The Juggling Act. You’re familiar with it. Anyone with a pulse understands what it feels like to be overwhelmed and incapable of completing anything close to what they think they wanted originally. We usually don’t recognize what’s happening until we’re running in quicksand, snapping at those around us, and exercising a modest level of road rage. In the Real Estate industry, it’s usually incited by a constant barrage of new apps, tools, techniques, and initiatives designed to make you better than you are now, or your money back!!! Guaranteed!!! 

This manifests itself in an endless stream of emails, phone calls, and endorsements of new products, services, and loan programs designed to keep you ahead of the competition. What they really do is take…

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The Closer – A combination of experience, expertise, and a Driver personality that relishes the opportunity to wield it aggressively over clients, other agents, as well as the rest of the market in which they choose to contract business. As they should, being a Master of the Universe. This is the Alpha Agent that has paid their dues and established a supreme network of high net-worth individuals from which to drive obscene levels of commission revenue. Their name and identity are synonymous with the high-end market of irrational buyers and sellers that simply want what they want completely independent of any relationship to Value. This brand of Agent is rare and takes a substantial amount of focused time and effort to build unless one is already…

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The Cookie Thief

By Valerie Cox

 

A woman was waiting at an airport one night,
With several long hours before her flight.
She hunted for a book in the airport shops.
Bought a bag of cookies and found a place to drop.

She was engrossed in her book but happened to see,
That the man sitting beside her, as bold as could be.
Grabbed a cookie or two from the bag in between,
Which she tried to ignore to avoid a scene.

So she munched the cookies and watched the clock,
As the gutsy cookie thief diminished her stock.
She was getting more irritated as the minutes ticked by,
Thinking, “If I wasn’t so nice, I would blacken his eye.”

With each cookie she took, he took one too,
When only one was left, she wondered what he would do.
With a smile on his face, and a…

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Simply stated, a Mill Rate is the adjustable measure that calculates how much the tax man collects from you on an annual basis. The concept itself is easily understood.

However, more insight is necessary to identify and understand the underlying, and often unforeseen market forces that can drive YOUR Mill Rate up or down, saving or costing you more money in taxes, depending upon where you choose to buy a home.

Note that each town imposes a different mill rate depending upon that town's grand list and how much revenue they must generate to cover their yearly costs. 

“A mill rate is equal to $1 in taxes for every $1,000 in assessed value. To calculate your tax based on your mill rate, divide your assessed value by 1,000 and multiply the…

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182 Pearl

Lifestyle Property. Exceptional, Morgan Point, west-facing waterfront home located at the mouth of the Mystic River with a protected deep-water dock and mooring.  Enjoy unobstructed ocean views from almost every window of this 5-bedroom 5.5-bathroom contemporary with open concept living. Well-appointed features include hardwoods, new stainless-steel appliances, oversized 3 car garage, three magnificent fireplaces, dual laundry locations, master bedroom suite with steam shower, radiant bathroom floors and whirlpool tub, balcony, spacious basement with exercise room and potential to expand. Boat, fish, swim and clam off from the 100’ Southwest facing seawall and beach. Morgan point is located at the tip of Noank Village, a quaint seafaring community,…

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Unlike the stock market, where most people understand and accept the risk that prices may fall, most people who buy a house don't ever think that the value of their home will ever decrease.

The housing market, like other assets, is susceptible to unsustainable gains, and bubbles are formed over time even though many people feel it is a sure bet for growth.  That's because of the large transaction costs associated with purchasing a home, not to mention the carrying costs of owning and maintaining a home discourage speculative behavior. However, housing markets do go through periods of irrational exuberance.

This article will help to explain real estate cycles, triggers that cause them, and why consumers should be cognizant of the forces at play…

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The Growing Gap between Price and Value 

YEAR-END REVIEW

Breaking News: Residential Real Estate markets are on fire. Thank you Captain Obvious. No matter the cause, this is always newsworthy in and of itself. What makes this story especially compelling is the fact that it is being written in the middle of a global pandemic with jobs being lost and a larger economic contraction forthcoming. The short answer that explains this recent phenomenon is simple: city dwellers are fleeing concentrated, highly populated areas, and suburban markets are reaping the benefits of their relocation and ability to now work from home. Add to this, historically low-interest rates, fiscal stimulus, and a lack of grounded market awareness, it becomes easier to explain…

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Originally appeared on MYMOVE.com

Written by Hedy Phillips

The holiday 2020 season may look different but that doesn’t mean you can’t still celebrate, including with your loved ones. This is the year for shopping online — which has already seen a huge increase  and continues to be the safest way to buy things for yourself and others. Though the U.S. in particular is experiencing a new COVID-19 surge this holiday season, there are ways to create new and safe holiday traditions for 2020.

Ahead, we’ll share tips for how you and your loved ones can still find joy in the holidays during COVID, whether it’s setting up Zoom dance parties or mailing gifts to out-of-state friends. We also understand the incredible amount of stress you might be under,…

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Recent market data tells the real story

Local news sources have been reporting on the positive impact of interstate migration funneling new residents into CT as a distancing measure related to Covid-19. With interest piqued by these developments, we did some research as an attempt to measure the benefits of this peripheral good fortune. What we found is not exactly in alignment with local reporting. 

Channel 3 WFSB 

CT Post

NBC CT 

The Hartford Courant

While it is encouraging to see an influx of newcomers take residence within the nutmeg state, it’s important to note the number of residents currently leaving the state still outnumbers those coming in at this time, rendering an effective net loss in the state’s population and its…

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Originally published on NBCCT on November 12, 2020 • Updated on November 12, 2020 at 11:26 pm

 

COVID-19 exposure notifications from the Connecticut Department of Public Health are now available on your phone.

COVID Alert CT, the state's official exposure notification system, is now available for Apple and Android.

  NBC Connecticut  

Once installed, the app uses Bluetooth to determine if a user's device moves within six feet of someone who has tested positive for the virus for a total of 15 minutes or more in a day. The app does not share personal information.

Contact tracers will ask users who have tested positive will be asked if they are willing to share "close contact" codes the app has…

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