Maybe you don’t remember the title track of Billy Joel’s 1986 “The Bridge.” It was the follow-up to his Christie Brinkley-dedicated “Innocent Man,” and celebrates his new daughter (now 24). The song was called “Running on Ice.” I’m only thinking about it literally today, since I’m back out running for the first few times since
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Well, well. Do you remember Kozmo, circa 2000? 24/7 delivery? Maybe you didn’t live in an area where they delivered. Let me tell you, a wonderful service. The instant gratification of ice cream at 2am without leaving your apartment (mind you, I didn’t live in Manhattan at the time) was quite something. All that convenience
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Rates go up, rates go down. A popular mantra for brokers over the years has been the historic low rates we’ve seen. More than a few books have been written about the combination of low rates and low lending standards contributing to the poor economy, especially the blowup of late 2008 through 2009. As signs
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Tired of looking at your old appliances? Ready to create an extra bedroom from a dining area? Interested in getting an expert set of eyes on your apartment for a possible renovation? Renovation costs are down at least 20-25% from their peak in 2008. Not only are there many architects looking for new projects, but
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Courtesy of organization guru, Maeve Richmond of Get Your House In Order, I present some tips for entertaining this Holiday Season. Don’t pull your hair out, folks! Maeve writes: With a little planning, your holiday party can be enjoyable and stress-free. Try these simple party-planning tips: Prepare in Advance: Choose appetizers and dishes that you
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As a residential broker, part of my job is to look at the market and report back to buyers and sellers. Take a view of the market, be the expert. I gather information, speak to brokers, get a feeling of the current psychology of the marketplace. I’m reading the WSJ and NYT like everyone else
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Many of you know that I like to run marathons. If you don’t, well now you do. I’m running my second (and final) marathon of the Fall season in Philadelphia on Sunday. Yippee! Lots and lots of miles, running through neighborhoods from Red Hook to Washington Heights. For those of you who would like to
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My feelings on the market mid-November 2010. Lots of paranoid schizophrenics, and people standing in the middle of the street yelling. A colleague of mine put it very well- Schizophrenic. One week it’s up, another week it’s quiet. It feels that like it’s moving forward, with deals happening- but just to prove that real estate
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Rates are low now. Unless you have been under a rock, I don’t need to tell you that. With QE2, of course there’s the expectation that they would be going down again. I do not have a crystal ball, but clearly the confidence level in the government’s economic policy is uneven. That said, I could
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This Do-It-Yourself is very easy. As you get your house ready for the holidays, or consider prepping an apartment for sale, might I suggest the Mighty Magic Eraser? Ben Franklin once wrote wrote that all of life is about trifles- but I’m paraphrasing. I show between 30-40 apartments on any given week. When my buyers
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