The Philadelphia Mural Arts Project -- Dealing with Urban Blight

I saw this segment on CNBC Squawk Box and I thought it was novel.

While Cleveland is dealing with blight by destroying 6000 properties

And Detroit is trying to figure out its debt.

Philadelphia is turning to philanthropy and art, engaging artists that might not have had a chance at expression, and giving their Urban Landscape compelling pieces of art.

They are employing folks from many walks of life.

Please Click Here to here Jane Golden discuss this pretty awesome program.

October Market Update 2014

I hope this post finds you well.

1. The Lehigh Valley Association of Realtors Report.

For the Year, the amount of closed transactions are down. -4.2%. Median price remaining steady is a positive step for the direction of the market.


2. Distressed Sales and General Month's Supply of Inventory.

Please Click here to view the PDF

Supply for Non-Bank Properties is -14.3%

Supply for Bank Properties is -35.5%

This is catch up. There have been less pended properties year to date as compared to last year. However, 100 more properties sold last year as compared to October of last year. MSI presumes that if this rate stays the same for November, and no other homes enter the market, then there will be no homes to buy in 5.9 months for non-bank properties.

We'll see if we can pend as many units as we did last year!

The Atlantic Magazine's Coverage of Allentown

The Atlantic Magazine Marketplace feature is reporting on different small towns in America. One of them happens to be Allentown, Pa and its Neighborhood Improvement Zone. I think the content is compelling because the writers are not local and write from different perspectives.

Here is the Audio-cast and story produced by the Marketplace

1. This article is written just hours before the inaugural kickoff of the PPL Center in downtown Allentown.

-This was written by James Fallows, who was once Jimmy Carter's  speech writer.

2. Parkette's -- This is a place that inspires awesome, as the author puts it.

"The program grew and flourished during Allentown’s first glory days, when next-door powerhouse Bethlehem Steel was making jobs for the region and steel for the iconic structures of America—the Golden Gate Bridge, the Hoover Dam, and the Empire State Building, to name a few." - Deborah Fallows, Author of Dreaming in Chinese

3. A more Philosophical political look at Allentown. There were a lot of comments on this article. I will not provide an analysis other than there seemed to be a back and forth around the commentors.

"In respect to the authors take on Allentown's NIZ: They also anticipate advantages to the surrounding Lehigh Valley area and, ultimately, to the state’s coffers. It's an optimistic vision, for sure, but I don't see any particular reason to be skeptical of it. " -John Tierney, Former Boston University professor

There are more articles and I will post them here at Prudenthousing.