THIS MONTH’S FEATURED REAL ESTATE ARTICLE

This summer’s regional drought with four to five inches of rain less than usual, polluted city drinking water in Jackson, MS, and water restrictions in California emphasize the importance of water to our lives. What are the questions homeowners, and real estate buyers and sellers should have about the source and quality of the H2O coming out of the faucet? Poor water flow or contaminated water affects the livability of any home and its eventual salability.

Over 300 million Americans drink water pumped into their homes […]

What is it about the hamlet of Wassaic, NY, that has attracted industry and idealists for over 200 years? Wassaic’s Main Street is nestled in a valley between the Metro North Train line and the confluence of the Wassaic Creek and the Amenia Stream bordered to the east and west by mountains. It’s believed that the name derives from the Native American word Washiak meaning “land of difficult access.”

The iron and farming industry arrived here first, and the hamlet was thriving in the 19th century […]

What has been happening over the last four years in our area’s real estate markets? This article analyzes sales in the Town of Ancram, NY, since Main Street’s last coverage four years ago to get a market snapshot in just one Columbia County town. (This feature is data intensive. For background on the community you can read the 2018 Ancram story online at www.mainstreetmag.com).

Attacked by Covid, Ancram median home prices rise 70%

Everyone who has considered buying or selling knows that 2020 had […]

Many thanks to all of those who have shared their experience with dirt roads for this article including real estate agents, people who live on dirt roads, highway superintendents, town supervisors, first selectmen, and scientists. As usual, what I thought might be a clear conclusion about the impact of a dirt roads on real estate values, turned out to be more complex and interesting.

In the beginning

There were paved roads 4,000 years ago when stone-cutting tools were invented. As early impressive example is the 31-mile road […]

I thought some guidelines existed to estimate the dollar value of wetland properties when I began to research the impact of swampy land on real estate values for this April’s environmental issue. After talking to assessors, buyers of wetlands, owners of wetlands, environmental regulators, appraisers, land trusts, and realtors in Columbia, Dutchess, and Litchfield counties, I discovered that nothing is simple or consistent when it comes to wetlands – except their importance.

What are wetlands?

Wetlands are not exactly like pornography. You don’t necessarily know it when […]