Category townhome

New development has really put Graduate Hospital on the map

 
If you’re familiar with Philadelphia and its many neighborhoods, then you are definitely familiar with Graduate Hospital; a tiny, well-defined neighborhood in South Philadelphia (or Southwest Center City, it just depends who you ask).

G-Ho, Grad Hosp, and South-of-South are all common names for this nabe, but the real success of Graduate Hospital was kickstarted by Naval Square almost 10 years ago. Toll Brothers purchased this abandoned Naval Academy, which also happened to be the country’s first, back in 1988 as a portfolio project. But it wasn’t until 2005 that the first new homes were built and sold in this gated community.

Fred Glick and I created some informative videos on Graduate not too long ago, so if you haven’t seen them before I’ve posted the links below for you:

Graduate Hospital – Part 1

Graduate Hospital – Part 2

Graduate Hospital – Part 3

Although Naval Square ignited G-Ho’s real estate success, it was the efforts of individual investors/developers who really moved it forward. Philadelphia’s older neighborhoods consist of rowhomes, twin homes, and the like. Which means there are many more homes/parcels on 1 city block than on 1 suburban block. Which also means that you need a lot of like-minded people on board if you want to turn things around. They banded together, and now South-of-South is also known as one of Philadelphia’s top family-friendly neighborhoods.

What was once known as an undesirable place to live due to the threat of a new expressway cutting across its core, has since become one of the most popular neighborhoods in the city.

This article is a great place to start if you are unfamiliar with G-Ho.

Let’s Trade: Multiple City-Owned Vacant Lots and Houses – FOR – 31 New / Mixed-Use / Eco-Friendly Homes

These roof decks should have awesome views!

 
I would say that’s a good deal.

All kidding aside, it wasn’t an actual trade but a purchase by a private developer for city-owned real estate. Nonetheless, it will be a nice change for an already-on-fire neighborhood. Postgreen’s Folsom Powerhouse project promises a few things to its future customers: Convenient Mixed-Use Development, Energy Efficient Design, and Affordable Units for Varying Income Levels. Based on Postgreen’s past development history, I’d say it’s doable.

Francisville is going through a building boom right now, due to its highly-accessible location (right next to Fairmount and Center City) and an abundance of vacant lots. Well, there used to be an abundance of them. Most have either been bought by developers, or are being developed as we speak.

If you’ve never heard of Francisville before, you’re not alone. Most residents of this area refer to the entire 19130 zip code as either Fairmount or the Art Museum Area. It’s the locals who have lived there for a long time (sometimes for generations), that know the difference between Fairmount and Francisville.

The unofficial borders of Francisville are Girard Ave (North), Broad St (East), Fairmount Ave (South), and Corinthian Ave (West). These are the borders typically listed online, and they are also the ones that real estate agents use most often. Again, since I’m not a Francisville local, I apologize for any errors with defining your neighborhood.

So, why is Francisville being reinvented?

There are a few reasons why (IMHO):

1) Its Location: Francisville is super-conveniently located just east of Fairmount (which has been going through positive neighborhood changes for a few decades now), and just north of Center City (which allows those who work downtown to either walk, bike, or hop on the subway during their daily commute).

2) Its Changing Demographic: The new residents seeking shelter in Francisville are typically young professionals, families, and empty nesters. The same type of people who are currently buying in Center City. They want access to Center City (and its surrounding area/amenities), but do not want to pay Center City prices (per sq/ft). Hot real estate, for less money, equals high demand.

3) Its Housing Stock: Due to the large proliferation of vacant lots in Francisville, it has allowed developers to get in fairly easily, build what they want, and still make a good profit (probably better than most Philadelphia neighborhoods). New construction townhomes/condos, with upgraded amenities and roof decks, is the most common theme. All for less than what you would pay for similar real estate in Center City (most of the time). On top of that, there are many different new construction homes to choose from due to all of the new development; so buyers can be a little picky, even though the current trend is slowly changing to a seller’s market. In a neighborhood like Rittenhouse Square, new construction is hard to find due to its denser, and more established, layout.

There are more reasons why Philadelphians are flocking to this small section of the city, but I’ll let you do a little Google’ing on your own to learn more about why Francisville is one of Philadelphia’s 10 hottest neighborhoods for real estate.