Think all the housing-market scams went away after the market went bust in 2008? Wrong. The scammers have merely adjusted to the times.
Our favorite scam (in terms of intricate ingenuity) is the “credit enhancement” trick, in which “credit enhancement” companies effectively set up bogus bank accounts for people, making their balances look bigger and impressing [...]

A new study on real estate price was conducted by MIT and CBRE Econometric Advisors. It addresses the question whether or not the current market is actually a “buy” market. A big “booooo” because Boston is missing from the detailed data! In any event, the answer is basically if you take the post 2002 bubble [...]

Boston real estate outlook

The Boston Business Journal interviewed economist Karl ’Chip’ Case on a range of issues.  The following excerpts are Karl Case’s thoughts on the U.S. housing market:
‘I’m not real optimistic’
It’s nearly impossible to meet with Case and not somehow discuss the housing market. The subject of wine is a close second, in terms of his [...]

Meredith Whitney, who a few years ago was the first to accuse the financial emperor of having no clothes, still maintains there’s going to be a double-dip price drop in housing, though she said it will probably be a “light” double dip.
She blames the shadow inventory of homes and a broken bank model for the [...]

With experts spending January analyzing Obama’s performance during his first year in office and of course last night’s election, Zillow decided to study how the value of the White House is holding up.
Zillow first gave the White House a Zestimate in January 2009 as the Obama family was preparing to take residence. At that [...]

Just wondering…
If the Clintons have enough money to buy a new home, why are they still hitting up everyone for cash to pay off their campaign debts? More important, how much would we have to pony up for a chance to win an afternoon of house-hunting with Bill? — Adam Bonislawski

Hex still marks the spot at the new Yankee Stadium.
It has been more than a year since the team extricated a Red Sox jersey maliciously entombed in the new stadium’s concrete by a Boston-loving hardhat — yet the hole remains unfilled, and officials have no clue what to do with it.
Here’s an idea for [...]

Timothy Geithner, now living in Washington, is trying to sell his five-bedroom Tudor home in the New York City suburbs, and it looks like he’ll be taking a loss even if he gets his asking price.
The house, which has a Larchmont mailing address but is just outside that village in the town of Mamaroneck, [...]

I’ve hesitated to post this since I’m not sure how it will go over with other real estate agents (or my boss!). But, why not?
When you buy a home, you’re most likely going to take out a mortgage loan to finance it. The rate on that loan will vary, based on your credit [...]

I enjoyed the Thanksgiving weekend with family at a bed & breakfast in Chester, Vermont.
Turns out, a Hallmark Channel TV movie was filmed in the town, last spring. It’s called “Moonlight & Mistletoe” starring Tom Arnold and Candace Cameron-Bure (loved her in “Full House”).
Description: A man and his estranged daughter fight to save Santaville, [...]