J. Philip's Westchester Real Estate Blog: December 2009

Some of the comments in this story prompted me to write one of my own. The jist of the piece is that all real estate appreciation from the past 10 years is nullified by inflation. Now, I don't know if I should go outside, stand in the street and scream 

DUH

at the top of my lungs, or just put my face in a pillow, and scream

DUH

at the top of my lungs in the privacy of my living room. 

Stories like this bring out the haters, and several commenters lamented at how a $200,000 house actually costs three times that much in total payments (wrapping it up with a lament about the failure of capitalism) and another said that the stock market is a better investment than real estate. 

There is a really really large fallacy some people fall into with when they start comparing buying a home with buying a stock, and here it is: 

You can't live in your 401k. It gets drafty.

I really don't care if the stock market outperforms real estate or if it doesn't. It is an apple and orange comparison. I don't care how many charts, graphs and algorythms you show me about how much more money you'll have in 30 years if you took the money you would have put into a house and bought Berkshire Hathaway instead, and here's why: Where ya gonna live Einstein. 

To take advantage of the so called "better investments" than real estate, you either have to live in a box, or be a HUGE camping enthusiast, because I haven't figured out how to invest my housing money elsewhere and avoid eviction. A dollar can only go one place.

If you pay 2000 per month rent for 30 years, you've laid out $720,000 to someone else and accomplished two things: avoided being homeless and paid the maximum in taxes possible. If you pay a mortgage over 30 years, you've paid tens of thousands less in taxes and you have an asset of considerable value that you own, even if it hasn't appreciated a dime. 

So, here is my question for all the bar graph guys who think they'll have more money in 30 years playing the market while avoiding the pox of home ownership: where will you live while you're being an investment genius? In a pile of stock certificates with no plumbing or cable? A box? Your car? 

• We Are Westchester County, NY Real Estate. Reach Phil at (914) 723-8900.
• J. Philip Faranda, Broker-owner, J. Philip Real Estate, LLC. 2010 Vice President, Westchester-Putnam Multiple Listing Service. 
• I am one of New York's premier short sale REALTORS. 
• J. Philip Serves Briarcliff Manor, Ossining, Croton, the River Towns, Westchester County, and the bedroom counties of New York City.
• Free MLS Search! Register for a Free Listingbook account and search the MLS like an agent. 
• I am hiring agents. 

All content/images, unless noted, are the property of J. Philip Faranda & may not be used without permission

Ann has started her own blog, focusing on Gregory, who is on the spectrum for autism. G-man is, thank God, extremely communicative and affectionate, and as this video shows, he loves to be tickled. This is one of Ann's favorite videos, and she figured out how to put it on her sidebar.  The "Dugga Dugga" game, as Gregory calls it, sends him into hysterics, and has been used to transition him from frustration elsewhere a number of times.

Given our schedule, especially with the time I spend in the field, times like this are special. Our children do inspire us, and they make the challenges the business sometimes pose more bearable. There are things I never would have done as a single guy that I embrace as a dad. But embracing Gregory tops it all.

• We Are Westchester County, NY Real Estate. Reach Phil at (914) 723-8900.
• J. Philip Faranda, Broker-owner, J. Philip Real Estate, LLC. 2010 Vice President, Westchester-Putnam Multiple Listing Service. 
• I am one of New York's premier short sale REALTORS. 
• J. Philip Serves Briarcliff Manor, Ossining, Croton, the River Towns, Westchester County, and the bedroom counties of New York City.
• Free MLS Search! Register for a Free Listingbook account and search the MLS like an agent. 
• I am hiring agents. 

All content/images, unless noted, are the property of J. Philip Faranda & may not be used without permission

This article in the Real Deal caught my attention. According to the NY Times, foreclosure filings in New York State for 2009 are up 17 percent from the prior year, with just over 48,000 cases. Not all filings automatically become bank repossessions, but the number of those spiked enormously. Earlier this year I worked quite a bit in Queens and I was shocked at the high percentage of the places I was showing that were short sales and bank owned properties.  

Many of those filings will become short sales, loan modifications or get pulled back by the homeowners through other means (like paying the arrearage if at all possible). But even if that happens, the sheer raw volume of filings will end up with more REO properties hitting the market, as I first noticed earlier this year. Not surprisingly, the recession has caused other reasons for the courts to be busy- evictions, domestic violence, divorce and business disputes are all signs of an economy that is buckling from enormous stress. 

Stress is the operative word. It describes the people and the conditions. 

• We Are Westchester County, NY Real Estate. Reach Phil at (914) 723-8900.
• J. Philip Faranda, Broker-owner, J. Philip Real Estate, LLC. 2010 Vice President, Westchester-Putnam Multiple Listing Service. 
• I am one of New York's premier short sale REALTORS. 
• J. Philip Serves Briarcliff Manor, Ossining, Croton, the River Towns, Westchester County, and the bedroom counties of New York City.
• Free MLS Search! Register for a Free Listingbook account and search the MLS like an agent. 
• I am hiring agents. 

All content/images, unless noted, are the property of J. Philip Faranda & may not be used without permission

Russell Shaw of AgentGenius passes on a powerful email being sent to agents on how to deal with Bank of America’s difficulty with short sales- don’t send them any new mortgage business.

My comment was as follows:

Well, it isn’t surprising that this letter is being distributed. I haven’t gotten one but you reap what you sow. There was a time when Countrywide was the Grinch of short sales. When they were acquired by B of A people thought things might get better, but they didn’t. It should only take as much time to approve a short sale as it takes to underwrite a mortgage- the process is analogous. That we have to drag the lender, kicking and screaming, to get more money than they’d get if it went to REO explains how this industry thinks. It also explains how we got into this mess.

I have blogged about how lame the banks are about short sales here. 

Bryant Tutas was a frequent commenter on the story and pointed out that an organized boycott would be illegal collusion. He made some other good points here. Yes, part of the problem is lame agents. But it is hard even for a good agent when the lender won't cooperate. I have dynamite people ( a NY law firm) doing my short sales and we get frustrated with all the stonewalling, red tape and delays. 

• We Are Westchester County, NY Real Estate. Reach Phil at (914) 723-8900.
• J. Philip Faranda, Broker-owner, J. Philip Real Estate, LLC. 2010 Vice President, Westchester-Putnam Multiple Listing Service. 
• I am one of New York's premier short sale REALTORS. 
• J. Philip Serves Briarcliff Manor, Ossining, Croton, the River Towns, Westchester County, and the bedroom counties of New York City.
• Free MLS Search! Register for a Free Listingbook account and search the MLS like an agent. 
• I am hiring agents. 

All content/images, unless noted, are the property of J. Philip Faranda & may not be used without permission

If you've ever driven on any of the Westchester County Parkways, perhaps you've seen a quasi-official looking blue and white truck with the initials H.E.L.P. on the side. That stands for Highway Emergency Local Patrol, and they go around aiding people with car trouble. I have no idea what the cost is the the taxpayer; I do know that I ran out of gas Tuesday. 

I was driving down the Sprain Brook Parkway, right next to the reservoir when I saw I was on fumes. Just as my mind began to race about the next exit, I felt that hesitation. I coasted to a stop, dry as a bone. I was angry with myself. Trying to do too much for too many in too short a time, I was supposed to meet with a client at a construction site. And it was really cold out. 

After calling Ann & Ronnie (our admin), we found that there was no number for these guys. You have to call 911 and they send them. So I did. And the guy came. Two gallons of gas, courtesy of the taxpayers of Westchester county (the friendly snickers were free), and I was back on the road. I would have taken better photos, but I was too much of a wimp in the cold, so everything was from the drivers seat.  

• We Are Westchester County, NY Real Estate. Reach Phil at (914) 723-8900.
• J. Philip Faranda, Broker-owner, J. Philip Real Estate, LLC. 2010 Vice President, Westchester-Putnam Multiple Listing Service. 
• I am one of New York's premier short sale REALTORS. 
• J. Philip Serves Briarcliff Manor, Ossining, Croton, the River Towns, Westchester County, and the bedroom counties of New York City.
• Free MLS Search! Register for a Free Listingbook account and search the MLS like an agent. 
• I am hiring agents. 

All content/images, unless noted, are the property of J. Philip Faranda & may not be used without permission

One of the most common questions I get from buyers about an area they are considering is the following:

How good are the schools? 

It is a fair question. It factors in to their quality of life, the future welfare of their children, and resale value of the home they are considering. I also can't answer the question. It is a fair housing issue, and licensees who recommend one town or district over another may in engaging in illegal steering.

So what are we to do? Well, silly as it may sound, while licensees ought not compare school districts, we can give our clients sources of the information they seek. It actually makes some sense; we don't answer legal questions either, but we can refer people to a lawyer.

Here are some good sources of information on school districts: 

• Westchester School District Report Cards- published by the State of New York.
• National Center for Education Statistics- published by the US Department of Education
• Westchester School District Profiles- map based, put out by the Westchester County government. Mostly census data. 

• School Digger
• Public school review
• New York Public school rankings

If you Google school rankings there are lots of results, but I'm not sure of their data source. Caveat emptor. I'd start with the first three.

 

• We Are Westchester County, NY Real Estate. Reach Phil at (914) 723-8900.
• J. Philip Faranda, Broker-owner, J. Philip Real Estate, LLC. 2010 Vice President, Westchester-Putnam Multiple Listing Service. 
• I am one of New York's premier short sale REALTORS. 
• J. Philip Serves Briarcliff Manor, Ossining, Croton, the River Towns, Westchester County, and the bedroom counties of New York City.
• Free MLS Search! Register for a Free Listingbook account and search the MLS like an agent. 
• I am hiring agents. 

All content/images, unless noted, are the property of J. Philip Faranda & may not be used without permission

I have a deal going on one of my listings. December deals are special, and there are a lot of moving parts on my clients' part, so I thought I'd reach out to the buyer agent to check status. She's been good about contact, so I wondered why we hadn't spoken in a few days. A man answered her phone. 

It was her husband. She just had a baby. They were still at the hospital. 

Since Ann and I have been down this road four times, I congratulated him heartily and asked for a call back whenever Lora was up to it. I didn't expect anything for a few days.

I wasn't finished with my calls, so made another call to an office. The phone rang awhile, then a woman answered. She wasn't pleasant. "We're closed! It's Christmas Eve!" she said indignantly. "Merry Christmaaaasss," she said, in a saccharin voice, then hung up. This is a respected company in an affluent area. If it were my firm, this woman would have been given her license and shown the door. 

Moments later, my phone rang. It was Lora, calling from her hospital bed. We handled what we needed to handle, I congratulated the new mommy, wished her a merry Christmas, and we agreed to speak again next week. I was blown away. 

One woman is in the comfort of an office and hangs up on me. Another calls from the hospital after giving birth. What a contrast in dedication. Hats off to Lora Giordano, who gets it. I don't care if I am plugging a competitor, I am acknowledging the dedication of a colleague. I have seen 4 babies come into this world, and it is no picnic. I am still amazed. Way to go that extra mile, Momma bear. Way to take care of that new cub. I applaud you.

• We Are Westchester County, NY Real Estate. Reach Phil at (914) 723-8900.
• J. Philip Faranda, Broker-owner, J. Philip Real Estate, LLC. 2010 Vice President, Westchester-Putnam Multiple Listing Service. 
• I am one of New York's premier short sale REALTORS. 
• J. Philip Serves Briarcliff Manor, Ossining, Croton, the River Towns, Westchester County, and the bedroom counties of New York City.
• Free MLS Search! Register for a Free Listingbook account and search the MLS like an agent. 
• I am hiring agents. 

All content/images, unless noted, are the property of J. Philip Faranda & may not be used without permission

Ossining Christmas Vigil: Lighting the Way for Santa

One of the really cool local traditions in my old neighborhood on Osage Drive and Susquehanna Rd was to put rows of candles out along the street to light the way for St Nicholas. As I was driving to my office on an elf errand around 11:30pm, I drove through the street to admire the view of the Holy Child's birthday candles. The photos do not do it justice; in person it is breathtaking.

This one is the view from Pleasantville Road as you turn in to Susquehanna Road. 

The candles light the way for St Nicholas

He won't have any trouble finding this house. 

This was truly impressive in person. 

Prior to snapping this one a car drove by. People actually drive through the neighborhood to see the candles. 

You can see them winding down the street until they are out of sight.

In all, residents from six separate streets participate. It is no easy undertaking. Each bag has to be filled with sand, the candle has to be placed in correctly and then lit. Few go out, even in the wind. Doing 20-30 of these in the cold isn't fun. But they do it. 

There is something quietly stunning about it; very few people do the Griswald house lights on this night, but almost everyone does the candles on this one night of the year. Call it lighting the way for Santa or birthday candles for Jesus, it is a sight to behold. It is one of the special things about the place where I grew up.

Merry Christmas, and peace and prosperity to you in 2010.

• We Are Westchester County, NY Real Estate. Reach Phil at (914) 723-8900.
• J. Philip Faranda, Broker-owner, J. Philip Real Estate, LLC. 2010 Vice President, Westchester-Putnam Multiple Listing Service. 
• I am one of New York's premier short sale REALTORS. 
• J. Philip Serves Briarcliff Manor, Ossining, Croton, the River Towns, Westchester County, and the bedroom counties of New York City.
• Free MLS Search! Register for a Free Listingbook account and search the MLS like an agent. 
• I am hiring agents. 

All content/images, unless noted, are the property of J. Philip Faranda & may not be used without permission

It can be confusing to understand the health of the economy from the media. As the screen shot from my news feed shows, there are seemingly completely contradictory stories on the U.S. real estate market. I've put red next to the "bad" news and a green mark next to the good news. One headline has things jumping up 55%; another says new home sales are down 11%. No wonder people are finding that making sense of it is not easy.

Here are a few things to consider:

• First, all real estate is local. One region can have a spike upward while overall the country can be down. New York is not Miami or Las Vegas. For that matter, the Bronx is not Bronxville. 
• There are different sectors in the market. Resales are not new homes; they are pre existing homes. In a down market, few people build new compared to the number of folks who are picking up pre-owned foreclosure properties which were built decades ago. 
• There are different metrics, such as price and volume of transactions. Prices can be down, but the volume of sales can go up. 
• Prices can go up, and the volume of sales can be depressed. 

• We Are Westchester County, NY Real Estate. Reach Phil at (914) 723-8900.
• J. Philip Faranda, Broker-owner, J. Philip Real Estate, LLC. 2010 Vice President, Westchester-Putnam Multiple Listing Service. 
• I am one of New York's premier short sale REALTORS. 
• J. Philip Serves Briarcliff Manor, Ossining, Croton, the River Towns, Westchester County, and the bedroom counties of New York City.
• Free MLS Search! Register for a Free Listingbook account and search the MLS like an agent. 
• I am hiring agents. 

All content/images, unless noted, are the property of J. Philip Faranda & may not be used without permission

I remember finding a letter from 1945, written by my father from the South Pacific at the end of the 2nd World War. Japan had surrendered, and he was sharing with his parents that he and his fellow soldiers were not so much jubilant as they were exhausted. He wondered aloud about the future of mankind with such powerful weapons in the hands of mere men. It was a very unique look into a time in my Dad's life I would never otherwise see. He was 24 at the time; I was 32 when I read the letter. For the first time, I related to my father as a young man with an unknown future. 

Flashing forward to today, so many of us are creating a body of work online that will not be stored in an attic, but will last in perpetuity. Blogs, postings, Tweets, and Facebook will give our children and grandchildren enormous access into our thoughts. Some will actually know how it was for us when 9/11 occurred, Barack Obama was elected, and when they were born. Can you imagine?

Can you imagine knowing JFK's personal thoughts during the Cuban Missile Crisis? Jackie's feelings when she was newly widowed? What about Thomas Jefferson's feeling on July 5, 1776? If Christopher Columbus could tweet on a blackberry, what would he have told us? Or Martin Luther? Charlemagne? Francis of Assisi? What if you could learn about your great grandfather, or your great great great grandmother? 

Knowing my mother's thoughts when Pearl Harbor was bombed, when my father proposed, or when her dad died would be extraordinary. Understanding my father's feelings when he was a GI in a tight spot, when he was working in the Great depression, and how he felt when I was born (he was 46) would be enormous. I have always wondered what my grandfather Salvatore experienced at Ellis Island when he arrived from Sicily.  

Future generations will know all of this. Your great great great great great grandchildren will know you. I don't know about you, but that's part of the reason I write. I'd like to build a company my children, if they chose, could run. If they knew that it just didn't appear, that it wasn't all easy, and what challenges I faced, it would make a difference in their stewardship. It might also tell them something about their father they might not otherwise know. 

• We Are Westchester County, NY Real Estate. Reach Phil at (914) 723-8900.
• J. Philip Faranda, Broker-owner, J. Philip Real Estate, LLC. 2010 Vice President, Westchester-Putnam Multiple Listing Service. 
• I am one of New York's premier short sale REALTORS. 
• J. Philip Serves Briarcliff Manor, Ossining, Croton, the River Towns, Westchester County, and the bedroom counties of New York City.
• Free MLS Search! Register for a Free Listingbook account and search the MLS like an agent. 
• I am hiring agents. 

All content/images, unless noted, are the property of J. Philip Faranda & may not be used without permission