Joe Rand, our Editor-in-Chief and lead contributor is the Chief Creative Officer at Better Homes and Gardens Rand Realty.
He is the founder of the “Client-Oriented Real Estate” (“CORE”) school of real estate education, based on the idea that real estate agents should build their business by learning how to be great at the job of helping clients buy and sell homes.
He has been a featured speaker and moderator at Real Estate Connect, the RIS Media CEO Conference, the Women’s Council of REALTORS Annual Conference, and many other industry events.
He is a regular contributor to Inman Media, writing about industry issues mostly relating to agent education and client service.
He is a graduate of Georgetown University, Georgetown Law Center, Stanford Law School, and a former law professor at Brooklyn Law School and Fordham Law School.
He lives in Nyack, New York with his wife and two children.
Nanuet, NY, September 18, 2019 – Better Homes and Gardens Rand Realty today strengthened its leadership and management team with the addition of Alvis “Al” Smith. He will lead Rand’s rapidly growing Bronx office of more than 55 experienced real estate agents. In addition to bringing 18 years of real estate experience to the Better Homes and Gardens Rand Realty, Al Smith brings a broad spectrum of real estate experience and management to the table. As an agent, investor […]
Read MoreBetter Homes and Gardens Rand Realty’s Celina Rofer Voted Best Real Estate Agent The Times Herald Record Readers’ Choice Best of the Best 2019 Winner — Celina Rofer, Associate Broker, Better Homes and Gardens Rand Realty Central Valley, NY – Celina Rofer, Associate Broker, Better Homes and Gardens Rand Realty, Central Valley has been named among the “Best of the Best” in The Times Herald Record Readers’ Choice Awards. With 14 years of Real Estate experience, 10 of which have been […]
Read MoreBetter Homes and Gardens Rand Realty is Orange County’s Best Real Estate Company for the 5th Consecutive Year The Times Herald Record Readers’ Choice Best of the Best 2019 Winner — Better Homes and Gardens Rand Realty Central Valley, NY – Better Homes and Gardens Rand Realty has been named “Best Real Estate Company,” standing among the “Best of the Best” in The Times Herald Record Readers’ Choice Awards. This is the fifth consecutive win for the brokerage. As a […]
Read MoreDemand in the Orange County housing market continued to grow in the second quarter of 2019, even while a lack of inventory stifled sales growth. Single-family home sales fell sharply compared to the second quarter of 2019, dropping almost 11%, but we believe that has more to do with a shortage of supply rather than a lack of demand. Why? Because quarterly single-family home prices were way up across the board, rising almost 3% on average, 6% at the median and 8% in the price-per-square-foot. And […]
Read MoreThe Putnam housing market cruised through the second quarter of 2019, with sales up and prices basically flat. Compared to the rest of the region, Putnam was a bit of an outlier, with single-family home sales rising 7% for the quarter and almost 1% for the rolling year – the only county in the region with rising sales. Single-family pricing was a little more mixed: flat on average, up almost 4% at the median, and down 1% in the price-per-square-foot. For the rolling year, though, prices have been […]
Read MoreThe Dutchess housing market was a “Tale of Two Markets” in the second quarter of 2019, with single-family home sales softening a bit even while condo sales surged. After a sizzling start to the year, the single-family market cooled, with sales and prices both falling. But the lower-priced condo market was up, with sales rising over 6% and prices up about 3% on average and 4% at the median. Essentially, both markets should be doing well with these kinds of strong housing fundamentals – rates are […]
Read MoreThe housing market in Westchester and the Hudson Valley continued to be a “tale of two markets” in the second quarter of 2019, with more expensive single‑family home sales and prices continuing to struggle while lower‑priced condo markets soared. We attribute this divergence to the 2018 Tax Reform cap on state and local tax deductions, which is suppressing what should be a strong, growing seller’s market. Single‑family home sales and prices were down across the board. Regional sales compared […]
Read MoreThe Rockland housing market was a “Tale of Two Markets” in the second quarter of 2019, with single-family home sales struggling and condo sales soaring. After a surge to start the year, the single-family market softened, with sales and prices both falling. But the lower-priced condo market surged, with quarterly prices spiking over 16% on average and at the median. Essentially, both markets should be booming in response to the strong housing fundamentals – rates are low, inventory is low, prices are relatively low, and the […]
Read MoreThe Westchester housing market was the quintessential “Tale of Two Markets” in the second quarter of 2019, with single-family homes struggling while condo and coop sales soared. Single-family home sales were down, continuing a trend we have been watching since the 2018 Tax Reform’s cap on state and local tax deductions (“SALT Cap”). As we expected, the SALT Cap has impacted the higher-end Westchester single-family market, where more home buyers are likely to itemize their deductions and feel the effect of the cap. But condo and coop buyers […]
Read MoreStrong demand in the Bronx housing market in the second quarter of 2019 drove pricing up even while limited inventory stifled sales growth. Pricing. Overall pricing was up 14.5% compared to the second quarter of last year, and up for most property types: rising a whopping 32% for single‑family homes, 4% for multi‑families, and 11% for condos. The exception was pricing for cooperative apartments, which fell about 9% for the quarter – even while it was up over 2% for the rolling year. Sales. We saw […]
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