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I’m a Dad!!!!

No, we weren’t expecting another one- I’m a BLOGGING dad! This morning, as I perused the Active Rain features, I almost fell off my chair. I am so used to seeing Tom’s face that I almost didn’t notice, but there, 6 posts down the page from my own post, was Tom Ricapito, licensed agent with […]
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Yorktown Real Estate Market August 2010

As the beads of persipration gathered on my furrowed brow, I – Wait, this is a market report. Sorry. *ahem* Yorktown is a large town in northern Westchester County served by both the Yorktown and Lakeland School districts. It is is very post-war suburban in character- the vast majority of homes are 60’s and 70’s era […]
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Square Pegs in Round Holes

This post is inspired by Brittany Rollins thought provoking post. It struck a chord. Real estate is a hard business, especially right now. You have to love it. If you don’t, you should probably get out, or at least get out of the part of the industry you don’t love. I know many people in the industry […]
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Overseeing the Top and Bottom

A brief observation prompted by nothing in particular. One of the biggest ironies of government solutions to housing problems is how heavily regulated the foot soldiers (agents, loan officers) have become while the executives in the glass tower can build billion dollar ponzi schemes and get away with it. I can’t have a discussion about […]

Active Rain I’m a Dad!!!! No, we weren’t expecting another one- I’m a BLOGGING dad! This morning, as I perused the Active Rain features, I almost fell off my chair. I am so used to seeing Tom’s face that I almost didn’t notice, but there, 6 posts down the page from my own post, was Tom Ricapito, licensed agent with […]

Active Rain Yorktown Real Estate Market August 2010 As the beads of persipration gathered on my furrowed brow, I – Wait, this is a market report. Sorry. *ahem* Yorktown is a large town in northern Westchester County served by both the Yorktown and Lakeland School districts. It is is very post-war suburban in character- the vast majority of homes are 60’s and 70’s era […]

Active Rain Square Pegs in Round Holes This post is inspired by Brittany Rollins thought provoking post. It struck a chord. Real estate is a hard business, especially right now. You have to love it. If you don’t, you should probably get out, or at least get out of the part of the industry you don’t love. I know many people in the industry […]

Active Rain Overseeing the Top and Bottom A brief observation prompted by nothing in particular. One of the biggest ironies of government solutions to housing problems is how heavily regulated the foot soldiers (agents, loan officers) have become while the executives in the glass tower can build billion dollar ponzi schemes and get away with it. I can’t have a discussion about […]

Active Rain How Safe Are You? I seldom reblog, but this is an important message. September is Realtor Safety Month. This is not a minor thing. We meet strangers in strange places for a living. There are news stories of our colleagues being assaulted and killed. I was once assaulted- by a client- an imbalanced one- and there was a huge […]

Active Rain I Love Referrals I am often asked why I blog. Clients wonder, fellow agents ask, and many who have read my words are curious why I produce all this commentary. There are a number of reasons: it is therapeutic, I have a big mouth, I like to write, it keeps my company visible, and many other motivations come […]

Active Rain What a Pleasure Sometimes you just have to tip your hat. It seems so rare these days, especially in New York, where terse tolerance of the competition is the most we expect in this market. With the State Association (NYSAR) in town this week, 4 kids just getting back into the school routine, and my admin out all […]

Active Rain Croton on Hudson, NY Real Estate Market August 2010 This market report is for single family homes in the Croton-Harmon school district. All data is from the Westchester-Putnam MLS. Last month I wrote the following observation: The median asking price of $624,450 is over 100k more than the median sales price, so I don’t think we’ll see a huge increase in volume until buyers […]

Active Rain Peekskill Dog Splash September 25, 2010 10am-Noon I have blogged about the Peekskill Dog Park before. It just happens to be the creation of clients of mine. The story is that they got the city to dedicate underused parkland to an attraction that gets dozens of users a week. In 12 days, the park will have its 2nd annual fundraiser, the Peekskill […]

Active Rain Re-thinking Linking (or Your Hijack is my Trackback) I have read a number of places on Active Rain about the protocol of posting your own links in comments and the belief that linking back to your own post is considered hijacking a blog. Others have stated that if a link is posted by a commenter, they’ll delete it. Where did this start? Isn’t linking back […]

Active Rain Speech Sundays: Max and Gregory

Active Rain FHA Offers Short Refi Program For Underwater Homeowners Howard Sobel posted recently on the FHA program to refinance people who have negative equity. I think the idea is brilliant, and opens up possibilities other than a short sale for people who are underwater and want to keep their home. I’m sure there is small print, but if it helps 3-4 million people in the […]

Active Rain Chappaqua Real Estate Market August 2010 Chappaqua is a beautiful hamlet located in the town of New Castle in north central Westchester County. It is known, nominally, as the adopted home of the Clintons and Reader’s Digest, and for being a idyllic, bucolic setting. New Castle abuts the Town of Ossining, and it is time to give the place a little […]

Active Rain Peekskill, NY Real Estate Market August 2010 This is the market data for August of 2010 for single family homes in Peekskill, and all information is sourced from the Westchester-Putnam MLS. OK- here goes: Prices are way down. Only 1 home sold, so all statistics are at the mercy of a number too small to be considered a representative sample. Median price last […]

Active Rain Thoughts on ReBar Camp Rye ReBarCamp Rye was held today at the Rye Town Hilton, and it was my first ever BarCamp. I am typically rather cynical about seminars, camps and such, due mainly because I am tired of being recruited and I abhor being sold to. However, like Raincamp, there was no “product.” The sponsors weren’t hawked, and the […]

Active Rain iPad as a Help for Children with Autism Ann announced today that she’d like us to get a iPad for Gregory. She emailed me a link of 10 apps for iPad which can help children on the Spectrum. Looking over the apps, they strike me as excellent, and right down Gregory’s alley. He responds to interactive, and just mastered the mouse a few […]

Active Rain Nine Years On There are many fellow New Yorkers (and New Jerseyans- they might have even had a better view) who might have a more up close and personal recollection of September 11, 2001. I think there is value in sharing our memories. Ann and I were in Rego Park Queens. Our wedding was 18 days away, and […]

Active Rain The Money You “Lost” in Your Price Reduction Wasn’t Real With a median home price hovering near $700,000, even a modest price reduction on a Westchester County home can be tens of thousands of dollars. I have to approach a reduction with the diplomacy of a funeral director but be as convincing as a physician imploring his patient to quit smoking. No one could predict […]

Active Rain Ossining Real Estate Market August 2010 This market report is for single family home activity in the Ossining school district for August of 2010. All information is derived from the Westchester-Putnam Multiple Listing Service. The numbers are up, which is encouraging we we distance ourselves from the stimulus. The number of transactions is up 40% from August of 2009 and the median price […]

Active Rain Wordless Wednesday: Sunflower for Laurie