This has been a strange year for real estate. The selling season began early and with full force, with homes being offered and sold at a healthy clip. But then someone hit the brakes and by May, which is usually…
Whether you’re a buyer or seller, sometimes you don’t have the luxury of deciding when you need to move. A job relocation or school change may dictate when you must find a new place to live. If you’re renting a…
I get this over and over. And over. Buyers want a recently built, large, immaculate, pimped-out house with a finished basement in South Brunswick or Plainsboro or West Windsor, all for the reasonable price of under $600,000. It’s not happening,…
We all get swept up in advertising, buying things because they promise to be the best or at least better than everything else out there. Most of the time our new purchase either outright disappoints or falls in the category…
Guest post by Natalie Jones from Homeownerbliss.info Buying or selling a home is a daunting prospect, even if it isn’t your first venture into the real estate market. There’s long been debate over how much and what exactly you should…
Some of us are conscientious about cleaning our clothes dryer lint filter, while others not so much. After all, ignoring it after one cycle can’t be too bad, right? We’ll get to it next time, right? Unless we forget… We’ve…
Let’s face it, most people consider school districts when they look for a home to buy or rent. A good elementary school and high school for your kids will guarantee acceptance to a great college, leading to a high-paying job,…
I have tinnitus, that annoying ringing in the ears experienced by 20% of the world's population. Not a ringing in my case, but a persistent high tone reminiscent of television sets of the 1950s and 60s. There is no cure,…
Before I begin, let’s make one thing clear: a lease is a contract, and it obligates a landlord to allow tenants to live on a property in exchange for rent in the amount covering the full term of the lease,…
For Princeton area residents who couldn’t get enough of last month’s solar eclipse or were not able to experience it firsthand, another celestial opportunity will present itself on September 20. On that night, the moon will be totally obscured from…
I don’t mean ever; let’s not get drastic. Let me explain. In the beginning there were telephones. They were big and heavy and clunky and attached to a wall with a wire. To speak with a real estate agent, you…
I hear this question every now and again, and the reason behind it is obvious: landlords prefer stable renters and don’t want to pay a commission every year to find new tenants if they can avoid it, and tenants want…
An acquaintance recently turned 55 and was bemoaning his advanced age. Trying to cheer him up, I asked, “But how old do you feel?” I expected something like, “Oh, about 45,” your typical “I feel younger than my age” answer.…
Yes, that definitely sounds strange. Let me explain. My daughter is an ultra runner, one of those silly types who run races of 100 miles or more over mountainous terrain. She was visiting me here from Alabama, and decided to…
Many of you know that already. A new train station in North Brunswick along the Northeast Corridor Line, in a new urban village off Route 1 across from the Regal Theater. But for some of you this may be news,…
Ah, NIXLE. Amidst the vast sea of cell phone features, you are one of my most treasured. Not because you’re cute or clever or fun or the latest fad. But because you’re flat-out useful. For those of you not yet…
I hear that often. A lot, actually. OK, every blessed time I show a home. “Are these the original owners, and why are they moving?” I sigh. Mainly because the answer has no bearing whatsoever on whether or not the…
I see it all too often: a landlord is willing to allow a pet in a rental property, but asks for a pet security deposit in the listing. The logic seems to be, “Well, I’m down with your cat, but…
All-cash offers to purchase a home are great, except when they’re not. Sure, they sound wonderful—No underwriters! No appraisal! Fast closing! But then the second shoe drops: it’s a lowball offer. Whether I’m representing a seller or a buyer, I…
First-time home buyers, and even folks who’ve only lived in apartments or condos, frequently see something while touring a home that is unfamiliar. Often they’re curious and ask; sometimes they are shy to admit that there are things they don’t…
You see them everywhere. “6 Best Places to Eat in New York.” “8 Clever Gifts for Teens.” “18 Worst Cars Ever Made.” In print media. On the Web. Even on television. I hate ordered lists. They absolutely drive me insane.…
Like millions of people everywhere, I struggle with a debilitating anchor that holds back my productivity and causes me no end of distress. As I’ve confirmed to myself and confided in others, I know what to do, I know how…
Ask any average American, at any time of the year, what the word “Christmas” brings to mind. An honest answer will include snow, Christmas trees, lights, gifts, Santa Claus, reindeer, sleigh bells, shopping and so on. You may come across…
First-time home buyers and those new to the South Brunswick area frequently hear houses described as colonials or splits or whatever. If you are confused about those terms and are too shy to ask, here’s a quick primer on what…
No doubt many buyers have heard the term “short sale” in the last few years. Most of them know that it has something to do with the owners not being able to pay their mortgage, the bank getting involved, the…
Here’s a question virtually every prospective tenant asks me when I show a rental property: “Will the landlord clean the home before we move in?” That’s a fair question that deserves a fair and honest answer to avoid misunderstanding and…
One would think that calling a room a bedroom is a formality, and a family can sleep anywhere it can fit a bed, futon or sleeping bag. True, you can sleep in the living room for all anyone cares, but…
This is a question that many home seekers are asking themselves. They may be getting advice from others around them—family, friends and coworkers, but it has to be a decision that is right for them. While there is no perfect…
The single biggest sigh-inducing issue I have when listing a home for sale is finding out that a major renovation—usually a finished basement—was done without township permits. Is it a deal killer and show stopper? No, but it generally means…
For many buyers, this seems hardly a question to ask—everybody knows what a condo is. And a townhouse. Or is it a townhome? Or town house? OK… maybe an explanation is in order. When a couple asks me if a…
You’ve probably never heard of idiosyncrasy credits and have no clue how important they are. Sure, you can Google them and get a fairly thorough Wikipedia definition that will leave you dazed and with a mild headache. I’ll spare you…
You want to sell your house. Or maybe you just have judgmental company coming over whom you’d like to impress—perhaps a snooty acquaintance from your deep past or a mother-in-law. In either case, you wish to magically transform your home…
Ever see a six-pack house? I have. As a real estate agent I’ve had the pleasure of visiting and showing hundreds of homes, and one in particular made my day, although not necessarily in a good way. The owners had…
In kindergarten I was given a box of eight crayons, large ones with one flat side to keep them from rolling off the table. I had little problem making the necessary connections critical to the development of a five-year-old: the…
Less than an hour’s drive west of Princeton, not far from the Delaware River on the Pennsylvania side, sits a most quaint and welcoming destination spot for young and old alike—Peddler’s Village, a theme park cleverly disguised as a shopping…
I had the pleasure of tackling a fairly Major project recently, one involving a good amount of research, organization, the shuffling of papers and filling out of tedious forms. As is my proclivity in handling such tasks, I had dragged…
I was stirring my morning coffee, that deliberate motion that is part necessity and part subconscious effort to delay the start of another arduous day, if only by a few seconds. That’s a time when the brain, not yet steeped…
Fathers are men, and men have an extra advice chromosome that women lack. Oh, I know, mothers are the ones always offering advice and opinions: Wear a sweater, it’s cold outside. The blue top matches the lovely shoes you just…
A duck and a gecko sagely tell you all you need to know about insurance. A frighteningly precocious baby day trader packs a laptop and smart phone in his crib. Every product or service worth shilling has a hook, a…
We all have a bit of Walter Mitty in us. It’s human nature, irresistible. And nothing brings out the dreamer in us more than playing the lottery, be it scratch-off games with their promise of a $2 haul or participating…
In the course of my real estate business, I have developed an intimate knowledge of helium balloons. They’re an integral part of our marketing after all, those things we tie to Open House signs on Sundays to distract drivers and…
OK, so maybe “haunted” is not quite the proper term. But in the spirit of Halloween, I can’t resist venting about the traffic light at the intersection of Route 1 and Ridge Road. Oh, it works just fine, all right.…
Driving to work southbound down Mapleton Road in Kingston a few mornings ago, I came upon a construction squeeze in the road. Nothing serious, I foresaw only a brief delay on the lightly traveled road. But once I spied the…
The “D” word is not allowed in our home. We have two puppies, as the fur on our furniture attests, and they’ve witnessed their share of changing seasons: Archie is five, and little Zoey recently turned three. Anyone who doesn’t…
I started this blog with the intent of creating a hybrid site where I could engage my real estate clients while indulging my innate desire to put Stuff down in words. The real estate part is coming along nicely; it…
A boy stands on an elevated subway platform in New York City. At the Castle Hill Avenue station in the Bronx, to be precise. He’s about 15 years old, young in relation to the gathering masses of morning commuters slowly…
Three bottles of Châteaux Lafite-Rothschild 1869 were sold at auction by Sotheby’s in 2010 for a staggering $232,692 each. What completely boggles my mind is not the price—much more is routinely paid for artwork and automobiles by collectors and fanatics,…
“You have to blog,” They said. “Everyone who’s anyone does it.” Besides, I’m a real estate agent—having a real estate blog is simply presumed, like having a snappy professional website and pretty business cards. Never mind that most agents’ cards…
