Real Estate Observer
If you have been looking for an intuitive way to search new Boston Condominium Developments, Boston Condo Guy provides users with a Google Maps based solution that is easy on the eye, and easy to use.
Boston Condo Guy offers listings of the most recent condo developments in Boston proper, with general listing information, as well as photos and floor plans. Your search for Boston Condo Developments just got easier!
A great way to keep up with the changes in the Boston real estate market is to receive daily property updates in your email directly from the Boston MLS system. This gives you the ability to keep up with what is happening with homes that are of interest to you (based on price, square footage, amenities, etc.), and if it is free, you cannot top that! Free Boston property updates via email are a convenient feature provided by Boston Condo Guy to help you keep your finger on the pulse of the Boston condo market.
Before you buy a condo, contact the condominium’s board with the following questions. By getting these questions answered, you will find out a lot about your potential neighbors, and the building that you are buying into – a valuable step in preparing to buy a Boston condo.
1. What percentage of units is owner-occupied? What percentage is tenant-occupied? Generally, the higher the percentage of owner-occupied units, the more marketable the units will be at resale.
2. What covenants, bylaws, and restrictions govern the property? What grandfather clauses are in place? You may find, for instance, that those who buy a property after a certain date cannot rent out their units, but buyers who bought earlier can. Ask for a copy of the bylaws to determine if you can live within them. And have your real estate attorney review property docs, including the master deed, for you.
3. How much does the association keep in reserve? How is that money being invested?
4. Are association assessments keeping pace with the annual rate of inflation? Smart boards raise, as appropriate, assessments a certain percentage each year to build reserves to fund future repairs. To determine if the assessment is reasonable, compare the rate to others in the area.
5. What does (and does not) the monthly Homeowner’s Association (HOA) fee cover? Typical items that one finds included in their HOA fee include, but are not limited to, common area maintenance, trash collection, master insurance, exterior landscaping, snow removal, recreational facilities, water, and sewer. Depending on what type of development you live in, such things as valet parking, concierge, a pool, and security, could increase your HOA fee.
6. What special assessments have been mandated in the past five years? How much was each owner responsible for? Some special assessments are unavoidable. But repeated, expensive assessments could be a red flag about the condition of the building or the board’s fiscal policy.
7. How much turnover occurs in the building?
8. Is the project in litigation? If the builders or homeowners are involved in a lawsuit, reserves can be depleted quickly.
9. Is the developer reputable? Find out what other projects the developer has built and visit one if you can. Ask residents about their perceptions. Request an engineer’s report for developments that have been reconverted from other uses to determine what shape the building is in. If the roof, windows, and bricks are not in good repair, they become your problem once you buy.
10. Are multiple associations involved in the property? In very large developments, umbrella associations, as well as the smaller association into which you are buying, may require separate assessments.
In this flush-with-inventory market, Realtors need to be on their toes with the language they use in trying to sell your home. Has your Realtor been doing you justice when pitching your home to prospective buyers?
Recent academic studies scrutinized the wording on 20,000 home listings only to produce some interesting results – perhaps some obvious facts on one end, but good advice on the other.
Homes described as “beautiful” moved 15 percent faster and for 5 percent more in price than the benchmark. “Good-value” homes sold for 5 percent less than average.
To Sell your Home…
Use These Words:
- Handyman special
- Curb appeal
- Move-in condition
- Landscaping
- Granite
- Gourmet
- Golf
Don’t Use These Words:
- Motivated seller
- Good value
- As-is
- Clean
- Quiet
- New paint
Listings where “landscaping” was heralded sold 20 percent faster, and homes in “move-in condition” took 12 percent less time to sell than the benchmark, although the study showed that “move-in condition” had an insignificant effect on the sales price.
Homes with “motivated” sellers stayed on the market 15 percent longer than average and sold for 4 percent less. Perhaps meaning that the home was overpriced to start with and eventually price reductions had to occur, thus, increases in length of time on the market and lower sales prices.
Have you been searching the Internet for a decent website to gain access to the Boston Multiple Listing Service (MLS)? You probably have been searching the Internet like I once did for a website that will provide you quick and easy access. Unfortunately, there are a lot of websites out there that provide you fast, easy, and free access.
Well, the search is over, we are bringing you Free Boston MLS Access – no gimmicks, forms, or cheesy signups. Get fast and easy access, get the information you want and need, and inquire for further information or a showing at your discretion. We also can provide you with free Boston property updates via email that match your buying criteria – f there are updates to Boston condos that meet your criteria, we’ll send an email to you.
All you want to do is look for properties, and not be bothered with giving away all your personal information unless you find something that you like, now you can do that with free Boston MLS access and free Boston property updates via email.
Mortgage rates have fallen on news of the housing market slowdown – 30-year fixed-rate mortgage declined to 6.22 percent from 6.30 percent, which is on par with rates a year ago.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Mortgage rates fell in the past week as lenders showed concern for the effect the slowing housing market would have on the economy, according to a survey released Thursday.
Should you ever find yourself in a situation where, during the purchase of a home, the home appraisal comes in low, what do you do? Educate yourself with tips on disputing an appraisal on your home. To have a low appraisal come back from your Lender’s Appraiser is somewhat of a rare happening, but it does occur on occasion, so prepare yourself for dealing with a low appraisal.
Think of the buy-versus-rent relationship as akin to a price-earnings ratio for stocks. The housing ratio rises as rents fall, home prices climb, or both. Some markets sport historically high–maybe dangerously high–ratios. The P/E in Miami, where p is the median mortgage payment and e is the median apartment rent, has spiked from approximately 13.5 in 2001 to 24.3 in the summer of 2006.
Other similar markets: Boston, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Phoenix, and Washington, D.C. Until these housing P/E ratios revert back to a more normal range (the national average is 15 ) you may find renting a bargain. These types of markets force homebuyers to take a hard look at their motivations for buying.
Can you believe it, the Bryant on Columbus condos are now built and ready for you to move in! At least that’s what this picture is showing, right? Well, unfortunately, there is still a big hole in the ground with a large crane in the middle of it….so, you can’t move in just yet, but this picture is a nice mock-up of what the development will look like in a couple of years.
The worst may be over for the condominium market in greater Boston, as newly released data show that sales of condo units rebounded in the city of Boston during the fourth quarter of 2006, climbing 0.9 percent over the same three-month period the previous year, while condo sales in the 54 cities and towns served by the Greater Boston Real Estate Board (GBREB) fell by just 100 units, or a modest 4.7 percent, in the final quarter of last year compared to the same quarter in 2005. The relatively stable sales pace follows sales declines of 12 percent and 15 percent in Boston during the second and third quarters of 2006 respectively, and decreases of 8 percent and 20 percent throughout the GBREB jurisdictional area in last year’s second and third quarters, an indication that demand is improving and a recovery in prices may not be far off.
Notably, in greater Boston, the median selling price for condominiums slipped 2.7 percent in the fourth quarter to $327,000, but was down just 1.4 percent on an annual basis last year, declining from an all-time high median price of $345,000 in 2005 to $340,000 in 2006. Meanwhile, in Boston proper the median selling price for condos sold in the final three months of the year fell 7.1 percent from the same period a year earlier to $325,000, however the annual median selling price was flat in 2006, at $349,000.
On an annual basis, sales of condominiums declined 7.6 percent in the City of Boston during 2006 from one year earlier, while sales activity dropped 9.5 percent across the larger 54 community GBREB jurisdiction. Nonetheless, the 9.529 condos sold in greater Boston in 2006 is the second highest yearly sales volume on record, topped only the 10,526 units sold in 2005. Statewide, last year, condo sales fell 12.1 percent, from a record 23,536 in 2005 to 20,698. For complete quarterly and annual data on the condominium and single-family home markets in both greater Boston and Massachusetts, visit the Housing & Research Data section of marealtor.com.
Keith Munsell
CPM & Master Lecturer
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Mark Strickland
Realtor & ABR
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Dean Charles
Real Estate Thought Leader
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Bobby Quinn
EcoBroker Certified
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Mark Martin
Broker & President 2mrealty
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