Signs Of Our Time

As this unprecedented time unfolds, it portends shifts that will mark a change with implications for decades to come. However, this shifting landscapes that shape my two most favorite places in the world, New York City and the Hudson Valley, and our real estate world within each, despite temporary headwinds, have not diminished during an epically changing time for the world and for all of us. Surely we have pain to process, but also joy to embrace. I've been through enough trials, including Covid, during this time, to age anybody 10 years, but I'm resolute in not letting that happen or deter me. Let's move forward through the challenges ahead hand in hand toward a brighter future. I'll start by reminding you of how timelessly iconic these places are, in ways untaintable by the present circumstances, which will pass.

About New York City, let's start with a fundamental piece of advice:

"The wanderer in Manhattan must go forth with a certain innocence, because New York is best seen with innocent eyes. It doesn't matter if you are younger or old. Reading our rich history makes the experience more layered, but it is not a substitute for walking the streets themselves. For old-timer or newcomer, it is essential to absorb the city as it is now in order to shape your own nostalgias. That's why I always urge the newcomer to surrender to the city's magic. Forget the irritations and the occasional rudeness; they bother New Yorkers too. Instead, go down to the North River and the benches that run along the west side of Battery Park City. Watch the tides or the blocks of ice in winter; they have existed since the time when the island was empty of man. Gaze at the boats. Look across the water at the Statue of Liberty or Ellis Island, the place to which so many of the New York tribe came in order to truly live. Learn the tale of our tribe, because it's your tribe too, no matter where you were born. Listen to its music and its legends. Gaze at its ruins and monuments. Walk its sidewalks and run fingers upon the stone and bricks and steel of our right-angled streets. Breathe the air of the river breeze."

-Pete Hamill

The magic of New York City will never be decimated.

About the Hudson Valley, I will tell you, as a native born and bred in Rhinebeck adjacent to the majestic Hudson River which ties the two places together, there is an undeniable and unique depth, character, history and nature to be found in every corner of its glorious fabric. The Hudson Valley has evolved with reticence from its gatekeepers. But that hesitancy is what has made this special enclave incredibly alluring now, not only because of the global catastrophe that has befallen us, but because of the hope, the natural beauty, and deep, multi-generational familial ties that bind it to the history of this nation. It's where regal families who were granted land 3 centuries ago who hosted admirals, generals, heads of state and even George Washington during the revolutionary war, and were Frankin Delano Roosevelt's family home proudly welcomes visitors from all over the world, still thrive. Yet today, it's the epicenter of the progressive regenerative farming and local food movement, with the Culinary Institute of America ensuring that our great chefs of the new world we live in make it a gastronomical adventure. It is where we explore nature trails on long days finished with beautiful meals from nature's bounty, at home or from places like Gaskin's in Germantown, and Rhinebeck's amazing array of options like Market Street, and Millbrook's Barbaro. The music scene is still and always will be filled with innovators from Bard College, with many talented graduates going on to world class notoriety. The art world in the Hudson Valley has long been revered, its essence evolving from the illustrious history of the Hudson Valley School art movement, which continues its legacy to this day. The Betsy Jacaruso Studio and Gallery is one of its most prominent symbolic spawn today. The local art world thrives.

Virtually or not, the romantic light of the Hudson Valley shines more brightly than ever as its population swells with NYC native transplanted during Covid-19. It's no surprise. It's always been a beacon of progress embracing all that's healthy, cultured, safe and swell. Yes, swell. We all need a little safe "swell" in our lives, especially now.

I love both the Hudson Valley and New York City equally, like one loves children, each in different ways. But there are commonalities. Each somehow breeds an attraction to progress and subsequently, to progressive people. We are evolving in ways we don't yet even fully understand. One thing I know is that these two locations are more inextricably linked than ever before.

Finally, we have some truly magnificent, swell properties for you to consider, in each of my favorite places. Check them out. While property movement is in a state of flux, there are significant transactions happening in each of the markets we're entrenched in. It's a time when hope must reign over fear.

Those who are ready to move to the next chapter are wise to act sooner rather than later. Waiting is a surefire way to look in the rear view mirror saying "that was the opportunity", because right now, opportunity is here for those bold enough to seize it. The time is now.

Whether you're a seller, a buyer, or an explorer, we are here for you, whichever location you hail from or are interested in going to or exploring. Nothing will stop either iconic community. You can count on that and you can count on us to collaborate with you every step of the way in your journey.

Be safe. Be well.