Avoid These Common Landlord Mistakes. Being a landlord is a full time job that requires follow through and constant maintenance. With a long term plan investment properties can be profitable. If you as landlord cannot commit time and energy to managing your rentals then it might be wise to higher an experience property manager like DMK Property Management in Darien, Connecticut. Read and learn about these eleven common landlord misstates to avoid. Do a full background check on every tenant. Rental application, credit check, job and income verification along with verifying the rental application will save you a lot of headaches in the future. Thinking the property will always be rented. Cash flow is very important; you rentals will not always be full, plan ahead and have reserve monies t... 06/06/2013

Green Home Features Listed On Connecticut MLS. The Greater Fairfield County CMLS recently added to their list of home features a section for ‘Energy Features’ along with the many other feature categories such as lot features, area amenities, handicap features, exterior and interior feature and many more. This a great addition to the feature list for both buyers and sellers making it easier to search for energy efficient and green built homes. Under the Energy Features list the choices currently offered are: Active Solar Attic Fan Built Green Certification Ceiling Fans Energy Star Rated Extra Insulation Geothermal Heat Heat Recovery Units HRV/ERV Home Energy Rating Humidistat Passive Solar Radiant Heat Ridge Vents Storm Doors Storm Windows Tankless Hot water Thermopane Windows Whole Hous... 06/04/2013

12 Simple Ways to Save At Home This Summer in Connecticut. With the summer quickly approaching and the weather getting hotter and hotter we should start thinking of more ways to conserve energy, save money and go green. Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs (CFLs) use 75 percent less energy than standard incandescent bulbs and last up to10 times longer! If every household in the U.S. changed just five of their most frequently used light fixture bulbs to CFLs, we would prevent greenhouse gases equivalent to the emissions from nearly 10 million cars. Reduce, reuse, and recycle—recycle your newspapers, beverage containers, paper and other goods. Use products in containers that can be recycled and items that can be repaired or reused. In addition, when going to the store, consider bagging your ow... 05/31/2013

21 Darien Homes for Under $1,000,000. May 23, 2013. Darien, Connecticut single family home market is heating up with the average Year to Date sale price of $1,535,836. Year to Date 70 single family homes have sold with the average square footage at 3,397.* Currently there are 140 single family homes for sale on the Darien MLS with 55 of them being under $1,536,000 and 21 of them listed under the one million dollar mark. To view current home for sale or for rent in Darien, Connecticut click here for an easy to use link.   Darien, Connecticut is a residential community of approximately 20,000 residents that spans approximately 14.9 square miles along Long Island Sound. Darien is only 38 miles from New York City, making for an efficient commute by car or Metro North Commuter Railway of 55 ... 05/23/2013

National Association of Letter Carriers’ Annual Food Drive in Darien, Ct. The National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) is having its 21st annual nationwide food drive this Saturday May 11, 2013. NALC National Food Drive is the country’s largest one-day food-collection effort. Last year more than 70 million pounds of non-perishable food was donated, which brought the grand total from more than two decades of collections to 1.2 billion pounds. Darien and Norwalk residents may leave their donations of newly purchased non-perishable foods in one or more grocery bags at their mail box early on the morning of May 11. Norwalk and Darien Letter Carriers will collect all food and deliver to Person-to-Person during the day.       David Popoff is a certified “Green Homes Specialist” Realtor ... 05/09/2013

  The first home is a certified LEED Platinum home that was originally a 1925 home but was totally renovated and remodeled in 2011. The home scored a HERS rating of 37 which makes it approximately 63% more efficient than a new built home. The home won the Connecticut Green Building Council’s (CTGBC) 2012 ‘Residential Green Building Award’.  Along with state of the art ‘green’ features the home is full of luxurious finishes such as professional cooking appliances, Waterworks bathrooms, custom millwork and organic gardens. This in-town home is 3130 square feet with 5 bedrooms and 3 ½ bathrooms listed at $1,950,000.   The second home is the last of eight new built green certified homes at Norton Green, a conservation single family open space development. The home is 3043 square feet with a... 05/09/2013

Darien, Ct. Real Estate Report April 2013. May 1st, 2013. According to the Darien Multiple Listing Service, DARMLS, currently there are 130 single family homes listed for sale in Greenwich, Connecticut. The home prices range from $375,000 for a 1,651 square foot home on 0.34 acres up to a $15,900,000 for a 12,000 square foot waterfront home on 3.16 acres. The median listing price of the above homes is at $1,997,500 with a median home size of 3,742 square feet. Year to date the DARMLS reported that there have been 43 single family home sales with an additional 97 homes under accepted offer and/or contracted to sell.* The Median Sales price of those 43 homes sold is at $1,355,000 with a median square foot size of 3,142. To find home for rent or for sale in Connecticut please go to this ea... 05/01/2013

5 Important Things That Your Cell Phone Can Do! Did you know that there is a global emergency number you can dial for free or that there is hidden reserve battery power if needed? Check out these five important facts about your cell phone that can be done in times of emergencies. FIRST Emergency The Emergency Number worldwide for Mobile is 112. If you find yourself out of the  coverage area of your mobile network and there is an emergency, dial 112 and the  mobile will search any existing network to establish the emergency number for you,  and interestingly, this number 112 can be dialed even if the keypad is locked. Try it out. SECOND Locked your keys in the car? Does your car have remote keyless entry? This may come in handy someday. Good  reason to own a cell phone: If you lock your ... 04/25/2013

Steps To A Tenant Back Ground Check. To many times I see real estate agents, landlords and property manager’s take short cuts on one of the most vital functions of renting property and that is the tenant back ground check. The back ground check is to verify that the information that was provided is accurate and that the applicant has a history of good payment and steady employment. There are many steps in this process, each very important.   Rental Application. The rental application is the beginning steps to a back ground check as well as to the lease. It will tell you rental and employment history, who will occupy the premises, felonies if any and much more. For a sample of a two page Rental Application click here. Credit Report Provides you with a history of how the applicant pays th... 04/17/2013

Homes of the Future ~ Zero Net-Energy Ready Homes 2013.   The U.S. Department of Energy CHALLENGE HOME program represents a whole new level in home performance and lifestyle with outstanding levels of energy savings, building durability, home comfort and health. DOE Challenge Homes are at least 40%-50% more energy efficient than a typical new home and are verified by a qualified third-party. The DOE Challenge Home offers a guideline for contractors to build the house of the future, the Zero Net-Energy Ready Home (ZNERH) using today’s building technology and science by incorporating: Current Building Science and Complete Synergy Systems ~ Energy Star Homes. Using proven Technology & Best Practices ~ DOE Building American program. Efficient Components ~ Energy Star appliances, lights & fa... 04/12/2013

   DARIEN Market Trends Q1 2013     The Darien market has improved since last year with 3% more home sales this quarter than last year.  There are 36% fewer listings on the market.  Fewer listings and more sales have resulted in a 31% reduction of inventory to a 15-16 months supply vs. 22-23 months supply last year.  Sale prices have increased by 14% due to a combination of lower inventory and increased sales at the high end of the market. Last year in Q1 the list price range was $465,000 to $3.5 million with a median sale price of $1.1 million.  17 homes sold for over $1 million and 3 of those were over $2 million.  In Q1 2013, the lowest sale was $395,000 and the highest was $5 million with a median sale price of $1.3 million.  15 homes sold for over $1 million and 4 of those were ov... 04/08/2013

   DARIEN Market Trends February 2013       Darien, Connecticut is currently neither a Buyer or Seller’s market given that it has 6 months of inventory (based on absorption rates over the past 12 months).  There has been a slight decrease over the past three months, but that is likely seasonal. The amount of green areas on the chart above shows at a glance that we are trending towards a Seller’s Market. The Average Number of Homes Sold per Month for single family homes increased over the past three months, Months’ Supply on Market is decreasing as more homes sell, and both Average List Prices and Average Sales Prices are higher than a year ago. It would take 6 months to sell off all the inventory on the market compared to 12 months a year ago. In retrospect, it still looks like the Dar... 04/04/2013

Darien Home Rental Market Report First Quarter 2013. Darien, Connecticut Year to Date Rental Market Report. According to the Darien MLS there has been 16 single family homes rented Year to Date ranging from $2,000 up to $12,000.  The average home is a 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom home with average square feet of 1,892 at a price of $3,905/month. Currently on the Darien MLS are 13 homes for rent ranging $4,500 for a 3 bedroom, 2 ½ bath home on 0.7 acres up to $16,000 for a 6 bedroom 7 ½ bath home on 1.87 acres. In 2012 ninety-seven single family homes rented with an average sales price of $5,134 per month with an average size of 2,720 sq. ft., 4 bedrooms and 2 baths. To view current homes for rent on the local MLS click here on this free and easy to use link provided by William Pitt Sotheby’s I... 04/03/2013

Darien, Ct Real Estate Market Heating Up Spring 2013. April 3rd, 2013. The real estate market in Darien, Connecticut is heating up this spring with currently 71 homes under deposit and/or with accepted offers. On the Darien MLS there are 122 single family homes listed for sale ranging in price from $375,000 for a 3 bedroom 936 square foot home up to $15.9 million waterfront estate on 3.16 acres with a 12,000 square foot custom built Hobbs home. Darien, Connecticut Year to Date (YTD) compared to same time last year single family home sales show that for the first quarter*: In 2013 30 homes have sold compared to 32 in 2012 2013 average sales price at $1,254,068 down from of $1,307,750 in 2012. For both years the average home sold is 4 bedroom, 3 bathroom but average home size shrunk from ... 04/02/2013

Connecticut Zero Energy Challenge 2012 Winner Are.     The Connecticut Zero Energy Challenge is about designing and building a low to no energy use home. The challenge is in its third year with 8 participants competing for an overall winner to receive $10,000.   First Place Winner is in Harwinton, Ct. that is a “Passive House” design and built by Wolfworks Inc.  Along with winning 3 out of 4 categories in the contest this is the first house in CT to be officially certified by the International Passive House Association. The home had the lowest overall HERS index of -12 and achieve it at a cost to build of $169 per square foot.   Second Place Winner is in Old Greenwich, Ct.  that was built by owner/contractor Peter Fusaro of Preferred Builders Inc.  Along with this award the home has ach... 03/26/2013

  Darien Market Trends January 2013       The Darien market is looking good overall.  Price trends are rising.  With 5.6 months of inventory (the 12 month figure is used for the absorption analysis), it is still officially a Seller’s Market! (Less than 6 months of inventory indicates a Seller’s Market.) Prices are higher than they were a year ago, and days on market and the List/Sale Price Ratio have leveled off.  In retrospect, it looks like the Darien market hit bottom in the Q1 2012 and the market recovery is underway.  INVENTORY SALES HOTTEST HOMES IN DARIEN What homes are most in demand by buyers in Darien?  The sweet spot in the market is for 4 bedroom homes with a list price of $1.6-1.7 million.  They tend to be on the market only 95 days and sell for 95% of list price.   Origina... 03/17/2013

A Snowy Morning in Darien, Ct.             David Popoff is a certified “Green Homes Specialist” Realtor with William Pitt Sotheby’s in lower Fairfield County, Connecticut.   DMK Property Management llc a locally owned company serving lower Fairfield County, Connecticut. Specializing in Residential Property Management that can custom tailor a program to fit the homeowners needs be it short term or long term from rental management to full estate management. Cell 203-228-0646 E-mail DavidPopoffCT@hotmail.com   03/07/2013

Bogus Credit Report Submitted By Tenant. We recently received a credit report and rental application from a licensed real estate agent that contained many inconsistencies and raised a number of questions.(both supplied by tenant). The first 3 pages of the credit report had 3 different origination dates, two of which were last year and with the cover page and a line on the bottom of each page with today’s date on it. The rental application gave present address as a P.O. Box and a name of a bank as landlord with no contact information. Under former Landlord it was noted as NONE, but on the credit report in the last two years there were 5 former address’s all in the same town. This applicant wanted to rent a $1.5 million dollar home and this was what was submitted by an experience licensed... 03/07/2013

Sotheby’s International Realty Grew 30% in 2012 Year over Year USA. Press Release. Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates reported a 30% gain year over year in U.S. transactions closed by its affiliated brokers and agents in 2012. Along with that the Sotheby’s International Realty global network grew more than 9% in 2012 ending the year with 660 offices and 12,800 sales associates in 47 countries and territories. The Sotheby’s International Realty brand added five new residential real estate brokerage firms to its network across the United States in the following markets:  Fort Worth, Texas.  Tarrytown, N.Y.  Brooklyn, N.Y.  Leesburg, Va.  Wellington, Fla.   Outside the United States the brand expanded its network real estate network in ten countries and saw expanded market presence ... 02/26/2013

WSJ ~ Time to Sell Your Home?  Feb 23, 2013. Wall Street Journal Weekend edition had a great article “Is It Safe to Sell Your House Now?” and it states that home prices nationally are up 8.3% in December compared to the same time last year. It is important to factor in your local real estate market and recent sales when you are figuring out your asking price and even though prices are up they are still about 27% below their 2006 highs (nationwide average). Currently the number of homes for sale is at its lowest level since December 1999 according to the National Association of Realtors with average days on the market for homes in January at 71 down from 99 days one year ago. Depending on your real estate market trends, on average buyers search activity generally peak in March and April ... 02/24/2013