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Newton, MA

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When is a KROKUS not a SIGN OF a THAWING SPRING MARKET?

02-06-12
Byron Bradley
Byron Bradley: Real Estate Agent in Newton, MA
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  • Mobile: (781) 996-9173

The answer is, “When it’s the band warming up for Def Leppard.” Yes, spring makes us all wistful, and the prospect of crocuses coming up took me back to 1983. Def Leppard were coming to town on the Pyromania tour, and the warm-up band was, you guessed it, Krokus. That was, of course back when I looked good sporting a black concert t-shirt.

With 2012 being the “Year Without a Winter”, folks recently have been talking of crocuses motivating buyers and sellers to kick start the spring market. Some look back fondly to those days of yore when competing offers and speedy deals were the norm. The market may never look that good again, and I have resigned myself to the fact that I’ll never again look good in my sleeveless Billy Squier t-shirt.

Still, the Newton market is heating up, and that may be enough to have us look back on this spring fondly one day.

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Not On MLS. Historic Newton Mass Home For Sale

01-03-12
David Laven
David Laven: Real Estate Agent in Boston, MA
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  • Mobile: (617) 259-0235

I just landed a new listing in Newton Mass that is not yet listed on the MLS and I wanted to share it with my fellow Activerainers first. This Newton Mass Home is a historic restoration that has been done to the highest standards. You can check out the details of this Newton Home by visiting www.HistoricNewtonHome.com

Here is a quick video of321 Central Street In Newton MA.

Here are a few pics of this Newton Mass Home For Sale

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A Newton MA Home Inspector

11-19-11
Jim Mushinsky
Jim Mushinsky: Real Estate Trainer in Framingham, MA
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  • Office: (508) 877-5939

A home inspector working in Newton MA is required to perform a home inspection to the Massachusetts Home Inspector Standards of Practice. A copy of the standard will be provided to the client by the home inspector.

Massachusetts Home InspectorThe MA Home Inspector Standards of Practice is written for the professional home inspector. United Inspection Service has created some easy to read Consumer Information Sheets illustrating what is included and excluded in a Standard MA home inspection. Clear client communications (3c) are one of our core values. See the easy to read one page consumer information sheets for each of the systems in a MA Home Inspection.

Visit the Newton MA Home Inspection web page from United Inspection Service for some useful information about homes in Newton MA and the Massachusetts Home Inspection.

  • Massachusetts Home Inspector Standards of Practice
  • Recommended Questions to Ask the Seller/Seller's Representative
  • Home Inspection Photographs
  • Flood Zones
  • Lead Paint
  • Hazardous Waste Release
  • Check the Newton MA Home Inspector web page for consumer information links ...

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The internet will not doom Real estate agents to extinction

11-02-11
Melissa Ostrom & Melville Capps Newton MA - The Mel and Mel Team
Melissa Ostrom & Melville Capps Newton MA - The Mel and Mel Team: Real Estate Agent in Newton, MA
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  • Office: (617) 431-4230
  • Mobile: (617) 431-4230
  • Secondary: (617) 431-4230

The internet will not doom Real estate agents to extinction like travel agents* because there are fundamental differences between the two businesses.

Travel agents

Real estate agents
Sell a product that is produced by a few different suppliers (airlines) who are in competition. Sell a product that is “produced” by many different suppliers, who are not in direct competition. Every homeowner is a supplier.
The airlines can create, change, set prices, or eliminate the product (an airline flight) at will. Real estate cannot be created, changed, have its price set by the supplier, or eliminated at will.
Airline flights are, for the most part, fungible – that is uniform enough to be freely substituted. Real estate is unique.
The customer pays for the product with his or her own money. The real estate buyer rarely pays with his or her own money, the vast majority of buyers need a loan. Lenders are additional stakeholders in transactions.
Travel transactions are discretionary. Not all real estate transactions are voluntary.
Airline flights are purchased without prior inspection. Real estate is almost never purchased without prior inspection.
The price, terms, timing, and conditions of sale of airline flights is not negotiable. The price, terms, timing, and conditions of sale of real estate is fully negotiable.
Travel agents utilize a database of products (flights) created by the suppliers (airlines) as the foundation of their services. Real estate agents utilize a database of products (houses) created by themselves (through broker member multiple listing services).


Both the travel agent’s and real estate agent’s databases are now available to the public. Consumers in both markets can search for the product they want. The primary, and essential, difference is that travel customers searching the online databases can actually click to purchase the airline flights online.

There are too many areas where a buyer needs skilled assistance, such as viewing and inspecting homes, negotiating the price and terms of sale, and most importantly coordinating the transaction with lenders, appraisers, inspectors, and others for online real estate buyers to simply click to buy a house. But, if it were ever possible for an online real estate buyer to simply click to purchase a house, then real estate agent might become extinct too.

*Actually, travel agents are not extinct, but their business has been greatly diminished. The ability of travelers to directly purchase flights online, and airlines stopping paying commissions on flights eliminated the vast majority of travel agents. There are still travel agents, but they provide niche services, such as putting together tour packages and otherwise add value beyond just connecting a traveler to an airline flight, hotel or rental car.
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"Oh my God, an honest real estate agent."

11-02-11
Melissa Ostrom & Melville Capps Newton MA - The Mel and Mel Team
Melissa Ostrom & Melville Capps Newton MA - The Mel and Mel Team: Real Estate Agent in Newton, MA
  • view my blog
  • Office: (617) 431-4230
  • Mobile: (617) 431-4230
  • Secondary: (617) 431-4230

Recently Melissa was working an open house, and was talking with people who stopped by. One couple was going over the listing brochure and they were asking questions about it. Melissa was explaining what the various items on it meant. She explained that there were two numbers on it that they needed to look at as they looked at homes to buy.


The first was the listing price, and the second was the assessed value. She explained that the assessed value was set by the city last December. She told them that they had to ask themselves, and the sellers, why the listing price was so much higher than the assessed value.


She explained there often are real reasons why the listing price may be much higher than the assessed value, such as increasing market prices (not really the case here), or the seller may have made improvements that were not reflected in the assessment. Their response was, "oh my God, an honest real estate agent." It is a sad commentary on our industry that their expectation was that real estate agents were going to lie to them.



Melville CappsMelville Capps

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