Mortgage Rates Drop! Is it Time to Buy?

Mortgage rates drop below 6 points for the first time since the end of May this year.  According to MSNBC, private economists predicted that the governments move to take over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac would result in lower mortgage rates because “it removed a huge uncertainty about the future of the two firms, which own or guarantee half of the nation’s mortgages”.

I can’t think of a better time to buy, or at least lock in your rate than from now till the end of the month.  The constant battle of the rate has gone on for years causing most consumers (especially first-time buyers) to doubt their buying power.  One thing is for sure, as we head into the Fall, competition between buyers drops due to the majority of consumers wanting to get into a nice new home before the school year.  If they didn’t find anything this spring/summer, they wait till next year.

So if you don’t need the school (yet!), then consider yourself in prime buying season.  Get your new home closed before the end of the year, and your taxes for 2008 will thank you.

All Things Retro

photo via retrorenovation

Here in New England we don’t have a lot of “Modern Contemporary” homes.  We do have a lot of retro.  Frequently I show a lot of homes where the owners have been there since the house was built (circa 1950’s or 1960’s).  I’ve come to really love the vintage stoves, the knotty pine cabinets and the classic porcelain sinks.  More often than not, my clients comment about how much it will take to “re-do” it.  Well for those of you that love it just the way it is, do I have a site for you.  I came across RetroRenovation today which is a super cool blog.  Pam loves all things retro.  Its a great site to peruse other peoples mid-century homes and also ask her how to update or renovate your retro home’s aesthetic.  She has tours of viewer’s homes, ebay postings for retro items as well as resources for to find that tough item that no one can find anymore.  This blog will keep you looking at all the great photos for hours (as I did).

So the next time you see the kitchen and think “oh god, i need at least $20,000 to change this”  instead think  “this is atomically cool!”

Don’t Have Time to Drive By the New Listing, Use Google!

This has got to be one of the coolest new tools out there to use for your house hunting. We’ve been using Mapquest and Google Maps for years to see where homes are located, what is close by and determining how long a commute we have. Google came out with the Street View a few months back which I can honestly say has been such a savior when it comes to real estate. Not only can you see the curb appeal of the potential house that you are looking at, but you can view what the house is looking at across the street along with your potential neighbors. You don’t even have to drive by anymore! Although you may still want to, but this will narrow down your options.

If you are using any other cool tools for your search, I’d love to hear about them.

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Arlington Farmer’s Market is Here

photo courtesy of  Arlington Advocate

The 11th year of the Arlington Farmers Market started last week.  It runs from June – October every year.  If you are new to the area, or looking to move here, definitely check it out.  Every Wednesday from 1-6:30pm, you can stock up on your local produce from area farms.  I’ve loved going there since I moved to town 5 years ago.  Its a great way to bump into some townies and also see whats in season.

Its located in the Center parking lot next to Saint Agnes Parish.  There are other farmer’s markets in the surrounding towns such as Somerville, Cambridge, Belmont and Lexington.  For more information check the here

Even Hollywood Has to Clear Title

A recent article over at Inman caught my eye this morning.  I knew about the plans for a major movie studio coming to our little (not so little) Plymouth, Mass.  Plymouth Rock Studios had recently gotten a winning approval of local residents on preliminary site work and design.  However, after their recent title search, the 1,000 acre site that they picked has to clear title on some 7,058 campsites dating back to the early 1900’s.  Ouch!  That could take forever.   And you though you had problems?  Read the full story here.

Community Snapshot – Arlington!

“A great compromise for urbanites who hear, reluctantly, the siren call of the suburbs but don’t want to forsake the enchantments of the city”.

Arlington is the Community Snapshot in the Boston Sunday Globe today. It is a great explanation as to why we are having such a great market this spring.

photo courtesy of the globe

To read the full snapshop click here

For the Boston Sunday Globe Real Estate Section click here

Pack it up and move ‘em out

Everything I own at the moment is inside of a box. What I’ve come to realize is that there are a lot of boxes. The beau and I are moving to a friends 2-family in Arlington temporarily while we look for our first home together, so the past month has been somewhat disorganized, yet refreshing. Since a lot of you will be working on moving in the future, or have moved already, I thought I’d offer up a couple tips. Here are a few things we learned while packing up our home:

• Go through everything you own, make one room the “staging” area. Within the area, make 4 piles. “to donate”, “to sell”, “to give to friends/family”, “to trash”. This was the longest part of the move process and we started it about 2 months prior. It really help pair down on what we didn’t use and what we didn’t need. “to sell” was the best pile. We used a number of resources such as half.com for books and dvds, craigslist for furniture that no longer appealed to us, ebay for items of some value (make sure you really know how much it may cost to ship your items – we underestimated), freecycle to give away an item that someone else may need – this was a great discovery and I got rid of old cell phones and 4 years worth of Food and Wine magazines.
• Tell an admin at your office (or whomever orders/unpacks supplies) that you are moving and if she/he could save the boxes. This was a huge help! Thanks peg! I didn’t buy one box. I slowly accumulated, and also posted on freecycle that I needed them.
• Consolidate. I finally realzied that although I love ice cream, I don’t really need 3 scoopers.
• Hire Movers. Depending on your budget, they don’t have to move everthing. We realized that we are past the years of asking our friends for help. Who really likes to move other people anyway? So we hired MiniMoves in Arlington just to move furniture. Local guys and great service.
• Pack your bathroom items close to you. Make sure you know which box is bathroom and that it stays close to you. When you get to your new pad, put up the curtain and unpack the towels. Nothing says welcome home like a hot shower after a move.

Here is the worst part of packing:

• Packing your coffee filters before you actually move. I spend about 15minutes this morning trying to find them.
• Not labeling boxes. Label, Label, Label…… So you know what box goes in what room.
• Eating take out for a week! Now this may not be the worst part about moving, but I’m anxious for a home cooked meal at this point.
• Realizing that despite our best efforts of pairing down, we still have too much STUFF.

Happy packing!

Why Do We Love Talking About Real Estate?

I’ve often thought about this question time and time again. Mostly because I can’t go anywhere, without someone talking about real estate. An average day for me is like this – wake up, head to spinning (on a good day), and as i sit in class and pedal a little waiting to start,  the women next to me says to her neighbor, did you see 101 main street? i can’t believe they are moving, how much is there house? yada yada. I head to Starbucks for an afternoon latte, and behind me, there are two men talking about their homes, and whether to move up or move down and what is the market doing anyway? Later in the evening, i head to a friends house for a little cocktail party, and mostly everyone there will talk about there house that is for sale, or that they are looking to buy, etc. etc.

Don’t get me wrong, I love love love talking real estate. Why do you think I am an agent who loves her job? I’m just fascinated by the fact that everyone loves it too. Thats why it was nice to see one of my favorite bloggers Decorno, blog about this exact topic here. Status Anxiety: Real Estate. Its a wonderful post that throws the question out to her readers. I love the responses. If anyone has any thoughts on the subject, i’d love to hear from you….

enjoy.

Gorgeous weekend for Open Houses

Looks like its going to be a great weekend for Open Houses.  The listings are posted under the “open house” tab.  Happy house hunting – and let me know if you have any questions with the properties that you see.

-Kelly

Open Houses Are Published for the Weekend

You can find them above under the “open house” tab.  Let me know if you have any questions about the properties you see this weekend.

Happy House Hunting!

-Kelly