Gone are the days when prospective buyers went to their local real estate agent to browse through listings or MLS books. Today, they wade through homes on the Internet and woe to the Realtor whose web presence isn”™t eye- catching enough for a buyer.
Don Mituzas, associate broker for Prudential Serls Prime Properties in Brewster, said there is a lot of pent-up demand, but high taxes can be a deterrent to prospective buyers.
“Even when the house is priced right, many buyers zero in on the property taxes ”“ in addition to having the highest property taxes in the nation, New York”™s closing costs are a challenge, too ”“ buyers need to come up with mortgage recording taxes and deed transfer taxes that add to that cost ”“ it makes it very tough to buy for many,” Mituzas said.
With potential buyers using the Internet to search for homes, many agents must wait for their listing to catch someone”™s eye before they”™ll even get a phone call.
“You need an excellent website and web presence; 85 percent of buyers start their search on the Internet,” Mituzas said. “If you have a good site with active listings, you are going to get ”˜hits.”™
“Referrals are also a Realtor”™s best friend ”“ if you provide gracious, excellent service, word gets around and you continue to get calls. If you don”™t, you don”™t last long in this business, especially in this economy.”
Jeff Winsper, manager of Better Homes & Gardens Rand Realty in Tuxedo, said June was “better than expected. We put a lot of deals together, and they are in contract. It is more difficult to get buyers qualified … the standards are tight. We went from one extreme to the other when it comes to lenders qualifying buyers. There needs to be some kind of middle ground.”
Mary Ann Mitchell, a saleswoman in Winsper”™s Tuxedo office, has been on both ends of the boom and bust.
“I came into the business when home prices in southern Orange and upper Rockland were much lower. Then we had the housing boom, and now the bust. We just have to keep plugging along and remember the market will come back around.”
The federal homebuyers credit did help lift the market in many areas. In others, homes will sell no matter what the market, particularly those on the shores of the Hudson. Whether Congress will approve the extension to permit buyers who availed themselves of the tax credit but were unable to close by June 30 to claim the credit remains in limbo as of press time.
Mitchell”™s advice to shoppers: “Deal with a reputable lender, one that pre-approves you. That”™s one thing you don”™t want to leave home without while you”™re shopping.” Advice for homeowners: “Price the house competitively… and understand the market is slow. Have patience.”
Gil Mercurio, chief executive officer of the Westchester Putnam Association of Realtors, said Westchester has fared better than its Hudson Valley counterparts because of its proximity to New York City. “The closer you are, the higher the prices are going to be … we have seen a sustainable increase over 2009”™s numbers.”
Mercurio said the first-time homebuyers”™ credit was especially helpful to people buying co-ops, popular in Westchester.
“Now, Albany is proposing to impose the mortgage recording tax on co-ops, too. The kindest thing I can say is how ”˜unhelpful”™ that will be, not just here in Westchester, but all over the Hudson Valley. Here we are in the midst of this recession and Albany is talking about imposing yet another burdensome tax.”
Another tax that has New York”™s real estate agents railing is the “mansion tax,” a 1 percent charge on any home selling over a million dollars. “We”™d like to see that raised to $2 million,” Mercurio said.
