As expected, the holiday-shortened week led to extreme volatility in mortgage rates, led by better-than-expected job growth and rising wages for workers.  In conjunction, these two data points lead to increased consumer spending and the prospect of higher spending pushes the economic slowdown likelihood lower.  That's bad news for mortgage rate shoppers because without a slowdown, mortgage rates are unlikely to make a dramatic decline like they did at this time last year.There's not much data this week except for Retail Sales on Friday.  You can bet that markets will keep a close eye on this one; it's a terrific report to gauge whether Americans are spending more dollars (as expected) or not.  The Retail Sales report will be backed up with the University of Michigan Consumer Confidenc... 07/09/2007

1900 Brownstone with Four Units-Wide Pine Floors-Exposed Brick-Vacant - Near Egleston Square Location: Roxbury, MAFour unit Brownstone on five levels near Egleston Square.Located near newly developed housing, first floor unit is a duplex unit, exposed brick in several units,wide pine floors, thermopaned windows, and yard for garden or parking. Near public transportation and downtown area. Vacant and ready for new owner to renovate. Information Contact Information Kim Ecevido 617-469-4888 Ext. 201 keopendoor@aol.com Pricing Asking Price: $412,500.00 Links Photo Slideshow OPEN DOOR REALTY Features Bedrooms: 8 Bathrooms: 5 Year Built: 1900 Lot Size: 2171 Square Footage: 2474 Agent Name: Kim Ecevido Broker: Kim Ecevido MLS #: 70595921 Attributes Appliances Range/Oven Full Refrigerator Inte... 06/28/2007

06/28/2007

Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley imposed new emergency regulations to curtail “foreclosure rescuers” who have been accused of cheating consumers out of their homes, the Boston Herald reported June 1, 2007. The regulations would bar so-called “foreclosure rescuers” from making profits on homeowners struggling to afford their mortgage payments. The new regulations do not apply to non-profit groups or family members who step in to try to help people burdened with mortgages they can't pay. “'These ‘rescuers’ take a bad situation - foreclosure - and make it worse by liquidating any remaining equity in the homes,' Coakley said in a statement."Read This Article For More Information on Massachusetts Real Estate, please visit MassHomeBuyerGuide.com  06/20/2007

U.S. Mortgage applications fell 3.4 percent compared to the previous week, the Associated Press reported June 20, 2007. The data comes from the Mortgage Bankers Association. The number of applications for both purchase loans and refinance dropped."Mortgage lenders have been tightening lending criteria in recent months after a surge in defaults and foreclosures. Lenders catering to home buyers with weak, or subprime, credit, have seen a spike in loan defaults, and many have gone bankrupt or sold off their subprime businesses."Read This Article 06/20/2007

06/14/2007

REALTOR Magazine Online reported May 11, 2007 on the top 10 tax-friendliest cities in the United States. The information comes from a recent survey by the District of Columbia government that identified the metro areas that take the smallest tax bite. The survey looked at the tax burden for families in the largest city in each of the 50 states and Washington, D.C. The survey accounted for local income, sales, real estate, and car/personal property taxes for couples at various income levels. The survey’s rankings are based on a dual-income couple, with one school-age child and a combined gross income of $75,000 in 2005. To no one's surprise, Boston is not in the top 10. The top 10 tax-friendliest U.S. cities are as follows: Anchorage, Alaska: 4.1 percentCheyenne, Wyo.: 4.3 percentJackson... 05/26/2007

Designed by HNTB, the Lenny Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge, over the Charles River, in Boston is an unusual structure.  The 185 ft. width of this bridge makes it the widest of its kind in the world.  The two bridge cable-stayed project is priced at $100 million.  The service load and dynamic forces are complicated by the asymmetric, and unusual cable stay geometry.  This bridge will be the widest cable-stayed bridge in the world at ten lanes wide.  It is replacing the upper and lower decks of I-93.  With twin spires that echo the Bunker Hill Monument this bridge will be a landmark for Boston. My husband had the honor or working on this wonderful structure, and our family will always think of him when we pass over the Lenny Zakim Bridge in Boston MA 05/12/2007

We had the pleasure of stopping in to visit the Meads of Commonwealth condos this evening. We've seen a lot of Boston condos, but the Meads really are second to none. The thirteen unique Meads of Commonwealth units are currently spread across three buildings at 413, 415, and 419 Commonwealth Avenue, range in size from 1,827 to 5,711 square feet, and in price from $1.875 million to $6.2 million. Some of the striking features of the Back Bay Meads Condos are: Stunning ceiling heights in the majority of the units - some units have 12 foot ceiling heights, with the lowest being in the eight to nine foot range The sheer expanse of the units - you could literally get lost in some of these units, they just flow from room to room, and amenity to amenity Excellent craftsmanship across the board ... 05/03/2007

The Boston Red Sox are home against the infamous Bronx Bombers and this is sure to be a great weeekend in baseball. As most baseball or sports fans know it just doesn't get any better than watching your favorite team go head to head against their archrivals.The Red Sox and Yankees rivalry goes back to when the Red Sox sold Babe Ruth to the Yankees and that is where Red Sox fans have known all too well for an 86 year stretch, "The Curse of the Bambino".  Since the sale in 1920 the Red Sox went from 1918 until 2004 without winning a World Series.The NY Yankees have been extremely successful and are recognized as the greatest baseball franchise in baseball history. They have won 26 World Series starting in 1923 and thus the  rivalry was born. In 2007 the Red Sox hope to get back on the wi... 04/21/2007

Forbes reported April 16, 2007 on the top 25 cleanest cities in the world. The figures for the cleanest cities came from studies of 300 cities by Mercer Human Resources Consulting, identifying overall quality of living. "The cleanest cities are largely located in countries noted for their democracy and their industrialization. The only Asian cities represented are in Japan. There are no top-25 clean cities in South or Central America, Africa and Australia. The U.S. has five of the top 25; Canada, a strong five, with the top spot its city of Calgary; Europe has 11 of the top 25; and Japan has three." Boston tied for tenth with Montreal, Canada; Bern, Switzerland; Vancouver, Canada and Lexington, KY. View a slide show of the cleanest cities in the world.Read The Article 04/20/2007

The Boston Globe reported April 14, 2007 that Downtown Boston condo prices rose 7 percent in the first quarter."Prices for condominiums in the city jumped 7 percent in the first quarter of this year, compared to the same period in 2006, to a median $489,800, according to preliminary market figures compiled by Otis & Ahearn, a Boston real estate brokerage and marketing firm. In contrast, prices for single-family homes in Massachusetts fell 5.7 percent in the same period, according to Global Insight, a Waltham economic and consulting firm. "The downtown condo market 'is cooking,' said Kevin Ahearn, Otis & Ahearn's president. 'There's very aggressive buying' in all price ranges, he said."Ahearn predicted that when the final condo sales figures are in, downtown sales may surpass the first-q... 04/20/2007

Are you serious about building your net worth?  How about having a positive monthly cash flow? Owning a property with huge growth potential? Here is an opportunity to purchase a fully leased 4 unit apartment building within walking distance to beaches and MBTA commuter line in Beverly's Dane Street Beach neighborhood.All the informatiion can be found by simply clicking >>>> http://listing.loopnet.com/15047289 to see all the details on this high performance Prime AAA property.Easy to show by appointment by simply giving me a call to set up a private showing. The building and apartments are in mint condition, plenty of parking for tenants and one of the finest investment opportunities  on the North Shore. 04/18/2007

I hosted two open houses over the weekend. One was in Milton, Massachusetts and the other one was in Quincy. The one on Elm Street in Milton (See more @ www.10elm.com) was jam packed with people. There were 10 sets through in 1 1/2 hours. This is pretty substantial. This would be about 1 set every 9 minutes. This was a productive open house. The second open house was @ 34 Acton Street in Quincy. (See more @ www.34acton.com). This open house also had about 10 sets through.   Is it a sign? Possibly. It seems there were more people at open houses this weekend, than I can remember for a long time. If you're interested to know which properties are having open houses this weekend, please go to my web site @ www.mmahoney.com  and let me know which towns you need to know about, and I will happi... 04/02/2007

Looks like the only bubble popped in Boston may be on the local newspapers face.  Our pals over at Otis & Ahearn, Inc here in Boston supplied us with the YE data for 2006 (properly organized & broken down).  This report is not only going to EMBARRASS THE PRESS (as it should), but it will show you the reality of the 2006 Boston Real Estate market … no bubble here.  One personal comment I have to add is that there needs to be a better way to get this information to the public.  For an entire year, we listened to reporters & writers from local and national news publications bash the real estate industry (which in some cases they have the right too), but to point fingers at individual markets like Boston and be COMPLETELY wrong is a problem.  Its bad news, its bad advice and most of the Am... 02/06/2007

Looking to buy real estate in Boston or Brookline visit our website and obtain all the listings with the full addresses. boston condos 01/30/2007

Source Boston Globe:By Kimberly Blanton, Globe Staff  |  January 6, 2007=========Massachusetts real estate may be in the midst of its steepest downturn since the 1990s, but luxury condominium sales in downtown Boston barreled along at near-record levels, according to preliminary 2006 estimates released yesterday by Otis & Ahearn, a Boston brokerage firm.Both sales of $1 million-plus condos and sales of condos costing more than $1,000 per square foot will approach 2005's record sales in Boston's high-end market, the firm said."The accumulation of wealth has been dramatic," said Kevin Ahearn, president. "We're seeing it in the stock market, and we're seeing it in the condominium housing market."Empty-nesters and well-heeled young professionals and couples are snapping up contemporary unit... 01/06/2007

                                                 25 Beaver Place is the latest Pimp Pad on condoDomain.com.  Boasts 4200+sf and 4 deeded parking spaces.  Who wants me?  Just a cool $5M...beavers not included! 01/05/2007

Six Questions Buyers Should Ask Before Making An Offer By Michael Mahoney - www.MMahoney.comKeller Williams RealtorCovering Greater BostonCall me  @617-615-9435 When you are buying a home, there are many problems that the seller is obligated to disclose. For example, in most states, it is illegal to withhold information about major physical defects on the property, but, these disclosures don't always paint the entire picture of the home. Here are six questions you may want to ask that can offer additional insight about the prospective home before you make a final decision. 1) Why is the seller selling the house?This question may help you evaluate the "real value" of the property. Is there something about the house the seller does not like? If so, you may be able to adjust the purchase ... 12/18/2006

Twenty Terms You Must Know and Understand Before You Sign Off On Your Mortgage!       Buying a home is a major achievement in most everyone's life. Pride of ownership, tax breaks and equity are just a few of the many benefits you'll enjoy with your new home.       Your home purchase may also be one of the largest you will ever make. During the emotional excitement of buying a home, you may encounter terms with which you are unfamiliar.       For some, it can be bit embarrassing to ask what they consider too many questions. Others may make a note of their questions but simply forget to revisit those points.      To ensure that you have complete confidence during your home loan process, invest a moment to read this report and become familiar with the concepts and terms you'll encounter.  ... 12/01/2006