I am out of the office for most of the next two weeks. I am presently in North Conway. As you can see, Thomas The Train is here too, so my twin boys are very excited. I plan to be posting less frequently through the end of the month. I still can be reached by email: attyrosa @ gmail . com.
The following list of communities with lowest ratio of sale price to most recent list price is taken from Boston.com.
It might surprise a lot of people, but the ratio of sale price to last list price in many communities is more than 97 percent.
Community
| 1. Bourne | 92.5% |
| 2. North Reading | 92.8% |
| 3. Fairhaven | 92.9% |
| 4. Athol | 93.4% |
| 5. Westport | 93.6% |
| 6. Dartmouth | 93.6% |
| 7. Chelsea | 93.9% |
| 8. Ipswich | 93.9% |
| 9. Swampscott | 93.9% |
| 10. Falmouth | 94.0% |
The Boston Globe provides a photo tour of an ocean-front home in Marblehead, MA that has received an environmentally-friendly rehab.
This green makeover is inside and out, from the recycled rubber roof to the cast iron (not plastic) pipes.
The Boston Globe published an article June 22, 2008 discussing whether spectacular landscaping and gardens add to a home's value.
The handful of real estate agents surveyed for the article seemed to agree that landscaping added to curb appeal, but didn't necessarily add to the value of a home. I tend to agree, but I think there is an important distinction between trees, shrubs and flowers and "hardscapes," such as stone walls and patios.
Many of my clients feel overwhelmed when they see extensive gardens and think about the prospect of maintaining an array of flowers, bushes and trees. For some home buyers, lush gardens are a turn off.
On the other hand, I always point of to my clients, especially first-time buyers, that having a stone wall, walkway or patio installed is quite expensive, and such work should be considered in the value of a home.
"The main selling season for real estate happily corresponds to the first big bloom of the year for gardeners. Yet despite the visual beauty and peaceful retreat that a garden can offer - often much more so than the inside of a house - they don't register much as an asset when it comes to selling a home."
Many communities across the Commonwealth have fought plans for affordable housing projects under the state's affordable housing law, commonly referred to as Chapter 40B.
The North Shore Association of Realtors' government affairs blog keeps up with Chapter 40B projects on the North Shore.
I am happy to announce that this blog, Massachusetts Home Buyer Guide (MassHomeBuyerGuide.com), was chosen by the editors of FHAMortgageCenter.com as the best blog in its recent real estate blog contest.
More than 100 blogs across the United States were entered into the real estate blog contest.
"For editor’s choice, the prize goes to Rich Rosa of the Massachusetts Home Buyer Guide. We really like Rich’s mix of analytical market related posts and local interest pieces," FHAMortgageCenter.com wrote on its blog June 4, 2008.
The New Jersey Real Report, which blogs about real estate, economics and politics in New Jersey, won the popular vote.
As I mentioned on my blog, I’ll be donating the prize money ($500) to Rebuilding Together Greater Haverhill, Inc., which “helps revitalize homes and neighborhoods for low-income homeowners and communities in need, especially the elderly, the disabled and families, helping them to live in warmth, safety and independence.”
Visit Rebuilding Together Greater Haverhill, Inc. online.
The National Association of
REALTORS® (NAR) has named Buyers Brokers Only, LLC co-owner and co-founder Dave Kres one
of its honorees of the 2008 “30 Under 30,” a list of 30 real estate
professionals under the age of 30, from more than 400 applicants nationwide.
REALTOR® Magazine wrote in its June 2008 issue, “Even when business was booming, succeeding in real estate required drive and commitment. Today, it requires a combination of guts and creativity that deserves a full-on salute. This year’s 30 Under 30 winners, selected from more than 400 applicants, were especially shrewd at overcoming barriers and seizing new opportunities. Quite a few notched higher sales in 2007 than in the year before and many had the smarts to zero in on growth areas like foreclosures and short sales. ... We expect that these stellar young professionals will be pacesetters for years to come.”
Dave is 29 years old, and he is a licensed real estate broker in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. He also is licensed to practice law in Massachusetts, and he is a partner in the law firm of Rosa & Kres, LLP.
Dave is a graduate of Peabody High School, Tulane University and New England School of Law.
You can call Dave on his mobile (978.317.7685), if you would like him to work with you on your home search.
The Boston Globe compiled a list on May 25, 2008 of the fastest growing communities in Eastern Massachusetts between now and 2030.
| Community | Projected population growth |
|---|---|
| 1. Mendon | 76% |
| 2. Bolton | 74% |
| 3. Upton | 74% |
| 4. Middleton | 57% |
| 5. Littleton | 52% |
| 6. Wrentham | 51% |
| 7. Shirley | 43% |
| 8. Ashland | 40% |
| 9. Uxbridge | 37% |
| 10. Hingham | 29% |
On May 9, 2008, Fox25 News visited the City of Haverhill, Massachusetts. Fox calls it a "Zip Trip."
The SKYFOX flyover is particularly neat. There also are photo galleries and other videos.
Other community visits by Fox25 News:
2008
Lexington, MA
West Roxbury, MA
Whitman, MA
2007
Norwood, MA
Franklin, MA
Marlborough, MA
Medford, MA
Hingham, MA
Dudley, MA
Belmont, MA
Winchester, MA
Burlington, MA
East Boston, MA
Hudson, MA
Nashua, NH
Martha's Vineyard, MA
Mashpee, MA
Middleborough, MA
Holliston, MA
Beverly, MA
Stow, MA
Rockport, MA
Thank you veterans.
For the history of Memorial Day and other information, visit the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs Web site.
For poems, prayers and related links about Memorial Day, visit USMemorialDay.org.
USA.gov has a Web page with tips and information on how you can thank and help veterans.
Through AmericaSupportsYou.mil, you can send an email message to our troops.
"Any nation that does not honor its heroes will not long endure."
- President Abraham Lincoln"
"They are dead; but they live in each Patriot's breast,
And their names are engraven on honor's bright crest"
- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
"It doesn't take a hero to order men into battle. It takes a hero to be one of those men who goes into battle."
- Norman Schwarzkopf
"The purpose of all war is peace."
- Saint Augustine (354 - 430)
There are only a couple of weeks left to vote for the FHA Mortgage Center real estate blog contest. The FHA Mortgage Center is a resource for information about FHA loans. I'd really appreciate your vote. Thank you.
There is a $500 prize for the winner. If I win, I'll donate that money to Rebuilding Together Greater Haverhill, Inc., which helps revitalize homes and neighborhoods for low-income homeowners and communities in need, especially the elderly, the disabled and families, helping them to live in warmth, safety and independence.
Looking for a "green" neighborhood?
Somerville's Davis Square neighborhood is trying to do its part to be environmentally friendly, according to a May 9, 2008 post on The Green Blog on Boston.com. The initiative is called GoGreen Davis Square.
"In Somerville's Davis Square, restaurants have started discarding waste in compost and recycling bins and screwing in compact fluorescent light bulbs. They tidy up with green cleaning products and recycle cooking grease. Customers at two cafes sip beverages from biodegradable cups, and one restaurant encourages customers to ride their bicycles to dinner by providing a bike valet service."
With energy costs up and rising, more than a few people have considered alternative forms of energy in their home. Solar power is one alternative.
FindSolar.com has information about solar power, including a nifty "solar estimator" that, based on your location, will estimate costs, energy savings and more.
For those people that just want to go "green" to save the environment and are willing to pay for it, NStar will soon offer customers wind power.
If you're willing to pay a premium for your power, NStar is offering customers the ability to power their homes with environmentally-friendly wind power, The Boston Globe reported May 1, 2008.
Consumers will have a choice between having half or all of their power originated from wind farms.
Customers who opt for the green power will pay $4.25 a month for half their electricity from wind farms and $7.25, if they buy all their electricity from wind power. The program, called NStar Green, is the first of its kind for a Massachusetts utility.
"NStar, with 1.1 million electric customers in Eastern and Central Massachusetts, proposed the program last summer. The Boston utility signed 10-year contracts with two wind farms to buy a total of 60 megawatts, enough to power about 60,000 homes."
The wind farms are located in Maine and upstate New York.
The Federal Reserve cut its key rate, the federal funds rate, by a quarter point April 30, 2008.
At 2 percent, the rate is at its lowest point since December 2004. The rate cut was the seventh reduction in a campaign that has brought rates down by 3.25 percentage points since September 2007.
The hope in the real estate industry is that financial institutions will now be more willing to lend money to consumers.
I am a Massachusetts real estate broker and lawyer and co-founder/owner of Buyers Brokers Only, LLC. I am also a partner in the law firm of Rosa & Kres, LLP.
If you have a question for me about any aspect of the home-buying process (i.e., house hunting, mortgages, negotiations, buyer agency, purchase and sale, etc.), please don't hesitate to send me an email. I'm happy to try to answer your question.
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