DOH! The Deer, the Female... and Male Deer! Plus, Don't Turn Off Potential Buyers... It Has Nothing to do with Your Attitude!

Save Bambi Damnit!

Yeah, my computer has some cob webs on it.   The chatter hasn't been very chatty lately but my muse is back from holiday vacation, so here I am.   Was that a run on sentence?  ANNNNNYYYYWAYYYYY...... So this past weekend PETA and a host of other animal rights activists descended on the east end to protest the upcoming deer culling.  In case you don't know, cull is a euphemistic word for slaughter.    Granted there is a definite over population on the east end according to experts.   But there are more humane ways of dealing with this problem, IMHO.    Anyway, the planned protest didn't quite have the huge turn out I had hoped (there is an online petition that has about 11,000 signatures) Meanwhile, as if almost to add insult to injury ...for those of us who saw "Bambi" as children... there was a mailer sent around offering home dinero to allow hunters to go Rambo on their properties.  Yikes!!  I really wish I understood the sport in hunting.  While some people in the area, including one uninformed politician I really dislike claim health concerns and site the spread of Lyme disease, I'm suggesting they use another excuse.    There have been numerous studies suggesting the link between deer and the spread of the tick borne illness is greatly exaggerated.  So without that urgency, isn't there a more humane way to handle this whole thing?  Please people remember Bambi and besides venison taste awful. 

awwwwwwwwwwww

So, how is the market??? Well Douglas Elliman is releasing their Q4 market report later this week.  While I can't tell you what it says ( I haven't seen it) I can guess the news will be pretty positive.    In the past, the phones in Hamptons real estate offices are normally fairly quiet from Thanksgiving to Presidents Day Weekend but this season seems to be the exception.   Almost every broker I spoke to this past Martin Luther King holiday weekend was booked all weekend long!  In fact, holiday shopping was interrupted this year by east end agents actually having to work!!!  Oh the humanity!

Invitation to kill!?

I've heard more than a few theories about why it's so busy.  Maybe it's the wall street bonuses.... maybe it's that the Hamptons is growing as a year round destination... or maybe it's even the Russians (Yes, the Russians are coming, the Russians are coming!!).    But personally, I think it's the fact people have been sitting on the side lines for so long and now they're reading.  Prices are starting to rise and interest rates are still low.  So, the question really is why haven't you bought in the Hamptons already!?!  Call me!

from Amazon!

Finally, I've been showing like a mad man lately and I'm shocked I'm encountering expensive homes with a simple problem that's a major turn off for buyers.    So what is it?  Damp and smelly basements believe it or not can turn a buyer off a potential dream home faster than you can say "it's too much work for us." Many buyers as they see it's indicator of flooding or mold issues.  While that isn't necessarily true, do your real estate agent a favor and spend the $200 bucks to buy a dehumidifier.   It's not only going to give your home more appeal it might actually help you breathe a little easier as it comes time to sell.