All residents who currently are receiving the star program need to re-register by Dec. 31st to continue getting the savings.

Apparently there has been “widespread abuse” with people claiming STAR exemptions on multiple properties, or commercial and income properties, and second homes.  

You should be getting a letter in the mail explaining this and detailing how you can go about re-registering on-line.  According to the Department of Taxation and Finance, you will only have to re-register once. (Isn’t that an oxymoron? re-register once?)  and then you will be good to go again.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with STAR. It is a tax exemption available for anyone in NYS on their primary residence who make less than 500K a year. There is also an enhanced STAR for vets and seniors.

The exemption is on your school tax. The amount of the exclusion varies, but here in Sullivan County it deducts 30K from you assessed value–average savings is around $600 a year.

So just keep this in mind, and make sure you re-register, even if the letter does not come. I’m sure the tax department is counting on at least a few people not getting this news, or forgetting to register again. State wide I bet it will be a few million dollars.

I think all told we looked at around ten places–on or near various lakes. They are a nice couple, and they were enjoyable to work with. It has been a little while since I had worked exclusively with a buyer as their agent. It seems over the last year, I have been mostly on the selling side, or there was some sort of connection with the seller.  However on this one it was just me and the buyers. I was sort of along for the ride, and got to explore some nice properties.

Initially I was pleasantly surprised at the inventory.  During the bubble years, there was nothing in this range,  and even now, it is a dicey, hit or miss area. We looked at a few dogs, but many were pretty good homes with some value.

The first home they targeted was a lake access on Swinging Bridge–1100 square feet with a finished basement. It was a ranch in pretty good shape. They ultimately decided against making an offer though because the there was a question about how many people could use the lake access. The access was also very steep, and the stairs and dock needed to be replaced. The murkiness of who could use that area once they sunk a bunch of money into fixing it made them decide against putting in an offer. The home was in the 150K range.

The second was a lakefront on Swinging Bridge. The house was tiny, around 650 square feet with two bedrooms and a bathroom so small you could barely turn around in it. The home was in pretty good shape though, and it was a true lakefront. There was no road in between. It had 100 feet on the lake, and a gorgeous view from the front deck. The driveway was very steep however. After some back and forth, they decided to put in an offer around 75% of the ask. (Home was in the 200K range.)  Seller would not budge off the full price ask. Another offer a bit higher was met with the same response–so slightly disappointed we pressed on.

The third was a lakefront on Mohican Lake. This house was good sized–almost 2000 square feet with three bedrooms and two baths. Home was in need of some pretty serious repairs. The roof was leaking, and all the plumbing had been removed from under the home. The house was on a crawl space as well, making for a winterization nightmare, (as well as a financing one.) My buyers were cash buyers, so that did not enter into their equation, however it does narrow the buyer pool some. The lake frontage was close to 200 feet, with a boat launch and a dock. Good property, priced aggressively at around 140K. Well perhaps it was priced too aggressively. When we looked at it, it had been on the market two days. By the time we put in an offer the next day, (an offer at around 90% of the ask) There was another all cash offer on the table. The sellers responded that they were going with the other offer, because it was somebody they knew from the area. No highest and best, no attempt at a bidding war, just sorry we are taking the other offer. So once again we were back to the drawing board.

The forth, (and ultimately the one) was a lake access home on Swinging Bridge. Home is on a nice big lot, it has 1600 square feet with three bedrooms and two baths. Home is in good condition. It has lake views from the big deck, and the lake access is a short walk down the road. The access is nice and level. It is shared by eleven other homes, however each gets their own dock. It really is the best of both worlds. Price was in the 170K range. Buyer’s bid was once again around 90% of the ask. Seller responded with a lower asking price, but when we went to counter again, we were told there is another higher cash offer on this house as well.

This house had also been on the market only three days and it too had two cash offers on it! My buyers loved this house, and had been down this road before. After some deliberations, they put in an offer above ask, and got an accepted offer. We are moving forward with the sale.

So is this a clear sign of recovery? Two multiple bid situations in two weeks? Or is it the category? Obviously lakefront or lake access holds some inherent value that other properties may not have, however this sort of feeding frenzy mentality where if you don’t act quick, you will miss out as not been part of our market for some time. Also from what I have heard from other agents, this does cross over into other categories of homes. Just this morning I called to show a house that had been on the market less than a week, and was told there was an accepted offer on it. This was a non-descript ranch a few acres–a type of home that would typically languish months on market before getting a bite.

Perhaps I am too pie in the sky, however, I enjoyed this process, and hope that there will be more like this one. There is a certain energy when dealing in a hotter market. An energy that has been gone for awhile. I felt it on this deal.

It has been awhile since my last blog post, because I am as busy as I have ever been. People are looking for homes, and the phone is ringing. Couple that with a three and one year old, and finding a spare minute to write a blog post is difficult. I have had a few ideas for a blog post, but finding the time to seat and actually write it is the difficult part.

There have been quite a few culinary openings this spring in Sullivan County, which I think is a great sign. The two that have caught my eye are the Callicoon Brewery and The Local Table and Tap.

The Local Table and Tap opened in the space occupied by Luzon Station in Kauneonga  Lake. The owners Kevin McElroy and Richard Watt both have strong culinary backgrounds, and have combined forces to create a pretty remarkable dining experience. The food is American fare with a twist. The ambiance is a simple, modern and has a cool Rhinebeck–or somewhere on the Hudson feel. The outdoor deck seats a bunch, and looks out on the water.  You definitely have to have a meal and a pint here this summer.

The other is the Callicoon Brewery which opened in the old firehouse in Callicoon. I have not had a chance to eat here yet, but they did a great job with the exterior, and all the online reviews are good. It looks like another great place to grab a drink, and some grub.

These kinds of openings once again affirm that our area is changing for the better. I drove through downtown Callicoon  the other day. From one end of main street to the other, we have new storefronts and business. The pizzeria has moved and expanded, Cafe Devine is open,  there is a new  bike shop, Ridgeback Sports. The library has expanded. The wine store is open and always busy. There are two new antique shops. Getting a parking spot is a pain in the ass. I love it.

So in my never ending quest to try to understand the human race, and the behavior we exhibit, I have compartmentalized people into two categories. People who are late, and people who are early. I know genius right? but before you scoff at my simplicity, hear me out.

I have noticed that what ever a person does on the first appointment, whether early, or tardy, they will continue to do it throughout the remainder of the appointments. you can pretty much set your watch by it. “A ten minute late guy” will keep me waiting without fail. A “fifteen minute early couple” will be there, sitting in their car when I pull up every single time.

People who are late have always bothered me. I suppose it is because of the punctual conscious household I was raised in, but I subscribe to the theory that a habitually late person is passively telling you that their time is more important than yours. And in a lot of cases with the people I deal with, their time is more important. I don’t mind waiting a half hour, if the person I am dealing with is going to buy something. In my mind I am getting paid for that half hour. However the single show, never see you again, hour late person is the one that drives me crazy. But I digress, back to the reason for this post.

So because the total number of meetings will probably be between ten and twenty before the house is bought, punctuality becomes one the defining characteristics that I see as I get to know the clients. But other personality traits emerge as well. Like any relationship, as you get to know the person, actions and behaviors change your perception of that person.  So I began to compare and contrast the other personality traits between the two “control groups”  Now you would think that the tardy group would be a bit more easy gong. And perhaps the “early group would be the most type A. However I have found the opposite to be true. It is the late ones that tend to obsess over buried oil tanks or leaking septics They are the ones that pour over contracts, while the early group seem to be the laid back go with the flow type. Not that the early group isn’t fastidious, they just seem to be less suspicious.

Why? If I knew I’d be the next Tony Robbins. So what type are you?

I got a new listing this week. It is another “seasoned seller.” He has been trying to sell his house for over two years.  He is an older guy who just wants to move closer to his kids. There have been other agents, other offers, and other disappointments. He listened to the experts, dropped his price when told, fixed his porch when told and even thought about holding a mortgage. He is a good guy, keeps his house immaculate, disappears when there is a showing, eats his veggies and loves his grand kids. But the house sits on the market.

Well he is trying a new tactic. He is getting the Lord on his side. Some friends advised him that the thing he needed to do was to bury a statue of St. Joseph upside down in the front yard, and a sale would surely be forthcoming. Being as how I’m barely Catholic, this was news to me, so I looked it up online, which is pretty much how I start anything these days.

St. Joseph refers to Joseph, the adoptive father of Jesus. If you will remember, he had a lot of housing issues. There was no room in the inn, so they took up residence in a stable. Then, they fled to Egypt, then they returned, but this time to blend into the quiet of Nazareth. So if you think about it, he should be plenty sympathetic to people with housing issues.

I researched online, and found that most authorities on this subject say that you should bury your statue of Joseph upside down in the front yard, with him facing your house, and in close proximity to the For Sale sign. If he faces the street, then the house across the street may sell instead of yours. However, if you have neighbors you don’t like, you might try burying a statue of St. Joseph upside down pointing toward their house, so that maybe St. Joseph will get them packing instead.

The origin of this practice is a little murky. Some say it dates back to the Middle Ages where a group of nuns buried a St. Joseph medal in order to procure some land for a convent. Others say it was much later, where in the mid 1800’s a priest in Montreal used a similar technique in his quest for an oratory. Apparently the mid ’90s is when it became all the rage, and now, happily for home sellers, kits containing small, easy-to-bury statues detail exactly how to deep six St. Joseph and pray for his assistance. Also the book, “St. Joseph My Real Estate Agent” apparently spells out the correct steps to ensure full St. Joseph participation. From the picture however I think “book” is generous. Perhaps pamphlet is more accurate. At any rate, the author is quoted as saying. “The distinction between superstition and devotion is created by the person doing it. In other words, if you simply bury St. Joseph and count on that to sell the house, then it’s superstition. If you do it as an act of faith, then it’s devotion.

So there you have it. For the moment I am going to remain skeptical. however should an offer come down the line pretty fast, I may have to buy some St. Joseph statues, and start digging some holes.

It seems to me sellers are finally coming to terms with the market that we are in. It took some time—almost two years. However more and more we are seeing new houses come on the market that are “priced right” or easily 25 to 30% lower than they would have been a few years ago. And you are also seeing some of the more stubborn listings that have been languishing, now with major price reductions and a few getting deals on them.

Back in 2010 I had a deal on a 1940’s Dutch colonial on 23 acres. We got an accepted offer, however the inspection uncovered things that spooked the buyers. They asked for a 10K allowance. The sellers said go pound salt. Twenty-six months later, it has finally gone into pending on the MLS. They had dropped the price 30K less than they would have walked with had they agreed to the inspection allowance. It will be interesting to see what the final price is.

There is another modular ranch that I had an offer on last summer. Seller responded via the listing agent, that they were “insulted” by the offer. It just sold for 10K less than the initial insulting offer.

I suppose it is the final step in the five stages of grief—acceptance. We had the denial, the anger and the bargaining. Now we have a collective national sigh.

But have you noticed the number of articles being written about when housing prices will start to recover and “real’ appreciation will start to kick in? It seems everywhere I turn someone is trying to “TALK” the housing market up. Have you been reading the same things?

Why… to get to those highs would mean that the economy would have to produce over 8 million new jobs (just to reclaim all those who lost their jobs) and then it would have to grow so that incomes increase to the point where higher priced homes could be afforded.

Remember, one of the contributing factors to the downturn was that home prices had outstripped the ability of buyers to afford them. That had become painfully obvious the last year of the bubble, where buyers simply could not afford the asking prices of even the most modest homes here in Sullivan County. And at last when every “creative finance” option had been exhausted—the house of cards collapsed. Just like I doubt we will see the Nasdaq at 5K again, the three bedroom ranch on one acre in Sullivan County will not be worth 225K again anytime soon.