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top westchester realtor: Yet Another Thing for Sellers to Watch Out For - 11/16/09 07:17 PM
It was a bizarre phone call this afternoon. The lady on the phone swore that her home had just come off the market with another broker, but I couldn't find it on the MLS. I changed statuses, spellings of the address (1st? First?), and anything else I could think of. Nothing. The home is in Yonkers, so I asked if it could be on a corner and have another address. Nope, middle of the block.
I asked who the broker was, and she didn't know. Her brother and co-owner was handling that. Then, she finally gave me the clue I needed. … (4 comments)
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top westchester realtor: The Secret to Getting a Bidding War - 11/15/09 08:50 AM
Do you want to get a bidding war going on your home, even in this slow market? Do you want to get multiple buyers, all competing against each other over your home, driving the price to tens of thousands above asking price? It can be done, you know. Is that what you want?
Are you sure? Fine. Here's what you do.
Drop your price 20-30%. You'll get a bidding war. An appraiser in this New York Times article on bidding wars has it right. In a market where most properties are still overpriced, correctly priced homes will attract the buyers. "Correctly priced," … (6 comments)
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top westchester realtor: Can a New York Sale Close in 30 Days? - 11/13/09 05:10 AM
New York real estate closings take forever compared to other areas. There are too many attorneys and too much red tape, but you can't control the weather. What you can control is how you approach your purchase and expedite the transaction. Is a 30 day closing possible? Yes, but you have to have all your oars in the water:
Have all your mortgage documentation complete. Everything. If your loan processor says they want all bank statement pages, front and back, including advertisements, give it to them. This is perhaps the most imprtant thing you can do. Be reachable. If I need … (5 comments)
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top westchester realtor: The Indecisive Buyer - 11/13/09 04:13 AM
The following is, in part, an email I just wrote to a former prospective buyer. For reasons unknown to me he started working with another agent a while ago, and I heard over the grapevine that he was a "no show" at a contract signing recently, which is not the first time he's gotten cold feet.
I don't think he's a bad guy. I think he's worried sick over making the wrong decision, and there is no one in his life telling him what he needs to hear. So, given my insomnia and the fact that I have no financial interest … (11 comments)
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top westchester realtor: What a Buyer Agent Can and Cannot Do - 11/11/09 08:07 AM
Here in New York just about every buyer north of New York City working with brokerage uses a buyer agent. It just makes sense; the seller has an advocate in the listing agent looking out for them, so buyers should have the same advantage in the largest transaction of their life. Moreover, it almost never costs the buyer anything out of pocket beyond their purchase. A good buyer agent can help with many things, but there are some things we can't do.
Let's start with what a good agent can do.
Due diligence on the property background, sales history, and condition. … (1 comments)
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top westchester realtor: Letting a Client Go - 11/07/09 01:37 AM
I sent a buyer client a Dear John letter this evening, and it was sent with a heavy heart. I have been working with this couple on and off for 2 years now and after this afternoon I realized it was time to tell them I cannot help them. To paraphrase Abe Lincoln, a real estate brokers stock and trade is their time and advice. Your agent's time is valuable. We cannot be a tour guide; we'll go bankrupt.
I have enormous patience for people considering a 6 figure purchase. It isn't done lightly, nor should it be rushed. But 2 years is … (23 comments)
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top westchester realtor: What Does a "For Sale By Owner" Want? - 10/11/09 02:36 AM
Many of my colleagues believe that a for sale by owner (FSBO) wants to eat their young, draw and quarter real estate agents, and own a broom with a glove compartment. My experience is that few do. FSBOs are not a different species.
Consider this: Home Depot sold tens of thousands of drills in recent years to people who didn't want drills.
They wanted holes.
FBSO's may not want an agent, but nobody with their home listed on the MLS wants an agent either. You read that right: No home seller wants an agent. They have no use for them.
They … (101 comments)
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top westchester realtor: The 1955 Open Permit - 10/09/09 09:00 AM
In 1955, Dwight Eisenhower was president, the Dodgers were in Brooklyn, and there were 48 states in the Union. My parents were married only 5 years, and just 2 of their 4 sons were born. I wasn't on the scene until 1967.
In 2009, Dwight Eisenhower is gone 40 years. The Dodgers have been out of Brooklyn for over 50. Ann and I just celebrated our 8th anniversary on what would have been my parents' 59th, and we've had 50 states in the USA for 51 years.
One of my listings pending sale had a closing delayed recently because the … (24 comments)
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top westchester realtor: Are Condo and Co op Boards Banana Republics? - 10/04/09 12:48 PM
I recently closed on a co op purchase with a young couple that reminded me of the silliness that most co op board approvals really are. This couple had nothing to worry about- both were professionals and graduates of one of the most highly regarded universities in America, and believe me when I tell you that the co op needed them more than the other way around. Yet, several times a year I find myself on the sidelines watching a condo or co op board looking down its nose at anxious applicants and prospective purchasers who have to sweat out board … (1 comments)
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top westchester realtor: Are Short Sales Sold "As Is?" - 10/04/09 11:54 AM
As happy as I'll be when the day comes that I don't have to do anymore short sales, the fact is that I am in the midst of several. And even though the public by and large understands what short sales are about now more than they did 2 years ago, questions remain, such as how to address physical issues with the property.
Issue: FHA appraisal. The appraisal flagged the rotting wood on the rear deck. The seller has no equity or proceeds to address the matter. If the buyer wants to close on their FHA loan, they'll have to fix this themselves. … (10 comments)
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top westchester realtor: Use Your Buyer Agent. That's What They're Paid For! - 09/30/09 08:01 AM
Most consumers sort of understand how real estate works. These days, if they see a home they are interested in, they'll contact their buyer agent and have them arrange a showing. If that is THE place, that agent writes the offer, guides the transaction, and gets paid at closing. It is an uncomplicated process, and one that the vast majority of souls who have mastered walking on their hind legs grasp.
However, there is a misguided minority of prospective home buyers who, due to either ignorance or selfishness, don't get it. Ignorance is not their fault. Selfishness, however, is. This past … (56 comments)
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top westchester realtor: "Take Your Son to Work Day" at J. Philip Real Estate, LLC - 09/24/09 10:34 AM
I am a big proponent of taking a child to work to see how their mom or dad works. Sometimes, the child will even emulate their parents and become more task oriented afterward. Here, Mark clearly demonstrates how impressed he is with his Daddy.
… (4 comments)
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top westchester realtor: Buyers Must Have a Workable Plan - 09/13/09 10:24 AM
After walking through yet another foreclosed home with some high-end renovations that were about 75% finished, I can't stress this enough:
Renovations to your new home do you no good if they cause you to not be able to afford to stay.
I don't give financial or legal advice but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that your children's college fund, reserve savings, and retirement planning ought to come before upgrading a 15 year old bath and kitchen. Moreover, if you are borrowing to make those renovations, on a 30-year mortgage you'll end up paying double for the … (4 comments)
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top westchester realtor: "It Needs Updating" - 09/08/09 06:11 AM
** Rant Advisory**
Since my 4 year old has elected to forego sleep and erect a Thomas the Tank Engine memorial on the dining room table, the 2-year old has followed him in the project and my 70 pound German Shepherd feels the need to jam his schnozz in my armpit, slumber has not been an option since 4:30 am. I have therefore stationed myself at my kitchen table to observe Those Two reinvent the planet, canine at my feet, and I have fired the laptop up. Thank God for wireless Internet.
To my right, peeking out from behind the … (6 comments)
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top westchester realtor: Angry with Your Agent? Look in the Mirror. - 08/31/09 11:36 PM
Most of my listings are homes that were not sold by another brokerage. I work the "expired" niche, and I speak with people who have been trying to sell their home for 3, 6 and sometimes 12 months or more with another broker before they decided to go in another direction at the end of their contracts.
And some of their reasons for choosing their last agent blow me away. Before I go on, let me share something. Just yesterday, I was in Best Buy to upgrade my Blue Tooth. Among my fellow shoppers were some people driving their sales clerk … (56 comments)
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top westchester realtor: Reasonable Showing Times - 08/31/09 11:25 PM
Here in the New York area, it is not uncommon for people who live in the suburbs and work in New York City to request showings on weeknights after 7pm. If you leave work at 5 or 5:30 and it takes an hour to get home and settled, 5:30 showings are a logistical impossibility. I have one such buyer, and this afternoon I got a phone call from a listing office denying our request to see their listing tomorrow at 7pm.
I don't believe that 7pm is unreasonably late for a weeknight showing, but I have 4 children and know better … (5 comments)
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top westchester realtor: A Hat Tip to Active Rain and "Getting Found." - 06/24/09 10:05 PM
I was contacted by an Associated Press reporter who was writing a story on the housing market in the Northeast, and the story ran yesterday. This is the 2nd time in a month I have been contacted by a national news outlet with a subsequently appearance in their venue. Last month it was ABC World News. You should have seen my 2-year old son go nuts when he saw Daddy on the TV.
This time around, I asked the reporter how she found me, and she said "Active Rain."
The only appropriate thing to say is THANK YOU, Active Rain.
… (32 comments)
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top westchester realtor: Westchester County Median Home Price Dips Below $500,000 - 06/24/09 09:27 PM
According REALIST, to the public data provider for the Westchester -Putnam Multiple Listing Service, the median price for a single family home in April of 2009 was $491,250. After peaking at over $700,000 in 2005, this is the first time in a long time the median price has fallen below half a million dollars.
We are also at a low ebb for transaction totals; 2008 was a deplorable year, with fewer than 4000 titles transferred. 2009 is on pace for fewer than 2500 single family homes sold. In 2005 there were over 6000 sales.
This means that home values have … (0 comments)
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top westchester realtor: Selling By Owner? Cooperate with Agents in New York - 06/20/09 07:55 AM
I was contacted by someone out of the blue asking me to show them a home for sale in Eastchester. They found it on Zillow, which isn't uncommon. I looked up the address on the MLS and it came back with "no properties found." Checking Zillow revealed that the home was for sale by owner. So I called the owner and set up an appointment as if I were calling any other home listed for sale. No sheepish query if they were cooperating with brokers or explanation of my intentions. "When can I show it."
Thursday. So I showed it Thursday. … (6 comments)
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top westchester realtor: New York Home Buyers Extremely Price Conscious - 06/12/09 07:08 AM
As Westchester County area home sellers are finding out, there are more buyers out there; that doesn't equate to happy endings. Here is an unscientific example of the pattern I am seeing:
The house is listed for a price the sellers feel good about. Not great, good. Shwings the first few weeks, then nothing. The price is lowered once 2-5%. A few calls and showings, no offers. The price is once again lowered 3% or more after no offers. Showings do not increase. Frustrated, the sellers are faced with the market changes of the past 90 days. What few sales in … (6 comments)
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J Philip Faranda, Broker-Owner
Briarcliff Manor,
NY
More about me…
J. Philip Faranda (J. Philip R.E. LLC) Westchester County NY
Address: 522 North State Road , Suite 100, Briarcliff Manor, NY, 10510
Office Phone: (914) 762-2500
Email Me
Phil Faranda is broker and owner of J. Philip Real Estate LLC in Briarcliff Manor, NY. Since founding the firm as a sole practitioner in late 2005, the team has grown to over 20 agents and closed 300 transactions valued at $125 million. He is in his 3rd term as Vice President of the HGMLS. This blog commentary is geared toward consumers and industry colleagues alike. You can reach him at (914) 723-8900. Warning: *Sarcasm and irony advisory at all times.*
  
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