M15 Select Bus Service comes to #Manhattan

If you're an east side dweller (or work) anywhere along the M15 routes you may have noticed some changes. Well it seems that starting October 10th select bus service is coming to Manhattan- its been in the Bronx along certain routes already..

What is select bus service you ask ? Well....like existing limited bus service on speed steroids....

According to the MTA .Its supposed to be faster, more convenient and reliable. MTA claims it could be up to 20% faster.

Its not the 2nd Ave Subway but its supposed to speed things up....a little Where does it stop ?
The stops are same as those for the limited-remember than due to subway construction some stops are moved-like for 97th/96th, 86th and 72nd.

How does it work ?

Basically you pay with your Metrocard BEFORE you board one of those three door buses (at those machines you see near the new bus shelters-like in the photo), you get a receipt - that if asked for at any point while you are on the bus, you must produce or be subject to a summons. The bus travels in special "bus only" lanes. (those red ones you've seen being painted )

Should be interesting . What do you think ? Will you try it out ?

For more info check out mta.info ....or after October 10th check back after I try it I'll write about it !

Til the next time!
Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Posted via email from Nicole Beauchamp , Your NYC Real Estate Resource

Locals Only - Warburg Realty - A Higher Standard Since 1896-Latest post from Warburg CEO

Locals Only

Posted on September 27th, 2010 by Frederick Peters, President

Here on Guernsey in the Channel Islands between England and France, where my wife and I have just spent the week-end with our daughter and son-in-law, the residential property market is bifurcated. There is a Local Only designation on about 75% of the houses and apartments, which can only be occupied by natives of Guernsey, their spouses, those whose ancestors have lived here in the past, or those whose presence is deemed “essential” to the community (As the intricacies of this system were explained to me by our taxi driver I almost certainly do not have all the details correct!) I found this idea fascinating. The goal, increasingly significant since Guernsey has become an international tax haven, is to make sure an adequate supply of property remains within the financial reach of local residents. However, even the Local Only housing is expensive and locals like my cab driver are hard pressed to afford it (he is working two jobs, 90 hours a week, to help carry his £1500 per month mortgage.) Even in an artificially controlled environment, market forces are still at work.

In New York we have no Local Only housing. And one of the great things about our city is that every year the number of locals expands as people arrive from all over the world to become New Yorkers. Still, the market we, as brokers at Warburg and similar firms, serve represents a small triangle at the top of the wealth pyramid. Many who grew up in Manhattan cannot afford to return there as adults, especially if they have chosen careers in teaching or the social services. And increasingly the vast majority of those working in the city cannot afford to live in it, or even near it. Most of the members of my administrative staff commute at least an hour and a half each way to ensure that they have adequate home space for their families.

Does this bode well for the future of our city? The loss of tax incentives in recent years has discouraged many developers from building subsidized housing, which our city sorely needs. A change in the fate of Stuyvesant Town could further deplete the stock of middle income housing available in Manhattan. I am a strong believer in paying attention to market forces but also to the importance of diversity, ethnic and financial, in keeping New York vital and dynamic. Some form of intervention must guarantee that residential opportunities exist in New York for middle class housing, intervention which is fair to tenants, landlords, and owners alike. Because we need to figure out how to protect our own hard pressed locals. They represent both our history and our ever changing face. We need them here. 

Share this: These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.

• 

• 

Filed under Fred's View of Manhattan Real Estate.

via warburgrealty.com

Interesting,timely and very good points to consider,especially in our marketplace. Interesting to note that Bermuda also has a similar properties that come with residency attachments required.

Posted via email from Nicole Beauchamp , Your NYC Real Estate Resource

As we head into fall-here's Warburg CEO's take on the market !

What’s New And Exciting?

Posted on September 22nd, 2010 by Frederick Peters, President

As the fall season beings, everyone is asking “How’s the Market?” The stock market is steadily up this month and the Times on Sunday opined that real estate in New York has stabilized, even as real estate markets across the country continue to be threatened by lack of demand, ongoing foreclosures, and short sales. The National Bureau of Economic Research told us Monday that the recession ended in June, 2009, giving the Dow a 146 point lift. So I asked our agents how they are experiencing the market, and here is a summary of what they told me:

* Overall, price is still the key factor in determining the viability of a listing. Buyers are all doing their homework, either through their agents or on their own using sites like StreetEasy and PropertyShark. They know what has sold, they know for how much, and they don’t want to overpay.

* In most markets, buyers are more skittish than they were in the late winter and early spring. Even though most economists agree that there is little likelihood of a double dip recession, some buyers are still worried.

* At the same time, sellers are often pricing properties well ahead of the last sale in the building. While this year has seen some record breaking sales, and while a modest increase is usually OK, many sellers are adamant that these new higher prices are achievable, even after months on the market.

* Condition still sells. The better it looks, the easier it is to find a buyer for it. Many of my agents (and I am with them!) are advocating staging more strongly than ever before. First impressions really DO count with real estate.

* As the rental market has weakened slightly, smaller co-ops and condos are once again competing with rentals for potential first time buyers. The buy vs. rent equation does not seem so obvious to this constituency as rental prices soften a bit.

* Spacious prewar co-ops and condos of 6 to 10 rooms on the Upper East and Upper West Sides, if reasonably priced, are VERY much in demand. We are seeing some of these listings receiving very strong and even full price offers during their first few days on the market. But again, price matters. If the price is really out of whack people don’t even want to try.

* Finally, little by little the shadow inventory of new development units is making its way back to the market. These units are located all over town, from Harlem to the West 40s to the East 20s. They too are all about price. There is demand for these units if they are priced to sell. Otherwise, buyers seem to feel that there are plenty of other properties to look at.

Overall I predict that it is going to be quite a busy fall. I do not see big price gains any time soon, but as confidence improves in the coming weeks (barring any big setbacks) and sellers confront the possibility of higher capital gains taxes in 2011, both sides of the transaction will be motivated to come to terms. And brokers will be there doing what we do best, using our expertise to facilitate the conversation and bring the parties safely home.

Share this: These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.

• 

• 

Filed under Fred's View of Manhattan Real Estate, Frederick Peters, President.

via warburgrealty.com

Posted via email from Nicole Beauchamp , Your NYC Real Estate Resource

Few rent-control apartments left in New York via @nypost #nyc #realestate

Few rent-control apartments left in New York

By MAUREEN CALLAHAN

Last Updated: 6:18 AM, September 19, 2010

Posted: 2:21 AM, September 19, 2010

Comments: 36

Tweet

More

Print

It is among the cheapest rents in all of New York City: a 750-square-foot one-bedroom apartment in Brooklyn for $63 a month.

In other ways, however, it's one of the most costly. Its inhabitants, Magnus Saethre, 97, and his live-in caregiver, Devron King, have been locked in a vicious battle with the building's landlord for years over the conditions of the unit -- which are decrepit -- and what they claim are attempts to force them out.

"The landlord's been calling Adult Protective Services on us," said King, 56. "He's trying to suggest that I'm taking advantage of Magnus."

Allison Joyce

BATTLE ZONE: Magnus Saethre in the $63-a-month Sunset Park home where he has lived since World War II.

sports_story_lower sports_page quigo_lower 1482096 871776 440 225 * -->

According to King and his lawyer, John Hlavaty, the landlord, Jack Geula, has also claimed that other tenants complain about noise.

"Magnus is 97 years old and hard of hearing," Hlavaty said. "They yell. That's how they communicate."

There are fewer than 40,000 rent-controlled apartments among New York's more than 2 million units.

And it's increasingly the city's elderly, clinging to the spaces in which they've lived most of their lives, who are left to live in cramped, rotting rooms while their landlords wait them out.

Rents can be repeatedly lowered until the problems are addressed, but there is no recourse other than civil court for neglect and harassment.

"You hit landlords where they live, with fines," said DHCR spokesman Andrew O'Rourke.

"Ninety-five percent of landlords are accommodating," O'Rourke said.

But some are aggressively stubborn, and what they're doing isn't technically criminal.

Saethre and King, for example, live in a 750-square-foot fourth-floor walk-up on Fourth Avenue in Sunset Park. Saethre is so fragile that he almost never leaves the apartment. The paint on the ceiling is peeling so badly that the curling strips resemble stalactites.

"Magnus has laid out $25,000 in legal fees," said Hlavaty. "That's what the landlord is trying to do -- ruin them financially."

Saethre, who has lived in the unit since returning from World War II, does not want to leave. "When you talk to him when he's fully coherent, he says, 'This is my apartment. I've lived here for 62 years. There's no way that S.O.B. is getting me out,' " Hlavaty said.

The landlord Geula responded, "It's lies, all lies," before hanging up.

Saethre and King's lawyer -- who believes the landlord is most afraid of King inheriting the apartment when Saethre dies -- believes his clients will prevail.

"We are going to send a message to them," he said, "to stop going after the elderly and the vulnerable."

Out of control

Number of rent-controlled units in NYC

1987: 155,361

1991: 124,411

1993: 101,339

1996: 70,572

1999: 52,562

2002: 59,324

2005: 43,317

2008: 39,901

Sources: US Census Bureau and New York City Housing and Vacancy Surveys

maureen.callahan@nypost.com

sports_story_lower sports_page quigo_lower 1482096 871776 440 225 * -->

Tweet

More

Print

Comments (34)

Post Your Comment

• Report Abuse

  Clara

  09/19/2010 7:55 PM

  Ed, there are things that are to be done such as carpet cleaning and painting every so often, but no landlord is required to let you install wallpaper and PAY for it. You'd be surprised how many tenants won't let you IN to do routine things.

• Report Abuse

  alredmondiii

  09/19/2010 7:54 PM

  just curious. when a person takes over ownership of a property with rent control units are they not advised of this before the purchase?

• Report Abuse

  PotusObamaSoros

  09/19/2010 7:05 PM

  the entire rent control fiasco bankrupted countless people who made real estate investments, in turn becoming slums.
  Massive fraud of well to do people living in these apartments, and their children then scammed to take over the same apartment, totaling 39 years !!!
  often the loss was made up from other tenants carrying the load.
  And what about all the city worker expenses, million$ a year, just to do the records, and the court costs over lawsuits.
  BILLION$ wasted in the name of a socialist program.

• Report Abuse

  Algonquin J. Calhoun

  09/19/2010 6:37 PM

  Sounds like it's King who wants to inherit this place who's causing all the problems.

• Report Abuse

  Algonquin J. Calhoun

  09/19/2010 6:32 PM

  Greta-rent control was a wartime measure. It should have been abolished right after WWII.

• Report Abuse

  cody

  09/19/2010 6:17 PM

  I got out of New York on May 16, 1966 for Florida, and NEVER regretted ONE DAY..except the memories.NY you are paying for those who will not pay "their share".

• Report Abuse

  Algonquin J. Calhoun

  09/19/2010 6:17 PM

  This geezer should go move where it's cheaper out in the country. The guy's an idiot. He doesn't go out anyway so it's not like he's leaving his buddies. And at his age he should apply for sec 8. This way the owner gets $1200 for the apt and the geezer pays maybe $200 himself. The owner will acept it because it's a lot more than he gets now. The apt will also be subject to inspection by HUD so the owner will have to fix it to HUD standards.

• Report Abuse

  There's Nothing LEFT

  09/19/2010 5:52 PM

  "The landlord gets a fortune from his other units, he's just a typical greedy pig. And just where is anyone to move to? "

  
  Typical Liberal speak. How about taking responsibility for yourself. The government does not owe you a place to live. You move to where you can afford. It's that simple.

• 1
• 2
• 3
• Next»
• Last»

see all comments

via nypost.com

Posted via email from Nicole Beauchamp , Your NYC Real Estate Resource

Bob Malone at Iridium Jazz Club New York City-Tonight at Midnight !

Los Angeles based BOB MALONE plays a one-of-a-kind hybrid of blues, rock, soul and jazz, delivered with high-energy piano virtuosity and soulful vocals. He headlines over 100 shows a year across the US, Europe, Australia and Asia, and has opened for and/or played with Rickie Lee Jones, The Neville Brothers, Rev. Al Green, Subdudes, Leon Russell, and many others. On TV, Bob has been a featured performer on The Price Is Right, and his music is heard on Dr. Phil, The Rachel Ray Show, Jag, and All My Children. Malone�s six CDs, including his latest, Ain�t What You Know, have earned Top-20 spots on the Living Blues, Roots Music Report and Earshot (Canada) radio charts, are played on over 300 NPR and A3 radio stations, on Sirius Radio�s Bluesville and The Village, and syndicated shows Car Talk, Acoustic Caf�, and Woodsongs Old-Time Radio Hour. Bob is a four-time recipient of the ASCAP Plus Award for independent musicians.

�A new peak in what�s been a rather mountainous career, Malone�s latest shows off everything that makes him great and more�the kind of record you can listen to over and over, the way records used to be. Great songs, amazing production and playing, it doesn�t get much better than this.� American Songwriter

�US blues pianist Bob Malone cakewalked all over the keys with rip-roaring pyrotechnics that were part skill and part showmanship, often eschewing the piano stool and jumping around like a rock star�[but] in such soul-baring numbers as Ing�nue and Butterfly, head-tossing antics were put aside for a far more engrossing melancholic sweetness. Beneath the banter and the wizardry Bob Malone revealed a raw and splendidly large heart.� The West Australian

�The presence of first-call players like Leland Sklar, Chris Trujillo, and Marty Rifkin, plus stellar guitar work from producer Bob DeMarco alongside the artist�s New Orleans drenched piano, raises the bar for this troubadour. On his 6th CD, Bob Malone is clearly in the big leagues� Music Connection

�Bob Malone doesn't just accompany himself on piano. He supports his singing with pulsating, roaring keyboard work that grabs you and shakes you until you cry for mercy.� Keyboard Magazine

www.bobmalone.com

via iridiumjazzclub.com

We are very much looking forward to this (even if we may both need to consider a disco nap before then !)

Posted via email from Nicole Beauchamp , Your NYC Real Estate Resource

Bentley's Fresh Fall Look

Never fails when Bentley goes to get groomed,a downpour usually follows...here he is,newly shorn for the fall at the New York School of Dog Grooming.

Sent from my iPad

Posted via email from Nicole Beauchamp , Your NYC Real Estate Resource

Love the One You’re With - Warburg Realty - A Higher Standard Since 1896

Love the One You’re With

Posted on September 13th, 2010 by Frederick Peters, President

Do you know whether the agent you called is actually representing you? Maybe they are representing the other side but you don’t know it? As of January 1, 2011, real estate agents selling co-op and condominium apartments will be subject to the same written disclosure requirements as are currently mandated in the sale of all other kinds of property (and in all other parts of the country). So let’s talk a little about representation.

When I was first in the business there was only seller representation. By law, every residential agent represented the seller in every situation. Buyers went unrepresented, even though the broker often had a FAR stronger relationship with the buyer, to whom they might have been showing property  for months; than they did to the seller, whom they might never have met. This was in the days before co-broking, so there was only one agent involved in every transaction. Law and reality did not sync. Agents LEGALLY represented sellers, but mostly they ACTUALLY represented buyers.

As more properties became exclusive listings, and co-broking became more common, there were two agents involved in most transactions. But the legal notion of representation did not change. Now not only did the seller’s agent represent the seller, but the buyer’s agent, who would not only never meet the sellers but probably never talk to them either, legally represented the seller as well (it was called sub-agency). So you had two agents representing the seller, one of whom CLEARLY represented the buyer. It made no sense.

In the mid-1990s the Residential Division of The Real Estate Board of New York petitioned then-Secretary of State Gail Schaeffer to put an end to the sub-agency notion and recognize that in co-broke situations, the agent who brought the buyer was actually a buyer’s agent. They agreed, and that ushered in a period of greater clarity.

But some murky areas remain. For one thing, are you aware, as a consumer, that your agent is legally obliged to inform you whom she represents? She is. And what happens if you are buying your agent’s exclusive listing? Unless you clarify otherwise, your agent actually represents the seller, with whom they have signed an exclusive contract, and not you. In this case there is also the alternative of Dual Agency.

In a Dual Agency situation, both parties agree that the agent will represent them both. While this clearly makes complete loyalty to either side impossible, sometimes it is the best alternative. Dual Agency acknowledges a reality: it is often best for BOTH parties, if there is only one agent, for that agent to represent the DEAL by pushing and prodding both sides towards a place of compromise. To me that seems like the fundamental definition of an agent’s job.

Finally, there is a new variant in the Dual Agency scenario which the State of New York just introduced in the last couple of years. It is called Dual Agency with Designated Sales Agents. This arises when two agents within the same firm represent the two sides in a transaction. Any time an agent has an exclusive listing it means that EVERYONE in their company now represents the seller, since legally the company, not any individual agent within it, holds the exclusive. Now, thanks to the Dual Agency with Designated Sales Agents option, it is possible for two colleagues within the same firm to represent two different sides of a transaction, one owing loyalty to the seller, one to the buyer.

All these options - buyer’s agent, seller’s agent, dual agent, dual agent with designated sales agents -appear on the new form which all buyers and sellers will be signing come 2011. As agents, we always love the one we’re with. But do we represent them? That is the question the form is trying to lay to rest…

Share this: These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.

• 

• 

Filed under Fred's View of Manhattan Real Estate, Frederick Peters, President.

via warburgrealty.com

Posted via email from Nicole Beauchamp , Your NYC Real Estate Resource

Never Forget

I will never forget that day. I will never forget those last words.

 

That day, that minute, you knew you wouldn’t see any of it. And you tried to reach out to all of us-you reached but one person and I have tried my best to follow your instructions.

 

I did finally reengineer my life, being of many passions, I decided to delve into one of the others (and yes, I still adore music, and technology of course-could I ever NOT be a geek….)-and it’s been a marvelous decision, bringing fulfillment and friendships I wouldn’t otherwise have. I have BEEN at all those events, I always missed before, because I was working, from dinners, milestone birthdays,graduations,confirmations,and in recent years-the sheer joy of being able to spend time with my great nephew-yes, a great nephew-and he truly is spectacular.

 

I have tried to make every birthday party, graduation and special event, of all of the kids, even those who weren’t yet born, on that fateful day. I’ve even met some of the grandchildren of those no longer with us. This year, for the first time in many years, I really celebrated my birthday, in a way you would have all loved-of course it wasn’t our habitual monthly birthday blowout at Windows on the World-with more martinis than I wish to admit I ever consumed…..regularly…-and you were ALL missed.

 

I missed your silly humour when I got that fateful call from the doctor the first time, as I was getting ready to leave for my niece’s high school graduation. I missed your humor when the lunatic literally knocked me out and as I struggled to regain most of my mobility-and I sort of miss your gentle mocking of my complaints of pain, and I missed your humor the SECOND time I got that very same call, less than five years later. I know that you would have been the first to come mock me at home after surgery….

 

But, I am STILL here. I value EVERYDAY, as if it were my last, as I never know who, or what could happen. EVERYDAY I make sure I tell those most important to me, how I feel, and as you know me well,sometimes it may involve sarcasm-but I strive not to go to bed angry or wake up that way.

 

I am still sad, of all the things you all are collectively never going to experience, but those of us still here, we HAVE to make sure to experience and live our lives. I would have loved to have relished in the joy at your wedding, and I know you would have been a great father as well.

 

I am proud, to have been your friend. Considering how much time we spent together, its not surprising we all became friends, and in a sense family, and then the lines blended between our professional and personal lives. I am forever enriched by having known you all.

 

And by the way J, you’d be really proud now, I am (generally) unequivocally happy, I live and enjoy my life, in the way we all always hoped we would eventually-and...you know. you’d REALLY like K. I wish you’d all gotten the chance to know him, but he knows all of you J

 

====

How the above resulted....September,for many deeply personal reasons,is a difficult month-but some days are much tougher,still raw,as compared to others...

As I walked to my office this morning,I partially walked the same route that I walked on the morning of 9/11. It was a gorgeous ,crisp,fall morning.I was off to what seemed like another in an endless series of follow up visits with my orthopeadic surgeon.Habitually,I always try to get the first appointment of the morning,so that I was able to get to work or meetings in a timely fashion.He was reliable to a fault,that day,he ran late....and I never made it to my former offices in the WTC....

The words below,are largely the result of my thoughts ,of this day,of friends-who were a part of my family......more could be said-but if you wonder what it may have been like,being here ,in NYC. I do not think I know anyone,with any ties to NYC,who was not directly (or indirectly) impacted.Our lives are different-but we must never forget,and we must keep living our lives to the best of our abilities.

I debated sharing....my takeaway from having written this-I feel better,knowing that I have not forgotten those who are,and still remain and important part of who I am today.

 

Posted via email from Nicole Beauchamp , Your NYC Real Estate Resource

Are you a tech hungry agent ? Come to #REBCRYE and become a Tech Savvy Agent

Apples, oranges, blackberries, and droids-doesn’t all of this sound like a futuristic fruit salad?  And as if that isn’t confusing enough-everyone is talking about Twitter, Facebook, blogging and SEO -which really sounds like cereal (note to self, don’t write when hungry…)

Are you curious, or possibly more likely, totally confused by what to do and how to use any of these tools in your business?  Wary of people peddling their wares, promising to make things work; catapult you to the top of search engines-for a (often hefty and absurd) price?

Bring your confusion to RE Bar Camp Rye!

What is a bar camp you ask? It is an unconference, an event driven by YOU the attendee, low cost (in this case FREE thanks to our wonderful sponsors and volunteers-full disclosure I am one of the latter). It’s a great way to wet your palette, jam packed with knowledge, from people just like you, other real estate professionals, from the trenches. Its not about sitting in a room having fruit thrown at you, please don’t throw fruit at us, but its about planting seeds, sharing knowledge ,starting and furthering relationships , taking the online offline, so that we may do what we do best even better, serve our clients ! Have something you want to discuss or present on that you are knowledgeable about-doesn’t have to be social media related-DO come and participate too, or if you’re a little shy-send us suggestions too.

Extra special bonus, we in the NYC are lucky to now be home to one of the co-founders of the Tech Savvy Agent blog, which recently was recognized as most innovative blog by Inman News. Chris Smith will be at REBC Rye!!!! Here is a prime opportunity to connect and engage directly, ask questions, learn what may work for you!  Become a tech savvy agent, so you can learn what could work or not for you, and become an informed consumer, learn what is worth investing your time (and money) into or not.

And, by the way, if you don’t believe in the power of  the fruit salad (if its for you, or that it works for anyone) WHEN (not if) you come to REBC Rye, be sure an introduce yourself to me and I will be glad to tell you some of the awesome things I’ve learned, people I have met, and yes, even business too!  At the end of the day, it’s not about social media, it’s about integrating tools to improve your business, that hasn’t changed-it’s just that now we have to “plug in” occasionally…

Don’t miss this event, register at www.rebarcamprye.com, connect and engage onhttp://facebook.com/rebcrye (and for those of you tweeting, the event hashtag is #rebcrye-if you don’t know what that is,come ,and find out !)

Follow me there !  The event is on Saturday September 11th from 8:30 to 4:30 in Rye, NY at the Hilton.

Nikki Beauchamp is on the planning committee for REBC Rye, an agent at Warburg Realty in NYC,, blogs on the Warburg Realty blog, and atYourNYCRealEstateResource.com …and of course on twitter and facebook!

Posted via email from Nicole Beauchamp , Your NYC Real Estate Resource

The Price Is Right -Latest post from the Warburg Realty blog by Warburg CEO Fred Peters ! Fresh off the presses for fall-determining a pricing strategy !!!!

The Price Is Right

Posted on September 6th, 2010 by Frederick Peters, President

Several articles have recently appeared in the NY Times and the Wall Street Journal touting the relative stability of the Manhattan marketplace as other parts of the country hover at the edges of a second real estate dip. While it is certainly true that New York was less affected by the end of the first time home buyer tax credit (after all, how significant can $8000 be when studio apartments in Manhattan start at $150,000) our real estate market has not been immune to the pressures of global financial anxiety and a two-steps-forward, one-step-back recovery. So as the market reconstitutes itself after Labor Day, I am thinking about what will keep our market strong. Other than economic factors over which we have minimal control, nothing makes property more saleable than the right price. Here are a few recommendations for finding that elusive number:

* DO your homework. Insist that your agent give you a list of comparables, both recently sold and currently on the market. And do your own research on real estate sites like Property Shark and StreetEasy. That creates a frame of reference. But…

* DON’T price based only on other asking prices. The fact that others are unrealistic doesn’t mean you should follow suit – in fact quite the contrary. Your property will be even more interesting to buyers if you are the only one who has realistically assessed the marketplace. Research has shown that properties have a “golden” period of high buyer interest during their first month on the market. Don’t waste it!

* DO consider your own time frame. If you have a year to sell, it is probably better not to list now. If on the other hand you want to sell before December 31 because you think it is likely that capital gains rates will rise in 2011 (and that DOES seem likely) you need to act now and price your property fairly. And remember, any increment in your property’s value during the next twelve months will likely be offset by the higher taxes, so be sure to factor that into your decision making process.

* DO lower the price if you have had no interest after a month or six weeks. The market is eloquent about prices; we just have to listen to it.

* DON’T be emotional about your pricing decision. Most of us love our homes. But our love does not make them unique or impervious to market forces. Once you have done your research, be hard headed about what the right number should be, without inflation based on feelings of personal attachment

* DO price with negotiation in mind. In a market like the one prevailing today, you will probably not receive your asking price. We recommend building in a cushion of no more than 5% between the probable sales price and the price which you decide to ask.  Generally the properties which are priced tightest to value sell fastest and most profitably for their owners. Buyers find too wide a gap between an asking price and their perception of value discouraging. Many buyers will not even offer on a property they perceive to be incorrectly priced.

Many factors go into determining a proper price. Location, condition, square footage outlook – all play a part. But in the end the value of any property is precisely what a buyer will pay and a seller will accept. Determining and reacting to an asking price are the first steps in the dance of purchase and sale.

Share this: These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.

• 

• 

Filed under Fred's View of Manhattan Real Estate, Frederick Peters, President.

via warburgrealty.com

Posted via email from Nicole Beauchamp Team, Your NYC Real Estate Resource

Labor Day is more than just the end of summer

Did you know that the first Labor Day was celebrated in the United States in New York City ? Yep, on September 5th,1882. It became a federal holiday in 1894 after the Pullman Strike. It is in September so as not to be lined up with international May Day celebrations,and it is a state holiday in all 50 states.

Labor Day in the United States is observed the first Monday of September.And how is it observed by most people ? We mourn the "unofficial" end to summer,in many areas the school year begins after Labor Day.No more Summer Fridays,where many people will work shorter hours,or not work at all....

Many of us take the weekend to rest,BBQ,take that last long weekend of summer, or in some cases start watching college sports -I only know college football starts this weekend because I recieved a Facebook invitation to a game ! 

But lets take a moment,and look back on the original significance of this holiday-its not just about the end of summer.

That said-have a wonderful Labor Day weekend ! 

 

 

 

 

Posted via email from Nicole Beauchamp Team, Your NYC Real Estate Resource