Also known as grieving property taxes or tax certiorari, having your home re assessed is becoming commonplace in Westchester as people realize that their local government will happily raise their taxes when the market is up, but won’t break a sweat lowering them when it is in decline. There are three typical ways Westchester property owners lower their taxes, but all have the same common process:

• You meet with the tax assessor;
• You show them that your home is valued less than its assessed value, typically with a recent appraisal or contract of sale;
• They lower the assessment for the following tax year. 

It wasn’t until I lived outside the Metropolitan area that I truly appreciated the cool names of  many of the towns in Westchester County. You have to imagine being on a commuter train and having the MTA guy shout out the stop in the local tongue. 

1. Yonkers- YAHNK-ahs! Or, as my mom used to ask, “what are Yonkers?”
2. Mamaroneck- Rolls off the tongue.
3. Ardsley- I love that hard A in the ARD.
4. Armonk- Ditto
5. Tuckahoe-No comment needed. 
6. Ossining- Would be Top Dog if it were still known as Sing Sing.
7. Sleepy Hollow- Formerly North Tarrytown. Thank God they changed the name. Legendary.
8. Rye- Succinct.
9. Dobbs Ferry- On the Hudson, but I never actually saw a ferry here. 
10. Port Chester- It actually has a port, too. 

Westchester magazine has published its picks for best restaurants in the county, and I thought I’d chime in with a few picks of my own. These are my opinion only, and if you disagree I hope you enjoy your research.

• Bronxville: Underhill’s Crossing. American Bistro owned and operated by Stephen Palm, who I have known for 10 years. Underhill’s has been a fixture on Pondfield Road for over a decade, and offers al fresco dining in favorable weather, a fantastic bar, and great service. 
• Hartsdale: Harry’s of Hartsdale. Steakhouse/Oyster bar in Stephen Palm’s group. Located across the street from the train station, the raw bar and aged steak are very reminiscent of a fine Manhattan eatery.
• Port Chester: Willett House. Classic steakhouse in a restored building overlooking the Byram River. Fantastic steak served in the classic style in a rich, pleasant atmosphere. 
• Pleasantville: Mediterraneo. Italian food with a good selection of fine wine. The chef owns the place and is on premises. Outstanding, tasty dishes of all varieties, reasonably priced and a loyal customer base.
• Briarcliff Manor: Tuscan Grille. Italian food specializing in great lunches. Formerly Torchia’s, it was bought by employees who have kept the tradition of great dishes going. Walking distance from my office! 
• Elmsford: Pete’s Saloon. Old reliable. American fare with the great tavern atmosphere the name suggests.

In a past life I tended bar at Harry’s and became familiar with the management. They know what they are doing, and it shows. I have dined at each of these places numerous times, and that includes breaking bread with clients and colleagues. 

This list is by no means complete, and as a matter of fact I’ll enjoy adding to it quite a bit.

Mangia!    

Max ran out of kibble so I ran down to Arcadian Shopping Center to replentish the dawg Smörgåsbord. You see a lot when you open your eyes, and I am glad I brought the camera. Over the past 2 years, I have seen business in town contract, close, and cause vacancies. That trend appears to be reversing, and Ossining is open for business. Here are a few good signs of growth and expansion of commerce. 

Some of the vacancies are 2-3 years old; a large restaurant just opened in the same shopping center which I’ll blog about in the near future. The fact that so much is happening at the same time is significant to me. All of this is happening within a diameter of 300 or so yards. This is no coincidence, and portends a recovery in my view. 

This will have a positive effect on Ossining real estate. Oh yes, another business is expanding, and it is about to put a few signs up as well.

Not far from my home, adjacent to a popular shopping center and on a well traveled, visible street corner, there is the former home of Chase Bank. It is an all-brick building, with a parking lot and offices. It would be a turn key opportunity for another bank and a phenomenal location for any professional or retail business. If I had the means I’d move my company to that location in a heartbeat. Asking price when I inquired a 2 years ago was $1 million. Despite the great location and set up, it remains vacant for 2 years since Chase acquired Bank of New York and moved to the other side of the Chilmark Shopping Center. I am sure that when the economy recovers another business will be there. 

Across town, there is a medium sized private residence next to an industrial site on a less traveled road. It is a house; nothing about it would be turnkey for a business. However, it is located in an area zoned for general business, and is on the market for just under $1 million.

Question: If the building by the shopping center can’t get a taker, why would the house get one?

Every so often, I get contacted by a potential client in the second scenario who believes that their ship has come in because of their zoning. No matter that the site would need to be redone for business, or at the very least, rehabilitated ( I don’t mean knock down a few walls; I mean add a parking lot). Sometimes, in the right locale, a chain will make an offer to a private residence that is gigantic. Those people should consider themselves as lucky as Powerball winners. But, by and large, a drab old house next to a rock quarry or bus depot is worth just what a drab house next to a quarry is worth. The zoning isn’t an automatic premium.

How do I know this? I have listed these people before. I’ve gotten them higher offers than they would have gotten, and in each case I can recall, they have rejected their offer because they wanted more. One former client I listed in September of 2005 is still selling by himself. Moreover, he is still zoned residential! Commercial use would require a variance! He just thinks he’d be a good commercial opportunity! You know what the guy would get today? $200,000 less than what I brought in in 2006. He’s asking double what he’s worth, and that is why he’s selling by owner. The local brokers have written him off. 

Commercial zoning is not without challenges. It may not qualify for conventional financing if the buyer is a business. There could be appraisal issues because the appraiser’s job is the evaluate the property for it’s best use, not the potential. A restaurant,  salon or professional office might not want to be next to an unattractive industrial site. Moreover, buyers of commercial property are savvy and conscious of overhead. They will not overpay unless there is a strong payoff. These things have to be taken into account for property that is commercial in zoning only.

If the owner will not listen to the advice of their agent and is instead advised by their own self interest, the outcome is often long, drawn out, and unhappy.  

In 4 days, all homes in the state of New York must have carbon monoxide detectors under the newly passed “Amanda’s Law,” named for Amanda Hansen. Amanda was a 16 year old girl who died from carbon monoxide poisoning while at a sleepover at a friends house. She and her friend were camping out near a faulty boiler. After the tragedy, her parents became advocates for a law that would require a detector in all homes so this would never occur again. They were successful. 

Homes with a conventional heating system (i.e., one that could produce carbon monoxide) built prior to 2008 must have a detector on the lowest level of the home with a bedroom. The exact verbiage of the law is on the New York State Senate Website. We have two detectors in our home, one in the basement about 15 feet from the furnace, another on the main floor in the kitchen, and a third at the top of the stairs where the bedrooms are. 

This was a terrible tragedy, and we all owe a debt of gratitude to the Hansens for their efforts. Lives will be saved because they got active in their daughter’s memory. If you don’t have a carbon monoxide detector, go get one. It is only the law in a handful of states, but detectors should be in your home also.

Among Westchester’s 45 municipalities are six cities that are all quite different in character. They are:

• Mount Vernon
• New Rochelle
• Peekskill
• Rye
• White Plains
• Yonkers

I received an email yesterday from someone I showed some houses to this past summer. I didn’t remember him at first, but he had some questions about a property. I reached out to the listing agent for answers, and before she responded, I got another email from the guy today. ” I didn’t hear from you yet,” he said. “Maybe I should call <another agent>.” I remembered the guy now. He ran my wife and I around in circles getting forensic information about homes he found online for a week, then disappeared after looking at 2 homes with me. He had resurfaced, wanted me to do more research, and was already threatening to sack me.

So I sacked him.

Here’s the point: real estate professionals aren’t waiters. We don’t do free research for just anyone who rings or emails us, and like any normal person, we are a bit sketchy about people that make us jump through hoops and then then disappear. That time we put in with those people could have been better spent with more sincere clients or our family.

On the other side of the coin, consumers are suspicious about agents. Too many people have a bad agent story to tell, so they often fend for themselves before investing time and hopes into another agent who will disappoint. It’s like a big game of chicken. Niether side wants to devote time or commit to someone who might let them down. Here’s what I say: If you, the consumer, want heat from that stove, how about throwing in a little wood.

Here are a few things home buyers can do to ensure that they get the most from an agent.

1. Get pre-approved. I shouldn’t have to explain this. The housing industry has been bent like a pipe cleaner the past 18 months. A pre approval older than 90 days is worthless, and no pre-approval disqualifies you from being taken seriously by a seller. . It takes 10 minutes to speak with a lender and get a free updated pre-approval that shows you are ready, willing and able buyers.
2. Practice monogamy. Often in New York, some buyers think that they can get a batter deal if they work with more than 1 agent or deal directly with listing agents. Both of these notions are not only false, they can be expensive mistakes. If your agent catches on to the fact that you are playing the field, he’ll start hedging his bets also, because nobody wants to devote time to a buyer file that might not close because you are looking in another town with another broker. 
3. Figure out what you want. Some agents get understandably frustrated when they spend a Sunday morning looking at town homes and Tuesday evening walking through Victorian colonials with the same buyer. I can almost intuit what some buyers want after spending time with them. However, if you are too whimsical, I might get the sense that we’re just unlocking doors so you can satisfy curiosity. 
4. Return our calls. Sound familiar? Do you like it when you can’t reach an agent for 3 days? It is the same here. Buyers who drop out and resurface without explanation are deemed unreliable and risky. It is only fair; stay in touch.  
5. Take our advice. The reason I give people 3 lawyers, 3 home inspectors, and 3 mortgage firms is not because I get a kickback, it is because I know that your union attorney won’t return calls, an Internet bank can screw you, and your uncle Mel is not a licensed home inspector. I cannot compensate for their deficiencies. I am more effective with a cooperative team.  
6. Sign a buyer representation agreement. This tells the agent “you are hired. We won’t use anyone else.” You risk nothing by doing this, because if someone is hired, they can be fired if they stink. Establish performance criteria, have a 3 strikes and out rule or reasonable exit clause, and the agent is now at your service.