Here is some good business advice for both colleagues and clientele alike: Put something in your email subject line whenever you send something. And and don’t make it “For Phil” or “Attn: Phil.”

Getting an email with nothing in the subject line is a minor annoyance. But it can also be expensive. Here’s why: 2 weeks or two years after an email has been sent, it may need to be retrieved for a variety of reasons. It could be a phone number, the confirmation of a the date of a showing, or one of a thousand other bits of needed details that can’t be sifted out of the enormous inboxes we have without some sort of detail, such as an address or other specific. 

The way cloud computing is becoming more prevalant, I can search emails on my smartphone. This is a huge gamechanger-IF, and think of the GIGO principle here, IF I have the necessary word, address or specific to index. If I am searching for an email one of my clients or agents sent me for example, I could have years worth of correspondence to look through if all the subject lines were blank. You can search body text, but if 50 emails come back with (no subject) in the line, time and money are lost. 

The subject line is there for a reason. Use it. 

Wednesday’s Journal News has a front page story on Ossining politicians urging Andrew Cuomo to close Sing Sing Prison. As a native of Ossining who worked a block away in a neighborhood market for years while in school, the idea gets my attention. Would closing Sing Sing make sense? Would it benefit Ossining? 

It is an intriguing thought. Sing Sing has been there since the early 1800’s. It employs 824 people. It is a piece of history. But it is also a product of a bygone era when putting prisons, landfills and nuclear power plants on prive riverfront real estate wasn’t viewed as a bad idea. And when Sing Sing was built, it was considered to be in a distant and sparsly populated area. It is now in the middle of the village of Ossining. 

Ossining loses $500,000 in taxes because of the exemptions on government -owned Sing Sing. I don’t know anyone who is excited to have a maximum security prison in town, and that includes me. Few if any of the 800+ employees live in Ossining. From that point of view, and the tax angle, it does not contribute to the Ossining economy. 

I used to work counter at Southside Market on Spring Street about a block from Sing Sing. Most of the prison guards as they were known then (they are now referred to as correction officers) did not  live locally. Most COs lived out of the county, and their only contribution to local commerce was a pack a cigarettes and the sandwich I made for them. I suspect that little has changed. No CO lives near me to my knowledge. 

If a new prison were to be built today, it is inconceivable that they would choose prime waterfront property in a dynamic suburban village for the location. If this is the way they want to reboot the prison system, I say close the thing and let Ossining benefit. Develop the bulk of the land to make the highest and best use of waterfont property and turn the original, smaller cell block into a museum. That will ease the tax burden on the rest of us and give us new neighbors. In as much as I like to have fun with my proximity to the Big House, I’m all for it being a memory. 

I arrived back home to Briarcliff Manor tonight after returning from Rain Camp Atlantic City and two days of intense instruction. My first Raincamp was excellent, but also different. There was so much information in the new-two day event that I am exhausted from being engaged and focused for so long. It is a “good” tired, believe me. But more than tired, I am thankful to the good folks at Active Rain who have taken the time from home and family to travel all the way out here to share their knowledge with us. I am humbled.

I am grateful to Kerrie Greenhalgh  for asking me to be on the success panel. I am owe a debt of gratitude to Kelly Pflugrath & Kelly Clifford  for their tireless work on making the event go smoothly.

A big thanks to Bob Stewart, Steven Graham, and Brad Andersohn   for their outstanding instruction, energy and leadership. Steve’s energy and mastery of the material was incredible, and Brad’s enthusiasm was contagious. Brad also gave me a great idea for a blog post that already has 800+ clicks. 

I am so grateful to Katerina Gasset for hitting a home run in her keynote instruction on Day 1. It was informative to the max, and I have been immersed in this thing for over 2 years. I can only imagine what a new member got from her.  

A big thanks to co panelists Gerry Michaels and Dagny Eason for being awesome.  It was so great to meet so many fellow members for the first time and to catch up with others.

Tonight I’ll sleep, but tomorrow I start putting this stuff to work. 

This is the market report for single family homes sold in the Croton-Harmon school district for the first quarter of 2011. All information is sourced fom the Empire Access Multiple Listing Service. 

In the first quarter of 2011, there were 15 closings with a median sale price of $540,000. 

In the first quarter of 2010, there were 11 closings with a median sale price of $542,000. 

4 additional closings at about the exact same median is a step forward over last year. Median price is only $2000 different-negligible. Croton is enjoying what appears to be a robust Spring. 

9 homes are currently under contract at a median asking price of $550,000. This tells me that the activity is not letting up- buyers are making deals. 52 homes are active on the market and available, so buyers don’t have the huge inventory to choose from as other places. 

If you’d like to search for a home in Croton or just see where home values are going, get yourself a free Listingbook account and search the MLS like an agent. 

Previous posts on Croton are here. 

This is the market report for single family homes sold in the Chappaqua school district for the first quarter of 2011. All information is sourced fom the Empire Access Multiple Listing Service. 

In the first quarter of 2011, there were 15 closings with a median sale price of $946,500. 

In the first quarter of 2010, there were 17 closings with a median sale price of $900,000. 

I would characterize this as about even with last year. Median price is certainly up, but we’re two sales behind. Chappaqua is stable, which is not surprising for such a nice place. 

21 homes are currently under contract at a median asking price of $787,000 (one of them is  mine!). People are coming in and making deals, albeit on the less expensive side of the market. But sellers are packing. 142 homes are active on the market and available, so if you are interested in seeing what is available you’ll have plenty of choices. 

If you’d like to search for a home in Chappaqua or just check home values, get yourself a free Listingbook account and search the MLS like an agent. 

Previous posts on Chappaqua are here. 

This is the market report for single family homes sold in the Briarcliff Manor school district for the first quarter of 2011. All information is sourced fom the Empire Access Multiple Listing Service. 

In the first quarter of 2011, there were 14 closings with a median sale price of $617,500. 

In the first quarter of 2010, there were 9 closings with a median sale price of $625,000. 

Things are looking up in Briarcliff. There is almost no difference in median price, but sales volume is up 55%. This is especially pronounced when one considers that 2010 was a stimulus period. There is no tax credit now.  Was there pent up demand? It would appear so. Whatever the reason, I’ll take it. 

6 homes are currently under contract at a median asking price of $734,500. There are 36 active listings available. That is a healthy inventory, and we’ll see if the second quarter continues the positive trend. 

If you’d like to search for a home in Briarcliff Manor, get yourself a free Listingbook account and search the MLS like an agent. 

Yes, our firetrucks are white!

Previous posts on Briarcliff Manor are here. 

This is the market report for single family homes sold in the Ossining school district for the first quarter of 2011. All information is sourced fom the Empire Access Multiple Listing Service. 

In the first quarter of 2011, there were 28 closings with a median sale price of $369,500. 

In the first quarter of 2010, there were 44 closings with a median sale price of $442,000. 

These are significant differences. I stopped doing monthly market reports because 30 day spans in these small communities had results all over the place. Quarterly reports had more statistical significance. Therefore, the decline in the number of closings and the lower price is not an anomoly. 

23 homes are currently under contract at a median asking price of $449,500. This bodes better in terms of prices, but with 135 listings active and available there is still a huge imbalance in  the favor of buyers. 

It remains to be seen if we are indeed in the midst of a double dip. 

One thing is for certain: Now is a good time for buyers. If you’d like to search for a well priced home in Ossining, get yourself a free Listingbook account and search the MLS like an agent. 

Previous postings on Ossining are here. 

The Sing Sing Gated Community… Our Residents Just Can’t Leave! 

If you’re like me and you love waterfront property, privacy, terrific security and and homeowners association that doesn’t admit just anybody, the Sing Sing Gated Community might just be for you. 

Nestled on the banks of the scenic Hudson River in downtown Ossining, New York-my hometown- the Sing Sing gated community occupies 130 acres of prime riverfront real estate just a stone’s throw from the Metro-North train station. A mere 30 miles from Grand Central, Sing Sing is “up the river” as they say from Gotham, a short ride on the Metro North Hudson line. Of course, it takes more than a train ride to get in.  

Sing Sing is one of the oldest gated communities in New York (and the USA) and was actually built by the original residents! The Homeowner association president is actually known as the “warden” which gives the HOA a quaint charm. Among the amenities, the “longest mile” was originated here and is a popular feature in similar gated communites in Texas. 

While not a co op, residency at the Sing Sing Gated community does require board approval. There is also a minimum down payment rule, which actually tends to vary with the credentials of the applicant. Some characterize the down payment as an arm and a leg, others dismiss it as highway robbery. Despite the unique standards, there are seldom any vacancies. 

Actually, when I was a kid I remember the lights flickering in our neighborhood briefly and then there would be a vacancy the next morning, but that was a long time ago and the details are sketchy. Unlike a co op where residents get a proprietary lease and condos, where you get a deed, residents of sing sing are issued a “sentence” which I am sure dates back to New York’s old dutch roots. 

Security is what any gated community offers, and the Sing Sing Gated Community really excels in this area. They pride themselves on having 24 hour doormen- 1700 of them actually- friendly security, numerous towers with additional concierge staff to help residents find things like lost contact lenses, chipped teeth and the like, and they even have a physician and clinic right on the premises! Not only that, the Sing Sing Gated Community is an “all inclusive” place, with 3 meals a day served 365 days a year. They also have a library, a ball field, and “old school” physical fitness offerings, such as group calisthenics, “balls and chains” and even throwback marble and mallets! 

The concierge staff, especially the ones in the towers, are very protective of their residents’ privacy. As a matter of fact, when I took some of these pictures, one of them yelled at me and threatened to stuff my camera somewhere painful, and all I could think of was what a swell guy he was for protecting his people’s privacy like that. I’ll bet the residents really love that guy. 

Like many exclusive neighborhoods, the Sing Sing Gated Community has had many famous residents: David “son of Sam” Berkowitz, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, and Lucky Luciano. The community is very selective about who gets residency here, and none of the openings are on the MLS. So, if you’d like more information about how to become a resident at Sing Sing, send me an email or call your local parole officer. 

Next week: 

Want an island getaway? Why not Rikers? 

Related posts:

“The Sing Sing Triathalon: Dig, run, swim.”

Happy April 1st!

I am quoted in this article released by the AP today on the state of the housing market. The thrust of the piece is that we aren’t out of the woods yet with prices. Distress sales are supressing values, inventory is giving buyers more choices-and moxie- and sellers are left to absorb the crisis of confidence. 

The survey of views from around the country seems to paint a rather consistent picture that what I see is a view shored by observers in other parts of the nation. Sellers are often having to reduce their asking price to get views, field low offers, and make accomadations to make deals work. 

The last quote of the article is from one of my clients, who made good copy. You should click and read his remark. Anyone who knows me will laugh at the words they read, and will likely agree that we often list people with similar personalities to our own. When a reporter ends the piece with your quote, that is high praise. My guy nails it. (I did not represent him years ago on his purchase, by the way).