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Why I Won’t Do a 1-legged Meeting

I seldom see this discussed among real estate professionals, but it is worth addressing as more people consider putting their home on the market. There are some exceptions, such as an acrimonious divorce or estate with multiple heirs, but overall it is a rule I run my business by. When I am brought over to […]
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What You Post Online Can Make or Break You

Like many of us, I followed yesterday’s news of the shooting in Arizona with sorrow and revulsion at the events. Thus far, half a dozen people, including a 9-year old child and a federal judge have perished and congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords is in critical condition after being shot in the head. I posted on Twitter […]
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A Muse: If I Won the $355 Million Mega Millions Tonight

I’m not a big gambler but I’ve always had a muse about what I would do with windfall money. Like many, the fantasy of setting up close friends and family, a comfortable lifestyle, and a few toys always comes up when the guy on the radio is hawking lottery tickets. Since big numbers like $300+ million come […]
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Did You Enjoy Your $900,000 Breakfast?

Yes, there are $900,000 breakfasts. There are $400,000 out of town guests. There are also $600,000 naps. Have you ever seen a $300,000 pack of cigarettes? I have. I personally witnessed a $900,000 litter box once this past spring. I’ll never forget the $675,000 dog either. What I am referring to are the banal, small […]
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You Never Stop Learning

This is a photo I took of a recent brokers and managers meeting the Westchester-Putnam Association of REALTORS held to bring us up on the recent changes to real estate laws and how that affected our responsibilities to our clients. The quality of the snapshot isn’t good because I thought it would be a tad obnoxious to use my […]
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Phil’s Top 10 Posts of 2010

David Popoff has written an intriguing post, asking us what our top 10 posts o 2010 were. His metric was clicks, but you could, I suppose also do a list for comments. Comments don’t make me money, so I’ll stick with clicks also. Here are my top 10: The Money You “Lost” in Your Price Reduction […]
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Please Raingods, I Want Some More

I’ll begin this post with the plain fact that if it weren’t for Active Rain, my business would be far less than what it is. I am a big believer in the platform, and I am grateful for how it has enriched me. That said, I am the sort of guy who prefers to talk […]
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REBar Camp New York is January 11, 2011 and it is FREE

I never attended a REBarCamp until this past October in Rye at the NYSAR event. I didn’t know what they were all about, but I had a baptism of fire when I was actually conscripted to moderate a session! If you have never been to a REBarCamp and you are wondering, don’t fret. All you need to […]
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2010 By The Numbers

I am going to indulge in a brazen self promotional post since the end of the year is here, mainly to state the facts, since Ann tells me I don’t stress the level of performance I, um, perform. So here are a few facts about how J. Philip did in 2010, both myself personally and […]
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Fridays Fotos: Mark’s Jazzy Gift- a Flashlight??!!
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When Does the Spring Market Begin?

Now that the holidays are all but past, the “slow season” is officially over. Spring gets busy, but when does Spring start in Westchester real estate? March? After the Super Bowl? In my experience, “Spring” in real estate starts January 2nd. It may sound silly, but motivated buyers have been lurking online for months now, […]
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How About a Little Civility

Believe it or not, New Yorkers are not the rudest people I have run into. Having lived in several different places, including Boston, Philadelphia and New Orleans, I have run into some meanies (few in N.O.). But when I moved back to Westchester in 2001, I was pleasantly reminded how comparatively nice my fellow noo […]
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Wordless Wednesday: Joy in the Snow
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The Lesson of Reader’s Digest

Reader’s Digest has a huge world headquarters in nearby Chappaqua, New York. I should say HAD a huge headquarters. The company quietly left the campus this past week to smaller digs in Manhattan. This represents the fall of a local giant, and the final exit of a company that was a Westchester institution. To work […]
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Lighting the Way For Santa Claus in Ossining

Merry Christmas from New York. One of the things I love about where I live is a Christmas Eve tradition in my old neighborhood where the people line the streets with candles. It is a sight to behold in person, and even though it was late on a Christmas Eve, you can see other cars […]
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HUD Rejects Westchester’s Affordable Housing Proposal

The US Department of Housing and Urban Development has rejected Westchester County’s latest proposal for affordable housing to be built in the county as a result of last year’s settlement of the government’s lawsuit. The “problem” is as old as the county, but the upshot is that the government has said enough is enough and […]
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Uncommon Economic Indicator: Prostitution in Westchester County

I suppose I could find a real estate angle for just about anything, and I will now as well: in today’s paper, a “spa” located down the street from my office was raided and the police arrested two in a prostitution sting. Earlier this month, the same thing happened in Mohegan Lake, NY a hamlet […]
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What Can You Buy in Scarsdale for $297,500?

I suppose I could have rounded off the title to $300,000, but why not be precise. $297,500 buys a really nice cooperative apartment in the Edgemont complex with 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, and a balcony. As you can see, the place is fabulously updated with a sparkling new kitchen with granite counters and stainless steel […]
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The Possible, the Impossible, and the Nuts

For the second time in a week I had a conversation where the idea came up that a high volume producer (which, I guess, I am for my market) doesn’t typically give the same level of service to the client as a smaller numbers person who ostensibly has more time. I don’t take umbrage with […]
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What Does $350,000 Buy in Brewster, NY?

$350,000 goes pretty far in Brewster these days. Today we closed on a listing at that very price which was quite uncommon: a Victorian manor house on 2 acres with a carriage house/garage and a view of the reservoir. It had been purchased in 2005 for $562,000 and restored before the economy tanked. An 1870 build (by […]

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