Burlington Township Homes And More

Dad, What's That On The Grill?

I must say that the very best turkey that you can eat is a Fried Turkey. I have been frying  turkeys for over ten years.  Fried turkeys have become popular and it seems that everbody is frying.  When I still want a juicy turkey, but don't feel like the work that goes into a fried turkey, I will inject my turkey and cover it with cajun spices and let it sit in the oven overnight. Then I throw that bad boy into the oven.

When I really feel like kicking back and still having a good turkey, I will do a smoked turkey.  There is lot of information on the web about smoking a turkey, but I have found that the easiest set of directions are courtesy of Geoff Maw.

Do  you need a special smoker and equipment?

NAH?

I throw that baby on my charcoal grill, put the coals on one side and the bird on the other and let it go.  I usually will put it on before I go to bed.  Some people baste and keep adding charcoal to the fire......if I am lazy, I do none of that.  If it's not done in the morning, I chuck it into the oven until done. 

Here is Geoff's recipe.  Try it for your next gathering....You wont be dissapointed.  Ps.  I sometimes inject the bird also to make it a little juicier

Leander McClain, Burlington Township Realtor & Real Estate Consultant, EXIT Buyers Plus Realty, 15 E. Broad Street, Burlington, NJ 08016 609-505-6578(cell)
*********************************************************

I have found that it takes around 14-16 hours to cook a 10-12 lb turkey during summer and as long as 20 hours during winter, outside air temp makes a big difference. I have never had a dry overcooked bird YET!!

Now if you would like my secret recipe for making the average turkey into SUPER BUZZARD!!! Here it is below. Good luck ..... Geoff Maw 

 

---

 

 HERE ARE A FEW TIPS FOR YOU:
 

ONLY USE KINGSFORD CHARCOAL!!! The other brands do not burn evenly or as long.
 

When starting the fire do not put to much charcoal in at one time. Burning smaller amounts as you go along will mean better heat control and less waste.
 

Make sure the turkey is on the top rack and that you keep the water tray full.
 

Add the wood chips during the cooking process (again in small amount).

---

1 Fresh Turkey (Completely Thawed)
1 Unpeeled Orange
1 Apple

Combine the Following:
Sage
Basil
Chopped Garlic
2 onions
Thyme
Pepper
1/4 a Package of Bacon (Optional)
1/4 Cup Sherry

Put the above in a food processor/blender and reduce till it is of a paste texture. Clean Turkey and then with fingers gently separate skin from meat at the breast, sides and leg area's. With fingers place above past up under the skin evenly. Then cut orange and apple into quarters and place them into cavity. Place Turkey in smoker, pour red wine or sherry over top of Turkey, cook and enjoy!!!!!

 

ALL OF THIS TAGGING HAS GOT TO STOP :)

This past weekend was very busy.  I spent saturday finishing up paperwork for a December closing as well as continuing my tile project in the bathroom.  Sunday was busy also with church.  I played in the morning and then visited another church in the afternoon.  Music is one of my first loveS, but I will get to that another day.  Monday morning when I woke up, I was not feeling well. I could feel the begining of a cold coming on.

Well I checked my Active Rain Account and I saw that I had been tagged by my friend and fellow active Rainer Brenda Tressler.  That was cool...then I started thinking...when does all this tagging stop?

I AM STOPPING IT RIGHT NOW 

I will comply with Brenda's request, but I won't forward it on.  Enough is enough :) (Maybe its just the cold meds talking...lol)

Long story short, I am supposed to pick a book off the shelf, go to page 56 and post a few lines from the 5th sentence on.  The book i have chosen is DO YOU by Russel Simmons.

Enjoy.

"I also want to address another issue, which is that in order to truly DO You, especially in the business world, you're going to have to turn down some very attractive opportunites.  Every day, its seems like I get pitched a new business venture.  But if I dont feel comfortable attaching my name to a product, then I'll leave that money on the table. I wont compromise my name, becasue I know once I do, I'll never be able to get it back"

Have a great day

Leander

Leander McClain, Burlington Township Realtor & Real Estate Consultant, EXIT Buyers Plus Realty, 15 E. Broad Street, Burlington, NJ 08016 609-505-6578(cell)

It's The Holiday Season - We ALL Need COOKIES :)

My buddy Calvin has really been giving me a hard time about these cookie recipes. I tried to hold back, but I couldn't do it. I know you guys are looking forward to the next cookie recipe.  So here ya go.

This recipe comes to us compliments of Shannon Clarke of Starry Night Bakery Coffeehouse in Westminster, Maryland.  She tells us that it is a great cookie base and you can add the special extras - Whatever you have on hand!

 

Whatcha Got?  Cookies

 

Ingredients:

 ½ cup butter, softened

½ cup shortening

¾ cup sugar

¾ cup packed brown sugar (light or dark)

2 large eggs

1 tsp. vanilla (or whatever flavoring you have on hand)

2 ¼ cup flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

½ teaspoon cinnamon (or nutmeg, cloves, ginger, curry, cayenne pepper, etc.

Mix it up every time! (coconut and curry with some chocolate chips???)

 3 cups of goodies

(Goodies may include: chopped nuts, chocolate, peanut butter, butter scotch chips, chopped candy bars, dried fruit, M&Ms, Rice Krispies, Trail Mix, etc.)

 

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. 

Cream butter and shortening until light and fluffy

Add Sugars, eggs, and extract; mix on medium until combined. 

Toss in dry ingredients; mix until combined. 

Add the goodies (either put them all in the dough or sprinkle some on top of each cookie before baking)

Drop even sized pieces of dough on cookie sheets and bake until golden around the edges and set in the centers.

 

Enjoy

Leander McClain, Burlington Township Realtor & Real Estate Consultant, EXIT Buyers Plus Realty, 15 E. Broad Street, Burlington, NJ 08016 609-505-6578(cell)

Should I REALLY Thank Active Rain For THIS Phone Call?????

I repeat once again that I LOVE Active Rain.  Active Rain has been the forum that allowed me to meet and exceed one of my goals for 2008.  That goal was to increase my web presence and position myself as an expert when it comes to real estate and Burlington Township, New Jersey.  

 

I recently did a post about the Burlington Bristol Bridge Closing.  Yesterday I received the following phone call

 

Me:  Good Afternoon, Leander speaking

Caller:  Ah yes, can you tell me if the Burlington Bristol Bridge was closed last night?

Me:  According to the schedule it was supposed to be closed, but I am not sure.

Caller:  Is there any way you could find out for me, because I REALLY need to know.

Me:  One second while I check the Bridge Commission's website

Me: Maam' according to their website, they were scheduled to be closed last night

Me:  Would you like me to give you the phone number to the Bridge Commission?

Caller:  YES PLEASE!  This is really great thank you

Me:  The phone number is......xxx-xxx-xxxx

Caller: Thank you sOOOOO much.  You have a great day

Me:  You do the same.  Bye

 

Now that is Google Juice in action.  If you Google Burlington Bristol Bridge close, you will see the following:

 

 #1 listing is from the Courier Times,

#2 is my Active Rain blog post

#3 is unrelated to the closing

#4 is from my Localism post

 

I can't say that when I started blogging that I was looking to answer calls about bridge closings, but isn't this what blogging is all about?  I focus not only on real estate in Burlington Township, New Jersey, but what is going on in and around town.  This is my town and I love it here. I want to help make dreams come true for as many families as possible.

 

So for this phone call, I say Thank You.  And to the very nice lady who called me, I hope I was able to help you.

 

Have a great day.

Leander McClain, Burlington Township Realtor & Real Estate Consultant, EXIT Buyers Plus Realty, 15 E. Broad Street, Burlington, NJ 08016 609-505-6578(cell)

 

PLEASE LISTEN TO OUR MENU CAREFULLY BECAUSE OUR OPTIONS HAVE CHANGED!

 Everyone has hear the above line when trying to call any company.  This is usually followed by a series of "If you would like ____ press 1, To report a _____ press 2", etc.  How frustrating is this when all you want to do is talk to a real live person.

THERE'S NO NEED TO FEAR, UNDERDOG IS .......

Ooops, sorry I digressed for a second. 

There is help.    Thanks to Paul English, a human being is now a few keystrokes away.  Mr. English has created an alphabetical listing of more than a thousand companies and the steps required to reach a living, breathing, phone answering person.  Just go to www.GetHuman.com.  You can also try www.GetHuman2.comwhich was created by Walt Tetschner

So the next time an automated voice tells you to press 1 for sales....You whip out you list and say NOT TODAY SISTER!

Everyone Have A Great Day

Leander McClain, Burlington Township’s Top Realtor & Real Estate Consultant, EXIT Buyers Plus Realty, 15 E. Broad Street, Burlington, NJ 08016 609-505-6578(cell)

I have always told my clients that there are several things that sell a home.

 

1. Location

2. Price

3. Condition

4. Accessibility

Price	Seller Concession	Interior Size	Days On Market	# of Price Reductions	Current Status	Beds	Full Baths	1/2 Baths	# of Pics	Notes
$  229,000	$           -	1, 930+	473	4	Active	5	2	0	10	busy main street
$  225,000	$           -	1,930	85	0	Active	3	1	1	11	Solid house, needs some updating, no hardwood floors, low traffice
$  223,500	$           -	1,930	528	2	Active	4	1	1	1	low traffic
$  219,000	$           -	1,930	16	0	Active	3	1	1	9	solid house, needs updating - tenant occupied, low traffic
$  199,000	$           -	1,930	140	1	Expired	4	1	1	8	Many colors including carpet. Needs some updating, short sale, low traffic
$  199,000	$           -	1,930	150	1	Active	3	1	0	6	low traffic
$  185,000	$           -	1,930	418	4	Active	5	1	1	2	As-Is, needs work, low traffic
$  209,000	$      7,500	1,930	185	2	Settled	4	1	1	10	Neutral colors, updated, laminate floors, low traffic
$  174,900	$      5,000	1,930	21	0	Settled	5	2	0	11	high traffic
$  160,000	$           -	1,930	120	0	Settled	4	1	1	3	Handyman Special, House needs everything, high traffic
Subject Property	$           -	1,930+	-	0	-	4	1	1	10	Hardwood floors, laminate floors, replaced heater & added central air, replaced roof, replaced windows, replaced deck, ceramic tile, oak cabinets

The table above is data related to a recent listing.  The addresses have been changed so that I may speak freely about the other listed properties in the area. 

 

 

PREVIEW

One of the first things that you MUST do is study your competition.  You must know the condition and price of every home that is for sale in the area which you will be listing a home.  What is the best way to do that? PREVIEW, PREVIEW, PREVIEW.  I like to take my sellers with me on these previews.  This gives them an idea of how their home stacks up against the other homes in the neighborhood.  It also gives them an idea of what they must fix or improve in their own home. 

 

ANALYZE

Once you have previewed the homes, you MUST analyze the data.  I usually make a table like the one above. I want to see what the current asking & selling prices as well as how long homes have been on the market.  In this neighborhood, there were 7 active listings.  An interesting point was that a home had not sold in this development for more than 6 months.  Most of the houses in this neighborhood were similar in size and property size.  The big differentiation between the homes was condition and upgrades if they were located on the main road or a quieter side street.

 

PRICE

I ALWAYS tell my clients that we don't want to have the most expensive listing in the neighborhood.  Even if we have the nicest home listed, we want to be priced at a competitive level. In this market, everyone is looking for a bargain.  A home that is listed for top dollar is not considered to be a bargain by the potential buyers.  In this case, the last similar home that sold was sold for $200,000 with $7,500 seller concession..  This was a very nice home, but it was smaller than our subject property, but in similar condition.  The other homes listed for sale needed updates & repair.  Homes in this neighborhood are 30+ years old.  Many of the homes previewed still had the original windows and flooring.  My client had updated all of the major systems in the home as well as the roof, windows and flooring.

 

My client felt that his home was the best home in the neighborhood and that he should easily be priced higher than $229K property on Rutgers Ave.  I explained to him that 33 Rutgers has been on the market for 473 days.  That said to me that the house was priced too high for the condition and location.  I also explained that 45 Axlerod has been on the market for 528 days.  Therefore $223.5K is probably too high of an asking price.  . 

So what is the price needed to move this home?  Probably between $200 - $224K.  The last home in similar condition sold for $200K (this was a smaller home).  In addition, home prices in the area have been on a steady decline.  We decided to list the home for $215K

 

THE RESULTS

We had an offer and acceptance in 25 days for 95% of the listing price.  There were no price adjustments.  I would say that this home was priced to sell.  Each case is different and there are many variables that affect a potential sale.  In this case, the strategy worked.

 

If you are looking to sell your home in Burlington County New Jersey and are looking for a Realtor and Real Estate Consultant, feel free to give me a call or send me a text message.  I will gladly answer all of your questions.

 

Have A Great Day

Leander McClain, Burlington Township’s Top Realtor & Real Estate Consultant, EXIT Buyers Plus Realty, 15 E. Broad Street, Burlington, NJ 08016 609-505-6578(cell)

One For The Guys

Ok fellas.  I know many of you are wondering what happened to your buddy Leander McClain.  The Burlington County New Jersey Realtor & Real Estate Consultant.  The mans man.  The one who talks about man caves and other manly things.  I have had many guys ask me "dude.....what's up with cookie recipes"?  So for my fellow guys (and ladies), here is an easy recipe that you can cook and impress your significant other.  Pair this with a pack of Birds Eye or Green Giant Steamers (vegetables, rice) and a bag of salad and you will have a dinner that cannot miss.  Just pop the steamers into the microwave for 5 minutes and serve.  What could be easier. Try different types of ravioli & beer.  Enjoy.

Pumkin Ravioli with Samuel Adams Octoberbest, Brown Butter and Sage

Ingredients:

24 store brought pumpkin ravioli

2 shallots, diced

6 teaspoons butter

2 teaspoons sage, chopped

6 ounces Samuel Adams Oktoberfest beer (what to do with the other 6oz....drink it of course)

1/4 cup Pamersan cheese

salt and pepper to taste

 

Cook ravioli according to package directions.  Saute shallots in butter and brown.  When butter is brown, add beer, sage, salt and pepper and Parmesan cheese.  Pour over ravioli and eat.

Have a great day

Leander McClain, Burlington Township’s Top Realtor & Real Estate Consultant, EXIT Buyers Plus Realty, 15 E. Broad Street, Burlington, NJ 08016 609-505-6578(cell)

I Am Guilty.

About 5 years ago, I started a love affair. 

It's not what you think.....lol

I started a love affair with the sound of the Hammond Organ with a Leslie speaker attached.  I  played piano and keyboards for many  years, but the organ I thought was way beyond my ability to master.  A good friend of mine Tyrone Hallman got me started on the organ.  The picture on the right is one of my friends Kenny Johnson (far left) and Mike Casino (far right), just after we finished hauling my first organ out of the basement to make room for my new organ.  You find out who your real friends are when it comes time to move an organ. In case you didn't know......they are VERRRRRY HEAVY.

But Anyway, I Digress

As a lover of the Hammond Organ sound and the owner of one of these classic instruments, you know that these days it can be hard to find someone to fix these beauties when they break.  I recently began attending New Greater Straightway Baptist Church in Philadelphia, PA.  They had an organ and leslie, but the leslie was in bad shape.  Half the time music came out of it, the other half it was only static.  A technician had been called to diagnose the problem and it was determined that the speaker DOA and would need to be replaced at a cost of $3,000 plus tax.  This was way above the church's budget. 

IT WAS THEN I REMEMBERED

I remembered my old friend Michael Casino.  I met Mike on a Hammond Organ forum and as it turned out, we lived 10 minutes away from each other.  Mike is an electronics genius.  His home workshop is filled with organs, leslies, keyboards, tube amplifiers and who knows what else.  Mike taught me more than I can ever remember about the inner workings of the Hammond Organ and the Leslie speaker.  When I hooked up my first organ, it was Mike who taught me how to do it.  When I brought my second organ, it was mike who showed me how to make an interface box so I could hook up two speakers to the organ. 

LONG STORY SHORT

In less than one week with donated parts from my stash and for under $500, Michael fixed the speaker and it was back in the church for Sunday afternoon service.  It sounded magnificent.  I was in love again.

So if you are in the NJ tri-state area and you are looking for an organ technician who really knows his stuff, call Michael Casino @ 609-261-6568

Leander McClain, Burlington Township’s Top Realtor & Real Estate Consultant, EXIT Buyers Plus Realty, 15 E. Broad Street, Burlington, NJ 08016 609-505-6578(cell)

EVEN MORE COOKIES

These wonderful cookies are brought to us courtesy of Alleghany College of Maryland culinary student Amber Mabry.  These cookies are like an upscale banana nut bread.  Try some in the morning with coffee.  Mmmmmmmmm

Enjoy

 

Banana  Nut Cookies

 Ingredients:

2 2/3 cups all purpose flour

½ tsp baking soda

¼ tsp salt

1 cup light brown sugar, packed

½ cup sugar

1 cup butter softened

1 large egg

¾ cup ripe bananas, mashed

1 cup walnuts, chopped

1 tablespoon vanilla

1 tsp cinnamon

 

Glaze

1 tsp orange zest

3 tablespoons orange juice

1 cup powdered sugar

 

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.  Combine the flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.  In a separate bowl, blend the sugars.  Add the butter and mix 1-2 minutes, scraping down the sides halfway through.  Add the egg, banana, and vanilla to the sugar-butter mixture and blend until just smooth.  (Do not over mix!).  Add the flour mixture and the walnuts and blend until just combined. Drop the cookie mixture into Madeleine (shell shaped) molds and back for 24-27 minutes.  Do not over bake!

 

While cookies are baking, whisk together the glaze ingredients until smooth.  When the cookies are cool, remove them from the molds and glaze them.  Serve immediately. 

Leander McClain, Burlington Township’s Top Realtor & Real Estate Consultant, EXIT Buyers Plus Realty, 15 E. Broad Street, Burlington, NJ 08016 609-505-6578(cell)

 

MORE COOKIES :)

Chocolate and peanut butter may be a match made in heaven, but throw in some pretzels and things truly get divine.  This cookie recipe is courtesy of Sarah Brewer, a culinary student at Allegany College of Maryland.  Thanks Sarah.

 Chocolate-Dipped Peanut Butter Pretzel Cookies

Ingredients:

 ½ cup unsalted butter

¾ cup smooth peanut butter

½ cup sugar

½ cup brown sugar

1 large egg

1 ¼ cup all purpose flour, sifted

¾ tsp baking soda

½ tsp baking powder

16 oz. mini pretzels, salted (coarsely chop 1 cup for the dough;  keep the rest whole)

½ tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla

16 oz milk or dark chocolate

Powdered sugar

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  With a mixer, cream together the peanut butter, butter, salt and both sugars for approximately 1-2 minutes, scraping down the bowl halfway through.  Add the egg and vanilla, mix until blended, and scrape the bowl again.  Don't over mix!  Combine the flour, baking soda, and baking powder and add to the batter.  Mix on low until just combined.  Add the chopped pretzels and mix until just blended.  Scoop out 2-inch balls of dough and drop on greased sheet pans.  Press one whole pretzel into the center of each ball to flatten.  Bake for approximately 10-15 minutes until Golden brown.  Cool.

 Melt chocolate in a double boiler.  Dip the bottoms of the cooled cookies in the chocolate.  Place the cookies upside-down on a parchment lined tray. When dry, flip the cookies back over and sprinkle lightly with powdered sugar

Leander McClain, Burlington Township’s Top Realtor & Real Estate Consultant, EXIT Buyers Plus Realty, 15 E. Broad Street, Burlington, NJ 08016 609-505-6578(cell)