What $500K Will Buy You in Broomall

Two peas in a pod and a classic split-level about to be reborn.


2602 Selwyn Dr., Broomall, Pa. 19008 | TREND image via BHHS Fox & Roach Realtors

Broomall, located about halfway between the Main Line and Media, has a sort of white-bread quality about it. People don’t move here in search of excitement or suburban downtowns. They come here in search of one of those classic suburbs straight out of “Leave It to Beaver.”

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You’ll probably hear the theme song to that 1950s sitcom playing in the back of your head as you check out the three homes we found in our target price range in Broomall this week, for they’re all suburban classics. But although all of these look like they date to the midcentury years, one of our two center-hall Colonials is actually a good bit newer than that. And the owner of the split-level, which was built in 1960, has begun a top-to-bottom rebuild of the place.

The chief feature that attracts buyers to this community, it seems, is its school district: Marple Newtown gets much love in the real estate listings. (The love is deserved: it’s a strong performer in a part of Delaware County that’s chock-full of high-achieving school districts.) But these three homes all have attractive features of their own.

2602 Selwyn Dr. (above) | 4 beds, 2 full, 1 half baths, 2,640 square feet, $475,000

This home in Broomall’s Parkwyne Estates subdivision may well be the textbook example of a mid-market center-hall Colonial. Built in 1970 according to the traditional layout, this home hasn’t been tinkered with all that much since it was built. There’s an attractive newer family room with huge windows and a fireplace tacked onto the back, and the kitchen boasts redone white cabinetry and granite countertops. Oh, and the roof and windows are new. Were we to buy this home, we’d probably paint that eat-in kitchen a color other than pink, which has unfortunate connotations in that context for reasons that should be obvious when you think about it for a minute. Aside from that, though, this home has been very well maintained over the years.

And its listing underscores what we were saying about Broomall: it touts its proximity to Media as a selling point, though it also points out that the Lawrence Park Shopping Center is close by as well.

2602 Selwyn Dr., Broomall, Pa. 19008 [Diana Halliman | BHHS Fox & Roach Realtors]

100 Academy Rd., Broomall, Pa. 19008 | TREND image via BHHS Fox & Roach Realtors

100 Academy Lane | 4 beds, 2 full, 1 half baths, 2,111 square feet, $489,900

This slightly newer center-hall Colonial remains in its original form throughout, and like the home above has been well maintained over the years. Its listing, however, provides yet another example of how agents play fast and loose with terms. Save for the eat-in kitchen/family room combo, there’s nothing open about this home’s main floor plan at all: Large archways do not an open plan make. But the rooms that make up the main floor feel open thanks to their generous proportions and large windows that let in lots of light. There’s also a full finished basement for recreation and relaxing and an attractive paved patio in the back.

As for those locational amenities, the listing for this home touts the Marple Newtown School District and its location on a quiet cul-de-sac “close to major transportation arteries.” Those would be West Chester Pike and Sproul Road, the main east-west and north-south streets through Broomall.

100 Academy Lane, Broomall, Pa. 19008 [Bobby Small | BHHS Fox & Roach Realtors]

92 Cherry Hill Rd., Broomall, Pa. 19008 | Photo: Owner via Zillow

92 Cherry Hill Lane | 3 beds, 2 full, 1 half baths, 2,000 square feet, $475,000

This 1960 split-level is the oldest of the three homes we picked this week, but it’s in the process of becoming the newest.  Its owner-builder has begun a complete rebuild of the home. When done, it will have all the modern touches buyers go for now, including brand-new hardwood floors, a kitchen with granite counters, stainless-steel appliances and an island, all-new master and hall bathrooms, a rear deck and patio, a three-season room off the basement rec room, and more – plus a sub-basement where you can stash your surplus stuff. The landscaping in front has already been completed; it’s a shame that laying the sod in the off-season makes the 0.6-acre lot look more barren than it is.

This home comes with one other extra-special amenity: A creek flows through its backyard, making it even more appealing for outdoor entertaining and relaxation. It too is located “in close proximity to major roadways, schools, shopping and more.” And it offers a simple math equation at the end: “Marple Newtown School District + low taxes = win/win!”

(We’d rather be in the middle of it all a little ways down Sproul Road, where we could walk to the shopping and dining while sending the kids to Rose Tree Media schools, but again, that’s just us. If you prefer the high-car lifestyle, this would be a great choice.)

The owner states that the home should be ready for move-in next year. When next year is unclear, but from the looks of it, it should be early.

92 Cherry Hill Lane, Broomall, Pa. 19008 [For sale by owner via Zillow]