STATEN ISLAND HURRACINE SANDY | REAL ESTATE PERSPECTIVE

A personal story and perspective by John J. Picciurro, Realtor On October 20th 2012, I was vacationing in Jamaica with my family as Hurricane Sandy broke through the Caribbean. Sitting by the pool we talked about how we would lose a few days swimming and sitting in the sun on the beach as the weather changed and Sandy approached. Our vacation hosts were scurrying around preparing for the storm that was coming, picking up everything that the wind could blow away, and moving boats to a safer location a few miles away in a sheltered cove. Sandy arrived and made a mess, but we were all happy that no one was hurt, and things went back to normal the next morning. We joked about all the hard work the staff put in, and the restaurants that had to close. It wasn't too bad after all we said, but what did we know about the real threat. As the plane flew us northward towards home, the pilot told us that we would fly above a storm that was coming up the east coast and we joked that Sandy was following us home! Little did we know how this storm would change our lives. The storm caused much damage to the summer home we have near Seaside Park in NJ, and also the homes of the children down at the shore. We could hardy believe what we saw when we were finally allowed onto the barrier Islands at the shore. But nothing prepared me for what I found in Staten Island when I returned to work. Because my real estate office is located in Great Kills just a block above the water, I feared the worst. However, we were spared as the flooding stopped only a few hundred feet from us. Our neighbors and surrounding towns didn't fare as well, as their homes and belongings were torn apart and their lives changed overnight. After just a few days a FEMA location opened next to our office and strangers came from all over the country towing supplies for the needy behind their cars and trucks. One had a sign on the door that read Staten Island or Bust! Because we were real estate people, we were fortunate to help locate the Tunnel to Towers Foundation into a large facility owned by Cangiano's in Grant City were many families found help and much needed supplies after the storm. Now that time has passed we are left with the aftermath. For many directly affected by Sandy, it may include plans for rebuilding, but for many it's evaluating the direction their real estate assets will take, not really knowing what that might be. Unlike other kinds of tragedies caused by mother nature or even the current economic climate, this one took it's toll on thousands of people and hundreds of miles of the eastern coastal areas. For many sections of Staten Island, Sandy has had a large impact on the value of it's real estate...hopefully at least for the time being. The problems related to repairing and rebuilding can be complicated, from securing insurance settlements and FEMA re-imbursements for homeowners and business that were affected by the storm, to dealing with updated land use regulations resulting from the storm by local, State and federal agencies. To this end, many property owners especially those situated in flood zones are evaluating how best to plan for the future. As I drive through the worse damage caused by the storm, I see an ongoing process of rebuilding and cleaning up. Those that can afford it have already hired contractors to do the work. However, it's also apparent that homes still in the condition immediately following the storm, either don't have the money or are still awaiting insurance claims to be processed. Also, many dwellings have been condemned, and have to be totally re-built. This is sad, and the current cold weather makes the entire process even slower for them. Trying to determine the current value of real estate in these affected areas is difficult because of the unknowns that exist. Although families can move, homes located near major water influences can't just pick up and move somewhere else. This is where they are, and although we all hope nothing like Sandy ever happens again, or even typical flooding, we just don't know. The reality is that real estate values for these areas is not in the hands of real estate professionals, banks or appraisers, but by the property owners themselves. You see, they will determine if the real estate value of their property becomes less, the same or higher in the future. Investors will try to buy cheap, fix up, and rent out for a profit, but people who called this home have no such plans. Banks holding mortgages on these homes are trying to help out homeowners any way they can, and some banks probably don't care at all. This time, the term under water used by many to describe a property's value, could not be more appropriate for this situation. These homeowners were really under water, and they will need a financial life preserver to survive this attack on their personal and family investment. The truth here is that these neighborhoods are not just places that got hit by a bad storm, but they are an important part of who we are as Staten Islander's. Like the rest of the Island, their history goes back to the Revolutionary Days, when times were tough and life was hard. Such a large number of towns on Staten Island cannot be discounted or just labeled as a flood prone neighborhoods. These areas and the families living in them deserve the same protection that was provided to other parts of the country that experienced major storm devastation. Not just re-building money, but serious attempts at permanent fixes so that their better protected in the future. So while we hear about plans for new boardwalks, better storm surge barriers and sand dunes for the summer get away places, lets also concentrate on securing the safety of the Staten Island communities who still suffer from the consequences of Sandy's visit to Staten Island. Let our government help the people rebuild, and feel that their homes and their families future were worth the risk to stay. John J. Picciurro V.I.P. Real Estate, Inc