Real estate workshop celebrates city living
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Up hills, along tight curves and down into the river valleys, a bus full of local real-estate agents navigated Pittsburgh last week on a tour the Urban Redevelopment Authority put together to boost city home sales.
"I just got a whole different perspective," said Mary Lynne Deets, education manager for the Realtors Association of Metropolitan Pittsburgh, who sold only about five homes in the city during a 30-year sales career.
That's the kind of statistic the URA would like to change.
While open to all real estate professionals, the tour was designed to enlighten suburban agents unfamiliar with the city and all it has to offer. Officials hope their upbeat message will hit home, many times over.
"A lot of people want a walkable, pedestrian-friendly community to live in with a lot going on. That's what urban living is all about," said Kyra Straussman, URA real estate director.
Ms. Straussman said the URA ramped up home marketing efforts at Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's direction about three years ago.
In May, the URA launched a Web site -- Pittsburghcityliving.com -- that pairs prospective home buyers with neighborhoods meeting their requirements. "It's like Match.com for your neighborhood," Ms. Straussman said.
The workshop for real estate agents, "City Living: A Focus on the Pittsburgh Client," was another phase of the initiative. It was developed by Ms. Straussman; Josette Fitzgibbons, coordinator of the Mainstreets and Elm Street programs; and Megan Stearman, Mainstreets development specialist.
About 20 agents, most with little knowledge of the city, signed up. Under a special arrangement with the state Real Estate Commission, all received continuing education credits needed to maintain their licenses.
The agents saw new construction on the Central North Side, in Fineview and at Summerset at Frick Park. They heard about the house-by-house revival of Friendship, the development spurt in East Liberty and Lawrenceville's recent emergence as a hot housing market.
First Published November 1, 2010 12:00 am
