In some ways, a good Realtor is like a skilled travel guide, always knowing what’s around the next corner, which pitfalls to avoid and how to get a client from Point A to Point B unscathed.
Two years ago, in March 2016, my wife and I decided to move from our longtime home in Montgomery County. We were ready for a change of scenery. Although our first choice had been to move out of state, either to North Carolina or Colorado, in the end we chose to stay close to home.
We reached out to the Realt or who had helped us buy our first home more than a decade earlier. To our disappointment, our former Realtor had more or less retired, b ut she recommended a colleague.
The moment this individual stepped through our door, we knew we were in capable hands. Whereas we wanted to wade slowly into the waters, this Realtor motivated us to take bold steps forward.
“We’ll photograph your house next week so we can st art bringing people through,” she told us, more or less.
Even before then, she asked us questions: about what we were looking for in a ne w home; about our current lifestyle; about what we wanted our new life to look like. Soon enough, the recommendations started to pour in, and at the same time we were preparing our home for walkthroughs. We quickly learned (or, better put, remembered) that the real estate business is not for the faint of heart. While we were having prospective buyers walk through our home, our Realtor had us out doing the sa me to homes that had just come onto the market. Early on, it seemed every home in our “sweet spot” was being swooped on almost just as quickly as it became available.
All the while, our Realtor assured us we would find what we were looking for and everything would fall into place. She was right. In almost in a blink, we received a terrific bid on our house, and about the same time we fell in love with a house near Red Hill, a mere stone’s throw from Green Lane Park. When it comes to real estate, though, sometimes things don’t go according to plan. We bid on the home— and the homeowner accepted— but the inspection process revealed some issues we hadn’t foreseen, including a septic system that would need to be replaced.
While our existing ho me had a buyer, we found ourselves back on the hunt. Two days later, our Realtor had us on a walk-through of a just-listed home south of Quakertown. Our jaws dropped when we walked through the door. It had everything we could possibly want, which meant it would sell quickly . Our Realtor advised us to put in a strong bid and also state our case directly to the homeowner. Long story short, we got the house. The rest of the process went by in a blur, everything moving along as smooth as silk.
Today, we couldn’t be happier. Our home overlooks the Perkiomen Creek, on a quiet stretch of tree-lined road shared by a few farms. We didn’t think we would find such a place in the Philadelphia suburbs, and we owe it all to our Realtor, whose name can be found on the following list of our 2018 Top Realtors. These are the men a nd women our readers (and, in one instance, this magazine’s editor) trust to help them stay on course when it comes to navigating the labyrinth of buying or selling a home.
2018 TOP REALTORS
Looking to buy or sell a home and not sure where to begin? Start here.
Long & Foster
Real Estate
Blue Bell
(215) 643-2500
Kit Anstey
Berkshire
Hathaway Home
Services Fox &
Roach, Realtors
Wester Chester
(610) 430-3001
Binnie Bianco
Long & Foster
Real Estate
Conshohocken
(610) 941-1008
Jeff Block
Berkshire Hathaway
HomeServices Fox
& Roach,
Realtors
Philadelphia
(215) 790-5662
Maria Castellucci
Long & Foster Real
Estate
Blue Bell
(215) 591-5600
Michele Cooley
Berkshire Hathaway
HomeServices Fox
& Roach, Realtors
Philadelphia
(267) 571-5511
Danielle Davis
Weidel Real Estate
Doylestown
(215) 348-5600
Evan Davis
Berkshire Hathaway
HomeServices Fox
& Roach, Realtors
Haverford
(610)
645-3881
Frank L. DeFazio
Berkshire Hathaway
HomeServices Fox
& Roach, Realtors
Philadelphia
(215) 440-2093
Sheila D’Elia
RE/MAX
Ambler
(267)
246-3998
Allan Domb
Allan Domb Real Estate
Philadelphia
(215) 545-1500
Liz Facenda
RE/MAX
West Chester
(610) 719-1700
Patricia Harvey
RE/MAX
West Chester
(610) 675-7100
Sherry W. Jones
Coldwell Banker
Hearthside, Realtors
Doylestown
(215) 345-6244
Anne E. Koons
Berkshire Hathaway
Home
Services Fox
& Roach, Realtors
Cherry Hill, N.J.
(856) 795-4709
Susan Langenstein
RE/MAX
Doylestown
(215) 348-7100
Nancy McGuire
Maryland Heritage
Properties
Chestertown, Md.
410-778-9319
Jaimie Meehan
Keller Williams
Doylestown
(215) 340-5700
Carol Muredda
RE/MAX
Jamison
(215) 343-8200
Jennie Sheridan
Keller Williams Realty
Collegeville
(610) 792-5900
Lavinia Smerconish
Berkshire
Hathaway
HomeServices
Fox & Roach,
Realtors
Bryn Mawr
(610) 520-3708
Hazel Smith
Berkshire
Hathaway
HomeServices
Fox & Roach,
Realtors
Newtown
(215) 860-3224
Lottie Spinelli
Weidel Real
Estate
Doylestown
(215) 348-5600
Matt Spinelli
Weidel Real
Estate
Doylestown
(215) 348-5600
Anthony Stipa Jr.
Keller Williams
Realty
Blue Bell
(215) 646-2066
Ann Marie Walsh
Keller Williams
Bensalem
(215) 638-3830
Heather Waters
Coldwell Banker
Hearthside,
Realtors
Newtown
(215) 499-9666
Published (and copyrighted) in Suburban Life Magazine, March 2018.
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