So you've hired a buyer's agent - how do you make the most of your home buying process? Open communication is extremely important in making sure that we find you the right house. A silent showing is painful! And just saying "It's nice" or "It's not for me" isn't going to cut it. I need to know the whys, what you liked and what you didn't like so that I can make sure I am putting the best possible properties in front of you. 07/15/2010

Why are you still renting in Waltham? The Waltham, MA rental market is hot!  With Bentley College and Brandeis University in Waltham, MA, there is no shortage of college renters.  In addition, Waltham's close proximity to Burlington, MA and the tech corridor along 95/128 as well as a 15 minute train ride to Boston - Waltham, MA attracts is share of young professionals.  With a booming rental market, the question is, why are you still renting? Why are you still paying someone else's mortgage? I've written before about the financial benefits to owning vs. renting (building equity and several tax benefits), but you might still think you can't afford it.  YOU CAN!  Renting isn't cheap - particularly in a market like Waltham, MA.  But rather than just telling you about it... let's crunch the... 07/12/2010

Waltham MA Condos Report - June 2010 The Waltham MA Condos activity for homes sold in Waltham, MA shows that there were 30 condos sold in Waltham MA during the month of June 2010 with an average sales price of $325,045 and an average days on the market (DOM) of 76. Average condo sale prices have started to show some life, building on a slight increase in 2009.  DOM is also down which is a good sign for sellers.  Digging deeper into the statistics, it's still all about PRICE PRICE PRICE.  Pricing your condo right can be the difference between a week on the market and 3 months on the market.  Properties sold in two weeks or less sold for 98.3% of list price.  Properties that took more than 60 days to sell experienced an average of 1.67 price reductions and sold at 93% of original list pri... 07/09/2010

Waltham MA Homes Report - June 2010 The Waltham MA Home Market activity for homes sold in Waltham, MA shows that there were 44 homes sold in Waltham MA during the month of June 2010 with an average sales price of $447,685 and an average days on the market (DOM) of 63. As you can see from the chart below, Waltham home prices are climbing back up, though not back to their previous high in 2007.  Number of home sales are also up versus the previous month last year, although part of this rise may be due to the expiration of the tax credit on June 30th, it will be interesting to see where July's numbers come in as a result.      MA Real Estate - Community, relocation and school information with town demographics. MA Foreclosures - Obtain a list of foreclosed and bank owned real estate and sh... 07/09/2010

Why now is the time to buy a home The expiration of the first time home buyer tax credit had a lot if Chicken Little's scrambling, hammering their database and contemplating jumping off their roofs. WHAT WILL WE DO WITHOUT IT!? Who the heck will want to buy if they can't get $8,000 next year???     I didn't want to jump off my roof.  Partly because my house in only two stories and I probably would have suffered nothing more than a broken leg and massive cast for the summer beach season (I've got enough working against me at the beach, I don't need a busted flipper to top it off)!  But mostly because the tax credit ISN'T the be all end all of the real estate market. Was it a nice boost for some first timer's on the fence?  Yep!  Was the home owner tax credit a help to homeowners who were... 06/23/2010

Why does your Realtor recommend a mortgage broker/loan officer? When a client asks me if I know a loan officer they can call, I tell them "Dana George at Greenpark Mortgage!"  Some clients welcome my recommendation of a loan officer, others are a bit more wary.  And I understand why!  The real estate industry has gotten some... eh... bad press in the past few years.  The finger has been sharply pointed at loan officers, mortgage brokers & lenders and the public perception is that loan officers are predatory and just out for a buck... so the logic follows that if a Realtor is recommending a mortgage professional, there must be something in it for them.  Right?     There is a misconception when it comes to Realtors recommending professionals - particularly a mortgage professional.  Many p... 06/17/2010

  Buying a home after a short sale I need to preface this blog by informing you that I AM NOT A MORTGAGE PROFESSIONAL.  I AM A REALTOR and you should speak to a mortage professional for further qualified advice.  That being said, let's move on.  For most home owners who sell short, they will not be able to purchase another home for quite awhile.  FHA requires at least 3 years from the time you sell your property short before you will qualify for another FHA loan, Fannie Mae requires 2 years... at that is the minimum.  That does not take into account the damage that will be done to your credit score and the time it may take you to bring it up to the FHA minimum 620 in order to qualify.  However, according to guidance released by HUD, if you meet certain criteria, you may be able to purch... 06/16/2010

There are Waltham MA homes for sale in a variety of price ranges, however it is important to know what is out there in your budget before you start looking at homes.  I find one of the most important parts of my job is to set expectations with my clients.  Setting expectations is most important when talking about price.  I work with clients who are all over the map with regards to price range and housing needs.  Lots of times, folks get sticker shock when we go look at houses for the first time.  I get the "they want what for this dump???" look when we walk into a "fixer upper."  Or they will just come right out and say what they are thinking: "WOW, this is overpriced."  The truth is, most real estate on the market is not over priced, you just need an agent who can talk you through the ... 06/14/2010

Waltham MA Condos Report - May 2010 The Waltham MA Condos activity for homes sold in Waltham, MA shows that there were 26 condos sold in Waltham MA during the month of May 2010 with an average sales price of $316,879 and an average days on the market (DOM) of 71. Average condo sale prices are on the way up but not quite there yet.  Although the single family homes market in Waltham, MA is almost back to it's glory days of 2007, the condo market has been slower to respond.  Bad news for sellers, but good news for buyers who are still looking to buy a condo in Waltham and take advantage of lower sale prices!       MA Real Estate - Community, relocation and school information with town demographics. MA Foreclosures - Obtain a list of foreclosed and bank owned real estate and short sales MA... 06/06/2010

Waltham MA Homes Report - May 2010 The Waltham MA Home Market activity for homes sold in Waltham, MA shows that there were 28 homes sold in Waltham MA during the month of May 2010 with an average sales price of $426,055 and an average days on the market (DOM) of 97. Average home sale prices are on the way up and almost back to the previous high in 2007 (-3%).  Number of home sales are up 32% over 2009.  Signs that we are entering a neutral market?  It's too early to tell for sure, but my vote is yes.  Great news for sellers, urgent news for buyers!       MA Real Estate - Community, relocation and school information with town demographics. MA Foreclosures - Obtain a list of foreclosed and bank owned real estate and short sales MA MLS - View all listings in the statewide MLS. MA Homes for... 06/06/2010

I'm a buyer's agent not a set of keys, and yup, there's a difference.  Let me start off by saying, I'm not a high pressure sales person.  It is not my intention to talk you in to purchasing a home you don't want so I can pick up my check.  It IS my intention to make sure that we don't waste each other's time. Requesting a meeting prior to showing you properties isn't just because "I'm a people person."  This meeting is to explain the home buying process to you: Even if you have done your homework (and it's great if you have!), there is information that comes with my experience and you might just find it valuable.  This meeting is also to do what we call a "need assessment": This is where we talk about your needs and wants in a home, your timeline for purchasing, your price range and any... 06/06/2010

If you are looking for land for sale in Waltham, MA or are interested in buying land in Waltham, MA this post is for you.  I have had several clients come to me recently looking to take advantage of lower construction costs as a result of a down housing market.  Yes, it is cheaper to build now, however land ain't so cheap!  It never is, it never will be in this area.  There is a limited supply and, as Tony Soprano so elequently put it, "God ain't making any more of it!" There are a couple of great parcels on the market right now... which are rare finds in Waltham and the surrounding area.  If you are looking to build your dream house, take a look at what Waltham has to offer.  In particular, the lot on Worcester Lane (Piety Corner) which is one of Waltham's oldest and most established n... 06/03/2010

Some folks in the real estate biz have been reluctant to migrate their marketing efforts online.  You know who I'm talking about... and I don't have to worry about any of them reading this because THEY DON'T BLOG and the internet scares them.  They are missing out and so are you if they are working for you.  If you are hoping to sell your home in the greater Boston area, you need to call me if: You ask your agent about their Google rankings and they say "what's a google??" If that's even close to the response you get... run screaming or prepare for months of frustration trying to sell your house.  GOOGLE MATTERS!  Google logs 2 billion searches a day, that's about 300 MILLION users PER DAY.  Google holds 84% of the market share, running a distant second is Yahoo! with 6%...... think it ... 06/03/2010

If you're a client of mine, you've heard me say this more than once: "No big purchases before closing!"  New Fannie Mae regulations give me new reason to repeat this over and over until you don't even want to look at your credit card! Fannie Mae's new Loan Quality Initiative (LQI) mandates become effective on June 1st.  So if my no-spending-speech isn't enough, these new mandates will curb borrower's spending prior to closing (or they will risk losing their financing). The new regulations are an effort by Fannie Mae to tighten up on underwriters and cut down on fraud from borrowers.  As part of the new regulations, lenders will, amoung other things, be required to pull two credit reports.  The second credit report close to closing (which is a practice for some lenders currently) could c... 05/27/2010

How to Buy a Waltham, Massachusetts Short Sale As a home buyer looking for value in the purchase of real estate you may consider a "short sale" as a viable option.  The process of finding and buying a Waltham, MA short sale  is not a typical real estate transaction.  To have success, you must work with qualified professionals and understand the process. Utilize the services of Realtors, attorneys, accountants, mortgage lenders and home inspectors as they all provide expert advice.  What is a Short Sale? Homeowners that have financial hardships may pursue a short sale prior to foreclosure.  This process may be a preferable option to preserve their credit and limit their debt exposure.  In Massachusetts, the laws governing foreclosures provide incentives for lenders to work with homeowner... 05/24/2010

Waltham MA Condo Market Report - April 2010 The Waltham MA Condo Market activity for homes sold in Waltham, MA shows that there were 20 single family homes transacted in April 2010 with an average sales price of $409,795 and an average days on the market (DOM) of 39.       MA Real Estate - Community, relocation and school information with town demographics. MA Foreclosures - Obtain a list of foreclosed and bank owned real estate and short sales MA MLS - View all listings in the statewide MLS. MA Homes for Sale - Map Search - Search by location, neighborhood and commuting. Waltham MA Condos for Sale - Map based search Virtual Homes Real Estate provides search tools to assist you in learning about the community, listing and market conditions. Click on the following links for your choice ... 05/12/2010

Waltham MA Real Estate Market Report - April 2010 The Waltham MA Real Estate Market activity for homes sold in Waltham, MA shows that there were 20 single family homes transacted in April 2010 with an average sales price of $409,795 and an average days on the market (DOM) of 39.         MA Real Estate - Community, relocation and school information with town demographics. MA Foreclosures - Obtain a list of foreclosed and bank owned real estate and short sales MA MLS - View all listings in the statewide MLS. MA Homes for Sale - Map Search - Search by location, neighborhood and commuting. Waltham MA Homes for Sale - Map based search Virtual Homes Real Estate provides search tools to assist you in learning about the community, listing and market conditions. Click on the following links for... 05/12/2010

Newton Massachusetts Homes Sold Report – Q1 2010 The real estate and homes sold activity for homes sold in Newton, Massachusetts shows that there were 71 Condominiums transacted in Q1 2010 with an average sales price of $842,717 and an average days on the market (DOM) of 77.        MA Real Estate – Community, relocation and school information with town demographics. MA Foreclosures – Obtain a list of foreclosed and bank owned real estate and short sales MA MLS – View all listings in the statewide MLS. Newton MA Real Estate – Information for home buyers and home sellers in Newton, MA. Newton MA Listings – View all listings in Newton MA MA Homes for Sale – Map Search – Search by location, neighborhood and commuting. Virtual Homes Real Estate provides search tools to assist you in learning... 04/01/2010

Waltham Massachusetts Condo Market Report – Q1 2010 The real estate and homes sold activity for Condos in Waltham, Massachusetts shows that there were 9 Single Family homes transacted in February 2010 with an average sales price of $419,139 and an average days on the market (DOM) of 87.        MA Real Estate - Community, relocation and school information with town demographics. MA Foreclosures – Obtain a list of foreclosed and bank owned real estate and short sales MA MLS – View all listings in the statewide MLS. MA Homes for Sale - Map Search – Search by location, neighborhood and commuting. Virtual Homes Real Estate provides search tools to assist you in learning about the community, listing and market conditions. Click on the following links for your choice of services. Visit Waltham... 04/01/2010

Waltham Massachusetts Market Report – Q1 2010 The real estate and homes sold activity for Single Family homes in Waltham, Massachusetts shows that there were 40 Single Family homes transacted in Q1 2010 (year to date ended 03/31/2010) with an average sales price of $384,926 and an average days on the market (DOM) of 79.       MA Real Estate - Community, relocation and school information with town demographics. MA Foreclosures – Obtain a list of foreclosed and bank owned real estate and short sales MA MLS – View all listings in the statewide MLS. MA Homes for Sale - Map Search – Search by location, neighborhood and commuting. Virtual Homes Real Estate provides search tools to assist you in learning about the community, listing and market conditions. Click on the following links for your ... 04/01/2010