Real Estate Market in Ulster County New York

I sell real estate in Ulster County. I love selling real estate in Ulster County. I also consider myself the type of person who thinks or envisions her cup half full. I also do not give out what I don't want coming back, that is my religion. So, that said it is my humble opinion, based on all that I have been reading to include Standard Poor's, my peer website called activerain.com, which compiles blogs from Realtors, bankers and other in the real estate industry, and other info that this year will see a deluge of foreclosures that will bring home prices down more. That coupled with the not so good report on unemployment going up again leaves me to believe if you need to sell now you must go out of your way to make your home the best it can be at the best price you can sell it at. I also think now is the time. We do not have an overabundance of great homes at great prices on the market right now( again this is my humble opinion) as people tend to wait until Spring to put their homes on the market.

So here are my simple steps to ready your house-

1- Clear out, clear out clear out. Get as much as you can out of the house the basement, the garage, the yard etc. as you possibly can. Less is more. Think model home.

2- Paint is the most inexpensive home improvement. It is hard enough to think you need to lower your house price to be competitive and SELL, you don't want to spend money unnecessarily. If your house is totally dated expect that you will not be getting today's prices for yesterdays goods. Paint and clean it to sparkle. Accept that you have a dated house and price it accordingly

3-Hire a great real estate company. That said, our company, Westwood Metes & Bounds has been the top selling company(based on mls statistics) for 17 years in a row. You don't get there by accident.

4- Hire a great real estate sales agent. Get numbers of her current and recent clients and ask how that person took care of them.

5- Price your house right. Look at the recent comps your real estate agent gives you to help establish price. Don't think about how Betty down the block got that great price two years ago. If you are paying for a professional real estate agent trust their knowledge. Understand that they work on commission so if they price your house higher they will make more so if they price your house lower than you think your castle will sell for ----hello--- there must be reason.

The one thing positive to think about is when you do sell, if you are buying another house, it will probably be a lateral move as the same circumstances will apply to the home you are buying and again my reco is to get a great real estate agent that will do a comparative market analysis on the home you are buying to make sure its value is there( also remember to to have a contingency that the appraisal shall meet or exceed the selling price so if the appraisal comes in lower you have a way to exit sale or renegotiate).


That all said:


I do think that now is a good time to put your house on the market. I do think this is going to be a challenging year. I also think if you price your house right and present it right, it may take longer(they are estimating 5 months now) it will sell. So good luck and call for any help from me at 845-417-1314- Remember a good Realtor is worth every penny you pay them.

TAG SALE

I love what I do. I think it is so multi -faceted. I market a service and a product, I counsel my clients(and sometimes hold their hand, children, pets and relatives through times like these), I continue to educate myself in such area as web technology, mold remediation etc. but best of all----I GET TO GO TO TAG SALES. That's right, tag sales, garage sales, whatever you want to call it. A placed where my clients, who have now successfully sold their home, can gather up years of collections, what not's, want nots, and various other sundries, bag em tag em and present them to garage sale maniac's like myself.

This Saturday September 27, 2008 , my clients are having a tag sale at 340 South Mountain Road in Gardiner New York from 10-4. My clients have never had a garage sale before. I am a tag sale professional, so I offer my services(free to my clients) to coordinate this fun event. I go on to tell them EVERYTHING they will ever need to know on how to run a successful tag sale. I advise them of the tag sale maniacs who will call them, show up three days earlier than the sale begging them to get a look at the antiques they might have because on the day of the sale these same people will be working(it's Saturday, are they really working or are they antique dealers in disguise). They make a list of all they are willing to part with, come up with reasonable prices so as not to have a thing left at the end of the sale, put an ad in the paper and on Craig's list and we are ready. This will happen rain or shine as it is inside their lovely home which, by the way, sold in about 10 days of listing it. Not bad in a market such as we have right now. I must say, that this house was a gift. From the moment I walked in I thought,how lucky am I to get this lovely home as a listing. So, how lucky am I? I get to do what I love to do, I get first pick of the "stuff" my clients are selling and my clients get to go on their next adventure. I am a happy camper.

SEE YOU AT THE SALE!

THE MONEY PIT

I grew up in New York City. From an early age, I had visions of owning and operating my own Bed and Breakfast and antique shop in a quaint village. On one of my many excursions upstate I fell upon this wonderful area which seemed a bit far from the city but never the less was as quaint and charming as could be. My first ride in Andes NY produced the property I was to buy that very day. As I drove down Route 28 into the village of Andes visions of sugar plums danced in my head.--- That was the last happy thought for years to come, ergo the name of this blog post; The Money Pit. The property needed extensive renovations and I knew absolutely nobody in the area. The rest of my experiences up in Andes followed much of the story lines of The Money Pit. So, years later and now living and working in Real Estate in Ulster County I have decided to create my website and blog to be of service to people moving to our area. It is my hope that you will enjoy reading my blog, maybe enjoy a giggle or two and most of all be able to identify with my adventures and the quality of Life in Ulster County. My resource list is comprised of people who, in my humble opinion, appear to do a descent job in their craft. We are now entering my favorite season. Leaves are starting to change. Time to get some Apple Cider from my favorite place Jenkins and Leukens up on route 299 just outside of New Paltz. Try their delicious Apple Cake. Oct. 4th will see the Oktoberfest up at Hunter Mountain. Hope to see you around the area.