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

My office is located in Briarcliff Manor, NY but technically sits on Town of Ossining soil. The town of Ossining is the unincorporated portion of the municipality located outside the village. It mostly borders the hamlet of Millwood in the town of New Castle as well as Maryknoll, NY, home of the renowned Catholic Mission. The character of the town is far more bucolic and suburban than the more densely populated village of Ossining, and the population of less than 6,000 is dwarfed by the village at more than 25,000. Both the town and village are served by the Ossining Union Free School District.

There are, as of February 27, 2009, 23 single family homes for sale in the town of Ossining. In the past 180 days 7 homes have sold at a median sales price of $464,000. The median asking price of homes for sale is $550,000. 3 homes are under contract for sale and a 4th is pending closing in the very near future.

With 23 active listings and only 7 titles transferred in the past 180 days, there is a severe  imbalance between inventory for sale and closed transactions. At that rate, there is just under two years of inventory available. With the median sales price at $464,00 and the median asking price at $550,000, it would appear that the inventory would clear faster if prices were reduced. The buying public is not showing much enthusiasm at those prices.

There are a number of condominium communities in the town as well, with 9 sales in the past 180 days at a median sales price of $397,000. The active inventory of 14 units is at a median asking price between $405,000 and $425,000. Perhaps because of the smaller gap in sales and asking prices, there appears to be less than a year of inventory available in condos. However, at this time just one condominium is under contract and a second is pending sale imminently.

A healthy Spring market can change many things, so here's to a good March, April and May of real estate activity in Ossining.

This data is unscientific and is derived from the Westchester-Putnam MLS. It does not include non-MLS transactions and is subject to input errors (such as erroneously including village of Ossining property) from other MLS members. This may be reproduced only with consent from J. Philip Faranda, who must be credited.

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J. Philip Faranda is the broker and owner of J. Philip Real Estate, LLC, in Briarcliff Manor, NY, nestled between Ossining, Croton on Hudson, Sleepy Hollow, Chappaqua and Pleasantville. We are also in close proximity to White Plains, Peekskill, Yonkers & Yorktown. The firm specializes in residential real estate in Westchester, Putnam & Rockland County. Visit us on the web at www.jphilip.com.

Phil is one of the top selling REALTORS in Westchester County, with over 100 closed transactions in 2007-2008. He is also among the premier short sale specialists in New York. Check out www.nyshortsaleteam.com and our short sale blog, newyorkshortsaleblog.wordpress.com.

• 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

According to Inman News, Minnesota-based Webdigs, Inc, a discount real estate broker, announced a loss of $2.7 million since it's inception in the spring of 2007. Many businesses lose money in their first year or two, and I know nothing of Webdigs' merits or demerits. What is significant to my mind, and what should matter to the consumer, is that this follows a pattern of non-traditional brokerage models failing. Iggy's House and Foxtons, both discount brokers, are two recent examples.

Why should this matter to the consumer? Because your transaction is not a zero-sum event. If a broker promises you a 3% commission discount, for instance, there is a cost associated with that discount that doesn't show up in their hypothetical net sheet because it doesn't account for one immutable law of real estate brokerage:

The best agents who will do the best job for you will work where they can make the most money.

Foxtons' agents in New York were all on a salary and an extremely modest commission schedule. When I checked them out in 2001 I recall a $35,000 per annum salary and a $400 bonus for closed sales. A Mini Cooper was in the package also. I know top-producing agents who gross $35,00 a month. They don't drive Minis. They wouldn't work at Foxtons. Since the top 10% of agents are responsible for 90% of the transactions, the agents who were attracted to Foxtons weren't enough to keep the company in the black. And they folded.

Here's how it affects the seller: If, as the seller you choose the firm with the lowest commission thinking it will net you the most money, you are employing backwards logic. Not all real estate agents will do the same job for you. Overall and with rare exception, good agents cost more than discount agents because good agents get great results and discount agents get discount results. Good agents sell homes faster. Good agents get more money. Good agents resolve home inspection issues faster. Good agents handle compliance & title issues more effectively. Good agents have better mortgage sources. Good agents can negotiate the pants off a crummy agent. A good agent may quote you a lower price when they first meet you, but they'll net you more money because they won't let your listing go stale because it is overpriced.  

It is ironic that people will shop around for the best cell phone, the best laptop, the best plasma TV and the best surgeon for their gall bladder but the biggest financial transaction gets given to the lowest bidder or Aunt Ethel. If people treated choosing a broker like it was their financial life or death, they'd get dramatically better results. If you think a 3% discount is worth forfeiting that, go ahead. Just remember that the 3% may be off a far lower price or after a far longer, more stressful transaction. And don't be surprised when the company goes out of business.

• 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 blogged recently on the incredible overlap of government and services in New York and how that redundancy adds to the tax burden of New Yorkers. In yesterday's Journal News, there was a special report on pensioners, that is, retired government employees who are allowed to legally "double dip" and get another government job. One retired Ossining, NY school superintendent with a $165,000 pension is allowed to hold the same position in the nearby Katonah-Lewisboro school district and collect a $235,000 salary, all on our backs. He's 65, so he also collects social security. I don't begrudge a good living to anyone, but this is wasteful and has a high opportunity cost.

The waiver in the law that allows this is intended to handle an emergency or hard to fill vacancy. Clearly, it is being abused. There are hundreds of cases like this in schools, county and state government, law enforcement and regulatory agencies.

You can read the entire article here:

http://www.lohud.com/article/2009902220343

We need more reporting like this. There has to be more transparency in how our tax money is spent, and those with their hand on the budget strings need to be more mindful that it is our money and we want it spent wisely or not spent. That is the only way that taxes will not spiral even more out of control than they already have.

• 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 recall reading a letter from my father written in August of 1945 to his parents on the news that the Second World War was over. He said that the feeling among the men was not one of celebration or joy, but weary relief. My Dad was in the Signal Corps on Leyti Island in the Pacific Theater. He, like many Americans, bowed his head in thanks when the Japanese officially surrendered on the USS Missouri.

On the Missouri that day of the surrender was a young marine who would move back to the USA and live in Yonkers, NY, just a few miles from where my father and mother raised my brothers and myself. Our families would be a few zip codes apart. My Dad never met this Marine. I met him just shy of a year ago.

Once a Marine, always a Marine, and this Marine, now this dignified octogenarian was in, to use his own words, a pickle. He was in the car business for many years, raised a son and a daughter with his beloved wife, and by the time they were retired, their home was paid for. However, she became terminally ill a few years ago, and the Marine did everything he could to get her better. He borrowed every cent he could on the house to pay for a cure, but a remedy, as many of God's answers are to our ears, not the one he sought. Then, when the rate adjusted up and the economy shifted down, he found himself drowning in debt.

I will never forget our first meeting. Walking through that house and hearing his story and how he got where he was struck me as the ultimate irony. I remember thinking that this guy right here is a HERO, and he deserves better than this. Each room had a story. Even his workshop, where he made model planes, gave me a tangible awareness of his family's 50 years of happiness there. As bad as the circumstances were, he wasn't a victim. He just wanted to know a plan to make things right. The only way out would be a short sale, and I promised him my best. 

I will tell you now that this has been one of the hardest files I have ever worked on, and it has taken me and his attorney a full year and two buyers to get this short sale approved. It has been so hard that I am even reticent to write this post for fear of jinxing the good news, but I can't be silent. I took this file extremely personally, because this is how I would want someone to treat my father. This is also one of the very few times I had a client who had every reason to be high maintenance and difficult who instead always spoke to me like I was a boxer returning to his corner. We were on the same team.

Moreover, I feel that I owe my client a debt of enormous gratitude. As hard as this was, and as beleaguered as I feel right now, I know this my experience is NOTHING compared to what this Marine has been through. My Dad and my client had a far better reason to be weary in August of 1945.

• 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

A local lender has informed me that the the minimum FICO score for an FHA mortgage is now 620. I remember vividly getting people approved in the 90's with scores barely above 500. It didn't happen routinely, but 580 did.

I find this ironic: rates are fantastic and prices are down, but if someone gets caught in the undertow of the recession they can't take advantage. It's like cheap real estate on the moon; all you need to do is figure out how to get there and it's yours. These people pay taxes to bail out the lenders to the tune of almost a trillion dollars, and what do the lenders do in return? Shut them out. It is just another sign that, stimulus program or not, the lenders don't want to extend credit.

The FHA program was not broken and didn't need repair. I am not a "storm the Bastille" kind of guy, but it is a disgrace if lawmakers allow this to stand. I support the banks eliminating bad loans, but I don't support them only making loans to the elite. FHA is for the little guy. At least, it was.

• 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

Many who grew up in Ossining, NY like I did will remember an old, overgrown algae-covered man-made pond near the Chilmark Shopping Center known simply as The Reservoir. It was the Village's water supply for much of the pre-World War II era, was then was replaced by water towers, and in subsequent decades became a derelict mess. When I was growing up in the 70's and 80's the Reservoir was used for skating (AT OWN RISK, as the sign said) and hanging out.

The water towers had their share of graffiti, and nobody really knew what good the Reservoir was. I learned to skip rocks there,and I spent many hours of my youth sitting quietly, watching the water, either alone or with some friends after buying baseball cards and candy at Chilmark Pharmacy. In the Spring and Autumn when the foliage wasn't too thick we'd ride our bikes around it. I had a 5-speed with high handle bars and a banana seat. 

In the earlier part of this decade, the Village cleaned the place up,  added a blacktop ring around it for walking, installed some park benches & tables, and dedicated it as Reservoir Park. An aerator was installed for the algae, and the towers were repainted. Mayor Perillo was vilified by some for the improvement expense, but most, like myself, applauded the move. It is an extremely popular place to sit, walk the dog, stroll the kids, and spend quiet time. The SKATE AT OWN RISK sign is long gone, replaced by 3 LAPS = 1 MILE.

More thoughts here.

• 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