Woburn, MA

So often I speak with people that ask "How is the market?" Well that's a great question and if you listen to the media they say it's a national crisis. People are upside down and are facing foreclosure. I'm not here to say ' not true. But instead to remind you that it all depends on the supply and demand. In my coverage area the market goes from extremely active to extremely depressed. For instance if you want to purchase a condo in Middlesex county the selection is vast and prices range from $41,000 to $1,940,000 there are over 9000 units for sale. With so much selection the question isn't "How's the market?" which my reply would be"Great if you want to buy" Instead the question should be " Where should I buy?" As many of my colleagues have said it's a great time to buy. Prices are low, selection is fabulous and interest rates are low. The government is working tediously to build consumer confidence and the banks are eager to lend for the rebuilding of the "American Dream of Home Ownership"

No one has a crystal ball to know if we've hit the Bottom of the Market or if the Bubble has Burst. But there are allot of home owners that are eager to sell for a variety of reasons. And if your tired of renting or relocating to Massachusetts this is a Great Market. Working with a experienced agent that understands your goal will make achieving it easy and seamless. However, if you think the bubble hasn't burst and it will in fall of 2009 or Spring 2010 you may or may not be right. In my opinion the market prices can only remain constant or go up. Why? Well, that's easy let's go back to supply and demand. Most developers have ceased building or planning new projects until they sell off the current inventory. They are offering free upgrades and extremely motivated to negotiate with serious buyers. With the decline of inventory in high demand towns and areas the prices will have no choice but to increase. Hence, the condo available for $1,940,000.

People choose where they will live on variety of reasons. The school system, commute time to work, area amenities or lifestyle. If you'd like to be a community that has horse stables or paddocks and there are only a hand full of homes that have the living space, school system, commute to the office and updates you like then the prices may be close to or over the current tax assessment. This situation is not uncommon, especially here in Massachusetts. However, if your a first time buyer and attracted to just the price and would like to just own your first place in any town for the lowest price. Then a condo in a up and coming neighborhood for $50,000 may work for you.

Do you remember the saying" If you think your can or can't - your Right! According to the January 27, 2009 Wall Street Journal article Boston's Metro area Inventory is down 17% from this time last year. So in my opinion we have had the bubble burst and it will only get tougher to find bargains. Because remember you're not the only person looking for the "Great Buy"

This is an actual example of a condo in Woburn that is currently for sale. This shows clearly how the new lower interest rate allows someone to make an offer of $15,000 greater and give them the same monthly payment.

This example shows principal only, the asking price of his condo is $139,900 and the complex is approved for FHA 3.5% down payment financing. The best part is you can get the down payment gifted from a relative and then take the tax credit of $7500 in the spring to pay back the gift. It' like 100% financing.

This condo will pull $1100 all day for rent. So, if they buyer decides to move on, the can easily cover the mortgage payment by renting out. This is a NO BRAIN-ER !!!

There are deals like this out there and buyers must take advantage while rates are still low. For more info on finding these deals e mail me.

Click on Woburn Foreclosures to view MLS foreclosed (bank owned) listings and short sale opportunities.

Single family, condominiums, multi-family and land listings will populate a map in Quincy, MA.

Visit the Woburn MA Virtual Homes web site at www.woburnmarealestate.com

To view foreclosures in other Massachusetts communities:

1. Click here and the Virtual Homes MLS Map Search map will appear.
2. Type in a town in Quick City Search. A map of the town will appear with all properties listed shown on the map.
3. Select foreclosures under the Popular Search option.
4. Foreclosed (bank owned) and short sale opportunities will be shown.

The VirtualHomesMLS tool provides a map based search of all MLS listings. Search by town,keyword
phrases, price, location or specific criteria. Take advantage of a map based search.

Virtual Homes provides a complete Internet marketing solution for agents, broker/owners and lenders
including lead generation, lead notification, management tools (CRM), training and support. View virtual
communities for local, town information in various states at MA Real Estate, NH Real Estate, CT Real
Estate and RI Real Estate.

Fact: People want to and in some cases have to buy and sell real estate during the holiday season.

Fact: More buyers work with Realtors when searching for a new home.

Fact: Homes listed with a Realtor sell for higher prices, in shorter time and are smoother transactions.

Question: So with all the facts above why do people seem to think waiting until the spring is a better time to list their homes?

Answer: It has always amazed me that people want to wait until the spring to put thier home on the market. There are many benefits to listing your home for sale during the holidays compared to waiting til Spring

Reasons to List Now:

1. Only serious buyers will drag out during in-climate weather
   
2. Less inventory to compete with
   
3. Homes are decorated beautifully
4. Less interruptions during family time
   
5. More flexible closing time - attorneys and banks are less busy - which translates to more attention to you.

If I've forgotten any reasons please feel free to add to my list.

Woburn's single family home sales market showed some early seasonal volume strength but has weakened in the past two months. With August sales numbers in, volume is low, but prices remained level in August. The graph below shows a line for the median price and bars for the numbers of homes sold.

In the Single Family market, there were 81 properties listed September 1. This represents a 22% decrease in inventory from the same time last year. Sales volume in August was again lower than last year with only 14 homes sold. Median sales prices weakened somewhat. It remains to be seen if the market can maintain strength as we move into fall. In August the average time on market dropped to 81 days. Currently we have less than a 6 month supply of property which indicates that the Woburn market remains in favor of those selling property. It should be noted that approximately 10% of the homes on the market are distressed properties so prices will experience some drag.