Located in northwest Westchester County, the Hendrick Hudson School district is in the town of Cortlandt and encompasses parts of Croton, Cortlandt Manor, Peekskill, and all of Montrose, Verplanck and Buchanan. All information is from the Westchester Putnam Multiple Listing Service. 

The district mirrors the uptick in activity and price for May 2010 compared to May 2009 that I have observed in other locales. 

Transaction totals have risen from 4 to 6; Median price is up from $344,500 to $425,00; and 8 homes are under contract for sale at a median asking price of $479,000. There is even a home under contract priced well over $900,000. That is all good news. 

15 Homes are under contract. 90 homes are actively for sale, giving the area over a year of available inventory.

What to conclude? A few thoughts:

• 2010 is better than 2009
• That isn’t saying much, but we are past the nadir.
• Barring another crisis, and I think we’ve wrung them all out, we are in the beginning of a very slow recovery. 

This past week I had a day where the schedule actually allowed me take both Mark and Catherine with me to work. Mark was early in the day, and Catherine rode with me after school. It was the first time in a long time I was able to acquiesce to my her almost daily beg to let her come with me. 

Mark is three, and I am still getting used to the fact that he is more adept at engaging in a conversation with each passing day. We had a nice chat as I drove to Yorktown and Scarsdale to take some BPO photos, and while in Yorktown we had a chance to go to Carvel. This was Mark’s first experience with Carvel ice cream. He had a dish of soft vanilla (his choice) and rainbow sprinkles (my suggestion). The picture says it all. I enjoyed watching him discover ice cream and sprinkles. 

Later, Catherine had her turn, which she really relished. Catherine is 6 and asks every day to come with me, and on rare occasions I can bring her along. I had to pick up contracts at an attorney’s office, deliver them, install a lock box, and take interior photos of a new co op listing in White Plains. When we arrived at the lawyer’s office to pick up the contract, the attorney and her paralegal had a nice moment with Catherine. I explained how she lobbied to come, and Donna said a very nice thing: “Catherine should see what some grown up ladies do.” Indeed. 

The lobby of the office where I was deliver the contract had a big mirror, so we took a quick Cat and Dad photo. I love this photo because it captures us. I am her hero. 

I seldom get to mix business and pleasure, and spending a rare period of my day falling in love with my cubs again was a rare treat. It is times like this that I am glad to be my own boss. I hope we can do it again soon, and I’m sure it will be every bit as fun. 

Last time I looked, there are over 650 Active Rain members who are based in Westchester County. They include real estate brokers, agents, lenders, appraisers, inspectors, and many other real estate related endeavors.

Westchester County has close to 50 municipalities, about 1 million residents, almost 7000 licensed agents, and a diverse community, ranging from cities to horse farms. We have the Long Island Sound and the Bronx to the south, Connecticut to the east, the Hudson river to the west and the rest of New York upstate from us. Manhattan is a stone’s throw, and the Hamptons, Catskills, Jersey Shore, Finger Lakes and Poconos are all a day trip away.

I am of the opinion that Westchester County real estate brokers and agents are among the best in the nation. I am a proud Vice President of the Westchester Multiple Listing Service, and broker owner of a firm with 15 agents who primarily do business in the county, and I can vouch for my colleagues with few reservations.

So whether you live and work here, visit occasionally, or just like to read about the place, you are welcome to join.

I belong or have belonged to the Greater Rochester Association of Realtors (GRAR), the Long Island Board of Realtors (LIBOR), Orange County Association of Realtors (OCAR) and MLS systems in Connecticut, the Hudson Valley and all through Metro New York spanning over one dozen counties or boroughs in 2 states. In my experience, the professionalism of Westchester brokers and agents is second to none, and we should be proud of our collegiality, ethics, and cooperative spirit. 

I heard it said best that we are not simply in competition because we work at different brokerages, we are “co-op-atition.” I think that says it all. 

Please feel free to post your locally focused blog posts, market reports, rants, war stories, pats on the back, self congratulations, and anything else that is on your mind. 

If I can personally be of any assistance to anyone in this forum please do not hesitate to reach out. 

Jonathan Washburn has written a very good oath for licensees to aspire to, and, being the mischievous imp that I am, I have a few modest suggestions of my own to “raise the bar.” 

1. I will limit my voice mail greeting to 20 seconds or less, and if I do not, I will tell you what button to press to skip it (the infomercial amendment). 
2. I will update my photo every 10 years, 30 pounds, or cosmetic surgery, whichever comes first (the “she’s not a hottie she’s a granny” amendment).
3. If I publish a property tax figure that is more than 5% lower than the actual amount, I will personally reimburse the buyer the difference at closing (the “buyer agent to do my work for me” rebuttal).
4. I will publish my cell phone number somewhere, either on the MLS or my website, and instruct my front desk to give it out to those seeking me (the “I’m too important to care that it isn’t 2005” amendment). 
5. If I tell a buyer that they’ll “get a better deal if they go through me” on my listing rather than use their buyer agent they just told me they were working with, I will buy that buyer agent’s groceries for a year, regardless of the ploy working or not (the raving #$%^@& amendment). 
6. I will not pretend that a cash offer somehow ameliorates offering more than 10% less than asking price under any circumstances (the “cash does not cure cancer” amendment).
7. I will never be a drama queen when a cooperating agent comes in with an offer I would consider too low (the “you can’t blame them for trying” corollary).  
8. If someone calls to ask a simple question on my listing, I will politely give them a simple answer without first demanding their name, contact information, email, or teen daughter’s Facebook handle (the “we don’t sell used cars” amendment). 
9. If I remind a cooperating agent how many years I am in the business more than once, they get to pie my face immediately with one of the following flavors: Cherry, Blueberry, Key Lime, Lemon Meringue, or Strawberry Rhubarb no matter what I may be wearing (the “we don’t care how it was in 1980” amendment). 
10. I will not offer rebuttals to feedback under any circumstances unless that rebuttal answer would cost less than $100 and I am very certain that it would make a difference (the “please go away” amendment). 

I occasionally have clients who don’t have or have not committed to an inspector, attorney or mortgage company. They often ask me for a referral, which I happily give. I recommend good, experienced, local industry professionals who serve the clients well. 

Upon occasion, the clients go their own route, with varying degrees of success. Sometimes it is fine, and I make the acquaintence of a new lawyer, inspector, or lender. 

Sometimes it is a disaster.

Instead of using a local attorney who specializes in real estate, the client elects to use their 2nd cousin the litigator, or the free attorney they get gratis through their job or union. 

Or, instead of using a local direct lender whose office they can walk into, they elect to use an Internet lender or mortgage broker 3 counties away who promise them a too good to be true rate. 

Or, instead of a home inspector with professional affiliations like ASHI who owns a digital camera and will use it in the reports, they go with the guy whose website is more interested in selling franchises of his “brand.” 

When I ask people why they didn’t choose to use the professionals I recommend, some have actually wondered aloud why I was so enthused about them. They say it was almost like there was something in it for me, like maybe a kickback.

Something in it for me.  A kickback. 

Well, as a matter of fact, there is something in it for me. I do get a kickback. There- I said it. 

The biggest problem with using hacks you find on the Internet as opposed to tried and true, trusted referrals, is that they don’t work together with me. They don’t return calls. They don’t solve problems aggressively. They don’t get proactive. And that is fertile breeding ground for a crisis that costs you money. And in real estate, there are no cheap problems. 

A good transaction where your interests are served. That’s my kickback. That’s what’s in it for me.  

According to the Westchester-Putnam MLS, the market for single family homes in Westchester is getting healthier. Consider the following:

• In 2009, 217 single family homes sold at a median price of $568,000.
• In 2010, 279 homes sold at a median price of $610,000.

That is an increase in median price of 7.4% and an increase in transactions of a whopping 28.6%. In dollar terms, it represents going from $162,000,000 in volume to $227,000,000. 

There are some other trends that are worth observing. 

In May 2009, homes sold in the first 90 days on market (presumably the more desirable, aggressively priced homes) got 93% of asking price. Homes sold after 120 days on market garnered 92% of asking. 

However, in May 2010, homes sold in the first 90 days got 97% of asking price on average, and those sold after 120 days on market fetched 93%. 

This could mean that the buying public feels less of a need to talk the sellers down, or perhaps more likely, the better homes are getting competitive offers, driving the bids up. 

There is no better argument for pricing your house right the very first day than that. At a median price of $610,000, 97% of asking is over $24,000 higher than 93% of asking!

Interpreting this data is difficult, even if you read Freakonomics and took 2 semester of statistics in college. Both months were “stimulus months,” meaning they occurred in the period where first time buyers qualified for the tax credit. To me, the more significant data than the higher prices and volume is the percentage of asking price being offered by the public. If more people are buying and those people are willing to pay more, it bodes well for some balance between a severe buyer’s market and the foolhardy exuberance of the bubble. 

Westchester County, in my view, is a county to watch, because of the high number of buyers we export to neighboring counties and states, as well as the high number of buyers we attract from New York City in addition to transfers from other states. That gives these numbers significance. I am hopeful that, barring another economic calamity, our our local results are a bellwether for an industry in a sustainable recovery. 

This is for single family home activity in the Ossining school district for May of 2010. All information is derived from the Westchester-Putnam Multiple Listing Service. 

The numbers are far better for May 2010 than they were in May 2009 for Ossining. In May 2009, there were 9 sales at a median price of $380,000. Therefore, the volume is up 33% and the median price is up almost 20%. I would not call this appreciation as much as I would the weeding out of distressed fire sales and foreclosures. 

Available inventory remains quite high, with about a year’s worth of homes active on the market. 

Given its commuter friendly proximity to Manhattan (50 minutes on the Hudson Line), diverse choice of home type and many other quality of life friendly characteristics, Ossining is a great place to consider calling home. 

You can search for a home in Ossining by getting yourself a free Listingbook account. 

New York does not have one MLS (I belong to 7) and some of the localized practices strike me as a little crazy. Here is a list of selected silliness from some of the numerous market areas. Some are the agents themselves, some are actual policy. 

• In Dutchess County, the Mid-Hudson MLS publishes square footage including the basement. Therefore, a 1500 square foot ranch is listed in that system as being 3000 square feet. 
• On Long Island, square footage is almost never published, except for lot size. They seldom use acreage.
• In Rockland County, you get square footage sometimes, other times it is purposely redacted by the listing agent and changed to “0.”  I forget the reason, but it is dumb in my view. 
• Westchester goes in  the other direction. In the Westchester-Putnam MLS, we are actually required to disclose the source of the square footage (field measured, public records, appraisal). If our source is the public records, that is only allowed if the software autopopulates the field. 
• Manhattan apartments must have a floor plan published. Great idea. No other area requires this in spite of the huge number of apartment-style condos and co ops outside Manhattan.

NYSAR should resolve to standardize the calculation of square footage, and my suggestion would be above grade living space (i.e., NOT a garage). Raised ranches could be an exception so long as the area is finished and legal.

I don’t see why this is so complicated. Length times width.