On October 25th the Staten Island Children's Museum will be celebrating Halloween all day long! 

The activities are planned to go on all day:

From 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. - haunted house tour.

From 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. - you can make glow in the dark Ooblek in the walk-in-workshop. 

At 2 p.m. you can meet some creepy crawlies!

And finally, at 3 p.m. dance the frights away with the Monster Mash!

For more information, visit sichildrensmuseum.org.

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In today's Market Updates series, we bring you an amazing infographic from our friends over at KCM (KeepingCurrentMatters.com).

The above info-graphic shows that 16% of recent home buyers were single females, while 9% were single males. 

19% of first time home buyers were single females, while 11% were single males. 15% of repeat home buyers were single females and 8% were single males. Of all the people who live alone and own a home, 56% are female and 47% are male. And 25% of women spend more than half of their income on housing, while only 10% of males do. 

These statistics help paint a clearer picture of single women in the housing market. Anything is possible ladies!

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"The Vault of Horror Film Festival" will be held on October 24th at 5 p.m. and is sure to delight all you scary movie lovers out there!

[photocred: google image]

Joe Broadways Billiards & Sports Pub will be hosting this frightening event, located at 2178 Forest Avenue. The Guerrilla Revolution Production company will be showing nine brand new horror films with submissions from filmmakers from Staten Island to as far as Canada! Three musical guests are also scheduled to perform - Rebel, Coleus, and The Gamma Ghouls (obviously, keeping with the theme of the night.)

This is sure to be a ghastly experience you don't want to miss!

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October 30th and 31st at 7 p.m. the Friends of Abandoned Cemeteries will be at Lake Cemetery in Graniteville to host a flashlight tour of the cemetery.

Established in 1837, your hosts will tell tales of those buried at the sire and give a haunted history of Graniteville itself. After the tour, you can explore the graveyard on your own - if you dare! 

The cost is $20 per person, and don't forget to bring your own flashlight!

For more information/to make a reservation call 917-545-3309.

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In today's Market Updates blog we will be using another amazing info-graphic from our friends at KCM (KeepingCurrentMatters.com).

According to the info-graphic above, newly released data from HUD and the U.s. Census Bureau shows that many Americans are turning to the new home market to fulfill their dream of homeownership.

"The report indicates the release of pent-up housing demand as the overall economy strengthens, consumer confidence grows and mortgage interest rates remain low." - NAHB Cheif Economist David Crowe.

40% of people purchase a new home to avoid renovations or existing problems, 24% for the ability to chose and customize design, 17% for the amenities of new home construction communities, 10% for lack of inventory of existing…

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In today's Market Updates series, we bring you another info-graphic from our friends over at KCM (KeepingCurrentMatters.com).

According to the info-graphic above, Lawrence Yun - the NAR Cheif Economist said, "With sales and overall demand higher than a year ago and supply mostly unchanged, low inventories will likely continue to limit options for those looking to buy this fall."

Inventory levels are still below historic norms, down 107% from August 2014. First time buyers made up 32% of sales, matching the previous May 2015 high. 40% of homes are being sold in less than a month. 

With inventory so low, but demand so high, there is no better time than right now to put your house on the market!

Call us today for a free house estimate! 718-442-4400

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In today's Market Updates series, we will be looking at a new info-graphic from our friends at KCM (KeepingCurrentMatters.com) and discussing everything you need to know about the mortgage process. 

What You Need To Qualify In Today's Market:

1 - A down payment of anywhere from 5-20% of the purchase price.

2- Income Verification, Credit History, and Asset Documentation.

3- Impartial 3rd Party Appraisal.

4- Stable Income.

5 - Good Credit History. 

With all these things to keep track of, it seems like buying a home could be difficult! The bottom line? Do your research, reach out to professionals, stick to your budget, and be sure you're ready to take on the financial responsibilities of being a homeowner!

Call us today for more…

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Nothing is more important to families on Halloween than ensuring the safety of their children. This Halloween, one group in particular is going above and beyond to ensure a safe and healthy Halloween for an entire community of children.

The Teal Pumpkin Project is an organization that encourages people to raise awareness about food allergies and to include all trick-or-treaters on Halloween. By signing a petition on their website, you can pledge to include youngsters with food allergies on Halloween by providing non-food treats instead of candies that could contain ingredients that some children could be allergic to. Parents and families will know of your participation in the project when they see a teal pumpkin on your doorstep on Halloween…

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Have you read my blog on Volunteerism? http://www.gillanihomes.com/blog/the-importance-of-volunteering.html. It is never too early to start volunteering or encourage your offspring, nieces, nephews or neighbor youth to do the same.  The Staten Island Children’s Museum is accepting nominations for the 24th Annual Kid of Achievement Award.  The award, which acknowledges the hard work of an 11 to 18 year old whose volunteerism has made a difference in the community, comes with a $100 honorarium and a framed certificate that is bestowed at the museum’s Circle of Friends business luncheon.  It takes place on 11/12 at the Hilton Garden Inn.  For more information on how to nominate your child, deadline, etc., call 718-273-2060, ext. 151 or visit…

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According to the Port Authority the Bayonne Bridge will be closed this weekend from 9 p.m. Friday, October 9th to 5 a.m. Monday October 12th. The bridge's alternate shuttle service will also not run this weekend. All of these closures are to help speed up the process of reconstructing the bridge. Port Authority recently announced that the completion of the project is going to take longer than expected. For traffic updates, call 511 or visit www.511NY.org.

 

The photo above shows the projected outcome of the "Raise the Roadway" Bayonne Bridge reconstruction. The plan is to raise the roadway on the bridge a total of 64 feet. The recent announcement from the Port Authority says the project is going to take two years longer than they had initially…

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