WARNING TO ALL EASTER BUNNIES…. AND SMALL DOGS! HAPPY EASTER! SUGGESTIONS FOR BRUNCH!

Break out the pastels and the whites… it’s now officially ok to wear your fancy duds!  Well as of Sunday anyway.   So after the bunny has dropped the basket, where are some great places to wear your best bonnet?   Well look no further, Hamptons Chatter is here to help.  Here are my top 3 suggestions:
Page at 63 Main in Sag Harbor (page63main.com, 631-725-1810)  will have an a la carte brunch menu from 11 to 4 featuring such holiday favorites as leg of lamb and Eggs Benedict.   They’ll also have plenty of champagne and mimosas to help with that headache from the all the little kiddies sugar high!
So CUTE.. and hopefully not on any menu!
Topping Rose in Bridgehampton (toppingrosehouse.com, 631-537-0870) will also have an al carte brunch menu featuring everything Brioche Donuts to Painted Hill Short Rib hash from 11:30 to 3p.   They’ll also have activities for the kids and a giant Easter Bunny around for photographs.  You’ll be able to order EXTRA champagne without drama.  Earplugs will not be provided.
Barons Cove in Sag harbor (baronscove.com, 631-725-2101) will be hosting an Easter egg hunt for the kids… so hopefully they’ll be outside.   Brunch will be served from 11 to 4p and feature all your holiday favorites including lamb, roast beef and rabbit stew.  OK, actually there is no rabbit stew…. that would be kind of cruel.   Don’t cha think!?    I mean… “Thank you Easter Bunny for the chocolate… now jump into the pot!?”

Speaking of Easter Bunnies, they need to be watching their eggs and hops these days.   While I’m not sure if it’s a real warning or where the heck it originates, there is a message circulating on the internet and Facebook about there being a larger number of Hawks this season on the east coast.   The alleged warning has been issued by “Park Rangers” and “Veterinarians” to pet owners who have dogs or cats that weigh less then 12 pounds.

WARNING: FOR OWNERS OF SMALL PETS

Apparently our small furry friends run the risk of being swooped away.   I actually had a friend who swore that happened to her pet a few years back but I question that particular incident and attribute it more to her 3 martini breakfast.    “I saw it… my dog flew away!”   Kind of scary considering it was a German Shepard. Anyway, all kidding aside I did some digging online and while the “warning” may possibly be bogus, the risk is actually quite real.    But before you panic and call your local veterinarian for advice or veteran with a gun on addressing the potential problem, just remember these birds of prey are FEDERALLY PROTECTED!      So what can you do?   Well here is are a few tips for keeping your pets safe.

-Keep them leashed and supervise when outdoors.
-Remove bird feeders.   They attract small birds and mice which in tern attract raptors.
-Put hhiny objects that move out of the yard, such as silver streamers.   They will scare off the birds.
-Build a pen with a wire mesh for your pet to play.
So keep your pets safe, have a great weekend and remember SUMMER IS JUST AROUND THE CORNER.  Which means traffic.   Yeah!

SOMETHING BREWING IN SOUTHAMPTON… AND PLEASE DON’T TELL ME WHAT ZILLOW SAYS ABOUT YOUR HOUSE!

Something Brewing.. time to change the label!

I can barley stand it!   It has some folks hops-ing mad!   Apparently the spuds will no longer be flowing on Bowden Square.   In spite of an announcement back in October that the Southampton Publick House would be staying put at the current location, word has gotten out that folks will soon have to fasten their beer goggles in a new location.    Since 1996 the brewery and restaurant have been a staple around town but it seems the new building owners have other plans.    According to some local insiders, the location will soon be home to a “high end Mexican Restaurant.”     Now if you’ve ever read this blog before… that’s a huge deal for me yet I hate to see an old favorite move to somewhere new.     While the Publick house will go on… like Celine Dion’s heart…. it will according to insiders have to be in a new location.   Sometimes a little change will do you good.

Oh is that the blood rushing to your head?

Now for a little advice.   If you want to send any real estate agent’s boiling blood further to their head just say the following sentence, “BUT Zillow said my house is worth X!”   It’s the bane of many a real estate agent and brokers existence.   In fact, The Los Angles Times  recently tackled the issue of “Zestimantes” (Zillow’s estimate) and how many claim they’re wildly inaccurate.    In fact, I have to say part of the big problem with Zillow’s “formula” is that it can’t really take into account factors like condition and location (waterfront, south of the highway, village).    So how inaccurate are these “Zestimates?”  Well the CEO of Zillow was recently quoted as saying they’re “a good starting point” and have a “median error rate of about 8%.”   Obviously this error rate varies in different markets and Zillow even says so at the bottom of the Zestimates page.     While I couldn’t locate the margin in our area, I can tell you that my own personal home fluctuated by about $5,000,000 in a period of 6 months.    Now, I know you think Hamptons Chatter just rakes in the money but the initial high estimate they gave my home was crazy.   I’d move out in hours if I could get that number tomorrow!    Yep, I would guess their error rate in the Hamptons is a heck of a lot more than a 8%.   It’s a big miss in the Hamptons… like an Ishtar big miss!  A “Missestimate” if you will.     So the take away from all of this… talk to an agent or do your homework (Zillow.com is a great source for closed prices) and don’t try let some silicon valley geek tell you what your home is worth.   Besides,  how could you put a price on that “Sistine Chapel” painting on your master bedroom ceiling?

 

BUSTING A SUMMER RENTAL MYTH… AND DOPPIO IS DONE-I-OH! AGAIN.

Doppio in Sag Harbor…. brown paper seems to be it’s color!

Good Morning all.. or is it afternoon?  Either way, HC as some people like to call this blog has been off the grid for the past few months.  It’s been a period of reflection and real estate and a media blackout.  I’ve ignored TV, radio and the internet for weeks now.  So before I read the papers about the Jeb versus Hillary show… I mean nobody was going to vote for “him,” I did some recon in and around the Hamptons to get the latest in our neck of the woods.

So word about town in Sag Harbor is that DOPPIO is definitely DONE-I-OH.   As if the incident of last summer’s sudden shuttering wasn’t a big enough omen for you, the Italian bistro has packed it’s bags and headed off for greener and perhaps less discerning pastures.    But while this is a surprise for virtually nobody, the big buzz is about what’s going in there!  So, what will it be?   Apparently, it’s going to be brown paper on the windows for the next few months.  Unconfirmed word about town is that the state of the space is in a bit on the worn side and a renovation is afoot.  If I have wrong information here, let me know and I’ll fix it!  I still miss the old “Paradise” in Sag Harbor.  Please can somebody talk to somebody and bring it back?    It had good service, good food and a great atmosphere, something far too many restaurateurs in the Hamptons have a hard time understanding.

Meantime, why is it so tough to find a summer rental this season?  Well it’s not as the NY Times would have you believe.     The mad rush that they report every year (“act now if you want your summer Hamptons get away) as having taking place is more myth than reality.    The truth is with all of the new regulations that include rental permits, registries and blood oaths more than a few home owners have decided NOT to rent rather than deal with all of the drama.    Now, I’m sure some agents and brokers are going to say, “not at all.”   But I’m speaking from my experiences in the past few weeks.    I’ve called numerous landlords about renting only to have them inform me the house is no longer available.     I’m not sure if this is a good or a bad thing but I can tell you, if you’re debating on renting your home this coming season… make sure to get the permit and protect yourself before getting into the pool… it’s smaller this year than it’s been in a long time!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS ALL… MORTGAGE NEWS…. PLUS WINNERS OF OUR (lame) DECORATING CONTEST!

So there’s good news and bad news here.  The bad news is you people are essentially lazy.    The good news is everyone who entered my holiday decorating contest is a winner!   Yes, I got 4 entries.  One of which was a friend who was actually staying in my house.   So he’ll get a prize along with Lisa Barone of Sag Harbor and Deanna Covino of Hampton Bays, the gang at Baron’s Cove and D. Strohmeir.    So anyway, happy holidays all even though I will never do a contest like this again.   BAH HUMBUG!   Here are the winners…

Deanna Covino of Hampton Bays

 


Lisa Barone of Sag Harbor

D Strohmeir of East Hampton

Meanwhile, lots of news about interest rates.  They’re up… and people are upset!    But wait…. defying the hike, rates actually went down?  I’m so confused!   But while folks like me are waiting for the dust to settle on what all of this actually means there’s still lots of news in the lending biz.   In fact, one thing I recently learned … wait.. why am I telling you… watch it for yourself.   Recently mortgage guru Melissa Cohn of MC Home Loan sat down with me to discuss what’s happening.

FINALLY… a little something fun from the 80’s music fanatic that I am.  It’s 60,000 LED lights dancing to the song “We Three Kings” by Book of Love!    Gotta love this!!