You don’t turn 100 every year, and 2016 is the year the Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors celebrates its 100th Anniversary. The following is an excerpt from the National Real Estate Journal dated May 15, 1916: “The first regular meeting of the Westchester County Realty Board was held Tuesday afternoon, May 9th, in the Lecture…
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The House and the Senate passed a tax extender package that extended Mortgage Debt Relief through the end of 2016. Mortgage debt relief will keep homes from turning into foreclosures when a seller takes a loss on the property. This will allow them to avoid paying taxes, which if not enacted would force many into…
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To tackle a difficult subject, I enlisted the opinion and help of a friend, past CEO of the Mahopac-Carmel Chamber of Commerce and present President/CEO of the Chamber of Southern Saratoga County Pete Bardunias. From time to time we have teamed up to share business insights from both ends of Tech Valley and the…
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I would like to finish the year as I started it by saying thank you. Thank you for giving me the honor and opportunity to lead this organization. Looking back on the year we established three main priorities and together we set out to do some amazing things. As an organization we strive to set…
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OK, I’ll admit it. I confess. I’m a Christmas junkie. The transformation actually starts the day of Thanksgiving. As soon as the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade concludes with the appearance of Santa, the Christmas music goes on and plays non-stop through the Feast of the Epiphany. The Christmas tree, which is purchased from the same…
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For Small Business Saturday, Putnam County Executive MaryEllen Odell and I did some shopping as we usually do, visiting small businesses throughout the area and enjoying the experience of supporting our neighborhood shops, which mean so much to the local economy. Spending time in the businesses gave us an opportunity to see how things were…
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Over the past year I have used my column to inform the membership of our organization’s activities along with using this venue to put my hand out with an ask. Sticking with the precedent I have set forth, below you will find my final ask of the year. A key priority this year was to…
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On October 19th the Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors conducted its Annual Member’s Day at the DoubleTree Hotel in Tarrytown. I’m always amazed by the amount of planning and work that goes into the preparation of that day. This year the Communications Council, co-chaired by Deb Budetti and Kathy Milich, decided to pull out all…
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A few short years ago the concept of industry clusters in our area was a very foreign one, indeed. We simply didn’t recognize the impact that attracting groups of similar businesses might have on Putnam County’s economic future. More recently, however, the Hudson Valley Economic Development Corp led by Larry Gottlieb and the work done…
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There is this really talented and cool guy with the patience of a saint. His name is John Jordan. He is affable, smart and really talented when it comes to his job as being editor of Real Estate In Depth...He is a great conversationalist, as one can imagine a "newspaperman" would be. There is only…
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Okay, where can I possible go with that title? The thought that comes to mind is when you attend a comedy show or dinner show, the on stage talent always makes sure to mention that there are hard working men and women serving the patrons that need to be rewarded for their service. By the…
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I spent the last week in Syracuse and Kansas City at two industry conferences. I’ve been attending such conferences for 30-plus years, and it’s interesting that some of the topics are still very similar over all those years. However, when you consider the fact that organized real estate in this country is just north of…
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Before I write on my topic for this issue I wanted to provide an update from my last article. My nine -month pregnant wife and I survived our road trip through 12 states and 3,500 miles with four kids and a dog in tow and made it home safe and sound and still pregnant. The…
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As I write this article it is 93 degrees in the shade and we’ve been in the midst of a heat wave for several days. Actually most of the summer has been pleasantly hot and dry, but we know that fall is around the corner with cooler days and even cooler nights. Fall is actually…
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I write to you on the verge of beginning a 14-day RV road trip through the Midwest with my family. For those keeping score at home that is four kids, one dog, one 8.5-month pregnant wife and I. I know, what am I thinking, or more importantly what is my wife thinking? Well, it is…
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For those observant readers of Real Estate In-Depth you may have noticed that HGAR COO Ann Garti was a guest columnist in the place of my normal column in last month’s edition. The reason for the unplanned substitution was that just a day or two before the paper went to press I learned that I…
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Earlier this year I announced that we would be relaunching our 501c3 foundation with a new purpose and new vision. Under the leadership of past HGAR President Michael Graessle and the tireless work of the members of a President’s Advisory Group (PAG)that I appointed, we are now on our way to making this happen. Over…
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Instead of one theme for my column this month, I decided to briefly address a series of items that are on the front burner of the Association. As you review this edition of Real Estate In-Depth you will note the extensive coverage of our Lobby Day efforts in Albany on June 9th. Almost 40 members…
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Being a Realtor comes with certain benefits, and I do not believe any benefit greater than our Government Affairs teams at the local, state and national levels. This was clearly evident when a group of Hudson Gateway Realtors attended “Lobby Day” earlier this month in Albany. We came with a unified voice and a message…
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In the last two weeks the Realtor community has lost two past presidents of the former Westchester County Board of Realtors—Al Schatz and Fred Streb. While neither Al nor Fred have been actively involved in real estate for a few years, they were both tremendous advocates for the Realtor community as well as for the…
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