It’s a time of change in the local real estate industry. Crackerjack real estate agent Will Fastow, known as the “go-to guy”, has opened his own business. It is called Appleton Properties & Homes and is located in Boston’s South End neighborhood. He was previously at AE Rondeau and RE/MAX. Congratulations, Will!

Remember the Combat Zone? Best quote: “The Combat Zone is a mere shadow of its self, with only 35 bookstores remaining …” Boston, circa 1983. Remember how Hudson Street used to look? But, soon, Hudson Street will rise again, with housing proposed for the eastern side of the street. The more things change … More: [...]

The mess at NorthPoint continues. From today’s Globe: State transportation leaders, frustrated by delays in the massive NorthPoint development, are taking over the building of a new MBTA station on the Cambridge property – a move necessary to ensure an on-time start to the $550 million extension of the Green Line. The NorthPoint development team [...]

From the wire: Between 1985 and 2005, the median monthly housing costs for a U.S. family rose 128 percent from $345 to $798, according to a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development study. The good news is that the portion of income that families spent on housing during that period was nearly flat, increasing [...]

An incentive program has been announced at the Nouvelle at Natick development. While it’s geared toward real estate agents, I’m sure they’d be happy to give you the same treats if you were to walk in for a visit. Or, even better, we can go by, together. Wine bar. Piano lounge. Billards tables. Realtor Rewards. [...]

Why were all the remaining Audubon Park listings withdrawn from MLSPIN, yesterday? The public record shows 14 of 53 units have closed, to date (the last, at the end of June). What will happen to the other 39?

Here’s the way the $7,500 new homebuyers’ credit works (I am not a tax accountant or tax attorney, so do not rely on this information in any way shape or form.) If you haven’t bought a home before, you will be able to take a $7,500 tax credit when you file your 1040 next year. [...]

From the Boston Globe, August 13: Boston’s innovative effort to combat housing foreclosure’s effects on neighborhoods reached a milestone yesterday when the city selected a Roxbury developer to renovate four dilapidated homes on Hendry Street in Dorchester … … Mayor Thomas M. Menino, who spearheaded the project, hopes the effort will attract buyers to the [...]

You probably caught the news today that the developers behind the Filene’s Building project (nee, One Franklin) have hit a rough patch, a victim of the credit crunch, presumably. From the Globe: The $650 million redevelopment of the historic Filene’s building – which Mayor Thomas M. Menino envisions as the new center of downtown Boston [...]

An almost-new home in the Greenway Place development on the Rose Kennedy Greenway has come on the market, priced at $719,000. The unit has exposed brick, recessed lighting, floor-to-ceiling windows, and a private balcony. There are two bedrooms across 1200+/- square feet of space. There is rental parking available, or an option to buy one [...]