JB: Hi Everybody. Welcome to an edition of Boland’s Burb Blurbs.  I’m here with Cini Palmer of Houlihan Lawrence.  Cini has been living and working in Larchmont for two decades and she’s been helping people buy and sell real estate there successfully. Welcome Cini, thank you for joining me.

CP: Hi Julia. Thank you for having me.

JB: Cini and I have known each other for a while. We’ve done business together successfully. So I’m really pleased to have her on our video series.  So Cini, tell me why do people choose Larchmont?

CP: I think what initially draws them to Larchmont is the proximity to Manhattan, at first. It’s on Metro-North. It’s about a 30-minute commute, but then once you get here, it was a community that was built in the late 1800s early 1900s. Everything was very cottagey or larger homes or manor homes.  So what initially probably started the community was proximity to Manhattan and then people use this as their weekend communities.  We’re on the water; we’re on the Long Island Sound. We have beach clubs and tennis clubs. So I think it’s very charming and quaint. And at first feels very small and close to Manhattan.

JB: So are many people who live there who actually work in Manhattan and make that commute on a regular basis?

CP: I would probably say about 80%.

JB: Oh wow; that’s huge!

CP: I think 80% of the families that came were single people and came here because they wanted to be close to Manhattan, but wanted a little bit more property and wanted to be able to walk to the water or parks.  

JB: What is downtown Larchmont like?

CP: We actually have two downtown areas. Both of them are very homegrown; you won’t see box stores there. They’re primarily mom and pop shops. You’ll have one Starbucks. So one area caters to lunch, dinner, dress shops and such, but that’s Palmer Avenue side which is close to the train station. The other side is Boston Post side, which is close to the manor and water.

JB: Is there one particular establishment that everyone loves that Larchmont is known for?

CP: There’s a couple. One is Sherwood’s and it’s basically a rib place; ribs and burgers and it’s been around forever.  And then we also have a hot dog stand that looks like a Bogota. I know, I know; so those are the two places where the kids tend to gravitate towards, but everybody who knows, knows Walter’s and Sherwood’s.

JB: What would you say are your favorite weekend activities?

CP: In the summertime, that’s super easy to answer; sailing, boating, tennis, golf, kayaking and paddle boarding.  And in the winter, I think you’d be more like cycling. We have a great farmers market every Saturday. It’s really nice and people come from all the other towns too, which is nice.

JB: Okay. So tell us a little bit about the housing stock. What size is the typical house?  Typical price? Taxes?

CP: Okay. So an entry-level house would be anywhere from 800k to 1.2 million and taxes are based on full assessment value.  So the taxes would be anywhere 23k to 24k per million right now. You’ll see anything from 800k to about 5 or 6 million on the market right now. We have some one-offs; some tens and twenties, but those are more waterfront and larger properties.  And I always say to people that come in from Manhattan, if you’re looking for one acre zoning, you’re not going to find that here.  Smaller pieces of property; you’re going to be closer to your neighbor, but I’m going to be closer to town and it is a very walkable town; people walk to the train. We do have a bus.  The taxes are high, but I mean you’re paying for everything; including the schools.

JB: Understood. Okay. Alright. And then is there some town event that happens on an annual basis that everyone turns out for?

CP: Yes, we have quite a few.  So we have the Ragamuffin Parade which is adorable. It’s on Halloween. You go down Larchmont Avenue, there’s a little square there and the fire station hands out hot dogs and candy and then all of the vendors from town whether it’s a restaurant, you can buy food, they hand out toys there. That’s my favorite favorite thing. And then we have Larchmont Day where it’s also the same area where I guess all the realtors, moms, schools come in and they have a putting green or they have the firemen bring a fake house and they simulate a fire. So it’s all Larchmont things that people do in Larchmont.  The soccer team is there; that’s another event and then both of our Parks have events as well. So one of my favorite things is just sitting in the park and they bring in food trucks listen to music. So there are a lot of events like that, but I would think ragamuffins is my number one.

JB: That sounds terrific.  Sounds like a well-organized community where people really participate.

CP: It’s very much a community and that’s part of the reason which you know, which drew us to it.

JB: If you have a mascot, what would your town mascot be?

CP: Okay, this is the hardest question. Our school mascot is Tiger. So I think I’ll go with that.

JB:  Are you known as the Larchmont tigers?

CP: it’s really Larchmont Mamaroneck Tigers.

JB: And what colors are you?
CP: Orange and Black. It’s been great.  My children have already graduated from high school and are now graduating from college this year; my twins.  Raising our children has been fantastic. We as a family have really enjoyed it. 

JB: That’s great. If someone were to come up and visit to try and get a sense of the town, what would you recommend they do when they’re there for the day?

CP: First of all, I would take the train up so they could understand the commute and once they left the train, if they came on a Saturday, obviously, just take a look at the farmers market. I would have lunch sitting outside. There’s a lot of outdoor cafes; obviously not during Covid. But there’s a little place called Stan’z.  It’s right next to the elementary school; it gives you a flavor of the kids walking around.  And then I would take a walk through the manor which takes you down to the water and Manor Park is open to everyone and it’s a beautiful walk and you can see the Long Island Sound, you can see the bridges.
That’s what I would do if I came for the day.

JB: Great.  If you had to describe your town in one word, what would it be?

CP:  Oh gosh, there are so many words that come to mind, but I would say inviting.

JB: Oh, that’s a nice word!

CP: We visited before my husband and I were married and his cousin lived here and we would visit in the summer and everyone was just so warm and inviting.  I think when you do walk everywhere, it’s just so nice. Everyone says hello. It’s just very much a community.

JB: That’s fantastic. Cini, thank you so much for joining me today. If you want get in touch with Cini, reach out to me and I’ll put you in touch because certainly this sounds like a great place to live.  Thank you.

CP: Thank you, Julia. Have a wonderful day.