Getting your Home Ready for the Photographer!

Fashion models don’t pop out of bed and get in front of a
camera.  Houses shouldn't either!   When your home goes on the market, the buying public will truly scrutinize the photos of your home as they determine whether or not they even want to visit it.  



 Here are a few guidelines for getting home
ready for a photo shoot.  As you go
through each room, remember less is more because even the

Short Sale History

Historically, the one thing that has not been short with short sales is the time necessary to close.  I've heard horror stories of closings taking months and even years.

But this week I think I may have made short sale history.  On February 12, I listed a home in N. Chili.  On March 14th, we received and accepted an offer.  On March 18th, we submitted the offer to the bank for short sale

Rochester Real Estate Seeing Multiple Offers

The last five purchase offers I've written have had competition.  And yes, at the first inkling that there will be multiple offers, my heart rate goes up and the adrenaline starts pulsing through my veins and I get giddy with excitement but then the reality sinks in.  Multiple offers suck.

There really isn't a win-win with multiple offers.  Someone has to lose. And the nice person in me

Sad Day in Honeoye Falls

General Motors announced that it is closing its Fuel Cell Facility in Honoeye Falls today. This will have a huge impact on this tiny village's economy. GM has offered jobs in Michigan to many of the workers but I'm betting there will soon be a flood of nice homes on the market in Honeoye Falls and Mendon.

Rochester is Great!

It sure seems that the whole world is learning what we've know for quite some time....Rochester, NY is an awesome place to call home.  Just this week, the city was ranked by The Street, a financial news website, as being poised for greatness in 2012!

In the past six months, Forbes ranked Rochester first on the "Best Places to Buy a Home" list.  MSN says Rochester is at the top of the

The Kiss of 'Real Estate' Death

The house has been just sitting on the market.  No one has come to see it in weeks.  It's time to make a price adjustment and so I
begin that dreadful conversation with the sellers.



"Well, we are not in a big hurry to sell.  We are willing to wait for our price,"
they tell me.




 UGH!!!!  GROAN!   And a few other words that I don't dare
publish.




More than ever before, buyers are

Time Flies

Gosh, it's the middle of February and the blog still screams "Happy Holidays!" No, I've not gotten fat and lazy this winter. It's been extremely busy.

I started the new year on January 2nd, by working with three different buyers that day and I've been running ever since. Just as predicted, the spring market hit Rochester early this year even if the weather was still winter-like. And for all the

140 Days and Counting

When the weather outside is frightful, you can usually count on the real estate phone going to sleep. Not this year! I worked with three different buyers yesterday during the raging snow storm. And of the 7 houses I showed, three of them were new to the market this week. That’s not a typical December day for Rochester, NY.With less than 140 days to be under contract to qualify for the home buyer

What does a Million Dollars Buy You in the Rochester Real Estate Market?

In some parts of the country, it's not unusual to pay a million dollars or more to buy a nice house but in the Rochester, NY area it is a rarity. In fact, for a measly million dollars you get a really, really, REALLY nice house!For just over a million, $1,059,000 to be exact, you can purchase a 6 bedroom, 3.5 bath waterfront front home with a 36 foot indoor pool, hot tub and three fireplaces. For

Surprising Numbers

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, less people moved last year than in any year since 1962! And of course, the U.S. population was much smaller then and so it you look at it as a percentage, in 2008 just 11.9 percent of Americans changed residences, the lowest move rate on record since 1948. I find that rather surprising.So, how are we doing locally in 2009. By the numbers, it doesn't look

My Favorite Helpers!

Property is selling in Rochester, NY, thanks in part to the federal first time home buyer tax credit. I've been struggling to keep up but Colin and Sean were a big help in putting a sold sign in front of their home in Southeast Rochester. Thanks guys. Hopefully, I'll be able to squeeze out a little time over the next couple of days to catch up on blogging!

The Lilacs are Coming But the Magnolias are Here!!!

At some parks, there are signs telling you not to leave the walkway. But not so at Rochester's Highland Park. In fact, they have many park benches well off the beaten path just beckoning you to come and sit and ponder. What a delightful way to spend a spring day.

Highland Park might be best know for its lilacs but I believe the magnolias are just as spectacular, if not more so. The warm

How Quickly are Houses Selling In Rochester?

Very, very, very quickly!Case in point, a new listing came up Friday afternoon. There were no photos but my clients decided to drive by anyway. They called me from the driveway and said we want want to see this. I pull up the listing and there is not even a flowery description of the property and call to get the appointment. There is no sign in the yard so I drive right by it but we get to see it

Rochester Real Estate - The Year in Review

Happy New Year Everyone! This is a perfect time of the year to reflect back and plan for the future. As I look back over 2008, the thing that keeps coming to mind is "The Day the Phone Stopped Ringing!" Literally! I was having a little slower than average year with about 20 sales when suddenly, around September 1, 2008 no one wanted to look at real estate, no one wanted to sell real estate, no

Difficult Economic Times

Usually, I can hardly wait to check my e-mail. You might say I'm an e-mail-holic! But it seems that in the past few weeks, I've found more bad news e-mails than good news e-mail. And pretty much all of the bad news has to do with employment, or more accurately, lack of it. All the scary news on television starts to hit home when you hear from a recent client that they no longer have a job or

Say Somthing Nice

It's been tough to blog lately. I'm a firm believer in the saying that if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all. So I've been silent. There is not much nice to say about the local real estate market right now.I've got clients, mostly buyers, but they just are not finding anything to buy. It seems that with all the doom and gloom in the news, sellers are not selling unless

I Feel Like I'm 16 Again.

When I was 16, it seemed like the whole world evolved around the phone. There were no e-mails or text messages. In fact, there were no cell phones and instead of voice mail, there were busy signals or no answers. As a result, there were many hours spent fretting, waiting for the phone to ring.Well, I'm feeling like I'm 16 again. I didn't sell a single house in September and I've spent many hours

What Do You Think? A Quick Survey about Rochester Real Estate.

Blogging is all about telling you what I think but for a moment I'd like to switch roles. I'd like to know what you think. The news, as usual, is full of doom and gloom and is reporting an economic crisis. Are you feeling an impact from the economy and is it impacting your decisions about real estate? I've put together a quick and unscientific survey about the 2008 Rochester Real Estate Market.

Real Estate is Local!

Every time I watch the news these days I have an anxiety attack. Price of Oil! Recession! Crime! Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac! Global Warming! Cancer! Depression (no, not the economy; me!) And just about the time that I'm convinced that times are too difficult to sell real estate, my phone starts ringing.Fortunately, real estate is local and the Rochester market is not all doom and gloom.

Spring Market Has Hit!

The interesting thing about a real estate blog is that when the market is slow, it is difficult to find things to blog about but when it's hot, it is difficult to find time to write. Since returning from my mini-Easter vacation, my phone has been ringing off the hook and I've had appointments, usually more than one, each and every day. I've had three listing presentations, worked with 4 new