Wednesday, November 18, 2009


It’s All About The Service!

A few weeks ago it became time to replace my Blackberry which was dying a slow and painful death but owed me nothing after two years. So I went to the Sprint Store in my neighborhood of College Point. Rueben is the manager there and I have never felt so accommodated, especially in a phone store. I know that when someone in my office changes phones I am the one who usually helps them change over all of the information, emails, contacts, etc. because the store sent them on their way with the un-programmed phone still in the box. Rueben backed up my Blackberry on his computer and transferred all of the information before I left the store. He worked on my phone for nearly thirty minutes until we were sure that each and every email address, application, and contact had been transferred and were working properly. By the time he was done, the store had been kept open 40 minutes past the scheduled time and never once did he mention that. It may not sound like all that big of a deal but for many people this process creates a lot of anxiety and can be extremely time consuming. So to get the kind of service that I received is what makes me want to send everyone I know to that store. In any business that involves sales, referrals are the life line. Great service is something that we at The Energized Realty Group strive to provide each and every person we touch. It was a true pleasure to be on the other side of that level of customer service. Thanks Rueben!

Friday, November 06, 2009

Tax Credits to be Renewed! This is fantastic news for our North Queens market and should keep sales steady through the winter season.


Both the House and the Senate have passed an extension and an expansion of the homebuyer's tax credit. The President is expected to sign the bill Friday.


Key provisions of the bill are as follows:


  • Tax credit of up to $8000 is extended for first-time homebuyers whoare in contract to purchase a home by May 1, 2010 and close by July 1

  • A tax credit is also available to homebuyers who have owned theircurrent homes for at least five years of up to $6,500

  • The credit is available for the purchase of principal residencescosting up to $800,000 (the prior tax credit did not set a limit onhousing price)

  • Income limits for claiming the credit are raised to $125,000 for individuals and $225,000 for couples.


Usually Judy wants you business, this time she wants FOOD!


This holiday season, Judy and the Energized Realty Group aren’t just selling homes...They’re making a difference.


Happy Thanksgiving! Please help feed the hungry this holiday season by donating non-perishables or canned foods to our Energized Food Drive.

When: Sat. 11/21/2009 from 9AM - 1PM

Where: Church on the Hill 167-07 35th Ave. Flushing, NY 11358

What to bring: Canned Goods such as Meats, Vegetables, Soups, Fruit, and Tomato Products, Cereal, Peanut Butter, Meal Mixes, such as Rice-A-Roni, Condiments, Baby Formula, and Legumes.

Join us for refreshments in the auditorium of Church on the Hill. We thank you in advance for your generous donation. All goods and donations will go to benefit local food pantries.Please remember for trusted real estate information,
call (718) 353-6000 to speak to Judy or any member of the Energized Realty Group.

Thursday, November 05, 2009


Top 5 Things To Do To Get Your Home Ready for Sale:

1. Curb Appeal. First impressions are important! Make the outside of your home as inviting as possible. Many buyers decide the interior of a home is not even worth looking at if the exterior does not appeal to them. Here are some simple fixes: mow the lawn and trim the hedges, plant some colorful flowers to brighten things up, replace the tattered “Welcome” mat and repaint your mailbox.
2. De-clutter. You may love your angel statue collection and seeing photos of your kids on every wall, but not everyone will. Too many personal items become a distraction to buyers when they are viewing your home. Since you will hopefully be moving in a few months, this is a great time to start packing. It’s also an opportunity to finally get rid of some of the junk you’ve accumulated over the years.
3. Clean. Yes, de-cluttering is part of cleaning, but I’m talking about putting on the rubber gloves and getting all your cleaning products out. Buyers like walking into a clean house….so scrub the toilets, vacuum up all the pet hair, dust, make the beds, clean the windows, etc. If you don’t like to clean or you’ve never been good at it, it’s well worth it to hire a professional cleaning service when you’re trying to sell a home.
4. Paint. Biggest bang for your buck. A $20 can of paint can give a room a whole new look and feel. Go neutral and make your home appeal to as many buyers as possible. Painting is something you can do yourself as a weekend project.
5. Minor repairs. If you have a TO DO list for the house, now’s the time to get it done. Fix the dripping faucet, tighten the loose banister, repair the hole in the ceiling, etc. Unfinished projects throughout the house lead buyers to believe the house, overall, has not been well maintained.

Tuesday, October 27, 2009


DID YOU KNOW THAT THERE IS YET ANOTHER STATE TAX that has just been implemented that will affect Flushing, Bayside and Whitestone resident who are self employed? Its called the metropolitan Commuter Transportation Mobility Tax, and in essence, it says that if you are a self employed individual with an annual net earnings of over $10,000, you will be subject to this tax. The tax rate is 0.34% of your net earnings from self-employment. That means another $340.00 for every $100,000 of earnings. The estimated tax payment on this tax is on a quarterly basis, the initial payment is due on Nov. 2 and covers a period from Jan 1, 2009 to September 2009. As Alice, a Barnard graduate, and an esteemed member of our Queens team so accurately explained, "I guess the government needs more money."
By the way, please be aware that this week is the city's blitz ticketing week. Traffic agents have been instructed to beef up their patrols and ticket an and all infractions to help pump up the city's revenues. So please be vigilant, do not double park, and if you need a few quarters, just jump in to my office at 27-04 Francis Lewis Blvd., Flushing and we will help you!! We have them all ready, to help you control your destiny over parking tickets at Flushing, Bayside, Fresh Meadows, College Point, and Whitestone meters! We love our community and that means you!

Thursday, October 22, 2009


From Starbucks to Champagne!

I know a lot of you out there think that selling houses is all about the money. And for a lot of sales people it is. What drives The Energized Realty Group is the people. Now don’t get me wrong we definitely enjoy EARNING a living. The key word is “earning”. There is no greater pleasure than knowing that you have just helped someone who really needed your help. Let me get to the point. About 6 months back we were hired by a family who had lost all faith in Real Estate agents. They had their house on the market for 6 months and it was a less than pleasurable experience. Failed offers, no communication and no real idea as to when their house would sell.

After meeting with us there were able to muster enough faith to hire us, but because of their past experience they were cautious to say the least. We LOVE to help people like this. They quickly realized that all agents are not created equal. In a short period of time they became a part of our team. Even going as far as coming to our weekly meetings to inspire us with Starbucks Coffee and anybody in sales knows we love coffee! They even took it a step further by bringing us Champagne left chilling in our office fridge to be opened upon a closing. I have to tell you that our team wanted to sell this house more than anything, and it wasn’t for a commission it was to help some good people move on. The team rallied and the house was contracted and closed yesterday. As promised our clients came in and celebrated our success with Champagne. They shared their previous experience in comparison with their current one and needless to say it was night and day. You could see that a weight was lifted now that hey had closed on this house that had been un-sellable by the previous agent. It was also nice to hear what they had learned from us, that when marketed properly the market speaks to you and that when it does you must listen, and that there truly is a difference. It’s nice to earn a living by doing the right thing. Oh and by the way, 3rd quarter home sale volume is up by 30%!

Monday, October 12, 2009


Rent or buy?

No the sky has still not fallen yet on the Queens housing market, and no it never will. Prices of homes have not really fallen any further, and I think we are at the point when things are finally stabilizing. This means that now is the time to buy! Why wait until the prices have starting to pick up, would you rather spend more money for the same house next year?
If you are on the fence on whether or not you should buy or continue to rent, please hear me out on the benefits of home ownership.
When you rent, you are really throwing money down the drain. You are not building equity in a property and you are essentially helping your landlord pay off his mortgage on his property. Now if building equity in a home isn’t enough incentive for you as it is, hear me out just for a bit on a big tax write off advantage to owning property.
Working with first time home buyers I find that many people don’t know about the ability to write off the interest on your mortgage. Let’s make an example of a loan amount of 300k, on a 30 year fixed load at 5%. This amounts to a monthly payment of 1610. In the beginning most of your mortgage payments goes to interest, roughly $1250 a month (give or take a few bucks). This means that in that first year you can reduce your tax basis by about $15,000 dollars ($1250 x 12 months in a year). So if you make $50,000 a year, you only pay taxes on $35,000. Your tax savings will pay for a few months of the year’s mortgage payments!
Now is a great time to buy, and I’m waiting for your call.

Monday, October 05, 2009



I just visited Jordan Schneider's new studio, SAGE, located near the water on 7th Avenue and 152nd Street. Jordan has a completely unique, one on one, total body concept, and personally designs a program for each client to help people like me, embrace what it takes to have the body, strength, and flexibility that you dream of having. The studio was incredibly designed as well, with stunning attention to detail, a huge outside balcony that will be used for workouts as well as relaxing by the outdoor fireplace Jordan installed to allow his clients to "chill" before or after their sessions. Go visit, just to see...and talk about his vision, it will inspire you. And he's got an amazing proposal as a sneak preview to his work....$240 for 10 private sessions that will KNOCK YOU OUT, in a good way! I start Tuesday....718-767-2659.