06.18.2008 | 9:51 pm | General Life, Local Government, North Reading
So the Selectman decide to increase the trash fee by $46 per year or a little over 25%. Yet they will limit the number of trash bags that a household can put out. Why is it with the government policies that we pay more yet we get less? Personally it is not a lot of money but it that really the point. For some, it may matter but on principle I would love occasionally to hear - “We found an opportunity for efficiency so we will be decreasing your fees.” Do we every hear that at all? And to be fair, this is not a North Reading specific issue but a government issue and mentality. Always ask for more but never over delivery until there is tremendous pressure to do so.
It would be great if our local governments was like technology. Dropping prices but better performance. Not a perfect analogy but one can dream!
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02.28.2008 | 6:52 pm | North Reading, Real Estate
Well, just reading the local paper. It is apparent to me that there are still lots of new houses on the market. Each major realtor that has homes for sale in North Reading has ads in the local paper that includes new developments - over 5 actually including townhouses. I also see the word “Reduced” in many of the ads.
BTW, I was reading this great article on the duality and potential conflict for buyer agents. Buyer beware! Here is a snippet to get you curious:
However, the article doesn’t expose widespread conflicts of interest that contributed to the real estate bubble and their growing cost to society.
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11.27.2007 | 6:12 pm | North Reading
Well you certainly know that the real estate market in down in general if you do any reading at all of the news of late. North Reading is certainly no exception. So it is a great market for buyers in general but don’t think you will get rock bottom prices. This area like more desirable suburbs is priced pretty high. But I do know of one house that sold almost 10% below what it was 2 years ago.
Sales of single-family houses plummeted 28.4 percent from a year earlier, to 2,114, which was the slowest monthly pace since Warren Group in Boston began tracking the state’s housing market in 1987. The median house price declined to $325,000 from $340,000 in January 2007; it was the fourth consecutive month of lower prices. (Boston Globe Article)
Seems gloomy (here is another article and this one too that confirms that gloominess) and add that to the fact that jumbo mortgage rates are still high despite the recent rate drops by the Federal Reserve. But it does seem that inventory is moving a bit. The following is from the same Boston Globe Artice:
Susan Renfrew, the association’s president, conceded the housing market won’t turn around quickly, but she noted that government actions such as increasing the dollar ceiling on mortgages eligible for purchase by government-sponsored agencies such as Freddie Mac will provide some relief.
Renfrew, who is an agent in Greenfield, in central Massachusetts, noted buyers have many choices at a time when mortgage interest rates are low. The rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage is currently 6 percent.
“We have pent-up demand by people who’ve been waiting to get back into the market,” she said. “This is a great time to buy.”
So buyers are shopping but I would expect them to be picky and propose really low prices for sure. It is in these kind of markets where location, location, location will protect your home investment in the long run. So buyers choose wisely 
but this should be a better year for you given all of the years that sellers dominated the market.
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