Westchester View

How on earth does the consumer choose an agent? With so much hype, smoke and mirrors that the actually process can seem about as clear as mud.   Sadly, there is no foolproof way to do so, but there are pros and cons to any method. Here are some typical methods that sellers seem to use:

You have a friend who just got licensed.…and he/she acts as if she already owns your listing….so why not?

Watch out here…your friend may be very competent – but  competence and excellence are things that are often learned on-the-job in this field.   Does your friend know the market well?  Have they marketed a home for sale before?   If prices are depreciating and your friend doesn’t know how to market and price your home, you are losing money every week you have this person as your agent.   This should not be a decision based on friendship.  A lot of money is at stake.  But take heart – I do offer a possible solution to this dilemma later on.

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This is a great discussion of the history of staging your home.  Written by my Ninja Stager – Marie Graham.  It discusses with humor the stages that staging a home for sale has gone through.  Right now, I do not believe that staging is an option.  To move homes in times with high inventories and buyers nickeling and diming  like crazy, staging is necessary – though it does not have to cost an arm and a leg.  Enjoy the post, it is cleverly written and has a lot of wit and wisdom in it.

Ruthmarie Hicks.

The Genesis of Staging (OR – in the beginning, there were breakfast trays, and it was good)

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Debbie Gartner is “The Flooring Girl” and she has some excellent tips for home owners who are thinking of selling in the next 1-3 years.  Flooring is huge these days as Westchester NY buyers increasingly turn their noses up at wall-to-wall carpeting.  Adding hardwood to carpeted areas or refinishing floors that you have covered with carpet can add real dollar value to your home. 

Enjoy the reblogged article and check out Debbie’s blog The Flooring Girl

Ruthmarie Hicks

What types of flooring provide the best ROI? 

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Sadly, when I hear the word “trust” and “real estate” in the same question – my mind really turns to salad dressing.  They just don’t seem to mix at all.  We need look no further than YouTube to see evidence of the public mistrust of real estate “professionals”…and yes – that word is in quotations for a reason  – and here is why?

Almost anyone with a pulse and half a brain can get a real estate license:

This was something of a shock to me.   I came from a field that garnered a great deal of respect, but it took YEARS of post-graduate education to be  considered a professional.  Yet, in just 8 weeks – attending class twice a week – I was licensed to help the public purchase or sell what is generally their biggest financial asset. Does anyone see a disconnect here?

The result has been a cadre of agents  – some with significant business – that appear to have nearly nothing between the ears.  This is simply because the process is not selective.   Many agents  have indeed applied themselves to the process and have acquired a great deal of knowledge through their licensing classes, CE classes and designations – as well as on-the-job.   The trouble is, since almost everyone passes, how is the consumer able to  evaluate these agents.

Consumers are treated like shark chum:

If its easy to get started, why not try it? And thousands upon thousands of people do  just that every year.  If you can’t throw a rock without hitting an agent then there are simply waaaay too many agents for the amount of business available.  Since agents are only paid when a transaction closes, that creates fierce competition for every qualified buyer or seller.

Desperation is a powerful motivator and it will induce many agents to do or say literally anything to secure the buyer or the listing.   I always refer to the monthly list of expired listings as the “feeding frenzy.”   There are agents that are all over hundreds of  homeowners a month like a bad rash.

When buyers walk into open houses they often feel as though they are under assault by an army of agents all of them trying to convince buyers that they are the only buyers agent for them.

If agents have any doubts about how the buyers and sellers feel about the predatory behavior – the videos below pretty much sum up public sentiment:

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One of the most exciting new construction developments is Hudson Harbor – Tarrytown NY.   I’m not normally a big fan of modern architecture, but I have to say that I really love the construction of this complex with its use of fieldstone and old wood beams.  They made it look like Stone Barns which is quite an accomplishment.  But what really makes its special are the views.

So after we saw the development, I went for a walk on the RiverWalk that runs right behind the complex.  (The complex – now in Phase II is right on the river.) and took some photos.  Basically I started with a wide-angle lens and moved to  a tele photo.

The first picture is of the Tappan Zee Bridge.  The Manhattan skyline can be faintly seen under the bridge with the wide angle. The second picture was with a zoom lens – it gives you a perspective of where the Manhattan skyline is in relation to the TZ bridge.  The final was when I zoomed in on the skyline itself.  I’ve taken photos from this perspective before, but it was such a clear – if blustery  day, that the skyline really “popped” particularly with the color of the sky.

Hope you enjoy these – they were fun to take.

© 2012  - Ruthmarie G. Hicks – http://thewestchesterview.com – All rights reserved.

That question seems to haunt me these days.  Sometimes it seems that the price for leaving my home to buy  a quart of milk is to be asked that question at least once.  Unfortunately, I generally leave my crystal ball at home.

The answer to that question in part depends on how you define “recover”.  I’m not trying to be cute here.  A buyers definition of “recover” may be entirely different from a sellers perspective which is different still from a homeowner who simply wants to refinance  but can’t because of tighter lending standards.

To buyers who are turning up their noses at what I believe to be a once-in-a -lifetime opportunity – I often respond that the market will recover a year before they decide they have to buy.  Those who are determined to time  the bottom of a market are destined to miss it.

For sellers, the answer is more complex.  What sellers are looking for is a robust market with a substantial price hike from present values.  Although all bad things come to an end, if you are looking for the glory days of 2005-2006, you will probably have a long wait.

Some areas are recovering while others decline:

Some parts of Westchester NY  are already recovering. In areas such as Scarsdale and Larchmont, we saw our fair share of competitive bidding this year.  This breath of fresh air was restricted to single-family homes in specific municipalities.  Prices in these areas are well off their lows in spite of continuing declines elsewhere.  But   some markets that had been remarkably resistant to correction took a  sickening nosedive in prices.  If you live in a high-end cooperative or a townhouse, you probably know what I am talking about.

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The real estate industry is something of a black box to consumers. Agents hype their marketing in order to win listings. Consumers often buy into the hype because on the surface, it makes sense.   However, if you dig a little deeper, you might be surprised to see what actually rocks and what flops.

The MLS  Rocks:

The multiple listing service or MLS really, really rocks.  Our MLS has over 6000 agents.  So when you list your property on the MLS – you automatically put  6000 agents to work trying to find a buyer for your home.  You simply can’t beat that!

Anyone can load a so-so listing on the MLS – but it takes a good marketer to make it pop. Great photos are an absolute must!   Buyers expect them and will eliminate homes that don’t have them.  Think of the MLS photo display as your “first showing”. For the same reasons a high-quality video or slideshow is no longer optional.

Signage  Rocks:

Having a sign in front of the home with a sign rider guiding the buyer to a web page about the home always rocks. I buy a domain name for each listing and add QR codes for those with smart phones.  Fliers help too – if they don’t end up scattered all over the place.  The key here is to get the interested party to as much viable information as possible as quickly as possible.

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Real estate in Scarsdale NY has a remarkably sparse number of cooperatives located within  theScarsdale municipality. The famous Garth Road cooperatives – though conveniently located with resepect to Metro-North and village shopping, are not truly in the Village of Scarsdale. If you are looking  a cooperative that is located in the Village of Scarsdale with easy access to the train station as well as shops and Scarsdale restaurants, then the Chateaux of Scarsdale is one complex that  fits the bill. The location couldn’t be better for the commuter -  you can even grab a quick morning drink at Starbucks on your way to the train platform.

The Chateaux in Scarsdale NY:

The Chateaux is an elegant  pre-war  garden complex located just off of East Parkway on Chauteaux Circle.  Mature growth gives and the unique garden-style buildings a  tremendous amount of grace.  The setting is peaceful in spite of being in the middle of the village.  And you can’t ask for a better location.  You can easily leave the car for day to day errands.  Shops are just around the corner, dining out is just steps away.

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When people think of real estate in Scarsdale NY they tend to think of single- family homes and high-end cooperatives with  Old-World charm.  Scarsdale Manor is one of the larger cooperative complexes on the famous Garth Road.  The area reflects the mature elegance of Scarsdale Village  and features many pre-war complexes that were converted into cooperatives in the 1980s.   It is a mature community with very little space for new development.

The area couldn’t be more convenient.  It is highly walkable, you can leave the car behind for most of your day-to-day errands.  A 10 minute stroll puts you on a Metro-North Train to NYC.  The trip to Grand Central station in midtown is a mere 29 minutes by express.

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Located in the heart of downtown at 20 North Broadway in White Plains NY – the Broadlawn is one of the most desirable cooperatives in White Plains.  The central location of  the Broadlawn helps  make it special.  It lies within a block of the White Plains City Center, and Trump Tower.  you can easily leave the car behind and walk to shopping, fine dining, entertainment and the train.   Rated a walker’s paradise by WalkScore.com  - the area ranks a 97 out of 100  with respect to walkability. The commute to Manhattan is 33 minutes on the Harlem Line. With the likes of New York transplants such as BLT Steakhouse  and Level 42at the Ritz Carlton just a short stroll away, the lifestyle  at the Broadlawn has a distinctly urban upscale feel. The White Plains Performing Arts Center is also just a short walk away. As for shopping the Westchester mall as well as the City Center mall  along with  major supermarkets including Whole Foods are all a comfortable walk away.  In spite of being in near the center of the downtown, the area across from Tibbets Park creates an oasis of peace and quiet.  It’s a world apart from the hubub despite its very central location.

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