Carol Culkin

For Town of LaGrange residents, Freedom Park offers a wide range of summer recreational activities. Town residents can obtain membership passes for Freedom Lake at the Town Hall, located at 120 Stringham Road, LaGrangeville, NY 12540.. Some of the park's features are listed below:

Information provided as a courtesy by Carol Culkin - Dutchess County Relocation Specialist

Houlihan Lawrence Realty 1989 Route 52 East Fishkill,New York 12533

Office: (845) 227-4400 x358 Cell:(845) 430-6543

Town of Lagrange annual Community Day at Freedom Park will be held on Saturday, June 13, 2009.
There will be community service booths, games, entertainment, D.J. Rendition, a petting zoo, fireworks and more. Music will be provided by the various Arlington school district's music groups and Harvest Band. This is a FREE event.

Directions: Freedom Park is located on Skidmore Road in the Town of LaGrange. The map below shows the park's location.

Information provided as a courtesy by Carol Culkin - Dutchess County Relocation Specialist

Houlihan Lawrence Realty 1989 Route 52 East Fishkill,New York 12533

Office: (845) 227-4400 x358 Cell:(845) 430-6543

It's that time of year again! The Town of LaGrange Parks & Recreation Department will be sponsering the Concert Series at Freedom Park. All concerts start at 7:00pm. In the event of rain, concerts will be held in the pavilion next to the band shell. The bands are scheduled as follows:

Pack snacks, gather the kids and bring your blankets & chairs. These concerts always turn out to be fun social gatherings that The Town of LaGrange residents look forward to. Don't be shy - come meet people in your community and enjoy the sounds of these local bands on a warm summers night.

Directions

Freedom Park is located on Skidmore Road in the Town of LaGrange. The map below shows the park's location.

Information provided as a courtesy by Carol Culkin - Dutchess County Relocation Specialist

Houlihan Lawrence Realty 1989 Route 52 East Fishkill,New York 12533

Office: (845) 227-4400 x358 Cell:(845) 430-6543

Think it's a buyer's market in Dutchess County? Think again. Here's the late breaking news from The Mid-Hudson Multiple Listing Service. The numbers released today show that purchase offers are up 27% from this time last year. The average number of days on the market is down by 7 days from March 2008. This is another subtle indicator that the local market is picking up.

Buyers who have been waiting might now be finding themselves very disappointed. While prices have fallen considerably and interest rates are at an all time low, the market has started to shift a little and some agents are even reporting multiple offers on their listings. On Friday, my firm's affiliated mortgage consultant emailed all the agents in my office to let us know that the rates went up .25% towards the end of last week.

With the $8000 federal housing tax credit which provides an outstanding opportunity for first time buyers, the inventory is suddenly moving at a faster pace in the below 300k price ranges. First time buyers who have waited until now to shop are suddenly finding themselves competing with other buyers. And, many buyers who thought they would have the upper hand in negotiating are finding out differently.

Last week a buyer client of mine lost out in a bidding war. There can only be one buyer for every house.

Of course this is good news for sellers in the below 300K price range. First time buyers seem to be out in force right now. The focus for many seems to be to close escrow before the end of November deadline to take advantage of the tax incentive. However, the high-end market still remains stagnant with a smaller pool of buyers who qualify or an increasing number of people who are apprehensive to over-extend.

In Dutchess County the median Selling Price for March 2009 was $252,000. This is the price point that is driving the local market.

The home on the left sold through my firm in March for $252,000 and so this is an example of what a home sale at the median selling price looks like.

Buyers: Don't wait any longer to start shopping, and be sure to understand that you might need to be competitive. Not every property you see will be negotiable, especially if there is more than one interested buyer.

For more information regarding the first time buyer tax incentive, click on the link below the picture.

http://www.federalhousingtaxcredit.com/2009/glance.php

I LOVE working with first time buyers. Yesterday's closing is another reminder of how much I LOVE my job. Imagine, these buyers lived and rented in New York City for 16 years before moving to Dutchess County a year ago. Now, imagine just how much rent money went towards their landlord's investment. I'm so happy to be able to have helped them make their own real estate investment and I hope it will make a big difference in their future.

Just look how happy they are! ...To think, I helped make that happen! It's very gratifying!

Through the process, as I got to know Katy & Keith, I also fantasized a little about what it would be like to be young again and living in New York City for all those years. What a wonderful opportunity they had. And, I'm sure they have no regrets at all. But, by the time we met a few months ago it was apparent to me that they were ready to embrace a new lifestyle.

They even gave Dutchess County a one year test drive and rented before making a decision to BUY here. It was obvious to me that they adapted well to their new community before buying their own piece of it.

We looked at homes in Dutchess and neighboring Putnam County where they eventually opted for the Town of Patterson because of better proximity to Katy's job.

They fell in LOVE with this old country house that reminds me of a photo from Martha Stewart's Living magazine. They purchased it from a landscape designer and just as they are taking ownership, the gardens are turning out to be a spectacular show of color. So, THIS is what they had imagined when they first consulted with me and explained that they wanted something with character, no cookie-cutter house in a subdivision. And, it was so fun working with them because their quest for something unique was not the same old/same old that so many of my clients seek. The kind of home that Katy & Keith were looking for is the kind of home and architecture that make my job as a real estate agent FUN. And, if I could only accumulate more clients like them, I would make the rural countryside my niche market. I had so much fun hunting with them, that I even posted a previous blog Shouldn't House Hunting Be Classified As A Sport?

When the sellers handed over the keys yesterday, I couldn't help get excited! Did I say how much I LOVE working with first time home buyers? And, I must say - this one went almost as smooth as silk! The goal of a real estate agent is for every transaction to be as stress free as possible. But, unfortunately, not every transaction is a smooth and easy journey. Knowing this, I try to assemble the right team of real estate professionals. As this real estate transaction came together, it was almost flawless. I felt just as much satisfaction in knowing that it was a stress-free transaction as I did knowing the buyers were so happy and excited. And, if they were stressed - they never let on.

Most of all, it was the teamwork that made it smooth. They worked with Rob Dominguez my favorite mortgage consultant at the Hudson Valley Federal Credit Union who always communicates well with the buyers, the attorney and me through every step of the transaction. At the Hudson Valley Federal Credit Union everything is processed locally - there's no calling a toll free number to get somebody in Texas to determine that the local appraiser could not schedule an appointment right away. All I had to do was call Rob and he made a request to have the processer cancel the order with the first appraiser and they got somebody else out to the property the same day. We closed on the very day that was initially proposed and we wouldn't have been able to do this had we waited a week for the first appraiser to fit it into her schedule. Rob took a personal interest - and he even showed up at the closing! That's him next to Keith.

I also recommended Active Rain member Joseph Sayegh as their attorney. I've worked with Joe and his staff many times and appreciate the efficiency. Joe is a well respected real estate attorney. But, no matter how busy he is ...unlike other lawyers - he always takes the time to communicate with me personally via email. He will always take my calls right away when he can or will get back to me in a very reasonable amount of time. I don't have to even call for an update - his office calls ME (again, unlike other local law firms).

The teamwork that goes into a real estate transaction is what makes the process smooth and hopefully stress-free. Having a great relationship with the mortgage consultant and the attorney really helps. In this case, the other agent was a great guy to work with too and the sellers were very reasonable people. We could have all become lifetime friends by the time the closing was finished. If only every closing could feel this way! But, the reality is that sometimes there are hurdles, and often personalities can clash.

Katy and Keith were great clients to work with as well. They did everything as instructed and they didn't once seem to really fret or worry. Knowing they lived in the Big Apple for 16 years, one might assume they would be the high-strung New Yorker types. But, they were as cool as the cucumbers that will soon be growing in their new garden. They trusted all of us to do our jobs while they were staying focused on their own work and personal obligations. In fact, during the processing of their transaction - they even took a weekend trip, traveled to Europe for business and went out to California for a week long vacation.

A Smooth Transaction Is The Result Of Good Teamwork ...And Great Clients! Congratulations Keith & Katy!