Philadelphia’s trend line as one of the hottest metro areas to buy and rent homes was reaffirmed this month by Zillow’s year-end ranking of the most popular markets in the United States.
On a list dominated by small towns in the Midwest, Philly came in at No. 19 as the only major U.S. city to crack the top 20. The median home value in the city stood at about $230,000 in November, according to Zillow’s figures, and the U.S. Federal Reserve put the median list price for the entire metro area at $370,000. Nationally, the Fed’s median list price for U.S. homes stood at about $415,000 last month.
While much of the interest in Philly has been driven by its comparative affordability next to other big cities — especially on the East Coast — longtime real estate agent Craig Lerch thinks the region’s growing appeal also is a reflection of its people and traditions.
“Philly is rare,” Lerch said. “We have grit, passion, love and history.”
Lerch is the host of “Selling 215 — Made in Philly,” a new series that debuted last month on Real Shows Network. The platform gives real estate agents runway to showcase their markets in 30-minute episodes available online and broadcast locally. The network is a spinoff of Ignite Now Media, the company founded by San Diego entrepreneur Craig Sewing, who hosts “The American Dream TV” series that streams on major platforms and airs on networks including HGTV, Travel Channel and CNBC.
Lerch’s show is one of more than a dozen now produced by RSN, including series based in Chicago, Houston, Nashville and the Silicon Valley. The series will debut new episodes on Philly 57 before they are posted on YouTube and streaming platforms.
“I’m an SOB. I’m a son of a broker who’s been doing it for 36 years and sold more than 4,000 homes,”Lerch said. “‘Selling 215’ is showing the city of Philadelphia, the character and the feel of the neighborhoods people want to live in. It’s about the real estate and the lifestyle — the value we have.”
In the first episode of the series, Lerch takes viewers inside a luxury condo on the 43rd floor of the Laurel in Rittenhouse, to the Renaissance Estates town homes in South Philly’s Packer Park neighborhood and inside Stephen Starr’s new Italian restaurant Borromini on Rittenhouse Square. He also visits the Italian Market, stops by Angelo’s Pizzeria to chat with owner Danny DiGiampietro and pays a visit to John’s Water Ice to interview third-generation owner Anthony Cardullo.
At Borromini, Lerch talks with developer and former City Councilmember Allan Domb, who had a major role in transforming Rittenhouse Square in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Domb bought the former Barclay Hotel, converting the 22-story building into custom luxury condos, and later partnered with Starr to open the…
Read More: Philly’s real estate and culture get spotlight in new series ‘Selling 215’
