real estate: Escalation Clauses in Real Estate Contracts - 04/13/13 03:19 AM
The first thing I remember learning in real estate licensing school was that no matter who an agent works for --- buyer or seller --- all parties to the contract must be treated fairly. We don't think much of that on the face of it because most of us think we always treat clients fairly.  But very recently I was confronted with a practice I've never encountered in my almost-25 years in real estate:  the Escalation Clause.
An escalation clause says something like "my clients will beat all offers by $2,000 up to $750,000."  It might be worded more gracefully, but … (3 comments)

real estate: Are We Headed for a Financial Cliff? - 10/11/12 05:18 AM
http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2012/10/11/n-imf-christine-lagarde-america-fiscal-clif.cnnmoney
 
… (0 comments)

real estate: "Pet Deposits" --- are they legal in your area? Not in New Jersey! - 09/20/12 04:08 AM
Most of us know it's not easy to find nice apartment/home listings for rent whose landlords will allow pets.  I'm a dog person, but even I understand why.  If I were a landlord, I wouldn't allow them either because I don't want to deal with the probability that if carpets exist, they'll smell (or worse); if hardwood floors exist, they'll probably get scratched; and when and if I want to sell the house, I'll have to put more work into it than I would have were there no pets there.  But, I digress.
It is becoming more and more common for … (8 comments)

real estate: Summer's Over --- What Now? - 09/04/12 03:26 AM
I have always believed that the real estate market is economy-driven.  And, that can be not such a good thing, as we saw in the 2003-2006 market.  Even the sellers who made out like bandits when they sold, that burst of madness sent our economy in a tailspin from which we still haven't recovered.  People ask me all the time, "When will we be back to the good times in real estate?"  I tell them, "I pray we don't return to "the good old days" followed by the near-depression we're still fighting.
While the market, at least in Bergen County, NJ, … (0 comments)

real estate: Timing is Everything - 04/03/12 01:06 AM
When I was in school, a hundred years ago, I was called "Speedy Gonzalez." If I had a project, it was done shortly after it was assigned.  Homwork was done before I left school. My room was cleaned from floor to ceiling by the time my parents woke up, every Saturday.  So you can imagine my impatience with Realtors who take days to get back to me with a counter-offer for my clients.  The market may be heating up, but prices are still down, and mortgages aren't always easy to get. So, how can anyone think they have all the time … (2 comments)

real estate: Franklin Lakes' Luxury Market coming back --- finally!! - 02/09/12 03:00 AM
I moved to Franklin Lakes NJ from Asbury Park, in 1971.  To say it was a huge transition would be the consummate understatement.  There was no place in Asbury Park, or the surrounding communities, that you couldn't get to by bus.  I was so used to mass transit that when I moved to Franklin Lakes, my first visit was to a neighbor to find out where the bus stopped.  The quizzical look on her face should have told me everything I needed to know about living in Franklin Lakes.  Her response to my question, "Where does the bus to town stop?," … (0 comments)

real estate: Breathtaking New Wyckoff Listing! - 03/25/11 04:57 AM
… (0 comments)

real estate: Charles Dickens and the Bergen County, NJ Luxury Home Market - 12/02/10 05:00 AM
Dickens is one of my favorite novelists, and never were his words as prescient as they seem now:
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to heaven, we were all going direct the … (2 comments)

real estate: How Involved Should a Realtor Be? - 11/13/10 05:38 AM
  Any good Realtor knows what her responsibilities to her clients are: preparing the home for the market, setting up a strong Marketing Plan, reaching out to the Real Estate Community to promote the home even before it's on the market --- things like that.  But, I'm talking about much more serious responsibilities, some of which could come back to bite you.  When your clients find out there are problems in the home they have to address, should you get involved finding professionals to help? And, what if the clients say they'll "take care of it, don't worry?" How far do … (3 comments)

real estate: The Rich, the Poor and The Economy - 10/07/10 04:23 AM
Warren Buffett said: “There’s class warfare, all right. But it’s my class, the rich class, that’s making war, and we’re winning.” As the Republicans, the Democrats and the ever-vitriolic Tea Party battle out who has what it takes to get this country back on track, we always get back to taxes and who should pay how much. Homeowners, especially when they become Sellers, always think they're paying too much in property taxes --- even in a good economy. When I moved to Franklin Lakes, in 1972, I couldn't believe how low the taxes were. At the time, my mother-in-law --- SHE … (2 comments)