in 2015. People generally don't think like that. They are looking at a home for its potential use and pleasure, its utility.

This doesn't mean the homebuyer shouldn't be prudent with their money. Most people should eventually buy a home, but not everyone and not at every point in their lives.

There are those that argue that a home's future appreciation is extremely important in making a purchasing decision. I certainly don't advocate purchasing a home to loose money! But are we talking short term, or long term?

If I hear: I am looking to sell in 2 years and realize a 10% return. Well, if that's the case, we need to look at an investment property for you, or perhaps an income producing property, such as a multi-family or apartment unit, where we can focus on aggressive capitalization rates.

Purchasing a home for personal use continues to be thought of as a relatively safe long-term investment, according to the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) 2007 Profile of Buyers' Home Feature Preferences. The survey of buyers who purchased homes in 2006 reports that more than half of home buyers feel their home has high investment potential

I will often ask a potential homebuyer the reason they are looking to purchase. A good majority of the time, the answer in a nut shell: utility. "We need more space." "I need to find a home closer to work." "I am relocating to the area and need to find a home that will suite my family's lifestyle."  "We have one child and one on the way and we need at least 3 bedrooms with a back yard."  "I am looking for a single family with a home office."

To sum it all up, A home pays an annual dividend: A roof over your head and the personal enjoyment that the real estate provides.

Isn't that the real reason people buy homes? I hope this basic fundamental principle doesn't get lost.

Revised. Here Is The Web Site For The New Norristown Studios At Logan Square: http://www.norristownstudios.com/images.htm

For those of you not familiar with the Logan Square Shopping Center, it is located at the intersection of Markley Street (Route 202) and W Johnson Highway in Norristown. The Ports of the World used to be there for years and for all the times I passed there, I always felt that it was a great location, although huge and under utilized somehow.

The location offers a straight shot to King of Prussia to the south which opens up to all the area's major routes (202, 422, & 76), and pretty much a straight shot up to Blue Bell and points north. The Norristown Transportation Center is 5 minutes away with local bus and rail lines, including connection to Philadelphia (R6).

This past Friday (August 17, 2007), I heard a report on KYW Newsradio that a developer was unveiling plans for a major development project in Montgomery County which would also a include a 100,000 square foot film studio with eight sound stages (I wonder if this would be larger that the Silvercup Studios in Long Island City outside of Manhattan?) at the Logan Square Shopping Center In Norristown.

Michael Ruser, Property Manager at Logan Square Recently Commented: "The proposed project will utilize the existing 150,000 square feet Ports of the World occupied and will require the building to be expanded by an additional 100,000 square feet. The existing tenants include Dunkin' Donuts, M.A.B. Paints, PNC Bank, Honda Motorsports, U.S. Maintenance (large national company in approx. 50,000 square feet) RiteAid, Cottman (Auto Repair), Plymouth Produce, Sessano Deli and Cafe, Social Security, Montgomery County Records and Storage, West Coast Video, a large book store and a few smaller tenants. Logan Square is home to 500+ workers on any given day during the work week. We are excited to be part of the process of bringing such a large industry to Norristown, Montgomery County and the state of PA."

If this does go down, it'll be a big boost for Norristown, the outlying areas, Montgomery County, and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania as a whole in many ways! Very, very exciting news!