J. Philip's Westchester Real Estate Blog: June 2010

The Edgemont is a co op apartment complex located at 370 and 372 Central Park Avenue in Scarsdale, NY. It is served by the Edgemont School District and receives municipal services from the Town of Greenburgh. Amenities in the complex include a beautiful inground swimming pool, a children's playground, and a fitness room. Every apartment gets one parking spot, and a second spot is possible if you get on a waiting list. It goes without saying (but I'll say it anyway) that The Edgemont enjoys a very convenient location. Central Avenue (as the locals tend to drop the "Park") has everything - shopping, restaurants, retail, and Yonkers, White Plains and Manhattan are all within shooting distance. 

All co ops have Rules, and the Edgemont is no exception. Here are a few things for you to know if you are considering the Edgemont.

• Board approval is required for all new shareholders (owners). The board meets monthly. 
• Minimum down payment required is 20%
• Flip tax is $1 per share (We found shares vary from 500s to the 900s, depending on the size of the unit). 
• Monthly Maintenance/co-op fee is approximately 50% deductible. 
• Buyers must pay 3 months monthly maintenance at closing upfront to the Edgemont reserve fund at closing.
• Heat is hot water baseboard. Air conditioning is wall units. 
• Electricity is paid separately from the monthly fee. Heat is included!

While the Edgemont is right on Central Avenue, it isn't on top of the traffic. The buildings are set back from the road and have wooded coverage. It backs up to the Greenburgh Nature Center, so there are no neighbors on the other side except birds. Another nice thing about the Edgemont is that there is ample visitor parking, which can be an issue in other complexes. 

There are other nice things to note about the Edgemont. Both buildings are 24 hour security buildings, the management staff are excellent, and many apartments, as the pictures show, have balconies. The buildings were erected in 1970, and they are updated and in solid shape. All units are broadband and cable compatible. If you are looking for a nice co op in the area, the Edgemont is probably compatible with you as well. 

• 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

Parts of the Bronx and Queens have been deemed by NY Secretary of State to be "cease and desist" zones where it is unlawful for real estate licensees to make phone calls, mail flyers or engage in any other activity soliciting business. This is far more wide a prohibition than a Do Not Call list. It is the government forbidding licensees to call, mail or otherwise contact homeowners. They can't call expired listings. They can't call For Sale By Owners. 

The justification of the move, which came after 3 public hearings, was "intense and repeated solicitation." People who want to be on the cease and desist list can register with the Department of State and licensees are then required to ensure that anyone they are contacting is not on the list. These zones are in force for 5 years. There was already one in Brooklyn. The exact geographic areas can be found on the Department of State website.  

• 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

The Westchester Putnam Multiple Listing Service has voted to change its name this morning to the Empire Access Multiple Listing Service. The name change from WPMLS to the EAMLS will be formalized later this year. For years the WPMLS served areas outside Westchester and Putnam Counties, as it has been the dominant MLS in the Bronx and an ever growing number of participants in Dutchess County (that only makes sense, since so many buyers in Dutchess come from Westchester and Putnam). There is also significant inventory in neighboring Fairfield County, CT and Rockland and Orange Counties west of the Hudson. 

It was no easy task coming up with a name that would fit. We have a very large and diverse footprint, and we also wanted a name that would be forward thinking. I think we did it. 

Personally, my next goal is to have the EAMLS get a great public portal that will ensure that buyers can search an MLS sponsored, unbranded database of the entire MLS like MLSLI.com out on Long Island. That might be a long time coming, but I am all for a transparent, consumer-friendly interface. We'll see what's next. 

• 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 originated mortgage loans from about 2002 until 2006 or so. I considered starting my own mortgage brokerage but decided against it for several reasons, including the growth of my real estate company and the vast changes in the industry after the sub prime crisis. That required more learning than I could spare if I wanted to properly manage my real estate brokerage. I no longer originate mortgages. However, I do know the difference between interest rate and APR.

For most of my time in the industry I worked for brokers, not direct lenders. They seemed to me to have more flexibility in placing loans. My first company said that applicants who made one application with her had dozens of options whereas anyone who applied with a local bank had but one. In 2002, that made sense. It no longer does. Changes in the laws of the land, especially here in New York, have marginalized mortgage brokers and given large direct lenders an advantage in the market place. The reasons why are for another post; the fact is that consumers who use a broker need to know some things. 

First, mortgage brokers are not able to make loans. They place them with 3rd parties. This is  not bad, but it does make a pre approval from a broker a lie. Mortgage brokers can issue prequalification letters. They cannot issue a pre approval letter. They can't loan. As a matter of fact, New York compliance regulations stipulate that mortgage brokers state that they place loans with 3rd parties on their letters. You'd be surprised how many do not. DUMB. 

Second, mortgage brokers have to disclose what they are earning on a loan (otherwise known as yield spread premium). Bankers do not have to disclose this. Fair or not, it is the law. While pricing is not firmed up until you lock your rate, it is important that you as a consumer get a good faith estimate at the time your application is made. Too often, I have dealt with buyers who did not like their closing statement, and when I asked them what their GFE (good faith estimate) said, they told me that they never got one. It was coming. They couldn't get it right away. The dog ate it. In any case like that, they were victims of an unethical practice. 

In New York, many good brokers have gone out of business. Public perception has put more confidence in banks, and brokers have borne the brunt of the economic downturn with the sub prime meltdown and so many stories of fraud in the news. You would think that this would make the existing brokers more mindful of watching their Ps and Qs, but in my experience, the opposite is the case. With one notable exception in my experience, mortgage brokers have not adapted to the new environment, causing suspicion and uphill battles.

I still get bogus preapproval letters with no compliance verbiage on Microsoft Word forms. This makes getting an offer accepted really hard for the borrower, who has no idea that they are at a disadvantage. I still get assertions that a borrower is a "slam dunk" from originators at brokerages, and when I ask what the Desktop Underwriter findings were for the borrower I get a blank stare. Desktop Underwriter, or DU, has been the industry standard for both bankers and brokers in automated underwriting. It isn't foolproof but it is an indication of accuracy and thoroughness. If a borrower hasn't been submitted to DU without a really valid reasons they are a huge question mark. 

Caveat emptor to both buyers and sellers. Find out who is vetting the prospective buyer/borrower, because that can be the difference between a good sale and a long drawn out non-deal that wastes weeks and months. 

• 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

The Westchester-Putnam Association of Realtors has featured me in their monthly spotlight in the Real Estate In Depth publication. The link is a pdf and the article is on page 11. It is a nice piece, and as much as I am tempted to beat my chest, much of my interview for the article was actually on Paul and Kevin Crego (misspelled "Prego" in the article), who taught me the real estate business. 

Kevin was my college roommate at Villanova and recruited me for years to come and work with him and his father at their brokerage in Rochester. I was with them for 5 years. 

It is tough to summarize a 14 year career in a short article, so Paul and Kevin did not get a big role, although I am gratified at the last sentence of the piece- 100% true. 

I had a chance to catch up with Paul and Kevin, as well as their better halves, Helen and Elle, when I was in Ithaca on June 13th. We met in Aurora, New York for lunch, and had a wonderful reunion at the Aurora Inn overlooking Lake Cayuga. 

There is no closer friendship than those with whom you have shared such an intense part of your life as building a career. For 5 years Paul and Kevin treated me like a son and brother as I grew in the business, and when I felt it was time to go come home to Westchester and build my family and career here they remained my biggest supporters. 

We all still work very hard in this economic climate, so getting together in the middle of the state for lunch was about as much as any of us could spare. I was in Ithaca to stand in for my late brother at the Cornell Crew Alumni row, and they were able to play hooky from business in Rochester for half a day. It was not lots of time, but it was quality time. 

I could write a book on each of the things I've touched on here, but there is work to be done, and I'll indulge another time. Suffice to say that time like this are too rare, and one of my goals is to make them more common. 

Time with loved ones is what it is all about. 

• 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 isn't through the house yet, but apparently some Senators or their kids haven't closed on their new house yet and they saw that thousands of people would lose out on the stimulus tax credit if something wasn't done. While I love to sardonically suspect self interest, I don't care what the motivation was, because we are halfway toward an extension which will have plenty of home buyers, including my own clients, exhaling in relief.

Often, delays are not the fault of the buyer, especially in lawyer-laden New York, where some attorneys don't mix so well with deadlines. I shouldn't pick on attorneys (although I can't resist), because other delays could be lax agents, short sale red tape, and mortgage issues. If passed, the extension will be for 90 days, putting the closing deadline bat September 30, 2010.

Frankly, I don't see a reason why they only gave people 60 days from April 30th in the first place now that I think of it.

Why have a deadline at all? What's the harm in extending the credit for anyone who was under contract on April 30, 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

Are you a bigot who wants to be steered toward towns with a certain demographic? I can't help you out, but the New York Times seems very eager to pitch in. 

This past February, Elsa Brenner did a nice hatchet job on my neighboring village of Pleasantville, NY featuring this pearl of wisdom, where she referred to the "7,200 residents of this affluent and overwhelmingly white village." One can only wonder if Elsa has ever referred to any other area as overwhelmingly Hispanic or overwhelmingly African American. The title of the article was the not very subtle "They'd Like to Keep it That Way."

I guess the editors saw that suggestion too, so last week's article on Mamaroneck was just titled "Mamaroneck, NY." Too bad the editors didn't read the rest of the article, where Elsa delivers the following gem:

Census figures depict a largely white population; but when compared with similar neighboring communities Mamaroneck has more variety: Of about 18,400 residents, 18 percent describe themselves as Hispanic and 4 percent as black, along with smaller percentages of Japanese, Chinese and South Asian.

Can you imagine the scandal if a licensee were to say that? Of course Elsa is working as a journalist, so she has a lower bar than a licensed agent. However, the outcome is the same, and that is a sad thing for us all. One would think that the equal housing laws which prohibit steering and ethnic/racial considerations for licensees are something the Times supports; too bad they don't walk the talk. 

I made my feelings known in the Pleasantville article about Elsa's underwhelming effort. I was not alone. Comments were disabled for the Mamaroneck article, despite the fact that both are in the "living in" series. 

I do not feel that I am being excessive or mean spirited in pointing this out. There is a finite amount of copy in any printed article, and for the NY Times to waste space on discussion of ethnicity in a real estate piece diminishes us 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 is a photo of a recent lunch I took clients to after we closed on their property in Astoria, New York. I sold the house myself. The clients are Bill and Sam Runyon, and I have known Bill since about 1990 when I lived in Philadelphia after college. Bill was the stepfather of my good friend Pam, and we have always seen each other at different events like holidays and visits from out of town. 

Sadly, the last time I saw Bill was at his late wife's funeral in Philadelphia a few years ago, and he has since remarried Sam, who was actually born in the house I sold for them! As many transactions go in this day and age, we had some serious challenges to overcome to get this sale closed, so much so that it was almost surreal to finally sit at the closing table with buyer and seller meeting at long last. But close it did, and since Bill and Sam were up from Florida for only a short time, we scheduled lunch for later in the week. 

Astoria has some fantastic choices, but thanks to my Droid I found Trattoria L'Incontro on 31st Street and it was superlative. There is something wonderful about breaking bread with people after you've experienced such a significant chapter in their lives together.  There is a buttoning up feeling, a sense of completion and accomplishment in the space at events like this, and it feeds me to bask in that vibe. This is especially the case in this instance because I have known Bill for so long.

I don't know when I'll see Bill again, because he is now in Florida and remarried. I'm sure I'll run into him again if we are visiting with his stepdaughters at the same time, but this will remain in my memory, along with many other happy recollections whenever you can do a good job for a friend. We do more than sell houses. Sometimes, we are master of ceremonies for the life passages of others. 

• 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

In two separate cases recently, I have had agents in my company attempt to list a home and lose the decision to another broker who promised a lower commission. In both cases, the homes were very expensive, and the homeowners justified their decisions based on how much they'd save if they paid 1% less in commission. 

Of course, in both cases, the listings were overpriced. 

By and large, the following is the summary of my coaching to these agents so that they get more listings to commit to them. 

Sub par brokers cannot sell on value or performance, so their only options are to cut their fees or promise an unrealistic sales price. This is sabotage. A lower commission is no savings whatsoever if the house does not sell. There is no savings. None.  

We charge our commission for selling the home successfully. If we don't sell it, then the homeowner pays zero commission. None. So when we do sell it, we are worth every penny, because we brought in the most money the market would bear. 

If someone lists their home with a broker who does not have the revenue for a competitive cooperative commission to other MLS brokers or a strong marketing campaign, then the only way for the house to sell is to lower the price until the market is compelled to move. And that, my friends, can be a very, very low price. 

If on the other hand a home is listed with a broker with a comprehensive marketing plan with superior exposure and ability to attract the interest of multiple parties, the leverage on sales price is upward, not downward. If you have a $500,000 house and you pay 1% less in commission, that is $5000 "saved." But if you have to reduce the price, it is probably at least $10,000, and probably going all the way to $475,000-or $25,000 lower- to get the job done. 

Therefore, a 1% "higher" commission is no issue whatsoever- if it doesn't sell you don't pay it. Moreover, if you are forced to rely only on price reduction after price reduction to sell, you are saving nothing- you are losing money, because I know of very few price reductions of 1% that make any difference. A price reduction that impacts is typically far higher than 1%, which not only nullifies a broker who cannot do anything other than discount, it makes the guy who charges more but gets the job done a bargain. 

Summary: Our fee is not an issue when we can show via our company track record that our listings sell for more, faster. That is savings. 

• 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