A New Way to Look at Golf

About a year ago, my best friend of 14 years was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma and the prognosis didn't look good. Thankfully, he pulled through. In the last year, I've become more involved with the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and I've met some pretty interesting people--survivors, like my best friend. So headlines like the one about Miles Levin, an 18-year old who has had to grow up fast over the last 2 years and who died this past Sunday, always grab my attention. I was reading his blog online and stumbled across this entry. I really touched me. I know this has nothing to do with real estate, but it is a poignant message and I felt compelled to share it.


From the blog of Miles Levin, aged 18.

I went to the driving range the other day and I was thinking...

I was thinking how you start out with a big bucket full of golf balls, and you just start hitting away carelessly. You have dozens of them, each individual ball means nothing so you just hit, hit, hit. One ball gone is practically inconsequential when subtracted from your bottomless bucket. There are no practice swings or technique re-evaluations after a bad shot, because so many more tries remain. Yet eventually you start to have to reach down towards the bottom of the bucket to scavenge for another shot and you realize that tries are running out. Now with just a handful left, each swing becomes more meaningful. The right technique becomes more crucial, so between each shot you take a couple practice swings and a few deep breaths. There is a very strong need to end on a good note, even if every preceeding shot was horrible, getting it right at the end means a lot. You know as you tee up your last ball, "This is my final shot, I want to crush this with perfection; I must make this count." Limited quantities or limited time brings a new, precious value and signficance to anything you do. Live every day shooting as if its your last shot, I know I have to.

2nd Quarter Sales Statistics

The National Association of Realtors today announced sales and pricing statistics for the 2nd quarter of 2007. Home prices improved in many metro areas, but sales continue to lag compared to 2006. Overall pricing acrouss the country remains flat, but are beginning to creep up after bottoming out in 2006. The median home price for existing single family homes was $223,800 down 1.5% from $227,100 from the same period last year.

Home sales continue to lag, with single family home sales falling 11% from the same period last year on a national level. Comparatively, existing home sales in the Northeast fell 6.8% over Q2 sales in 2006, an improvement on the trend at a national level. Also encouraging is the 0.7% increase in median home prices for existing single family homes to $298,000 versus Q2 in 2006.

As a Realtor, my primary objective is to educate clients that buying a home is still a solid investment. Individual circumstances dictate whether now is the right time to buy for you; the mortgage crisis being what it is and the tightening of lending to even those with exceptional credit. Pat V. Combs, the President of the National Association of Realtors echoes this. According to her, homes continue to be a good investment particularly since most home owners stay in their home an average of 6 years. This can be compared to long term stock market investors weathering the ups and downs of the market on a micro level. In fact, according to Combs, "a typical owner who bought six years ago is seeing a 45 percent increase in the value of their home."

If you have questions about these statistics, or if you want to know if now is the time to buy for you, then drop me a line or give me a call.