Greater Rochester New York Real Estate Blog

Happiness Really is a Warm Puppy

2012-03-01T14:38:00.005-05:00

I hope the author, Connie Shultz, will accept, in the interest of sharing a wonderful story, my repeating of a recent article she wrote in her weekly "VIEWS by Connie Shultz" column in the PARADE magazine. If not, please email me at berstan10@gmail.com and I will immediately delete this post.

For those of us who, like Connie, love our pets (ours is a 12 yr old Westie named "Angel") this story is just too precious not to share:

Happiness Really is a Warm Puppy !!

It’s 7 p.m. My husband walks through the door and immediately drops to the floor, sitting cross-legged in the center hallway.

“Franklin!” he yells. “Franklin! C’mere, boy!”

Our 5-month-old puppy rounds the corner like a cartoon rabbit and barrels toward Sherrod with no strategy for stopping. He slides until he crashes into the open arms of my 59-year-old husband, who is laughing so hard his eyes grow sparkly wet.

“How’s my boy?” he asks, ruffling Franklin’s ears as he tumbles backward with the pup on his chest. “How’s my boy, huh?” Franklin erupts into a series of howls as he makes a rumpled mess of Sherrod’s dress shirt.

“Ohhh, buddy,” Sherrod says. “We’re happy to see Daddy, aren’t we? Yes, we are, yes, we are.”

I clear my throat. Sherrod looks up, briefly, and smiles. “Oh, hi, honey,” he says, scratching Franklin’s tummy. “We’re glad to see Mommy, aren’t we, buddy?”

Three months ago, we adopted 9-week-old Franklin from an animal rescue group. On the drive to pick him up, my husband insisted on boundaries. No. 1: “I’m not his daddy,” he said. “You’re not his mommy.”

Second rule: No sleeping on our bed. I’m reminded of that one every time Franklin crawls onto my pillow and slips his tongue into my ear.

Franklin is my husband’s first puppy in more than 50 years, which I didn’t realize until the ride home with Franklin, who sat on my lap as Sherrod drove. Sort of.

“Oh my gosh, look at him,” Sherrod said, over and over. “Look what he’s doing now.” He said this every time Franklin cocked his head, wagged his tail, or even sighed.

Visit Connie's New Home on Parade.com

“Honey,” I said each time our car veered to the right. “You can pet him when we get home.”

Our four grown children have wasted no time pointing out that both of us are fools for this pup.

Recently, they gathered around the refrigerator, all of them huffing and pointing at the photo display on the door. “Really?” Liz said, holding her palms to the sky. “They’re all pictures of you and Dad—and Franklin!”

Andy pointed to the only picture of a human under 50. “Your grandson’s feet?” he said, gesturing to a shot of 4-year-old Clayton’s bare toes dangling through our second-floor railing. “You have one picture up here of your grandson, and it’s his feet?”

When I smiled at Franklin as he slept in his doggy bed by the kitchen table, our youngest sighed. “Yeah,” Cait said, “you used to look at me like that.”

After Emily thanked us for giving her the baby brother she’d always wanted, we had to admit we were being a wee bit over the top. Our every phone call includes Franklin updates. When I pick him up from puppy day care, I text his report card to Sherrod. Last Monday, he romped with Fletcher and Marley and specialized in “being a cutie!!” On Friday, he played tag with Henry and “wrestled all day!”

Yes, we’re silly. Yes, we know he’s a dog. Yes, we understand he will never talk. Or so you say.

Here’s the thing. I watch my husband playing with Franklin and I see the boy he used to be. When you’re a middle-aged wife in love with your husband, that’s something.

Sherrod announces that he and Franklin are going out to rake the leaves. Soon, I hear repeated shouts of “Ready, set, go!” There’s my husband tossing his puppy into a mountain of leaves. Each time, Franklin’s ears flap like wings as he leaps and darts before jumping back into Sherrod’s arms.

“That’s my boy!” my husband yells, laughing so hard he can barely breathe.

Your Bathroom can Sell Your Home

2012-02-14T08:32:00.006-05:00

Prospective home buyers know what tops their list of must-haves in a home and one of those is certainly an inviting kitchen, but another top concern is attractive bathroom(s).

As a home seller, you need to realize that the impression your bathrooms give can actually make or break your chances of getting a reasonable offer. Buyers often feel that bathrooms, especially the master bath, should feel as though it is their "personal sanctuary." They want to picture themselves taking a relaxing bath to forget the stresses of the past day." Will your bathroom let them feel that sense of escape or will it show them one of more badly needed updates that is going to cost the prospective buyer time and money.

What can you do to improve your bathroom's first impression? Updating an out-of-date bathroom is one of the best investments you can make to increase a home’s resale value and give buyers that extra reason to choose your home over others and make a reasonably-priced offer.

There are several updates you can do by yourself, most of which are neither costly nor labor intensive, which will be advantageous. At the very least, you should

Replace out-dated towel racks, toilet paper holder and curtain rods with the type you see when you visit model homes or ones you see now in Lowes or Home Depot stores
Buy luxurious-looking towels that match the decor of the room.
Replace the shower curtain (and shower curtain liner) with a calming solid color that goes with the decor
At a big more expense, if the bathtub is old and stained consider a professional cleaning/resurfacing or installing a bathtub overlay.
While this will also be a bit more expensive, if the fixtures are old and discolored, replace them with modern fixtures.

If you can afford a little more money and work, make your home stand out and get offers.

Update that old-styer lighting fixture over the vanity creating a more welcoming and inviting space.
Add some mood-enhancing lighting around the tub for those relaxing baths your buyer is imagining.
Add decorative glass accents. Replacing a shower curtain with a stainless steel shower door makes a huge difference. If you have a walk-in shower,
Replace that old aluminum sliding shower door with a solid glass wall with a swinging door.
Replace the shower head with one of the latest models to add extra appeal.
Add decorative tile. It can be a big job but replacing that old 4" square tile with new 12 or 18" tile with a matching accent row will make your bathroom stand out among the other for sale homes.
Replace your dated vanity top with a one-piece granite sink/counter top. If possible expand the vanity in the master bath to include two sinks.
This is a feature many couples look for and some won’t consider anything less.

Experienced Realtors know that "Bigger is always better when it come to bathrooms." Buyers are almost never turned-off because a bathtub is too big or luxurious. Big tubs create that “sanctuary” feeling in your bathroom. Adding a large tub creates more of a spa-like atmosphere.

Buyers are not only looking for bathrooms that say comfort, intimate, and serene. They also want the work already done. They don';t want to move into your home and start remodeling right away. You have to reduce your asking price substnatially to get that sort of commitment from a buyer.

In summary, if your baths have an intimate, contemporary feel, potential buyers will remember how they felt about this room in your home when considering your asking price and which home they ultimately want to buy.

Rochester a "Top 10 City "Poised for Greatness"

2012-01-15T17:16:00.002-05:00

Did you notice that this week TheStreet.com listed Rochester, New York as one of the Top 10 cities 'poised for greatness."

Despite problems besetting Kodak and, to a lesser extent, Xerox, Rochester is holding its own and even managing to grow. Stable employers such as Bausch & Lomb and North American Breweries (formerly Genesee Brewing) have kept Rochester's employment stable.

But beyond these stalwarts, there are literally hundreds of smaller high-tech start-ups in fields ranging widely from optics and imaging, biotech and life sciences, to fuel cell and alternative energy, printing and publishing, business and information services, telecommunications, medical diagnostics and food processing. These firms have capitalized on the area's highly educated workforce and research centers keeping the area's unemployment rate below 7% and falling.

With nine major colleges and universities in the area, led by the University of Rochester with its world-recognized medical and music schools and Rochester Instiutute of Technology constantly turning out technology-trained graduates in addition to housing the National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID), the area has no shortage of technical talent and enterpreneurs. The Rochester economy, having suffered blow after blow as Xerox and Kodak both failed to appreciate the improtance to their businesses of the coming of the digital age, just keeps coming back.

The real estate market, according to Trulia.com, is a wonder in itself says the report. Home prices are actually up 1.4% since 2010 and have been rising steadily since the housing boom. No, prices never took off like they did in some areas, but the greater Rochester real estate market has seen "slow and steady" growth, a much healthier trend in the long run.

The people of Rochester and its suburbs are downright friendly as they wander the aisles of the showplace supermarket chain, Wegmans. The "garbage plate" at Nick Tahou's and a rack of ribs at the Dinosaur Barbecue are just "comfortable", having not changed a bit over the years..

Greater Rochester, the report says, is, "shockingly stable, and that's about the best any city can ask for in 2012."

Free Entrance This Weekend Only at the Lamberton Conservatory

2011-11-05T13:52:00.002-04:00

Did you know that the fabulous floral display at the Lamberton Conservatory greenhouses in Highland Park here in Rochester, New York, are free to the public this weekend only.
Lamberton Conservatory is celebrating 100 years of continuous operations and to show off this wonderful Monroe County attraction, they are allowing everyone a free visit from November 4th through November 7th only.

The Lamberton Conservatory was named in honor of Alexander B. Lamberton who was the President of the Parks Board from 1902 to 1915. Original funding from the relatives of Lamberton provided for the building costs and allowed for continuous specialized exhibits of diverse plant species. Already a nationally renowned arboretum designed by Frederick L. Olmsted, Highland Park’s horticultural status was substantially enhanced by its construction in 1911.

By 2006, deterioration to the original building had, due to the high humidity and temperatures needed to be maintained to support the tropical displays, deteriorated beyond repair. In 2007, the Monroe County Parks Department sought $ 1.0 million to completely tear down and replace the structure, maintaining every possible detail of the original design.

Workers dis-assembled the original Conservatory right down to its foundation and reconstructed it with modern materials, as an exact replica of the historic structure. As a result, the newly restored section of the Conservatory has approximately 1,800 square feet of floor area with nearly 1,000 brand new panes of glass specifically created for the structure.

Don't miss this chance to see a beautiful display of Fall flowers in addition to the continuing exhibits of tropical and desert displays this weekend.

Housing Prices Stable at Best, May Fall Further

2011-10-26T09:45:00.000-04:00

Home prices continued a fifth straight month of modest price gains in August, but still remain lower than a year ago. Providing a bit of good news, home prices in 16 of the 20 major metropolitan area were higher than they have been in recent months.

The S&P/Case Shiller index, a gauge of home prices covering 20 major cities, recently reported that home prices rose 0.2% in August but were still down 3.8% from the 2010 level. Overall, the report shows that the housing market is still battling high unemployment, massive levels of foreclosures in some areas and weak consumer confidence. One analyst reported surveyed felt that the housing market is just "treading water."

Among individual metro areas, Atlanta Georgia recorded the steepest decline, down 2.4% for the month. Prices were off 6.3% from their 2010 level. Minneapolis home prices recorded the worst 12-month drop of 8.5%. Washington D.C. saw the biggest gain; 1.6% in August and 0.3% in the past 12 months. Detroit and Chicago were close behind at 1.4%. In the past 12 months, Detroit prices were up 2.4% over the past 12 months, more than any other area.

The S&P/Case Shiller home price report comes on the heels of changes in the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) announced this week by the Obama administration. Those changes will enable many homeowners to refinance high-interest mortgages more easily, making their monthly payments more affordable, hopefully reducing the number of defaults.

IHS Global Insight analyst Patrick Newport forecasts that prices will fall another 5% although things could get even worse if we fall back into recession. Fiserv, which provides real estate financial analytics to the industry, is projecting further home price declines of 3.6% through June, 2012. If their forecast proves to be accurate, home prices will then be down a whopping 34% from their mid-2006 peak.

Planned Reduction in Maximum "Conforming Mortgage" Size Will Hurt the Housing Recovery

2011-09-13T14:16:00.001-04:00

Last week it was announced that starting on October 1, 2011, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two home mortgage giants, will reduce the size of the maximum mortgage they will buy from banks and other mortgage originators from 125% of the local median home price with a maximum of $729,750 back to the prior limit of 115% of the local median home price with a maximum of $625,000.

The U.S. Treasury Department had recommended in February that Congress let the higher temproary conforming loan limits reset back to the lower limits that were in force prior to 2008. Fannie Mae had announced plans to do in November, 2010.

In anticipation of this upcoming reduction, a number of the major banks, including Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase and Wells Fargo, have already stopped accepting applications for mortgages of more than the new limits.

If this change takes place, as planned, the effect on buyers of higher-priced homes or homes in higher-prices communities will be felt in New York and nationwide. According the the Federal Housing Finance Administration, 204 counties, or 6.5% of the 3,143 counties in the U.S., will see a decrease in their high-cost conforming loan limit. Those counties contain 20.7 million owner occupied homes or 27% of the 75.3 million homes in the country.

In 2008, Congress increased the size of mortgages Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and FHA could guarantee or buy from 115% of the local median home price limit up to $625,000 up to 125% of the local median home price with a new maximum of $729,750. This increase allowed families seeking to buy higher-priced homes to qualify for the more lenient down payment and interest rates associated with so-called “conforming” mortgages.

Most banks and other mortgage originators do not want to keep home mortgages “on their books.” They strongly p[refer to sell them to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Under the new limits, home buyers of higher-priced homes who did not get their home purchases finalized on or before eptember 30th, and therefore have benefitted from their “conforming” mortgage status, will now be required to have the resources to cover down payments of 20% or more. Interest rates, now at or below 4.5% are expected to jump to 5.0% or more.

While some home buyers will be able to meet these tougher requirements, many will be forced to buy a smaller home or simply put off their plan to buy a home altogether. Either way, the drop in the maximum size for conforming mortgages will be one more unwelcome force tending to depress home prices, something the U.S. housing market certainly does not need at this point.

In a joint letter released last week, the Mortgage Bankers Association and more than a dozen other industry groups warned that if Congress fails to extend the current limits, it will further delay the long-awaited housing market recovery. The letter said, in part, “With tight underwriting already constraining mortgage availability, lowering the loan limits will only further restrict liquidity . . . Extending the existing limits at levels appropriate for all parts of the country will provide home owners and home buyers with safe, affordable financing and help stabilize local housing markets.”

A bipartisan group of 37 members of Congress sent a letter to the House Appropriations Committee recommending an extension of the current conforming limits until October, 2013. The group, led by Rep. Gary Ackerman (D., N.Y.) and John Campbell (R., Calif.), urged the committee to attach such a provision to a temporary funding measure that would keep the government running when fiscal 2012 begins on Oct 1st.

If you are considering buying a home on which you would need a mortgage in excess of the basic $417,000 limit, you may want to contact your Congressman and your state's two Senators to support extending the current maximum limits for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac conforming mortgages.

A New and Nice Concept - The Smile Exchange

2011-08-28T11:55:00.003-04:00

The D&C ran an article in the Sunday paper this week about a new and pleasant thing happening here in the Rochester, NY area. A gentleman named Mark Colgan has set up a social media site named The Smile Exchange.

Its a place you can go to find or to post your own "snippet of good news -- a report of a random act of kindness or an interaction that just made you happy."

"The "Smile Exchange" is like a good news (radio) station. says Colgan, "Its one goal is to spread happiness throughout the world."

Colgan and website developer James Bogue believe, "There is an emerging group of people out there that want to collectively inspire others through good news."

We invite you to visit the The Smile Exchange site and add your own bit of good news.

July Home Sales Drop Nationwide

2011-08-25T13:26:00.001-04:00

Across the United States, sales of existing homes fell unexpectedly in July, as strict lending and low appraisals prevented consumers from scooping up some of the cheapest houses since 1970. Home sales rose in the Northeast and Midwest, but the gains were offset by declines in the West and South. Distressed homes, which include foreclosures, accounted for 29% of sales in July.

The fall in home prices across the country now totals about $1.3 trillion of lost home equity just over one year. If this continues, the result will be about $2 trillion sliced out of the U.S. economy when it needs several trillion dollars of new credit each year just to keep going.

In the Rochester and Monroe County area served by the Greater Rochester Association of Realtors, during the second quarter of 2011, the median sale price remained flat at $120,000 when compared to last year. Transactions in the 2nd Qtr actually fell by 32% over the 2nd Qtr, 2010 with 2,371 homes sold but the current level is more in line with the norm that last year's volume. The drop recorded is most likely the result of the lack of the Federal Home Buyer Tax Credit program which was in place during 2010 which drove home sales volumes much higher than normal in 2010. Homes listed for sales dropped by only 1% from a year ago.

While sales volumes dropped, several communities in the area actually saw average home prices increase due to the popularity of the area as a great place to raise a family.

Nationwide, sales of previously-owned homes tumbled 3.5% last month to an annual rate of 4.67 million, down from 4.84 million in June, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Brian Ward, a respected Bradenton FL real estate agent with Keller Williams Realty referenced the same info on his blog. The national median home price in July was $174,000, down 4.4% from a year earlier.

Plans for new home construction were also weaker than expected in July after showing some strength in June. Economists were surprised by the slump as they had expected July sales to come in at a much higher rate of 4.87 million homes.

"Affordability conditions this year have been the most favorable on record dating back to 1970, but many buyers are being held back because banks are offering financing to only the most highly qualified borrowers, ignoring a large share of otherwise creditworthy buyers," Yun said.

"While the struggling housing market has made buying a home increasingly affordable for consumers, many just cannot get financing from lenders to make the purchase," said NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun. "Those potential buyers represent the difference between an uneven recovery and a much more robust housing market that could stimulate economic activity and create jobs," he added.

"Contract failures across the nation, largely caused by rejected mortgage applications and appraisals below the negotiated price, were unchanged in July from the earlier month. Natiomwide, 13% of Realtors reported sales contracts that had to be re-negotiated down to a lower sales price because an appraisal came in below the price initially agreed upon.

"It is clear that the housing problem in the U.S. has not gone away and is, in fact, still a long way away from anything that looks or feels like good news and/or stability," says Bob Henley a Osprey Florida homes for sale Realtor and real estate analyst.

Conversely, for those with cash and a good deal of risk-tolerance, there are homes priced at bargain levels all across the United States and a few investors are taking advantage of those bargains. Investors, both domestic and foreign buyers, may be the one piece of good news in the U.S. real estate market today.

Three Ways to Buy a Home - They're VERY Different

2011-08-24T21:10:00.000-04:00

Educating Upstate New York home buyers on the differences between a conventional arms-length home purchase, a short sale, and a foreclosure sale is a complex subject worthy of taking the time to try to define the differences between them.

A normal arms-length conventional home purchase is a transaction between a Seller and a Buyer where the Seller and Buyer are the only two parties involved and each has independently decided on, and then agreed upon, the price at which the sale takes place. There may or may not be one or more Realtors involved providing advice and counsel.

The terms and conditions of this transaction are straight-forward and defined in the sales contract executed between the Buyer and the Seller. The condition of a home purchased in this way is typically good, although the buyer typically requests, as a condition of the purchase, the right to have a professional engineering inspetion of the home for certain spelled-out conditions. Termite damage and electrical or structural problems are typical conditions tested).

There are typically only two or three major opt-out features of such a contract.
(1) The home does not appraise for at least the amount of the sale price (or sometimes, just the amount of the mortgage being sought by the Buyer).
(2)The ability of the Buyer to get approved for a mortgage of a certain amount which is also usually stated in the contract.
(3)There may be stated in the sales contract the option for the Buyer or Seller or both to walk away from the deal if repairs required as a result of the engineering inspection exceed a given dollar amount stated in the contract.
If one or more of these criteria are not passed, the contract is frequently re-negotiated at a revised price to resolve the issue. Closings can typically take place in 30 to 45 days.

A Short Sale purchase, on the other hand, is a different type of transaction which typically takes place when the home is being sold for a price less than the amount of the mortgage due on it (hence the term “short” sale). The mortgage holder, in theory, is anxious to sell the home even at a loss, before it goes into foreclosure and their net proceeds drops are reduced even further.

The difference here is that a third party, the mortgage holder, is involved in the transaction. The condition of the property may vary considerably from a conventional transaction depending on whether anyone is living in the property and how well it is being maintained.

It is not uncommon for multiple offers to be submitted to the mortgage holder. The mortgage lender reviews their position on the outstanding mortgage and decides whether to accept any of the offers.

This process can take months and there is no no guarantee that the lender will accept any of the offers. The mortgage lender may make a counter-offer asking for an adjustment upward of the price offered. In some cases there may have been one or more previous purchase offers submitted and the mortgage holder has already determined the lowest price at which they will let the transaction occur. In this case, a short sale4 may close in 3 - 4 months.

An experienced Realtor may know if the lender's “bottom line” is current, expired, or can be challenged with a lower offer. As the mortgage holder reviews the offer(s) they also consider past-due Homeowner Association fees, attorney's fees, unpaid taxes and utilities, liens against the property, commissions to be paid, etc. If the offer does not cover these expenses in addition to meeting their “bottom line" number, the Buyer may be asked to pay some or all of those costs.

A complicating feature of some short sales is the existence of a second mortgage on the home which brings a fourth party into the transaction. Short sales involving multiple mortgages are seldom worth the effort required to try to get everyone to agree. The negotiations even on a home with a single mortgage and relatively few extraneous problems can be complicated enough.

Once a short sale transaction is finalized, it is the generally responsibility of the mortgage company to provide a clean title, remove the current occupants, if any, and present the home in “broom clean” condition except as noted in the sale contract. Such is seldom the case on foreclosure purchases.
Foreclosure purchases are a little more straight-forward but still require the advice of an experienced real estate professional. Foreclosure properties are sold at auction. The mortgage holder typically set a price at which that lender will buy the property back themselves rather than see it sold at a price below that. Some foreclosed properties are in good condition; but many will require considerable work to make them ready for occupancy by the Buyer

Foreclosure transactions usually come with a set of guidelines set forth by the owning bank or mortgage holder. Buying homes through the foreclosure property auction process is definitely not for amateurs. You definitely want a real estate attorney to review all these documents carefully with you before enter the bidding.

Buyers considering bidding on a foreclosure property need to check with a real estate attorney and the county government to learn how and where foreclosure auctions/sales are held, but some common features are:
• No loan contingencies are allowed
• Only sealed bids are accepted
• Proof of financial qualifications is required
• A significant earnest money deposit may be required with the bid
• Property is purchased "as is," with no warratnies, no repairs

Sometimes prospective buyers are not even allowed to inspect the home before making an offer making it nearly impossible to calculate how much it will cost to improve the structure or bring it up to habitable standards. Also, the mortgage holder may even demand that bidders come to the auction with a cashier’s check in the amount of their offer in hand.

Foreclosed homes, like short sales, may also receive multiple bids, so the Buyer may be subsequently asked for a “highest and best” offer. Buyers need to be wary of this action since it is easy in the heat of the process to raise your offer to a price higher than the property is actually worth in its current condition.

The mortgage holder is going to get even less from this transaction than the worst case “bottom line” number he had expected when the property was for sale as a "short sale" so expect them to be very focused on achieving their new “bottom line.” Be aware that the mortgage holder has no interest in investing any more money in the property at this point so the property may deteriorate considerably while you are wading through the foreclosure process.

In a foreclosure transaction, the Buyer is usually required to evict the current owner or tenant from the property after receiving title to it. The eviction processes can be costly and long. Each state has it's own set of rules governing such evictions, so Buyers need to understand going in all that is involved in the eviction process. It should also be obvious that the about-to-be-evicted resident has little incentive to maintain the home while the eviction process plays out. He or she may even damage the home before being evicted.

Hopefully, you now know essentially the basics of the diferences among these three way to purchase real estate. As a friend of ours, Connie Belmont, a Sarasota Florida real estate agent who has handled lots of these transactions has said many times, "do not, repeat, do not get involved with either a short-sale or a foreclosure auction without professional advice."