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 theft at an open house I hosted once. 

There are bad people out there. Precautions should be taken, and that is not a sometimes thing, it is an always thing. Read on. 

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 to mind. A big one for me is Referrals. I love referrals. I love doing a good job when I get a referral. 

Magic happens when you are committed. Late in August, I committed to Karen Bernetti’s 30 day challenge contest, where I pledged to blog at least once a day for 30 days. Perhaps not a stretch for me, but some days I might not blog and other days I could write 3 or 4 posts. At any rate, I committed to 30 consecutive days, and, more importantly, my promise to myself was that I wouldn’t be a robot- I’d try and write good stuff. This post will fulfill my 30th consecutive day, but that’s not the best thing. Here’s the magic:

In late August, I was contacted by Elyse Berman and referred a listing. Elyse is in Florida, as was her friend, but she had a house to sell in my area. I called her and orchestrated a meeting when she returned to New York, and just this past week we signed papers and the house is active on the market as one of my newest listings. Elyse’s friend is happy, I’m ecstatic, and of course I look forward to the day when I can close the deal and mail Elyse’s referral fee. I am very honored she reached out to me, and I will do all I can to take great care of the client. 

Last week, I saw another referral on the Active Rain Referral Exchange. I applied for it, and was told by Dana Voelzke that she had called me the day prior about referring her client to me! She thought of me first! This client was different- they needed a rental with some special circumstances and they needed it quickly. I never overpromise, and I have a terrific team, so I placed the client with one of my very best associate brokers who specializes in the locale that was targeted. The leases are already signed. 

Two referrals in less than 30 days. That is a big deal, and it is better than all the other little accolades I got from blogging; I got some features, added some new subscribers, and met quite a few ‘Rainers at a local ReBar camp. All great. But to me, the referrals are the magic- and 2 in one month is spectacular. I am grateful for their trust and am humbled.  

And I am going for 56 now, so 26 to go! 

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 last week, I haven’t been the best P and Q guy around. So when it occurred to me on my drive home at a tad before 9pm last night that I hadn’t set up a showing requested by a client for 3pm this afternoon, I sheepishly called the listing agent to see if I could set the appointment. 

I got her voicemail, and left a message requesting the showing, that I was sorry for the late hour, and that I’d call her office first thing in the morning if need be. I expected that the best I’d do is not hear from her until after I called her office. It was late, and she really didn’t have to do anything. I should have called earlier. 

At 8:30am this morning, Liz called me back and told me she’d be delighted to confirm the appointment, and that she could log in the showing right now, or I could wait until 9am to call her office and log it. WOW, I told her, what a pleasure to deal with someone so on the ball! 

I have a house to sell! she answered, and then proceeded to give me lockbox instructions and logged me in. I was also informed of a strong price change. No drama, no asking me why such short notice, just advocacy and focus on the matter at hand. 

Now it’s your job to sell it, she said, and I laughed. True. The ball was in my court, because, whether I was on top of things or not, a professional was listing the house my clients wanted to see. Moments later, the confirmation email arrived in my inbox. 

I have to admit that, if the show were on the other foot, I would have asked the agent to call our showing service and log in the showing. Moreover, this was far from a million dollar property, yet it was clearly getting white glove treatment from the broker. How few agents understand this- the best thing you can do for your client is dispassionately get people in their door and save the nitpicking about notice, you coulda, you shoulda, for the gym. 

So hats off to Liz Pereira of Houlihan Lawrence, for being a professional, a colleague, and a good advocate for her clients. You might think it peculiar to give props to the competition, but that is not how I see it. We should focus on the good, no matter where it is, because it is good for the clients. That is who we work for. 

Previous posts on Croton on Hudson

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 Dog Splash. It will actually take place at the lake at Depew Park, and all dogs will have a chance to splash around and swim and have a good time. There will be a complimentary dog wash station, so your wet dog will go home smelling fresh and clean, which, frankly, you know you could use about now. Admit it.

If your dog is a little breed, there will be kiddie pools. There will also be music, giveaways, and you’ll meet plenty of other dog aficionados and dog-o-philes who walk on their hind legs. 

Pre registration is required, so go to PeekskillDogPark.com and get your pooch in. Registration is $10, which is almost free in dog dollars. We are still enjoying nice weather in this area, and I’d expect late September to be a bit of a last hurrah for some of us in the “getting out and doing something special with our dog” department. They give us unconditional love, and they earned a play date. 

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 next 2 years, that should make a huge difference. 

The guidelines strike me as very reasonable as presented. Time to Google the program and get more information. I seldom re blog, but this is an important development. 

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 more ink. 

Vanessa Williams is a product of Chappaqua schools, and hails from nearby Millwood. (Ms. Williams, by the way, is THE most talented creature to ever wear the crown of Miss America, and is an extremely nice lady. She still lives in the area as far as I know, and when I was tending bar during my sabbatical way back when she was one of the patrons at Mediterraneo. I did not fix her a drink; she was nursing. If you ever see a re run of the 1984 Miss America pageant, Miss Williams promised to star on Broadway. She did. That is calling the shot on the level of Babe Ruth, another adopted New Yorker. But on to Chappaqua.)

Chappaqua is served by the Chappaqua school district, and includes parts of the town of Mount Pleasant. It is located on the Harlem Line of the Metro North railroad and is about a 50-minute train ride to Grand Central Terminal. 

This market information is for single family homes in the Chappaqua school district. All data is from the Westchester-putnam Multiple Listing Service. 

Prices are up from 2009 and the transaction total is up a tick as well. 22 homes are under contract, another healthy total, and there are mega options for buyers with 124 active listings, or roughly 7 months of inventory on the books. The vastness of the price range of available homes opens the doors to a wide variety of budgets. 

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 month was $65,000 and August of last year was $289,500. There are 77 homes actively for sale- the balance is out of whack, with only 7 homes under contract at a median price of $247,500.

So sales are way down and pending sales are low. Here’s the deal: Peekskill is a nice place- low taxes, affordable homes, a vibrant downtown, and proximity to Manhattan, points upstate, and all the amenities of Westchester County. You could buy a pretty nice joint here for not much money. The law of supply and demand is immutable- someone is going to get some good deals, and that someone should be you. 

Yeah, you. Or someone you know. 

Get yourself a free Listingbook account and check out homes for sale in Peekskill. It is absolutely a buyer’s market here.

Previous posts about Peekskill are here.