Tara B. Downing Mineola Port Washington homes for sale

Newly reduced colonial in heart of Mineola. 3 br, 1.5 baths, LR, DR, EIK. Now listed for 459k. CLOSE to LIRR, hospital, courts. Owner wants to hear all offers

2 Meadow Lane

Port Washington, New York

Luxury Livinng at a great price. The property and town were written about in the Wall Street Journal last weekend. To view the article, go to

http://online.wsj.com/article_email/SB10001424053111903927204576572791990070406-lMyQjAxMTAxMDEwNzExNDcyWj.html?mod=wsj_share_email

FOR MORE INFORMATION - CALL ME

TARA DOWNING - 516-317-5303

VILLAGE PROPERTIES - 516-741-5960

Even though Sands Point is a relatively small town and we, as residents, tend to know one another more-so than in other communities, I notice something new and beautiful about our town every day. However, as a New York State Licensed Real Estate Broker working in Sands Point selling one-family houses and helping buyers find one-family houses, I think scenes like the photograph below make my job very easy. First, I love working here. Second, I get to show off beautiful views every day.

Take a look and realize that, as a real estate owner in Sands Point, you'd be one of the owners of it. This is Castle Gould on the Sands Point Preserve.

This is why I love working and living in Sands Point and I cannot think of a better place to raise my children.

OK – so you are reading my blog. I haven't thought much about what I planned to write, but I knew it would be about where I live. I have been a resident Sands Point of this town too long to give worry about where my Blogs would be posted, but I would like to introduce myself. As you can probably see, my name is Tara Downing and I am a Licensed Sales Associate. I have an office in central Nassau County, but I reside in Sands Point. I also have a number of friends who are also clients/customers interested in both upgrading or downsizing within Sands Point, New York or Port Washington, New York. I also have friends from out of town looking to take advantage of the current market to make a great purchase.

In case you don’t know me, I am including a photo.

Take a second look because we've probably met. I help buyers and sellers in our hometown with real estate transactions, but I am also at a baseball field, lacrosse field, or one of dozens of other venues. Basically, with my husband and three kids, I am zooming around town for one reason or another, and it feels like I am doing it 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

The difference between getting a house and not getting a house, or finding that seller willing to pay the extra dollar, makes all the difference. As a long-term resident and long-term real estate agent, I keep my work and pleasure separate.

However, if you ever get even the slightest feeling that your agent is representing someone’s interests other than yours, I know how you feel.

My husband and I bought a house here a decade ago, and have worked with countless buyers and sellers since that date in acquiring or selling their properties; many of whom thought they they were lost causes.

My husband & I may just be breaking 40, but we’ve lived in the area for more than half of our lives, and out kids have spent their entire lives here. If I can give you a hand or even just answer a question, give me a call anytime. My cell is 516-317-5303 and my office line is 516-741-5960.

I am posting this with permission of my broker, who reviews the sales prices and other market statistics in Mineola and surrounding towns on a daily basis. He rarely publishes his findings, rather he uses the findings for his appraisal work. However, he thought this would be worthwhile to get out to the local public to show the difference between the work we do on a regular basis to determine true Market Value by a Certified General Appraiser (him), before we list properties for sale. You will find it has led us to sell properties more rapidly than local competitors. This is because we not only spend a great deal on marketing and tending to our listings, but we also try to provide each seller with an appraisal of his or her property that is in conformity with the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP). These appraisals are generally 30+ pages in length and make BPOs look like a waste of time. Below is the e-mail to me from the broker in our office. However, if I can ever assist you in the sale of your house, give me a call at 516-317-5303. My partner Sheri Cambareri & I will do our best to provide you with the highest level of service in the industry. In addition, my brker will help by appraising the property for sale Combining his appraisal with our own local knowledge (I was born and raised in Mineola), we can help make the selling process painless and profitable, rather than a roller-coaster ride.

Call Tara Downing 516-317-5303 or Sheri Cambareri @ 516-510-9281

ACTUAL SALES DATA - ONE-FAMILY HOUSES IN MINEOLA

GOOD NEWS - NO DOWNTURN MONTH-OVER-MONTH IN PRICES

JULY OF 2011 HAD A HIGHER AVERAGE SALES PRICE THAN AUGUST, SEPTEMBER AND OCTOBER OF 2010

AND PRICES PAID PER SQUARE FOOT OF HOUSE SIZE HAS REMAINED FAIRLY CONSTANT

SHOWN IN THE FOLLOWING GRID IS A MONTH-BY-MONTH BREAKDOWN OF SALES OF ONE-FAMILY HOUSES IN MINEOLA THAT SOLD FOR MORE THAN $100,000. THAT MINIMUM WAS CHOSEN SO THAT FAMILY SALES AND OTHER ARMS-LENGTH SALES WE NOT INCLUDED. THESE ARE THE ACTUAL SALES. BELOW THIS GRID IS A COPY FROM OUR LOCAL MLS OF WHAT ONE WOULD FIND IF THEY RELIED SOLELY ON MLS DATA. REMEMBER, MLS ONLY SHOWS INFORMATION FROM BROKERS' SALES, NOT PRIVATE SALES.

MINEOLA SALES DATA FROM AUGUST OF 2010 THROUGH JULY OF 2011 - SINGLE-FAMILY HOUSES ONLY

The figures in this graph were created in an Excel chart by the author and culled from all sales in Mineola as recorded and reported by CoreLogic's Win2Data property record database. All sales data are based upon actual filed deeds. CoreLogic acquired the Win2Data system from First American Real Estate Solutions. The author (me - David V. Farrell) has been a subscriber to Win2Data and its pre-computerized predecessors for more than 20 years. None of the information shown above (or in the graph below) is based upon or reliant upon accurate reporting from Realtors, and all sales are included, not just those brokered within the MLS of Long Island.

In graphical format, it will appear that the fluctuation in sales prices month-over-month is fairly high. However, the worst month had average sales prices of $392,444 and the best month sales prices average $454,000. This is merely a 15% range from top to bottom, and the worst month is less than five percent below the average for the year, while the best month was 11 percent above the average. However, on a Price per Square Foot Basis, sales ranged from $263 per square foot in April of 2011 to a maximum of $328 in November of 2010. The range is 25%, but prices paid per square foot is highly dependent on house sizes.

Larger houses sell for a lower price per square foot than smaller houses in almost every part of Long Island (and the rest of the nation) as larger houses have added area to heat, cool, maintain, insure and on which they area taxed.

Here is a graph of the average sales prices month-over-month over the same time period as in the gird shown above:

A perusal of the same data on our local MLS wold have provided the following summarized results:

According to a search done August 12, 2011 by me (same guy as above), there were only 76 sales. They had an average sales price of $420,408. As such, MLS missed 8.4% of the actual sales activity. In addition, their average sales price reported is $8,819 higher than the true average and is off by more than 2%. This might not seem important, but a national rise or fall of 2% in Market Value would, effectively, add or remove billions of dollars in value.

The interesting facts worth culling from the MLS statistics is that of the 76 houses on which they report, the average number of days on the market was 96 (3 months), and the average Real Estate Taxes were $7,496.

IF YOU WANT TO FIND OUT ACTUAL VALUES - CALL A REAL ESTATE BROKER WHO IS ALSO A NEW YORK STATE CERTIFIED GENERAL APPRAISER. DAVID V. FARRELL, BROKER OF VILLAGE PROPERTIES OF MINEOLA, APPRAISER & AUCTIONEER. 516-741-7350. Cell #516-987-3329. Thank you.

visit www.longislandvillageproperties.com and/or www.livillageproperties.com