Bizarro World continues in the real estate industry as our government and business leaders raise tanking consumer confidence in the market to a fine art.  Take today’s exchange I had with a fellow agent for example. I have a very aggressively priced southern Westchester County listing in a beautiful area that has been on the market […]

People are hurting in this economy. Many good folks who did nothing wrong are caught in the undertow of the recession and can’t find a soft spot to land. Upon occasion, I run into people in those circumstance. If they had been born at any other time in history, they wouldn’t face foreclosure. They’d have […]

This afternoon at the Crown Plaza Hotel in Suffern, the membership of the Rockland County Board of Realtors voted overwhelmingly to merge their organization with the Westchester-Putnam and Orange Associations. This was the second thumbs up in three days, as Westchester-Putnam had a similar yes-vote on Monday. Orange will vote on Tuesday.  You might ask […]

Once you’ve purchased your dream home, it’s time to protect it! Buying a home can be very risky without homeowners Insurance. It is essential for safeguarding your most valuable possession against defects, vandalism and disaster. It will cover the costs of repairs in the event of calamities such as fire, storms, vehicles, aircraft, riots, theft, […]

If you ever watch any home buying or remodeling shows on satellite or cable TV, you know what kinds of secrets a home inspection can reveal about a seemingly-safe house! Home inspections are crucial before finalizing any real estate purchase. The purpose of a home inspection is to evaluate the physical condition of the home […]

If you’re ready to start looking for your dream home, and you’ve narrowed your search to a few select neighborhoods, take these following tips to heart: 1. Types of homes. Choose the type of home that is the most appealing yet practical for you. In addition to single family homes, there are multifamily homes, condominiums […]

While the holidays are a favorite time of year for millions, it’s definitely not their favorite time to buy a home. The housing market plunges between the months of November and January as people put turkey dinners, tinsel and trees on the top of their lists and house hunting on the bottom. However, if you […]

Today was the annual meeting of the Westchester-Putnam Association of Realtors (WPAR), and it was not your typical annual meeting. Elections were held for both the Association and the Empire Access MLS, and Yours Truly was confirmed for a 3rd term as MLS Vice President. Among my duties in the past few months was to […]

What can you get for $540,000 in Tuckahoe, New York? I’m so glad you asked! $540,000 can get you a pretty, pre-war tudor on a quiet residential street in the Tuckahoe school district just a hop skip and a jump from New Rochelle and Bronxville. If you are like our client, you’ll get an 1840 […]

I have often said that a good real estate broker is more valuable for what we know than what we do. This evening, for example, my meeting with some nice people in Yonkers brought this to light.  I met with some prospective home sellers who were looking into selling a home that was built in […]

Almost exactly 2 years ago, on October 14, 2009, we closed on my in-laws’ co op in Queens. It was the end of an era, as my wife had grown up in that apartment; it had been in her family for decades. That day, we had a babysitting challenge, and we were forced to bring […]

(Consumers will find the following post either very boring or an interesting look inside baseball. My point of view is less of a selling broker and more of a manager of 20+ licensees.)  Chris Smith, AKA Tech Savvy Agent, has authored a gutsy article on Inman entitled You Need to Delete Your Facebook Business Pages […]

Perhaps you’ve had the pleasure of meeting Joe Sasquatch and his lovely wife, Nessie. I never have, but a former client of mine knows someone who either knows a mutual friend or knows OF Joe, but the details are not important.  Joe, if you haven’t heard, is the guy who bought that $700,000 bank owned […]

Let me preface this by saying I have no beef with the folks at DocuSign. They have an excellent product. This may not even be their doing,  But it is now day III of “what are you thinking?” and I have yet to even get a response to an email I wrote them on the […]

The 3rd quarter of 2011 was better in volume for single family home sales than the 3rd quarter of 2010 from a volume perspective, according to the data I found on the Empire Access MLS. And in comparing the years to date,  2011 is still “catching up” to 2010 and may indeed do so by […]

Update: The Meetup is set for Tusday, December 6 at 6pm at Toga Bar, Caesar’s Atlantic City! For those of you in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, the annual Triple Play convention will be held this December 6-8 in Atlantic City. I have gone to the last two and just registered for this year’s […]

What can you buy in Ardsley for $250,000? How about a nice condo at Ashford Court? The building was once a school that was converted to condominiums in the 80’s with splendid results- the old school yard is now a huge parking lot with 2 spaces per unit, and the structure has mad character and […]

Buyers in this real estate market enjoy many more liberties and advantages with sellers than I have ever seen since I was first licensed in 1996. Not only do they have the lowest rates in half a century, they have far more bargaining power, and in Westchester County, where a starter home can cost $500,000, […]

One of the risks a real estate broker like myself incurs when commenting on the market is the perception that we as licensees puff things up to make the climate seem better than it really is. Given that we are entitled to our own opinion but not our own facts, I’ll lead with the numbers […]

Here are a few useful tips for all agents, both new and old, in the proper care and feeding of the guy who owns and runs the brokerage where you ply your trade.  I will be quick to add that many of the things I suggest here are things my team already does well, and […]