The City of Boston’s fire department says it’s behind in scheduling the smoke inspections required before a home can be sold in Boston. Why?
Real estate broker commissions are under fire
Things are changing in the real estate business. Full-service brokerages are under attack by the Feds, the Internet, by guys working out of their second bedrooms in their pajamas (…). The article below is about a “discount” broker – that’s a company / person who does the barest minimum of work for a seller, and […]
Moving to a new city: own or rent?
If you’re moving to a new city, should you buy a home right away, or rent for awhile? My friends, it’s an easy choice. First, though, I’m talking about if you are moving into a city, not near a city. If you are moving into the suburbs, I think you should probably buy, especially if […]
Five signs you’re a Bostonian ‘renter for life’
Here’s a piece about the five signs that you’re probably a Bostonian apartment renter, as opposed to a home/condo buyer. OK, we agree on all five of them, especially “you want to phone it in” (i.e you hate yard work, fixing things, etc.) and “you don’t understand” (or you might blissfully even like not understanding […]
Hiding a cat in a Boston condo
Hiding a cat in a Boston condominium Last night, after giving 24 hour notice to my tenant, I made my routine inspection of a small Boston condo that I’m renting out. I’m also in the process of selling this property, so I wanted to test the smoke detectors to […]
Negotiating tips for today’s homebuyer
How can you make sure you pay as little as possible for the home you love? * Know what comparable properties are selling for. If the home is priced higher than the competition, then your seller should be willing to negotiate. In addition, if the price is significantly higher, the owner’s agent probably already knows […]
Noise: it’s the number one issue you should be concerned with
I’m not a cranky person. I only get annoyed at things that are annoying. Like, noisy neighbors. If you live in a condo, you probably have an upstairs neighbor, a downstairs neighbor, and perhaps a neighbor or two on your own floor. A potentially disastrous situation, all around. We had a very noisy neighbor, downstairs, […]
Are homes good investments?
Why are you buying a home, versus renting? The easy answer for most people is, “Because I need a place to live and I’m tired of paying my landlord and I want to build some equity and I want to own my own place and put down roots.” Plus, in the suburbs at least, there […]
Tip: if you are refinancing, you may face a prepayment penalty
If you are refinancing, you have probably already checked your current loan’s rules, to see if you’re going to have a prepayment penalty. If not, you should. You don’t want any surprises. Mortgage Expert, I applied and was approved for a cash-out mortgage refinancing. The loan amount was for $260,000, which I expected to be […]
Boston Real Estate Agents
Citius Altius Fortius – Latin Olympic term for – faster, higher and stronger, this need not only apply to sports, but could also be the motto for Boston real estate brokers. Last night, I was with two Boston real estate agents who were basically in a brag fest on who’s the better real estate agent. […]