My Queens Apartment For Sale, etc.

Getting to Yes

2011-07-10T13:05:00.000-04:00

“Getting to Yes” by Roger Fisher, William Ury and Bruce Patton is a great book to read if you want to learn or improve your negotiation skills. You can use these techniques in anything from negotiating what movie to watch with your husband to trying to buy a new car. Fisher, Ury and Patton discuss their philosophies of successfully negotiating practically anything in life with the principled negotiation methods that are described as follows:

People: Separate the people from the problem; Interests: Focus on the interests, not positions; Options: Invent multiple options looking for mutual gains before deciding what to do; Criteria: Insist that the result be based on some objective standard^{^[1]}

People tend to be very sensitive and take things personally when negotiating and the authors’ suggest putting yourself in the other person’s shoes, understanding their objectives with actual facts. Rather than focusing on the worst case scenarios letting your fears and emotions take control of the situation. Focus on the interests and the big picture of what your objectives are not on positions.

Reading this book has helped me through the process of negotiating the sale of my Co-Op.

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1 “Getting to Yes” by Roger Fisher, William Ury and Bruce Patton

Neighborhood Food

2011-06-01T14:47:00.000-04:00

Queens is one of the most culturally diverse borough/cities in the United States with more than 138 languages spoken it is only natural that it be filled with great restaurants featuring cuisines from places around the world like China, Colombia, India and Dominican Republic, just to name a few.

Photo: TuCasaRestaurant.com

Here are a few of the best places by Briarwood:

Alba's Pizzeria & Restaurant 137-65 Queens Boulevard, Briarwood, NY Ph: 718 291 1620http://www.yelp.com/biz/alba-ristorante-and-pizzeria-jamaica

The best pizza in the neighborhood

Briarwood Café 138-49 Queens Blvd Briarwood, NY Ph: 718 297 7494 http://www.yelp.com/biz/briarwood-cafe-jamaica

Great diner food in Briarwood

Tu Casa Restaurant 119-05 Metropolitan Avenue Kew Gardens Queens, NY Ph: 718 441 6363http://www.tucasarestaurant.com/about.html
The best Spanish and Peruvian food in Queens – My favorites: the rotisserie chicken, rice and beans with a pitcher of sangria.

More Queens Restaurants suggestions below:http://queens.about.com/od/allrestaurantreviews/All_Restaurant_Reviews_for_Queens_NY.htm

Decorating on a budget

2011-05-19T11:48:00.003-04:00

I have always enjoyed decorating and find myself reorganizing furniture layouts and fabrics every season. Refreshing a room or a few in your home just takes a little research and a few days of work.

Some helpful ideas I found on HGTV.com:

Refresh your walls with vibrant colors. Go from neutral beige to a warm color to really make a statement in a room.

Change the curtains, pillows and slipcovers. This is the easiest way to change the theme of a space, from winter to spring, by just changing these few items you will feel like you have a new home.

Fix up an old ceiling fan. One year, I changed all of the ceiling features and loved how stylish it made my home feel.

After a trip to San Diego I returned inspired to bring the beach theme to my home and purchased white linen drapes, a few bright coral colored pillows and displayed some sea shells.

Using the old rule of the three R's: refurbish, repaint, recycle – with old furniture, artwork and fabrics are always a great way to save money and admire your amazing home!

Reference:
http://www.hgtv.com/decorating/10-ways-to-spruce-up-your-place-on-a-dime/index.html

Clean, de-clutter and de-personalize

2011-05-19T11:11:00.001-04:00

I found a great article on Realestate.MSN.com that discussed a few helpful tips when putting your property on the market.

Tips:

Clean and repair your home, de-clutter, de-personalize and promote heavily.

Even if you are not selling I think it’s a great idea to de-clutter and do a detailed cleaning every few months, making sure you keep up with all of the home projects.

It feels amazing to have a de-cluttered, clean and pretty home.

By the way, to assist me in my home cleaning needs I called Manhattan Cleaning Service, Carmen and her crew were amazing and everything was in tiptop shape in a few hours.

Reference:

http://realestate.msn.com//article.aspx?cp-documentid=13108454

Open House

2011-05-08T15:44:00.000-04:00

I had my first Open House this weekend and found it to be very enlightening not because I had a lot of traffic but I came to realization of the importance of marketing. I have a lot more work to do and will be adding postings online and newspapers.

I would like to thank “Big Al” for his help with the handywork and Paul R. for his amazing photography skills – I have updated the pictures and included a video tour.

Listing the Co-op Online

2011-05-01T14:06:00.029-04:00

It has been an interesting weekend completing so many tasks as I get ready to list the apartment. I'm posting the details below on nytimes, craigslist and for sale by owner:

Beautiful Junior 4 Co-op

The Greenwood

140-10 84th Drive Briarwood, NY 11435

This spacious home, turn-key Junior 4 Co-op is positioned on a quiet, tree lined block in Queens. Enjoy lots of sunlight in this home, with a functional layout and flow, large closets, hard wood floors, renovated kitchen and bathroom.

Second Bedroom / Study

Living: High Ceilings, The Container Store elfa designed closets; Unique Interior finishes with ceramic tile and hardwood floors

Kitchen: Dishwasher; Refrigerator and Microwave

Location: Public Transportation; Close to restaurants

and shopping, great schools, including P.S. 117 (Magnet School)

Common: Elevator, Laundry Facility and In-door Garage

Pet Policy: Dogs and Cats allowed

Maintenance: $553.44 - Sold by Owner, 10% down-payment required + Furnishings Optional.

By appointment at 347 845 2479

Getting everything ready

2011-04-23T18:09:00.002-04:00

Much is needed to get a property on the market such as understanding the local real-estate market, staging ideas and speaking to experts like a lawyer on what kinds of questions buyers might ask, questions to ask your management company and what types of expenses to expect when closing. I have an amazing lawyer who is just the most informative person I know...so that has made me feel much more comfortable in getting this process started and my queens apartment sold!