Funny article in the Globe about buyers who get focused on just one neighborhood, one street…one house, and go to extremes to get it.
By Elaine McArdle, Boston Globe
For some, however, this approach can become an obsession. Take the case of a young mother intent on buying in a specific area of Arlington. She sent letters [...]

Readers of this blog know where I come down on redevelopment – strongly on the side of increasing supply, and pretty strongly against preservation.  Not because I’m a real estate agent and am greedy about having more condos to sell; in fact, the opposite. 
Increasing the supply of housing benefits everyone.  It can, actually, LOWER [...]

AvalonBay Communities has announced plans to turn parts of Danvers State Hospital into apartments and condos.  That’ll be a bit of an approvement.  Growing up in Topsfield, we used to go down there once in awhile to scare ourselves (apologies to patients).  Oh, wasted youth.
By Michael Corkery, The Wall Street Journal

DANVERS, Mass. — Perched on [...]

Buyers should take their time to find the perfect home.  Sometimes, however, they might never find that home.  Could it be that they are simply unable to commit?
By Teri Karush Rogers, NY Times

On the diving board of dashed hopes and denial paces an unhappy figure: the would-be buyer who shops for years but resists taking [...]

James Stamp, who writes about architecture and the such, has an awesome idea of what all cities should build.
I’m open to suggestions.  Paul Revere? Sam Adams? Rosie Ruiz?

The Next Big Thing, by James Stamp
I started thinking, what’s going to be the next trend to storm our cities? Quickly realizing that I had no idea, I [...]

Below is a report of sales and listing activity for the past week. Information is derived from LINK, the online database that is used by most Boston real estate agents.
New listings: 129
Back on market (listings that went under agreement but deals fell through): 22
Price changes (almost always downward, but some go up): 98
Under agreements: 122
Off [...]

People are all ecstatic when they sell their homes for a huge profit, these days, but are faced with the harsh reality: where the hell are they going to move with housing being so expensive, these days?
By  Motoko Rich, New York Times
It may seem absurd that David and Christine Boals, a Manhattan couple with two [...]

This may be of interest to first-time homebuyers (as well as others, for that matter).
Your own bank or mortgage company may be able to match this offer, however.  It always helps to shop around!
Mass.: Educators Eligible for Home Loans
Educators in Massachusetts can take advantage of a new $100 million initiative that is designed to make [...]

According to the National Association of Realtors, single family home sales stayed steady in June, when compared to last year.  This follows a big drop in sales in April & May; down more than 10% each month, compared to last year.  Condo sales are still going strong, however, at least in Massachusetts as a whole.  [...]

The Ritz Carlton towers is actually made up of three separate parts.  There are the two towers, where you buy to own; then there is the hotel; and there is the "Phillips Club" which is an extended-stay hotel. 
The management has decided to turn the extended-stay units into condos, and sell them off.
The units are [...]