Dan Cummings - The Running Realtor

Do you ever STOP to think of your prospects reaction when you email them a new listing?  I try not to interject my own thoughts about particular street names to prejudice a buyers decision but often wonder - What were they thinking when the named this street?

One street I tend to point out while driving couples through town is .

Don't know why but it just strikes me as a silly place to live and raise a family.

I may say something like "How about living at 101 Lovers Lane"?  The wife may snuggle up to her husband with a suggestive little whisper, a witty husband once said "I'm well beyond lover 101, got anything on the 200 block?"

Lovers Lane may be cute but others just seem odd.  Would you like to see the house on North Roast Meat Hill Road?  Sounds like a great place to be fat, dumb and happy.  Certainly get your share of exercise every time you write the return address. Fortunately North Roast Meat is in a neighboring town where I generally do not travel.  I have enough difficulty with some of the names in my area.

Can I interest you in  Martleshamheath  Lane? Yea, you heard right, north of the circle off Dorset Lane out Rockland way. 

  I like simple names, short and sweet, but there are exceptions.  I ain't never gone down Gay Street and I especially wouldn't get there via Ben-Dover Way hitting the stiff right on Dipstick Drive..  ( not that there is anything wrong with that )

So... I'm curious to know, What are some of the strange, silly or stupid names in your part of the country?

   Dan Cummings, Connecticut's Running Real Estate Agent

The Great Falls Balloon Festival comes around this time every year and I recall my title line from the series F-Troop that aired in the mid 60's.  The character Chief Wild Eagle  would yell "It is Balloon" quite often when he saw a hot air balloon. 

We travel to Maine quite often during the summer months but I have only managed to get to the Great Falls Balloon Festival once to see them successfully launch a sky full of balloons. This weekend the forecast is looking good so if you're in Maine swing into the Lewiston / Auburn area at 6am or 6pm to catch the launch or spend a few hours wandering around the Great Falls Balloon Festival.

Real Estate Song of the Day - OUR HOUSE

Crosby, Stills, Nash & (sometimes Young) – OUR HOUSE

I'll light the fire  
You put the flowers in the vase  
That you bought today  
 
Staring at the fire  
For hours and hours  
While I listen to you  
Play your love songs  
All night long for me  
Only for me  
 
Come to me now  
And rest your head for just five minutes  
Everything is good  
Such a cosy room

The windows are illuminated  
By the sunshine dudes and  
Fiery gems for you  
Only for you  
 
Our house is a very, very fine house  
With two cats in the yard  
Life used to be so hard  
Now everything is easy  
Cause of you  
And our la,la,la, la,la ….

I'll light the fire  
And you place the flowers in the jar  
That you bought today 

   Dan Cummings, Connecticut's Running Real Estate Agent

The other day I ran into a neat site while skimming the comment stream on Twitter. If you are a FourSquare User you can go to WeePlaces and generate a map based on all the locations where you have "Checked-In"

caught my attention earlier this year with all the hype at Inman in NYC but I had the Disney Marathon on my mind so I back-burnered the toy until after my trip.  When I finally got around to loading it on my phone I recall some initial difficulty and failed on my first few Checkins but have been using it with some regularity since late January but the graphical features provided by WeePlaces.Com give you a nice overview of your travels.

The first day I sucessfully used FourSquare happens to be while attending WordCamp in Boston and within minutes of my checkin that was streamed to Twitter I was being asked questions for which I had no answers. Come to find out FourSquare awards "Badges" as an incentive to use the application and when I checked in at the NERD Center there was a "Swarm" of others also using FourSquare so I was awarded a badge.

Enjoy your Travels and log onto WeePlaces to see where you hang.

Tweet This

73 Grove Street - Clinton, CT  06413

Where's the Juice?  Every day Real Estate Agents work hard to compete in this sluggish housing market and when it comes to selling homes you need to keep yourself in the top position on Google.  Today I noticed the competition has secured the top spot with a listing belonging to Sandra Cummings of William Raveis Real Estate.

If you need more information Sandra Cummings is the Listing Agent for 73 Grove Street so contact her.

Real Estate Song of the Day - Jimi Hendrix - Red House

Watch the video, read the lyrics or Search for a home with while enjoying the music.

JIMI HENDRIX – RED HOUSE

There's a red house over yonder
That's where my baby stays
Lord, there's a red house over yonder
Lord, that's where my baby stays
I ain't been home to see my baby
In ninety-nine and one half days

Wait a minute something's wrong here
The key won't unlock this door
Wait a minute something's wrong
Lord, have mercy this key won't unlock this door
Somethin's goin' on here
I have a bad, bad feeling
That my baby don't live here no more
That's alright, I still got my guitar
Look out now...

Yeah, that's alright
I still got my guitar

Well, I might as well go back over yonder
Way back up on the hill
That's something to do
Lord, I might as well go back over yonder
Way back yonder 'cross the hill
'Cause if my baby don't love me no more
I know her sister will

Thimble Islands are scattered throughout the Harbor in Branford Connecticut.  In the heyday after the turn of the century and leading into the Roaring 20's this series of rock formations known as the Thimble Islands in Branford was considered the Newport of Connecticut.  This summertime playground for the wealthy has now been transformed into a private sanctuary for the well-to-do.

At the end low end the Rock known as Cocktail Island closed for a mere $150,000. Since the stone is to small to allow major improvement with today's building code the main function is bragging rights.  

Back in the spring of 2007 a Rock with a Gazebo & Dock was for sale by owner for just under 400k.  If you are in the market to purchase a piece of the prestigious Thimble Islands you will be happy to know that Cedar Island with the Gazebo is now listed with a real estate agent with a reduced price of $285,000.

There is another property currently availabile off the coast of Branford offering a bit of savings compared to the original asking price of a few years back.

The six room Victorian with a deep water mooring & dingy dock is no longer on the market but the 3 bedroom Cape that was $2.5 is still being marketed with a price adjustment.

Contact Dan Cummings - The Running Real Estate Agent for information about any homes for sale in the Connecticut Shoreline towns of Branford, Guilford or Madison.  In addition to waterfront properties we have an abundance of year-round homes or condominiums at all price levels. 

Call Dan at 203-672-2455 or send email to Dan@CummingsTeam.com if you are interested in one of the Thimble Islands or a more traditional home along the Connecticut Shoreline.

PodCamp comes to Connecticut in October this year!  Since stumbling into ActiveRain a few years ago I have had the opportunity to travel to many great events.  It was only fitting that my first experiences included a great AR Party in NYC and a follow-up function a few months later that got a bit wilder in a Princeton Bar.

Since that time many from my crowd including me ventured out of the Rain to experience the world of REBarCamp,Twitter and Facebook where some honed their social networking skills and others spent hours playing games. 

After trips to Philadelphia and several outings in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine to meet on-line friends and learn the cutting edge techniques of this fast changing world PodCamp comes to Connecticut.

Mark your calender for October 16, 2010 for what I believe will be the first major social networking function to come to the New Haven Area.

You can find updates as the event get closer on the Connecticut PodCamp Web Site