Amidst an election that made people uncertain of the future and caused many to be distracted from their personal goals, the real estate market soldiered on in 2016, and finished with a bright outlook. Forbes Magazine provided a very concise summary of what happened nationally, "...on balance 2016 was a pretty good year for housing. National prices finally crossing the previous 2006 peak, mortgage rates remained historically low and there were some signs that Millennials, a generation which some feared would never buy homes, are beginning to enter the market. Through it all the election loomed large. In 2017 we'll see how profound its effects."  

 Regionally 2016 might be called "The Year of The Hudson Valley"

There was a rash of articles

39 Raycliffe Drive
Woodstock NY Luxury Real Estate For Sale

Hudson Valley Views. There are many lovely homes in the Hudson Valley. There are even many lovely homes with lovely views of the Hudson Valley. This home is one of those. But there’s something different about this one. It seems to float.

Standing at a corner of the decks that encircle this house, is like standing at the prow of a ship looking out at the horizon. Lean against the railing and throw out your arms. You feel more than a little bit “Leo and Kate”. You feel yourself King (or Queen) of the World. But, here your view does not consist of nautical miles of sea, but of regular old terranean miles. However, laid out at your feet this way, they do not appear merely regular. When

"Highest and Best" – Narrowsburg Party Property For Sale - Orange County NY Real Estate

In real estate we often talk about the “Highest and Best” use for a property. for example there might be a multi-family home in a commercial district that would make more money for its owner if it were converted into a restaurant or retail space. Highest and Best. One of my favorite things to do is to imagine how a home will be used. Imagining keeps me from serial homeownership! So, I think “Highest and Best” for all the homes we list. 6157 NYS Route 97 presented a bit of a challenge. Not because I couldn’t come up with a “Highest and Best” use, but because I thought of too many! But they fit a pattern. My “Highest and Best” use for this Narrowsburg NY country

Perfect springtime activities for children in the Catskills and Hudson Valley.

Last weekend my family took a trip to Washington DC to see all the monuments and go the Smithsonian Museum of Art and the Native American Museum. It was great! My husband and I totally enjoyed it and my 10-year-old daughter only became antsy when I marveled at the Dutch Masters for too long and then got sucked into an opera concert rehearsal we happened to stumble upon 3 minutes later.

(a little F.D.R. wisdom from our trip - pertinent to an article about kids outdoors!)

Her waning enthusiasm reminded me of the last time I had visited DC. I was 12 years old.

• I remember being miserable.
• I remember being HOT.
• I remember being incensed

Escape The Everyday

Find Enchantment in Chichester, a Hamlet in Ulster County NY

There’s a hamlet in the Catskills that people from beyond the park’s borders haven’t always heard of. No, it’s not Phoenicia, the cat’s out of the bag on that one. It’s closethough. A bend in Route 214 on the way out of Phoenicia protects the special hamlet of Chichester from the gaze of the outside world. If you come around that bend, and slow down long enough to notice, you might find yourself pulling over to get a better look at this unique little enclave. Chichester was founded by the sons of the builder of the famous Catskill Mountain House, as a place for their furniture factory employees to live and work. They built 44 buildings in a style that might be

Couldn’t we all use a little more charm in our lives?

This Catskills Cottage in Ulster County has the answer.

With responsibilities and technology gobbling up the bulk of our days, we’re left with so little time for charm. You see it in the movie theatre – between the disaster films and the comic book heroes finding today’s “Sleepless in Seattle” takes effort. You see it in design – straight lines and plastic are everywhere. Many times you see it in the homes built in the last few decades too. Special touches that invite you to sit down and zone-out with a cup of tea are tragically scarce.

If your charm tank is running on empty, here’s a solution. 654 Watson Hollow Road in West Shokan. The charm here begins with the front porch and extends to

 A Real Estate Parody of "All I Want For Christmas Is You"

Sometimes inspiration strikes at the strangest of times! Last Saturday we were busy preparing for our annual Holiday get together at my partner, Candida Ellis' house, and it STRUCK! At three in the morning I was chuckling to myself like Saint Nick himself as I wrote this little parody of "All I Want For Christmas Is You". We take our business pretty seriously, but what better time is there to let go of that, let loose, and get silly than the Holiday Party? Here I am, joined by Candida and our awesome team of Managers and Staff "singing" my masterpiece. We may not be the most put-together choir but we make a great team! 

HAPPY HOLIDAYS! 

"May your walls know joy, May every room

So many people come to Hudson Valley - Catskills Real Estate Agents looking for their “place in the country”. Sometimes when we delve deeper, we find their dream is really “small village living”, or “small city living”. Luckily Hudson Valley Real Estate and Catskills Real Estate offer up options for all these lifestyles. For those people who truly want to lead a peaceful, bucolic, country life, there’s a particularly nice home on the market right now that fits the bill perfectly.

One of the nicest things about living in the country is being able to enjoy the byway that brings you home. 231 Hardenburgh Road in Ulster Park is approached via a lovely winding country road that takes you past a Christmas Tree farm, and over a bridge above the Swarte

Orange County New Construction - Make Your Own Miracle

Miracle on 34th Street. It's a heartwarming classic. I have to admit though that it is not my  favorite Holiday movie. But there is a moment in it that I love. At the end, when they drive up to the house... and it's perfect. It's not a mansion, it's not wildly unusual, it's a home. And Susan LOVE'S IT. I get it. In that moment Susan and I are sympatico. There's nothing like a home.

Who wouldn't love that house? It's in a neighborhood that looks like it's safe to ride a bike in. It has a yard, and from that yard you can see down the street to other yards where there will likely be someone to play with, share tools with, compare pet behavior with, and say "Hi" to at the Post

Thanksgiving weekend is pretty special to me. I do not shop, I do not in fact, go anywhere. I use this one long weekend a year to enjoy what I consider to be the perfect country weekend. I stay at home amidst the woods and fields of my parents’ farm and my family does the things that country people do on Thanksgiving weekend. If you’re going to be in the Hudson Valley and Catskills this holiday weekend, I’m happy to share my country alternatives to shopping with you. If you don’t want to run around like a turkey with your head cut off this weekend do some or all of these:

1. Bonfire Bocce.

I’ve never understood bocce on a beach! To me bocce should be played on a rutty field to make it really challenging. If it’s intermittently soggy,