change your locks,

if you have a valid contract with that scaliwag, go continue the work with another person and deduct it from the scaliwag.

You need to photograph everything for verification, keep your receipts from the new guy because you might end up in court. You might have to prove damages.
Make sure the new guy has a 1 million dollar liability policy, in addition to an aggregte of 2 (insurance

Let's hope the scaliwag doesn't put a mechanical lien on your property.

Posted by: madamlee at July 21, 2008 7:08 PM in response to contractor issues

julesdiasbusiness@yahoo.com

He is a brasilian guy who lives in brooklyn and speaks english well.
Reasonably priced. He is reliable and easy to get along with.

i can't remember his phone number so I listed his email address

Posted by: madamlee at July 22, 2008 12:24 AM in response to Sheetrock

Move to Lapland and santa will greet you at the entrance.
Now that's cool!

Posted by: madamlee at July 22, 2008 12:29 AM in response to Anyone cool living in Bay Ridge??

Most bathroom floors have ceramic tile. Some kitchen floors, too. They are hypocrates on your coop board.

Posted by: madamlee at July 22, 2008 8:10 PM in response to In lieu of white cermanic tile?

Most bathroom floors have ceramic tile. Some kitchen floors, too. They are hypocrates on your coop board.

Posted by: madamlee at July 22, 2008 8:19 PM in response to In lieu of white cermanic tile?

Call the management office of any property you choose and tell them you would like a list of comparables.
Take it as ar back as it goes.
Comparables are prices that buyers paid for the apartment.
The list can be faxed or mailed to you.

Posted by: madamlee at July 24, 2008 2:51 PM in response to How do I research comps?

where is the house located?

Posted by: madamlee at July 26, 2008 10:38 AM in response to Bad lien need removed

Close your curtains before you do any work. In a house you own it is possible to do the work on your own. Several owners do some improvements and repairs.
Replacig a toilet in the same location does not require a licensed plumber. Handymen in apartment buildings do it all day long with no license.Repacig the tub is complicated get a plumber for that.

You can always call a licensed and insured company to reglaze it. You need their insurance in case they screw it up

Smokeychimp is an architect. so he thinks everybody has to be a genius with a license,

Posted by: madamlee at July 28, 2008 7:12 PM in response to what are the rules for fixing up a bathroom or kitchen yourself?

please share the phone number of your plumber cornetor.
thank you.

Posted by: madamlee at July 29, 2008 10:03 AM in response to Kitchen an Bth Renovation

smokeychimp
no matter what your thoughts are, we love you anyway.

You are good at sharing information without being pretentious.

The bottom line, you know your stuff and everybody learns from it.

Posted by: madamlee at July 29, 2008 8:39 PM in response to what are the rules for fixing up a bathroom or kitchen yourself?

I guess that's kind of my point Steve. Nantucket is a repeat vacation destination, unlike NY (much as I love it).

Nantucket is a playground for the wealthy but it's small enough that there are enough rich people to go around there - ones who don't care about the cost of the airfare. I would expect the Europeans that own houses in Nantucket to live/work in New York/Boston (expat banker types?) rather than flying over from Europe for each holiday.

Over in Europe, New York is very rarely mentioned as a holiday home location. Florida has been popular but $5,000 a pop in airfare for a family of four (and that is cattle class) makes people think twice, even with the falling prices.

Posted by: the chicken at August 18, 2008 7:39 AM in response to European Purchasers

Even empty, NY real estate is a great investment. In ten years you literally can make millions. I bought years ago for $390 and sold for over $2 million. There are few places that you can get that kind of return, right? I am not a finance person, but it seems like a fairly safe plan. And as someone stated above, it's even better if you can buy while housing prices are softened and the euro is high. You don't really need to live in the house or use it for it to appreciate.

I believe that local tax laws apply.

Posted by: superstooper at August 19, 2008 8:55 AM in response to European Purchasers

Of course they are buying property here, duh. The dollar SUCKS and keeps deflating, I can hear the hiss now as I type. A few years ago when I started doing regular trips to Poland the exchange was about 4.5 Zl to $1, now it's like 2 Zl to $1... I WISH I would have just bought Zlotys back then, I would more than double my money.

Posted by: SamHall at August 19, 2008 4:12 PM in response to European Purchasers

That may well be true but NYC is also a global business, shopping and entertainment center. Foreigners don't travel here just for holidays. I know several Europeans who keep apartments in NYC for business purposes, as a US home base for travel in this hemisphere and just for a change of pace.

They're not wealthy either. When they're not using them they do what my friend does with her Nantucket house: rent them out on a short term basis. My friend leases out her house during the on-season (May 1-October 1), which pays 90% of the mortgage and taxes for the year.

Posted by: Steve at August 19, 2008 4:14 PM in response to European Purchasers

Superstooper, it may have been a great investment when you bought years ago but can you say the same now? A five fold increase over ten years is very impressive but are you saying that $2m apartment/house you buy today is going to be worth $10m in another 10 years? And if you're going to leave it empty then you have to swallow the maintenance and property taxes.

SamHall, you have to look at currency on a relative basis. Poland has been doing well at the same time as the US has been declining so that is why the Zloty has strengthened. But many parts of Europe are also facing difficulties now - few areas had as lax lending standards as the US but many saw house price inflation exceed it.

Steve, I guess you and I have different definitions of wealthy ;)
The numbers work if you bought a few years ago but I just don't see how the numbers can stack up for rentals at todays prices - either prices have to come down or rents have to go up. All of the levers to get prices up have already been pulled; lower/discount interest rates (check), lower deposits required (check), lax documentation standards (check), higher multiples of salaries (check), rental affordability (I hear the norm is now 50% of your post-tax income spent on accomodation v 25-35% a few years ago. Check). All of these factors took prices up and prices will come down as they unwind (maybe the last one won't come down but it's not going up - people will leave before that happens).

Posted by: the chicken at August 20, 2008 3:05 AM in response to European Purchasers

Hi,

My company is very active in the area. We are a small - medium sized company with around 26 buildings, mostly Coops. You can check us out at www.ebmg.com (Excel Bradshaw Management Group) or give me a call at (516) 333-7730 x.201. We have a Brooklyn office that can be reached at (718) 266-1110.

Posted by: mblevine at August 21, 2008 10:16 PM in response to Management Companies

Scaremongering, indeed. The IRS has dealt with money laundering for generations, and with organizations a lot more expert at hiding cash than a couple of people at a house closing. That's what forensic accountants do for a living.

The buyer can use his cash to buy money orders to bring to the closing. That should be enough to keep the seller's hands clean in case of an audit.

Posted by: Steve at August 24, 2008 2:24 PM in response to lower offer with cash at closing?

Hey Steve, problem with a money order is the seller would have to deposit it into his bank account. So it's not really cash, it's then traceable. If no audit, no problem. But given the OP's statement he is not used to 'handling cash', maybe s/he shouldn't take the many risks involved.

Posted by: denton at August 24, 2008 4:00 PM in response to lower offer with cash at closing?

The seller said to assume that he would declare the cash. A money order is safer than cash because it establishes a traceable paper trail in case the IRS comes sniffing.

Posted by: Steve at August 24, 2008 5:41 PM in response to lower offer with cash at closing?

Most closings require certified checks from a bank.

Posted by: madamlee at August 24, 2008 7:09 PM in response to lower offer with cash at closing?