'Tis the season! Everytime I drive around the Rochester area these days, I see a smattering of "Garage Sale" and "Yard Sale" signs. It's obvious the summer garage sale season has begun in earnest! Personally, I couldn't be happier! As a self-admitted "bargainista", I adore scouring the local sales for that perfect bargain! Sure, I have to wade through mountains of broken toasters and decade-old blue jeans, but it's worth it to find that perfect item. If you're into garage sales but don't want to wander aimlessly looking for them, here are a couple of online resources to help you plan ahead:       The Democrat and Chronicle has a fairly good garage sale section in their online classifieds. It features a map search, some photos, and a decent number of entries.   If you want to find the mo... 06/27/2010

I received a call today about one of my listings. The sellers priced this particular home very competitively and feel very strongly that they want to stick close to the list price. Earlier this week, we got an offer for $6,000 under list price. My sellers countered at $2,000 under list price, saying it was the best they could do. The buyers countered again at $4,000 under list price, so my sellers chose not to respond. So far, we haven't been able to come to a consensus. Enter today's caller. He asked me the usual questions about the taxes, etc. Then, he asked how much my sellers would be willing to accept. I told him they were fairly firm in their price. He proceeded to ask if they would accept a figure that was $30,000 under list price! I told him I was quite certain they would not, s... 06/24/2010

Homes For Heroes Arrives in New York! See the news report here, featuring Homes for Heroes affiliate Michele Ladd. 06/08/2010

As a home seller in the Rochester area, it's always in your best interest to consider inexpensive changes that can help you net top dollar for your home. One update that I've often found to give sellers a great "bang for their buck" is installing new carpets. If a carpet is old or worn, that one simple improvement often makes a home much more appealing to potential buyers, which can translate to more cash in your pocket. It doesn't have to be top-of-the-line carpet; an inexpensive, neutral-colored Berber is often a good choice. But when a carpet looks dated, it makes the whole home feel dated. Likewise, when a carpet is dark, it makes the whole home seem dark. What buyers are really looking for in 2010 is homes that are bright and fresh. The following photos are an example of what a hug... 05/12/2010

Looking for something fun and different to do in Rochester this weekend? I may have just the solution. Recently, my mother, my friend Sarah, and I spent a "girls' day" together. The highlight was having afternoon tea at La-Tea-Da! Tea Room and Parlour. What a fun experience! Upon entering the charming, purple Victorian house on the corner of Park Avenue and Alexander Street, we were encouraged to don old-fashioned hats and other accessories. We were then seated, and our "Nippy" (an old-fashioned term for a server who goes above and beyond the call of duty) shared the daily specials and took our tea orders. I ordered the Candy Ginger Peach Rooibis tea, which was fantastic. We decided to split two Full Afternoon Tea orders among the three of us, and what a treat! Our Nippy brought us two ... 04/25/2010

It's amazing to me how many sellers I speak with who have had bad experiences with real estate agents in the past. When I question them about it, it seems like 90% of the time it's because they felt the agent didn't communicate with them or keep them "in the loop" about the sale of their home. I've heard sellers say this twice in the past two days. I'm constantly stunned when I hear about agents who don't communicate. To me, communication is the cornerstone of every succesful real estate transaction. I try to put myself in my sellers' shoes. If it were me, I would want to know everything going on with my home, so why treat my sellers any differently? I met with a seller yesterday who had been trying to sell his home for over a year with four different real estate agents. I asked him if ... 03/27/2010

I came across this very informative article writen by David Whisnart which I wanted to share --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tax Savvy Investing - 1031 Tax-Deferred Exchangesby David Whisnant This article is meant to be an introduction on the topic of performing tax-deferred exchanges. There are a number of legal hoops that the IRS makes you jump through to complete a tax-deferred exchange, but they are actually not that complicated once you study up on them a bit. A tax deferred exchange allows us to sell a piece of investment (i.e. rental), trade or business property, buy a new property with the gain or profit from the sale, and not owe taxes on the sale immediately. If you eventually sell the new piece of property, you would owe taxes at t... 03/06/2010

I'm so excited. I'm leaving tomorrow morning for a much-needed trip to Orlando to escape the snowy Northeast. It's been a crazy week getting everything done before I leave, especially considering that it's been snowing constantly for the past 48 hours. But finally, after cramming in one last listing appointment this afternoon, I'm ready to let go. Considering the way things usually go in this business, things will probably get insanely busy as soon as I step on the plane and turn off my cell phone. I have several hot buyers, and my new listing in the 19th Ward is showing like mad, so it wouldn't be surprising. But, after several years in the real estate business, I think I can honestly say I've learned to let go. We all need vacations, and it does no good to stress out about it.   I hav... 02/27/2010

When you hear the term PODS, does it invoke images of extraterrestrial parasites bent on dominating the Earth? If so, you're probably a fan of classic Science Fiction films. However, there is another, less eerie definition of the term PODS, and it can be a very helpful tool for home sellers. PODS also stands for Portable On Demand Storage. Think of PODSas your own personal storage container. As homeowners, we all accumulate a lot of "stuff" in our homes. That's perfectly fine when you're living there, but when you decide to sell your home, your belongings can become a detriment. Buyers want to picture themselves in your home, and all your knick knacks may not be appealing to them. That's where the PODS come in. They leave the container in your driveway, you fill it with items you want t... 02/17/2010

When I was younger, my family used to play a card game called "Samurai Solitaire". I think someone in the family may have invented it, but I'm not sure. It was similar to the typical game of Solitaire, except that every time a player got an ace and started a new pile, those piles were shared among the players. As a result, all the players were racing to be the one to get their 2 onto the available ace, their 6 onto the 5, and so on. The game inevitable led to lots of hand slapping and plenty of laughter. I realized the other day that I'm playing a similar game with some of my buyers now. When a good bargain comes into the market these days, it's snatched up very quickly. The other day, I called to make appointments for some of my buyers to see five properties; three in Scottsville and t... 02/13/2010

A large percentage of home buyers in the Greater Rochester area finance their homes with FHA mortgages. FHA loans are a great product for many individuals due to their low down payment requirement. In recent years, as conventional loans have experienced drastic changes and increasingly strict eligibility requirements, FHA loans have also emerged as a very stable form of financing. In the mortgage and real estate industries, we've been hearing whispers about upcoming FHA changes for a while now, but it wasn't until recently that those changes were officially announced. FHA announced changes in the following areas: The upfront mortgage insurance premium (UFMIP) will increase to 2.25 percent up from 1.75 percent. Contrary to reports, FHA will continue to allow the financing of the UFMIP. B... 01/26/2010

It's a big week for the Greater Rochester Association of Realtors. This Tuesday, our board will be joining forces with the boards from Buffalo and Syracuse to form a new, cooperative MLS system known as MLXchange. With MLXchange, all the real estate data in our three cities will be shared on a single online system. It should blend the traditional borders between the three metro areas and make cooperation much easier and more common. Obviously, as agents, we have the potential of conducting business in a much larger area. But, as consumers in the Greater Rochester area, what changes should you expect to see with the new system? If you receive e-mailed reports or a Client Gateway from your real estate agent, both will have a very different look with the new system. There is a lot more inf... 01/10/2010

I would like to wish all the many great people in my life a happy new year.  2009 was a tough year for many.  Hopefully lessons were learned and everyone can move forward in a positive direction. It's a great time of year to think about how you want your life to be, and what steps you are going to take to get there.  I was fortunate to have a good year in real estate, as well as obtain my brokers license. Persistence pays off, so keep going, keep dreaming, and keep fighting for what you want.  Make 2010 a year to remember!     01/01/2010

The U.S Department of Energy has approved New York's plan to provide consumers with rebates for purchasing certain energy-efficient refrigerators, clothes washers, freezers, and dishwashers through a program funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). New York's Great Appliance Swap Out will allow the State to issue more than 170,000 rebates totaling $16.8 million during President's Week in February, 2010. Under the plan, consumers could receive rebates for purchasing eligible appliances individually or in a bundle. For an individual purchase, appliances will qualify only if they have earned the ENERGY STAR® label, meaning that they are up to 30 percent more efficient than standard models on the market. For a bundled purchase, consumers may receive a larger rebate by pu... 01/01/2010

Today is the birthday of a good friend of mine, Rich Levin!  Happy Birthday Rich! He is a real estate coach and a very good one! If you would like to wish him a "happy birthday" here is how you can find him: Rich Speaks 12/25/2009

In honor of the fact that Winter has finally arrived in the Rochester area, I thought I'd share some weather statistics. Until recently, it's been a very mild holiday season... but that seems to have changed in the past couple of weeks! Recently, we received our first significant snowfalls of the season. I haven't enjoyed trekking out in the cold to brush my car off in the morning, but I have to admit the snow looks gorgeous on the tree branches and when it sparkles in the sun. Rochester-area residents are beginning to enjoy Winter activities such as skiing, snowboarding, sledding, and more! I just learned yesterday that we're actually #1 so far this year in the snowfall race between Rochester, Buffalo, Syracuse, and Albany!Syracuse is last with only 6.9 inches of snow so far, while we'... 12/18/2009

What is the difference between an appraisal and an assessment? That's the question I'll be addressing in this blog entry. I've noticed the two are often confused by buyers and sellers. They tend to use the two terms interchangeably, while in reality they have two very different purposes.   I decided to start my post by consulting the big fat book I received when I got my real estate license, Modern Real Estate Practice in New York for Salespersons and Brokers, Eighth Edition by Edith Lank. Yes, it's still gathering dust on my bookshelf! According to the glossary, an appraisal is "an estimate of a property's valuation by an appraiser who is usually presumed to be expert in this work." An assessed value, on the other hand, is "a valuation placed on property by a public officer or a board ... 12/11/2009

Armed Service men and women are often hindered by hardships from full participation in the American Dream of homeownership because their duty disrupts them in the buying and selling of a home. In the past, traveling for active duty made it difficult for members of our armed forced to qualify for the tax credit without penalties. Thankfully, two special provisions in the present tax credit law assist members of the military, intelligence, and foreign services in taking advantage of the homebuyer tax credit: Armed services members, intelligence service members, and Foreign Service personnel who are on active duty and out of the U.S. for 90 days during any part of 2009 get an additional year to buy their homes, to May 1, 2011. Another benefit is a waiver on the time of occupancy of the hom... 11/30/2009

It's the week before Thanksgiving. It's the time of year when people start snuggling in for the holidays and stop thinking about buying or selling their homes until next spring... right? WRONG! At least that's not my experience this November! I'm sure the market in the Rochester area will slow down over the holidays, but it hasn't happened yet! My buyers are still actively searching for homes, and a surprising number of the listings I've called to show in the past week have accepted offers. Plus, I held an open house at a townhouse in Penfield yesterday, and I had 17 parties through! My average is usually around 3. This was like Grand Central Station! It was exciting and energizing. If you think no one is looking this time of year, think again! The extension of the tax credit has defini... 11/16/2009

When you've been in the real estate business a while, you get used to the issues that come up in home inspections. There are about a handful of problems I've heard mentioned over and over again. I've gotten so that I can predict them before the inspector even opens his or her mouth. If you're planning to put your home on the market, knowing about common inspection issues can be a huge advantage. If you fix them before listing your home, it makes the home inspection process go more smoothly and lessens the probability that the buyer will get nervous and try to back out. It also sets you apart from other sellers who haven't done their homework and prepared in advance.   Here are six easy-to-fix potential problems:   Lack of GFCI outlets in the kitchen and baths. You know those outlets tha... 11/07/2009