Blog :: 2008

The Future is Bright

Having justgone toconvention, I realize that our market is not as bad as a number of areas across the country. For example, we are much better off than most parts of California, Florida, Michigan, New York, Massachusetts,Nevada and Pennsylvania just to name a few. In fact, based on our projections for closings, in March we will be up 76%
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Fashion Model, Say What ?

An interesting thing happened to me at our annual convention this past week. I was asked to model the new gold jacket designed by Geoffrey Beane for Century 21. On a lark I said yes, thinking there would probably be 20 to 30 people standing on stage and I could get lost in the shuffle. They enticed me with the fact that I could keep the
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Back From Convention

I just arrived back from sunny Orlando two nights ago to freezing rain and cold. Oh yes, there is no question I am back home with more than likely another one and half months of winter left, if we are lucky. The convention was awesome. I networked with many successful business owners and agents and had the opportunity to exchange many
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keep your Legislator honest

Currently the Legislature is in session which is an important time for the general public and Realtors to pay attention to some of the bills that are being proposed. Some of the items that are being discussed can truly be detrimental to the affordable housing crisis that we have in our area. For example their is a water buffer bill for new
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Money Magazine Supports Buying Now

I just read an article afew days ago in Money magazine which validates what we have been telling our customers for months, which is buy now. The article talked about the fact that interest rates are for all intensive purposes hovering around a two year low and there is plenty of inventory available to choose from which makes it a buyer's
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Fashion Show at Convention

I don't believe what I have agreed to, but I have. I agreed to be ina fashion show at the Century 21 International Convention this week in Orlando. I got a call from the guy in charge of events for Century 21 and he said my name was referred to him by someone who said I might beup for some fun at the convention. He said they were going to
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Orlando or Bust

Next week is school vacation for the kids and we are heading to Orlando because I have the Century 21 International Convention that I will be attending. The timing works out this year that work can be mixed with pleasure. I don't know who is more excited to go, the kids, or me and my wife. Yes it is that time of the year that we get a
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The Today Show at Sugarbush

How ironic that I just went skiing at Sugarbush last week, which I had not done in ages and the Today Show just did a live shoot there this morning at 7:00. I think they did an excellent job and the beauty of Vermont was well represented on their newscast. It further substantiates what I have been telling you all along. Vermont is not just
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My Century 21 Open House Contest

Starting March 3rd Century 21 International will be running a contest that could net someone $21,000 and an HDTV. Sellers and their Century 21 listing agent will be encouraged to create a 1:15 minute open house video. This video should be entertaining, emotional, humorous and or creative. Consumers will select the top 10 entries that will
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April Open House Month

In the month of April Century 21 International will be promoting Open House Month. There will be a number of events and promotional spots highlighting current inventory on the market. Sellers will be able to get additional exposure for their homes and the consumer will be able to get a better grasp of what the choices may be in their market
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The Skiing is Great

I went skiing this past Saturday at Bolton Ski Area. It is only 23 minutes away from Burlington which is so incredibly convenient. I think we live in such a magical place. We received 15 inches of snow on Wednesday and it was sunny with very little wind which made the trips up the lift so much more enjoyable. The snow was still on the trees
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A place to call home

Located on the Northwest side of Vermont and bordered by Lake Champlain this is truly one of the nicest places you'll ever want to experience. Two blocks away is Church Street our pedestrain walkway lined with restaurants, shops, galleries, and the Flynn theater. Modeled after Fanueil Hall in Boston, this brick-lined street is a hustle and
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Local Broker Hits Grandslam for kids

It's not often in life that you get a chance to positively affect a whole community, but that is what has happened for us this past year in Burlington, Vermont. Being an avid baseball fan and coach for several years in our wonderful community we realized that we only had one regular size baseball diamond for the largest city in our State.
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Experience Counts

I am entering my 24th year selling real estate this year and I must say that I still love the feeling of being able to help someone buy their dream home and sell their current home. It never seizes to amaze me how incredibly rewarding it is to use my expertise to help other people attain their goals. I have learned alot over this period of
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Snowy Week

An unpredicted ice storm roared into the area on Wednesdaymorning around 7:00 am making the roads treacherous to drive on. There were many accidents and a number of school cancellations due to a build up of ice under the 5 inches of wet and heavy snow. Usually this small amount of snow doesn't affect us much, but combined with the thick
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More proposed legislation that would limit our housing stock

Water Buffer

The House Fish, Wildlife and Natural Resources chaired by David Deen (D-Westminster) has continued its work on H.549 a bill that would implement a 50-foot waterway buffer around all waters of the state. The committee was scheduled to vote the bill out on Friday, but do to strong opposition from many in the regulated community

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Legislative update From our Local Homebuilders Association

Smoke Detectors

The Senate Commerce, Housing, General and Military Committee began to take up testimony last week on a bill, S.226, which would mandate that all new smoke detectors installed be photoelectric detectors. Currently builders are only required to install either ionization or photoelectric smoke detectors. Local firefighters have begun a recent push to only allow photoelectric detectors to be

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Motivation keys the Movement

A wonderful thing is slowly starting to happen in our local real estate market. Sellers are starting to realize that it is no longer 2004, and I say this without any intended disrespect. Yes, deals are becoming possible because people are becoming much more willing to accept the reality of our situation. There seems to be an excitedhush and
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Fed cuts rates and mortgage interest rises

The following information is provided by a local mortgage broker in our area:
You may have noted the endless news stories regarding rates being down due to the recent and pending 'Fed cuts'. Unfortunately, but not surprisingly, the press often misrepresents the facts regarding how Fed cuts effect mortgage rates. Here is the way things
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Five Thousand Saved and Forty Thousand Lost

I was talking to a client the other day, and he was telling me a story about how he tried to buy an investment property years ago from a for sale by owner.He told me that he found a building that was in good condition, a decent location, and the numbers on it looked pretty good. He made a couple of offers on it, up to within $5,000 of what
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