Ribbon Cutting Ceremony for New Nothnagle Location

"Welcome Home," were the words of Rochester's new Mayor, Thomas Richards, as he spoke at the official ribbon-cutting ceremony for Nothnagle Realtors' new downtown location. The event, which took place Monday morning at Nothnagle's new 217 West Main Street headquarters, was attended by over 60 special guests. The crowd included branch managers, local government officials, financial supporters, members of the press, and a number of friends, families, and distinguished community members. Mayor Richards, Council member Adam McFadden, RG&E's Joe Rizzo, former Acting Mayor Carlos Carballada, and County Executive Maggie Brooks were among those who spoke at the event. Each speaker welcomed Nothnagle back to the city and acknowledged the great addition the new headquarters will be to Rochester's Cascade District. Nothnagle Realtors, which began in Rochester over 60 years ago, moved "back home" earlier this year into a 27,000 square foot, four-story building. The location, which had been vacant for over a decade, was beautifully renovated into Class A office space. The property is now an anchor for the Cascade District and will attract additional investment to downtown's west side. In the move, Nothnagle relocated approximately 70 employees and has estimated that an additional 35 jobs will be created. At the ribbon-cutting, Armand D'Alfonso, President and CEO of Nothnagle Realtors, extended thanks to all who contributed to the project in any way. He also promised to continue to drive positive traffic into the city, which will help with the revitalization that is occurring in downtown Rochester. The nearly $4 million renovation project was made possible by generous grants from RG&E, financial assistance from the City of Rochester, and of course the vision and drive of Nothnagle's own D'Alfonso.

6 Reasons to Use a Real Estate Agent

Once you have made the decision to sell your home, the first step you should take is to find an agent. While some sellers may be tempted by the thought to sell the home on their own, study after study shows that sellers will net more for their house using an agent versus selling it on their own.

Here are 6 reasons to take into consideration when buying or selling a home:

1. Pricing is Difficult

A few years ago, you didn’t have to worry about overpricing your home. The situation is quite different today. In this market, time costs you money. A professional real estate agent will discuss how increasing inventory could dramatically impact the value of your property in the months to come. They will help you set the right price in today’s market.

2. Having a Professional to Negotiate

Buyers today have an almost unlimited supply of homes from which to choose. They realize that puts them in a great negotiating position. Most buyers are now being represented by an agent. Sellers need to also be represented by a professional expert trained to negotiate real estate contracts.

3. Financing is Key for Buyers

The biggest impact of the housing market collapse is that lending standards are much stricter today than they were a few short years ago. Rules are constantly changing. Even FHA has gone through a guidelines overhaul in the last several months. You need a real estate expert who has teamed up with a knowledgeable mortgage professional to make sure that the buyer in the deal is in fact capable of obtaining a mortgage. Losing time with an unqualified buyer costs you money in a market where prices are falling.

4. Your Safety

Real estate agents are trained to take steps to protect themselves and their clients. Take advantage of putting a person between you and the person calling on an ad or yard sign. Your agent will also be able to check-in on your vacant home if you have not sold it before moving to a new location.

5. Less Time and Stress

Selling a home could turn into a full time job. Learning the necessary disclosures, coordinating the dates of your closings, dealing with a challenge regarding your appraisal and re-negotiating the offer after an engineer’s report are just a few of the concerns you may face. Your time is more valuable and better spent on the items important to you and your family, while leaving the challenges to your agent.

6. Spreading the Word

Once you list your property with a member of the local MLS, every other member of the system is alerted that your house is now available for purchase. In a matter of hours, thousands of real estate professionals have the ability to easily share the specifics of your home with each of their buyers. There is nothing an individual seller can do to come close to this immediate exposure to thousands of potential buyers. Additionally, your realtor will keep up to date on the most recent ways to advertise your home. Not only do they rely on traditional means of advertising, such as newspaper and television, they will also advertise your home on YouTube, Facebook, and Trulia to name a few. It would be impossible for a seller to get the width of exposure the real estate agent has at his/her fingertips.

In the long run, having a real estate agent represent you on either side of a transaction will give you the best advice, get you the most money or the best price, they will also save you time and unnecessary stress!

And remember, not all real estate agents are equal. A Nothnagle agent can give you additional benefits, tools and resources not available anywhere else.

Another Reason to Love Rochester

As most cities around the country struggle to cope with the increasing amount of traffic slowing down commutes, we found a study of ten areas where traffic is a small concern. The best part: Rochester tops the list.

Each city had to meet several criteria to be included in the study by Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine. The cities needed to have a metro population of at least 1 million and a low congestion cost (a measurement of wasted time and fuel calculated by the Texas Transportation Institute). The average length of commute, local gas prices, yearly delays per commuter and public transit use also factored into the results.

All the cities that made the top ten had some common characteristics. Their congestion costs fall below $550 per person (the national average is $808). Some have seen massive declines in population, clearing out roadways built for heavier travel. Others have the advantages of excellent road networks and a large number of urban parking lots. Some of the national averages:

• Average commute time: 25 minutes


• Yearly congestion cost per commuter: $808


• Average length of commute: 11.79 miles


• Cost of regular gas: $3.23 per gallon


• Yearly delays per commuter: 34 hours


• Yearly fuel wasted per commuter: 28 gallons


• Public transit users: 5%

Rochester managed to top the list with an average commute of just 19 minutes. Although some residents might point out that we trade in the long commute for the snow and ice, it is hard to argue with the numbers.

Rochester commute statistics:

• Population: 1,035,566


• Average commute time: 18.7


• Yearly congestion cost per commuter: $273


• Cost of regular gas: $3.38 (Prices have definitely increased since this study)


• Average length of commute: 10.23 miles


• Yearly delays per commuter: 12 hours


• Yearly fuel wasted per commuter: 11 gallons


• Public transit users: 2.9%

The full list (which also includes another area in Upstate New York, Buffalo/Niagara Falls) is shown below:

1. Rochester, N.Y.


2. Columbus, Ohio


3. Providence-New Bedford-Fall River (R.I.-Mass.)


4. Richmond, Va.


5. Buffalo-Niagara Falls, N.Y.


6. Cleveland, Ohio


7. Cincinnati (Ohio-Ky.-Ind.)


8. Kansas City (Mo.-Kan.)


9. Louisville, Ky.


10. Hartford, Conn.

Looking for a home in Rochester? Nothnagle can help.

Does Your Home Need Lead Paint Removal?

If your home was built before 1978, there is a good chance that some lead-based paint is present. DIY tests are cheap and easy-to-use (you can usually pick one up for less than $20), or you can have a professional test your home. If your test reveals that lead-based paint is present, there are several options for removing and managing it.

Although you can perform the removal work yourself, it is recommended that a contractor who is certified in lead paint removal carry out the task. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), removal can cost anywhere from $600 to $30,000 (national average is about $10,000) depending on the method used and the size of the house. There are five options you can take when dealing with lead-based paint:

Encapsulation: This is generally the least complicated and most affordable method. It involves brushing or rolling on a specially made paint-like coating that creates a watertight seal over the lead paint. However, opening and closing windows and doors can eventually wear off the coating, requiring more applications. Encapsulation costs about $600 to $1000 depending on the size of your house (not including labor).

Enclosure: This method involves covering up the old surface with a new one, such as putting up new drywall or covering windowsills with aluminum or vinyl cladding.

Removal: There are several approaches that can be taken when removing old lead-based paint. Some options include wire brushing or wet hand scraping with liquid paint removers. A contractor may choose to wet sand surfaces with the use of an electric sander equipped with a high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filtered vacuum. Some methods to stay away from (if you want to avoid law enforcement and health risks) include open flame burning or torching, machine sanding without a HEPA attachment, abrasive blasting, and power washing without a means to trap water and paint chips.

Replacement: This strategy involves taking off the painted surfaces and installing new windows, doors, woodwork, and other surfaces. This is the most radical and expensive option available.

Do Nothing: If the lead-based paint in your home is not chipping or damaged, and no children under the age of 6 live there or visit frequently, you may opt to leave the paint untouched. If it ever comes time to sell your home, however, you will need to disclose the presence of the paint to potential buyers.

Before lead paint removal occurs, you can minimize your family's exposure by:

Cleaning up paint chips immediately

Cleaning floors, window frames and sills, and other surfaces regularly with all-purpose cleaner (thoroughly rinse sponges and mop heads).

Washing children's hands often, especially before meals, naps, and bedtime.

Preventing children from chewing painted surfaces, such as window sills.

Removing shoes to avoid tracking lead-contaminated soil inside

For additional information, contact the National Lead Information Center (NLIC).

Rochester is the Third Best City For Home Buyers

A new report ranking the top ten cities with the most affordable homes has been released from Deutsche Bank, and Rochester made the list! The study measures affordability in two ways: the share of income that Americans are paying to own a home, and the cost of owning vs. renting.

Rochester managed to find a spot on the list, third to only Atlanta and Orlando. While many people from out-of-state automatically associate New York with the incredibly high real estate prices found in New York City, locals know this not to be true. Upstate cities such as Rochester, Buffalo (which also made the list at number nine), and Syracuse have some of the most affordable real estate in the nation.

Many of the cities on the list can claim affordable housing simply because their real estate crashes were so much more pronounced than elsewhere in the nation. The farther the prices fall, the sooner it inevitably becomes more affordable to buy than rent. This rapid decline in prices is a sign of an unstable market. This is not the case with Rochester. In fact, housing prices in Rochester rose slightly between 2006 and 2010, and the rent vs. own equation still favors owners. The second-largest economy in the state, Rochester weathered the recession well because it did not overbuild like so many other cities did when housing took off.

The full list from the report is shown below:

1. Atlanta


2. Orlando


3. Rochester


4. Cleveland


5. Tampa-St. Petersburg


6. Las Vegas


7. Jacksonville


8. St. Louis


9. Buffalo


10. Memphis

If you are looking for a great deal on a new home, contact a Nothnagle Agent today!