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Introducing The Barb Bottitta Team
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Why you should choose Barb Bottitta’s Lehigh Valley Home Experts:
Helping our clients to achieve their home buying goals is almost like building a home. If you had one individual who had to clear the land, put in the foundation, do the framework, electrical, plumbing, finish carpentry and paint it would take forever and the results would not be as good as if you had an expert craftsman who specialized in each task. It’s the same thing in Real Estate. If one individual had to do everything, whether it’s searching the MLS for new listings, advertising, going on listing appointments, returning feedback calls, working with buyers, working with sellers or checking for all the legal and financial aspects of a closing, there’s no way one person can get it all done and do a superior job at each task.
I feel so blessed to have such an incredible team working with me and for our clients. Each member of the team contributes to the synergy that allows us to provide you Real Estate services that exceed your expectations and help you to achieve your home buying and selling goals. My Team and I take pride in providing our clients, the very best in service, real estate expertise and Internet technology. Our experience and professionalism benefit you, our clients, with all your home purchasing and selling needs.
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Heather Noll Kasarda, a Buyer's Specialist, joined Keller Williams in August, 2007, and the Barb Bottitta team in 2008. She especially loves working with first-time home buyers, taking time to educate them so they are comfortable with each step of the home buying process.
Born and raised in the Lehigh Valley, Heather loves being involved with the local community. She actively participates in children's charities and appreciates the Valley's sense of community and family focus. She is a graduate of Rosemont and Bryn Mawr colleges, and was a forensic social worker prior to her real estate career. She lives in the West End of Allentown with her husband, Rich, and her chocolate Labrador Retriever, Gatsby.
E-mail Heather at HeatherK@KW.com.
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Rebekah Gehman began her career in real estate in 2003, joining the Barb Bottitta Team in 2007. A Buyer's Specialist, she loves turning dreams of home ownership into reality. She appreciates the support from the Team which allows her to concentrate on each buyer's particular needs.
From her successful career showing and training Arabian horses Rebekah learned patience and the importance of integrity and honest communication. She enjoys fundraising for charities and is the special events co-chair for the Lehigh Valley Association of Realtors. A long-time resident of the Lehigh Valley, Rebekah lives in Upper Macungie Township with her husband David, a masonry contractor, her daughter Aynsley, and two dogs, Mini & Lexington.
E-mail Rebekah at RebGehman@gmail.com.
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Deb Homa joined Keller Williams in 2008. As a buyer's agent, she loves the excitement of matching buyers with the home they have been searching for--especially first-time buyers. Her Accredited Staging Professional designation makes her an expert at getting homes in top selling condition.
Originally from Gloversville, NY, Deb relocated to Breinigsville in the Lehigh Valley over a decade ago. She has a BA in art from SUNY Oneonta and enjoyed a rewarding career working with special needs students in the East Penn School District. She is the president of the Parkland Kiwanis Club and works with many community organizations. Deb and her huband, Rob, have three beautiful daughters.
E-mail Deb at DebHoma@KW.com.
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Tina Talago, a buyer’s agent, loves representing buyers in their quest to find their perfect home. She has enjoyed selling real estate in the Lehigh Valley for three years. Before becoming a realtor, she owned and operated several hair styling salons for 20 years.
Tina was born in Italy and raised in Philadelphia. But she knows the Lehigh Valley well—it has been her home for over 30 years. In her spare time she loves to travel, ski, read and watch her sons play soccer. She resides in New Tripoli with her husband, two teenage sons, and a chubby beagle named Rocky. Email Tina at
TTalago@gmail.com.
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Judy Piovesan is Barb's Transaction Manager. A large part of Judy's day is spent working with lenders, inspectors, and closing companies. She personally follows each client's paperwork from the time their home goes under agreement to the closing date. For buyers, Judy sets up their search using their "wish list". For sellers, Judy helps Barb gather statisics for monthly updates of competitive and comparative properties.
Judy has been a key member of the Barb Bottitta Team for over a decade and has nearly 20 years of experience in the real estate field. She and her husband, Ray, reside in South Whitehall Township. They have two children in college.
E-mail Judy at Judy@LVhomeExpert.com.
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Betty Isaacson (e-PRO) is Barb's Listings Manager. She works with Barb to handle all aspects of the listing transaction. She designs colorful feature sheets, develops marketing content (including interior tours of our clients' properties), maintains the real estate listings on this website, creates the layouts for weekly advertising, and prepares monthly mailings to current and past clients. Betty coordinates all of the Bottitta Team's marketing efforts.
Betty earned her real estate licence and e-PRO designation and has worked with the Barb Bottitta Team since moving to the Lehigh Valley over five years ago. She resides in Bethlehem with her husband, Bob, and her dogs, George and Gracie.
E-mail Betty at Number1Expert@rcn.com.
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Lou Bottitta, Barb's husband, is the Team's technology consultant. An information systems professional with over 30 years of experience, Lou keeps The Barb Bottitta Team ahead of the competition in its use of technology, the internet, social media, and blogging. Lou covers the technical aspects of the Team's multiple websites, maintains its databases, and keeps the staff up-to-date with training.
Lou is a licensed REALTOR® with his e-PRO designation, and he occasionally meets with clients. A graduate of Kings College, he has worked for the Lehigh Valley Hospital for thirty years and loves playing tennis and bicycling for charities. He is a great dad to their two grown children.
E-mail Lou at Lou@LVhomeExpert.com.
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Last but not least...Michelangelo and Raphael, the office mascots, are probably the busiest cats in the Lehigh Valley. As Barb and Lou's full time pets and part-time office mascots, they provide warmth, affection, and moral support. They do their best thinking curled up in their bed next to Barb's desk.
E-mail them at Kittens@LVhomeExpert.com. |  Call or email us for help, or to have your questions answered. Fill out this form and We'll get right back to you... 
Tax Considerations >New 1031 Exchange Rules
One of the most popular "tax deferring" strategies for real estate owners who are selling one property and acquiring another is the use of Section 1031 of the Internal Revenue Code. It is an effective way to defer paying income tax on capital gain generated by the sale of a property when you intend to reinvest the proceeds in a similar, "like-kind" property. Almost any kind of real property is considered "like-kind" with any other real property.
A recently enacted law closes what was considered a loophole in the Section 1031 rules. In some cases, owners of investment real estate have used the 1031 Exchange to swap their investment property for real estate that could be readily converted to an owner-occupied residential property. After the exchange, they made the property into their principal residence, lived in it for a couple of years, then sold it. Now the American Job Creation Act of 2004 has ruled that properties converted from a 1031 exchange property into a residence must be held and used as a principal residence for at least five years to qualify for the tax exemption. Otherwise, the basic tax-deferring benefits of 1031 exchanges remain the same.
Consult your tax advisor for more detailed information.
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What famous antebellum mansion was known as the "Queen of Tennessee Plantations"?
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Belle Meade Plantation was a prosperous 5,400-acre thoroughbred horse farm in the mid 1800's. The Civil War Battle of Nashville was fought in its front yard. |
 See More Real Estate Trivia > |
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 The
data relating to real estate for sale on this web site comes in part from the
Internet Data Exchange of the Lehigh Valley Association of REALTORS Multiple
Listing Service. Real Estate listings held by brokerage firms (licensees) other
than Keller Williams Real Estate are marked with the IDX logo and detailed
information about them includes the name of the listing brokers. The
information being provided is for consumers personal, non-commercial use and
may not be used for any purpose other than to identify prospective properties
consumers may be interested in purchasing. |
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- NUMBER1EXPERT™ 
