Mobile Home Gets a Bohemian-Chic Makeover | Mt Kisco Realtor

Interior Designer Kirsten Marie had come to know one of her clients so well that when the client’s children had flown the nest, Marie told her she should sell her large estate and move into a mobile home the client owned in Paradise Cove of Malibu, California. The client was skeptical at first, but it turned out that ditching the big house was the best decision she’d ever made. There was only one problem: She didn’t have enough room to comfortably lodge guests. 

Thinking of her adult children’s and friends’ visits, she snapped up the 600-square-foot mobile home next door when it went on the market, then left it in the hands of Marie and Marie’s brother, contractor Jens Holst. She gave them free rein over everything from large remodeling decisions to choosing towels and soaps. While a relaxing and chic getaway feeling was the goal, they also designed the home to function as a full-time residence should the need arise.

“After” photos by Amy Bartland

Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: A homeowner houses her guests here.
Location: Malibu, CaliforniaSize: 600 square feet (56 square meters); 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom
Interior design: Kirsten Marie Inc. 

BEFORE: The guesthouse’s sliding doors, shown here, did not take full advantage of the views of Paradise Cove, and a large TV and stand clunked up the room.

Kirsten Marie Inc, KMI

AFTER: New Fleetwood doors meet at the corner, providing wide views of the hills and the cove. All of the windows and doors were completely redone and replaced. 

The TV now has a better placement on the wall in front of the sectional and can be enjoyed from the kitchen should any guests decide to get their celebrity chef on.

Holst Brothers General Contractors

“We wanted a relaxed, beachy vibe, but we also wanted it to be a chic retreat,” Marie says. Predominantly white furniture and a clear view have replaced the big TV in the corner. The look is bright and light from the floors to the ceiling. The bleached floors look like wood but are laminate. 

Outside, bar stools cozy up to the deck railings. The top rail is 14 inches wide to accommodate drinks and plates. “Her guests can enjoy their coffee out here in the morning,” Marie says.

Floors: White Wash oak plank, Reclaime Collection, Quick Step Laminatek; Saarinen table and Eames chairs: Design Within Reach; light fixture: Serena & Lily; bar stools (outside): Bend Goods

BEFORE: The main living area was open, but as this photo shows, it had the potential to become cluttered-looking without carefully considered furniture and color palette choices.

Kirsten Marie Inc, KMI

AFTER: A comfortable sectional makes the most of this corner. “This client travels all over the world. We wanted the guesthouse to reflect an elegant boho blend,” Marie says. 

The light floor, walls and furniture allowed her to punctuate the space with richly colored accessories. Throw pillows made from vintage Hmong textiles, a blanket from India and a Moroccan rug add layers of global texture that give the homeowner’s guests some exotic flavor in the mobile home getaway. 

Owl side table: Arteriors; camel photograph: Etsy; rug: Kat + Maouche; sofa: custom

read more...

http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/50737716?utm_source=Houzz&utm_campaign=u1535&utm_medium=email&utm_content=gallery2

Housing starts in the United States plunged | Mt Kisco Real Estate

Housing starts measure the number of units of privately owned housing started in a given period. It includes single-family and multiple-family homes with the former dominating the private housing market.

Housing starts in the United States plunged 17% month-over-month to an 897,000 pace in February 2015, the lowest level since January 2014. Housing starts had clocked a more-than-one-million pace every month since July 2014. Even from a year-ago level, starts were down 3.3%. January’s starts were revised upward to show no growth over December after initially reporting a 2% fall.

Enlarge Graph

Information from this indicator is used to anticipate future production for homebuilders such as D.R. Horton (DRH), Lennar (LEN), and PulteGroup (PHM). It’s also used to anticipate future demand for raw materials and labor costs, which affects home-related retailers such as Lowe’s (LOW) and Home Depot (HD). DRH, LEN, and PHM all fell after the report was released.

The details of the fall

The possibility of harsh weather keeping construction workers away from work was the frontrunner among reasons for this sharp decline in housing starts.

Single-family homes on which construction began dropped by 14.9% in February 2015 from a month ago. Construction of structures with five units or more dived 21.6%. The fall in groundbreaking activity was across the United States with the Northeast bearing the biggest brunt. Total housing starts fell 56.5% month-over-month in February in the region. Starts for single-family homes dropped 60.7%.

The Midwest was also hit hard with total groundbreaking activity falling by 37% in February.

Among the four regions, the South saw the slowest pace of fall, with total construction activity falling by just 2.5% and construction of single-family homes falling by 5.9% month-over-month.

Building permits rise

Building permits indicate future demand for housing. This indicator is released in the monthly report. Permits for new construction of private homes rose 3.0% from January to 1.092 million. This increase may provide some solace to markets. While single-family permits fell 6.2%, permits for constructions with five or more units jumped 19.9%.

The South led the rise in overall permits among the four regions with permits rising 7.3% in February. For single-family home permits, only the West posted a rise, where permits rose 5.6% month-over-month. The Northeast was the highest decliner in both total permits and permits for single-family homes.

Housing starts and building permits are both considered leading indicators for the housing market. ETFs that focus on real estate or construction are affected by these indicators. These ETFs include the iShares Dow Jones U.S. Real Estate Index Fund (IYR), the Vanguard REIT ETF (VNQ), the SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF (XHB), and the iShares Dow Jones U.S. Home Construction Index Fund (ITB).

In the next article, we’ll look at the status of industrial production in February 2015.

read more...

http://marketrealist.com/2015/03/

Last Week's Top Sales: The Liz Taylor of Mansions Recommits | Mt Kisco Real Estate

Listed for: $8.995M
Received: $8.9M
Size: 5-bed, 7.5-bath, 9,540-square-foot single-family home
Location: 3725 Washington St, Presidio Heights
The skinny: We're honestly going to miss this place. The public areas downstairs look more like a small sculpture museum than a residence, with their pale stone walls, geometric skylights, and beamed ceilings. And that botanical green wallpaper totally makes the sitting room feel like an indoor patio. It all just works, which is why we couldn't figure out why this home has had such a rocky year. The last owner hung on for all of five months—less time, we've grown fond of pointing out, than Liz Taylor spent married to Conrad Hilton.

read more....



http://sf.curbed.com/archives/2014/10/20/last_weeks_top_sales_the_liz_taylor_of_mansions_recommits.php

Mount Kisco Mrs. Green's Employees Rehired | Mt Kisco Real Estate

Eight employees of the Mrs. Green's Natural Market at 666 Lexington Ave. who were let go were rehired as part of a deal announced Wednesday.

The deal was reached Tuesday and the reinstatements are effective Wednesday. The deal also calls for back pay and training and the employees are expected to return next week.

“Mrs. Green’s Natural Market is proud of its associates – employing more full-time associates than its competitors, giving bonuses and discounts to hourly employees, and creating profit sharing and promotional opportunities for our team members – and today’s agreement honors that core value,” John Collins, a spokesman for Mrs. Green's, said in a statement. “Store leadership embraces these values and core principles and has stepped forward to do the right thing for its associates. Now we are moving forward with a shared commitment to provide Mt. Kisco families with organic, local and all-natural products and access to a healthier lifestyle.”



read more...



http://bedford.dailyvoice.com/business/mount-kisco-mrs-greens-employees-rehired-0

Historic Limestone Mansion in Contract in Lenox Hill | Mt Kisco Real Estate

The current owner of this French-inspired limestone mansion at 58 East 66th Street, who also happens to be the wife of developer Zach Vella, bought it for $14.5 million in 2008, proceeded to gut the place, stripping it of its kitchen, bathrooms, etc., and then put it back on the market. That is not a recommended house-flipping strategy, but it seems to have worked. The house, which was most recently listed for $20 million, is now in contract, the Observer reports. The real estate agent who brokered the deal estimates that it needs between $3 million and $6 million of work.
But perhaps more interesting than this house's future is its past. Daytonian in Manhattan wrote an essay last year about the 1909 house, which was built for Arthur Sachs, of the investment firm Goldman Sachs. And he may not even be the most interesting owner in its century-long history. Let's run down the former inhabitants of 55 East 66th Street, which include a mafia doctor and a man who was arrested for flirting too much.

read more...

http://ny.curbed.com/archives/2014/06/25/historic_limestone_mansion_in_contract_in_lenox_hill.php

Largest mortgage financier: The great home recovery reversal | Mt Kisco Real Estate

Housing has peaked and 2014 will show a slowdown from the amount of housing activity in 2013, Fannie Mae’s May 2014 National Housing Survey shows.
Respondents to the annual survey say that economic concerns and stagnant household income are dragging down housing. The results show that in the space of just one month, attitudes toward housing can shift dramatically.
The share of 1,000 respondents who still believe the economy is headed in the wrong direction remained at 57% last month, and those who said their household income is significantly higher than it was at the same time last year decreased four percentage points to 21%.
Housing activity in 2014 has been well below typical seasonal trends.
“Consumers’ lukewarm income expectations and reticence about the economy seem to be holding back housing demand,” said Doug Duncan, senior vice president and chief economist at Fannie Mae. “This year’s spring and summer home buying season has gotten off to a slow start, even as mortgage rates have trended lower over the past two months.”
He added that while recent housing activity suggests that the worst of the housing slump may be behind America, this caution among consumers means sales this year will likely be too weak to pull sales for all of 2014 ahead of last year.
The survey findings track with real world indicators that support the conclusions by Fannie Mae: The housing market has serious cracks in the foundation – existing home sales have stalled out, pending home sales have plunged, price increases have slowed, and construction is slowing.
It's a 180 degree turn from the last National Housing Survey, which was considerably more positive.




read more....


http://www.housingwire.com/articles/30253-largest-mortgage-financier-the-great-home-recovery-reversal

Brick Townhouse in Crown Heights Asks $1.695 Million | Mt Kisco Real Estate

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↑ First up on this weekend's roundup is a huge, brick townhouse in Crown Heights. The three-story, 1920s Renaissance revival home has been recently upgraded with original details maintained. There are some nice bay windows, ornate original mirrors, crown molding, and wood paneling. There's also parking and outdoor space on three sides and—with the exception of tonight's episode of Mad Men—it's probably the whitest thing you'll see all day. It's asking a respectable $1.695 million.


read more...


http://ny.curbed.com/archives/2014/05/18/brick_townhouse_in_crown_heights_asks_1695_million.php

'Castle Hill' Colonial Estate Near Monticello Asks $11.5M | Mt Kisco Real Estate

26 images

Location: Keswick, Virginia
Price: $11,500,000
The Skinny: This lovely home in one of the loveliest parts of Virginia dates from 1764 and, according to the delightfully cornpone brokerbabble, "George Washington trod its hallways and James Madison danced in the parlor to the fiddle playing of Thomas Jefferson." On the question of whether the tune Jefferson scratched out on his catgut strings was "Yankee Doodle" or that other popular favorite "The Rich Lady Across the Sea" the listing is silent, but no doubt a super patriotic time was had by all. The estate, which is just a short buggy ride from Monticello, is known as Castle Hill, and features buildings from both the 18th and 19th centuries, with modern updates including a new horse barn and a chef's kitchen. The main house has five bedrooms and six bathrooms across 8,500 square feet, with the outbuildings spread out over 601 acres. It's asking $11.5M, which is exactly 25 percent over its going price when it last sold in 2010.




http://curbed.com/archives/2014/04/10/castle-hill-colonial-estate-near-monticello-asks-115m.php

Institutional investor activity taking outsized toll on Hispanic homebuyers | Mt Kisco Homes

Hispanics have powered more than half of the growth in homeownership in recent years, but a severe shortage of for-sale homes exacerbated by a flood of institutional investors significantly constrained Hispanics’ contribution to homeownership growth in 2013, according to the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals (NAHREP).

“This is a story of potential,” said Jason Madiedo, president of NAHREP. “Latinos are ready to buy homes now. Their biggest obstacle coming into today’s market isn’t credit — it’s lack of available housing.”

Hispanics accounted for an increase of 2.6 million owned households between 2000 and 2013, or 47 percent of all homeownership growth in the U.S., according to NAHREP’s 2013 State of Hispanic Homeownership Report.

From 2010 to 2013, Hispanics’ share of homeownership growth was even higher, with 56 percent of homeownership growth attributable to Hispanics, the report found.

But Hispanics’ contribution to owner household growth fell precipitously to 84,000 in 2013 from 324,000 in 2012, according to NAHREP CEO Gary Acosta — a 74 percent decline



- See more at: http://www.inman.com/2014/04/02/nahrep-institutional-investor-activity-taking-outsized-toll-on-hispanic-homebuyers/?utm_source=20140403&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=dailyheadlinesam#sthash.aHC86RwR.dpuf

NYC mayor's next big push: affordable housing | Mt Kisco Realtor

NYC mayor's next big push: affordable housing - Houston Chronicle

Google Tops Itself With Swings and Ball Pit at the Mexico HQ | Mt Kisco Real Estate

Photo via Design Boom
Another day, another completely bonkers office space courtesy of Google. As is the tech giant's way, this latest HQ in Mexico City offers a veritable playground of oddball features one wouldn't normally find in an office building—or even indoors—like a a refurbished telephone booth taxi, a faux subway car meeting room, and even cluster of rope swings centered around a fake pond that's actually (yep) a ball pit. Designed by the Mexican studio Space, the overall feel is meant to call to mind Mexico City itself, with the help of a Google map of the metropolis on the carpet and a traditional "trajinera" boat serving as inspiration for the office's lounge. Still, whether it be the aggressive, primary colored walls, cheery carpeting, or the fact that there is literally a ball pit adjacent to the conference rooms, the space feels much more like a crazed nursery school than anything else. Do take a look, below:




http://curbed.com/archives/2014/03/21/google-outdoes-itself-with-swings-and-ball-pit-at-their-mexico-hq.php

Indian Builders flout rules | Mt Kisco Real Estate

Without any construction permissions in place and sometimes even when land titles are not clear, builders in the city have been enticing clients to book flats early at discounted rates although it is illegal under the law.

In fact, by luring investors to book flats by paying just 10 per cent to 20 per cent before the first brick is laid, developers manage to sell 200 to 300 flats even before the project is publicly announced in some cases.

Property experts say this is now a common practice in the real estate industry. In a big Thane project, the builder sold 500 apartments although the title of the land is still not clear and no sanctions have been procured.

Laws are stringent about what are called pre-sales and soft launches of flats. The Maharashtra Ownership of Flats Act says no flat can be sold unless building plans are submitted to the civic body and are approved. "It is illegal to sell apartments this way," advocate Vinod Sampat said.


http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/real-estate/news/builders-flout-rules-sell-flats-in-projects-sans-clearances/articleshow/32233815.cms

Down to Earth Farmers Markets | Mt Kisco Homes

Celtic Fiddle Music + 6 Day Vendors in Mamaroneck; Sale on Pasture-Raised Meat in Ossining & MoreMarch 13-19th, 2014 Down to Earth Markets

What's New and On Special This Week Cheese-Filled Spinach Tortellini SALE! $3/13 oz (Reg. $6) Trotta Pasta Ground Beef Grassfed & Finished Buy five (5) pounds, get 1 FREE Kiernan Farm Head LettuceGajeski Produce Irish Soda Bread Sharon's mother's recipe!Bread Alone Irish Soda Bread Both Regular & Gluten-Free Meredith's Bread Irish Soda Bread SALE: $0.50 OFF; now $6 Orwashers Bakery Popping Corn John D. Madura Farms Pork Sausages (Nitrate-Free!) SALE: Buy any three (3) packs of link sausages & get $1.50 OFF/lb! Varieties: Andoullie, Breakfast, Chevelata, Chorizo, Hot Italian, Luganega, & Sweet Italian Kiernan Farm Swiss Chard Gajeski Produce

Click on a Market to see all vendor and event details... Westchester County Mamaroneck Winter Saturdays, 9:00 am-1:00 pm St. Thomas Episcopal Church 168 West Boston Post Road (at Mount Pleasant Ave) Ossining Winter Saturdays, 9:00 am-1:00 pm At the corner of Spring & Main in downtown Ossining Headed to the city soon? Visit a Down to Earth Farmers Market in NYC!

Announcements

Mamaroneck Jump into the spirit of St. Patrick's Day this Saturday at Mamaroneck's Down to Earth Farmers Market! The market's talented bakers will bring Irish Soda Bread and Trotta Pasta will have their delicious locally-sourced pasta dishes on hand, too. As owner Ed Trotta says, "St. Patrick was born in England while under Roman rule, therefore that makes him Italian, right??" From 10 am to noon, Brian Vegh will entertain the crowd with his fun Celtic fiddle music. Come one, come all! Stay tuned to all market happenings via our Down to Earth Markets Facebook page and follow us on Twitter @DowntoEarthMarkets

Farmer Knows Best: The Perfect Burger from Kiernan Farm

Some might say that a post showcasing the perfect hamburger is premature. We associate the sights and sounds of a hot grill with summer vacations, pool parties, and our friends' home brew on a July day. And while these things create a very nice scene indeed, we want to remind everybody that delicious, pasture-raised meats are available at our farmers markets all year around. This recipe comes from Marty and Thelma Kiernan, livestock farmers from Ulster County in upstate New York, who raise their cattle on open pasture and feed them only grass and hay. This diet results in a very lean beef -- it has a mere 6-7% fat. As Thelma says, "When I cook chili or tacos with our meat, there's so little oil that I don't need to drain the meat. It's all flavor in there." The Perfect Burger by Kiernan Farm Ingredients 1 egg, slightly beaten 1 teaspoon dried minced onion flakes 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce 1/4 teaspoon pepper 2 tablespoons chili sauce 1 teaspoon prepared horseradish 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 pound lean ground beef Instructions In a large bowl, combine the first 7 ingredients, Add ground beef and mix well. Divide into four 3/4 inch thick patties. Grill uncovered over medium-hot heat to desired doneness. Serve on toasted buns with desired toppings. Note: Thelma offers this guidance for those who are cooking with lean, grass-fed beef for the first time: "Keep in mind that there's no shrinking down with this beef. The size of the patty you put on the grill is what you're going to have in the end." Sounds good to us! Find Kiernan Farm every Saturday at Ossining's Down to Earth Farmers Market. This weekend, they're offering a couple of specials on their products, including buy five (5) pounds of their ground beef and get one (1) pound free. It's a nice offer as the spring starts to pop up...and the summer begins to evolve on the not-too-distant horizon. (Promise.)

Day Vendors This Week Mamaroneck Danascara Cheese Flourish Baking Company Hudson River Apiaries Maupston Design Studio (Handspun yarns & more) Pie Lady & Son Trotta Pasta

Down to Earth Markets 173 Main Street Ossining, NY 10562 Phone: 914-923-4837

Average 30-year US mortgage rate up to 4.33 pct | Mt Kisco NY Homes

Average U.S. rates on fixed mortgages rose this week but remained near historically low levels.

 

Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday the average rate for the 30-year loan increased to 4.33 percent from 4.28 percent last week. The average for the 15-year mortgage edged up to 3.35 percent from 3.33 percent.

Mortgage rates have risen about a full percentage point since hitting record lows roughly a year ago. The increase was driven by speculation that the Federal Reserve would reduce its $85 billion-a-month bond purchases. Deeming the economy to be gaining strength, the Fed proceeded last month with planned reductions of its bond purchases, which have helped keep long-term interest rates low.

The housing market is expected to deliver another year of solid gains, helped by an improving economy. Most economists expect home sales and prices to keep rising this year, but at a slower pace. They forecast that both will likely rise by about 5 percent, down from double-digit gains in 2013.

Government data released Wednesday showed that U.S. home construction fell in January for a second straight month, but the weakness in both months reflected severe winter weather in many parts of the country.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/average-30-us-mortgage-rate-4-33-pct-150638910--finance.html

How to Network with Influential People Using Twitter | Mt Kisco Homes

Do you want to use Twitter to promote your business?
Are you looking for ways to build relationships that matter on Twitter?
In this article, you’ll discover how to build a strong Twitter community with influencers, which will benefit your business.

Building Connections With Twitter

Using Twitter to help your company grow isn’t about the number of followers you have.
It’s about building a community of followers who are passionate about your industry and who eventually become passionate about your brand.
The quickest and easiest way to develop a relevant Twitter community that grows your company is to find connectors and build relationships with them.
Connectors are called many things: thought leaders, industry experts, etc. They are the people who already have a thriving community and your customer’s ear.

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You can benefit from forming relationships with connectors on Twitter. Image source: iStockPhoto.

By building relationships with influencers, you increase the chances of gaining your customer’s ear and building your own strong community.

#1: Find the Influencers in Your Current Network

The best place to find connectors is in your current community; find influencers who are already following you.
By using Followerwonk, you can see your current Twitter followers ranked by a Followerwonk statistic known as social authority.
Followerwonk’s social authority is based on the retweet rate of users’ last few hundred tweets, the recentness of those tweets and a retweet-based model trained on user profile data. This number is by no means perfect, but retweets are so strongly correlated with a healthy community that they’re a great way to identify relationships that you should pursue.
Even if the person has a great social authority rank, they’re not worth reaching out to unless they’re involved in your industry. It’s not just about having a community—it’s about building the right community.

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Find influencers in your network by selecting the higher numbers in the right column.

#2: Know Your Competitors’ Connections

One of the great things about Twitter is transparency. From @google to @smexaminer, you can see everything everyone is saying. This makes competitive research super-accessible.
Your competitors have networks that likely include influencers who are directly related to your industry. To find these people, follow the same process you followed above, but use each competitor’s Twitter handle instead of your own.
Another tool that can help you find your competitors’ useful friends is Open Site Explorer.
Type in your competitor’s URL and go to the Just-Discovered tab to see the recent inbound links your competitors have gotten.



http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/how-to-network-with-influential-people-using-twitter/

Menachem Stark’s creditors may be behind killing: police | Mt Kisco Realtor

Menachem Stark’s brutal murder last week may have been masterminded by one of the many people whom he owed money to, according to police department sources.

Stark owed sums ranging from thousands of dollars to hundreds of thousands of dollars, and one of his creditors may have run out of patience, police sources said. The sources added that the two men who were hired to abduct and kill Stark may have been recruited from abroad.

Descriptions of the kidnappers, a source told the New York Post, “led us to believe that the suspects are not American. They could be from out of the country, possibly Europe.”

The newspaper has been excoriated for running a front-page story about Stark’s murder with the headline “Who didn’t want him dead?” as The Real Deal and others reported.

Stark’s partner Israel Perlmutter is also a possible suspect in the case, according to the Post, but Perlmutter said that any allegations about his role in the killing were baseless.


http://therealdeal.com/blog/2014/01/08/menachem-starks-creditors-may-have-ordered-his-killing-police/