Imagine if we only had a crystal ball. Our major financial and life decisions would be so simple to make, and there would be no risk and no worries. Unfortunately, we do not have that luxury. Our decisions must be made upon solid data and information.
Over the past year, you may have heard a repeated message; now is a good time to buy. From the data we have, we do in fact know that it is a buyer's market, and a good one. A wide variety of inventory is available, and interest rates are still low, making this an unprecedented time for buyers to take advantage of the market, and many already have.
In its latest release, the National Association of Realtors® states, "pending home sales rose in February, potentially signaling a second surge of home sales in response to the home buyer tax credit. The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in February, rose 8.2 percent" compared to the same time last year.
Unfortunately, there are several factors that could impact the future direction of this market, making the road ahead a bumpy one, and uncertain at the very least.
The tax credit has expired and many industry analysts and economists agree that sales will slowly dwindle into the coming months. To quote an article in the Wall Street Journal, on home sales, curb your enthusiasm, "While there might be strong data in future weeks, industry experts have long said that softness could follow once the incentive - essentially free money - to buy is taken away."
We are also uncertain what the Fed will do to interest rates. Rates have held quite steady, but it is anticipated that the Fed will increase them, and to what extent is uncertain. If the rates do increase, it could impact the type and size of home a buyer could purchase. Buyers could be priced out of the market with an increase of rates by only a few points.
Yet another unknown variable is the amount of shadow inventory that could come onto the market at any given time. Shadow inventory are homes that have undergone foreclosure, but the banks have yet to place on the market. According to an MSN Money article, home seizures by banks set a new record and "prices have stabilized in many areas because banks have kept these properties off the market, adding that banks will likely continue to do so until the economy picks up again."
Of course every local real estate market has slight variables. To determine exactly what has taken place in your market over the past month consult with your local REALTOR.
If you're seriously looking to purchase a property, now truly is the time to buy. Don't gamble on the future with so many unknowns up ahead.
And f you didn't have a chance to take advantage of the Tax Credit, just visit NewEnglandMoves.com. There are many homes participating in the Coldwell Banker Buyer Bonus program offering a credit up to $8,000, or speak directly to me and I will be happy to assist you.
Regards,
Jay Burnham, VP
Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage
North Shore, Massachusetts
Direct Line: 978.233.2828
We've all seen the bar codes that are used everywhere from grocery stores to department stores, from supply houses to small businesses. They are featured on nearly every product you buy.
Well...get ready for a new bar code called a QR code (Quick Response) that is going to begin having a huge impact on business information and how it is delivered to you via your cell phone in the coming year.
While conventional bar codes are capable of storing a maximum of approximately 20 digits, QR code is capable of handling several hundred times more information.
Expect to see QR codes in magazine advertisements, on billboards, web pages or even on someone's t-shirt. Once it is "scanned" to your cell phone, it can give you details about that business, or details about the person wearing the t-shirt, show you a URL which you can click to see a trailer for a movie, or it may give you a coupon which you can use in a local outlet.
The reason why QR codes are more useful than a standard bar code is that they can store (and digitally present) much more data, including URL links, pictures, GEO coordinates, and text. The other key feature of QR codes is that instead of requiring a chunky hand-held scanner to scan them, most recent cell phones can scan them. The full Wikipedia expalnation: click here.
For a short YouTube explanation by Marcello Di Pietro: click here
Any business, no matter how small or large, could use QR codes in a number of ways. You might auto generate one next to every product on your web site containing all the product details, the number to call and the URL link to the page so they can show their friends on their cell phone.
You could add one to your business card containing your contact details so its easy for someone to add you to their contacts on their cell phone, without any typing!
At the top of this blog is an example of my business contact information, including a photo, company logo and link to my website. All you need is the READER application which is available for download to your phone at several Internet sites. The QR code can be as small as your thumbnail or as large as a billboard.
Add your QR code to any print advertising, flyers, posters, invites, tv ads etc. containing:
What is it really all about? Well, some may not see it, but its yet another example of the blurring of the edges of media, as we all continue our journey to a completely connected world.
Follow me on TWITTER: http://twitter.com/jayburnham
There are a lot of sighs of relief now that 2009 is past, particularly coming from the real estate industry.
But will 2010 be any better?
I have just dusted off my crystal ball... and I can now offer my annual 10 predictions for real estate in the coming year:
1. The residential housing market will pick up early this year, but will dip again after mid-year.
2. Short sales will increase and foreclosure inventory will continue to rise.
3. Mortgage rates will rise and settle in around 6%+/-.
4. Appraisal guidelines will tighten and mortgage lenders will require stellar credit from buyers.
5. A lot of prospective move-up buyers will stay put.
6. Commercial real estate will continue to decline.
7. Builders will continue to be cautious and not in any particular hurry to gain project approvals or begin construction.
8. New construction prices will drop significantly.
9. Prices will continue to decline on higher end properties (over $1.5 million).
10. The terms "communication" and "service" will take on new meanings among real estate agents with the need for more direct contact with clients, such as phone and face-to-face contact as opposed to Internet, email and voicemail communication.
There you have it. Perhaps not the rosiest picture imaginable, but no one said that climbing out of a recession would be easy... or quick. Take a look at the graph below and you will see why. I would put us somewhere between the "depression" and "hope" positions of the graph.
The good news?
A lot of real estate transactions will take place in 2010, despite the market. Reasonable sellers, savvy buyers and service-centered real estate agents will win the day.
Carpe Diem! Make it a great year!

Do you have plans to buy a home soon? If so, has it occurred to you that some of the homes you inspect may be overpriced? They may be priced too high for the market.
How would you recognize that kind of situation? Should you assume that all houses are overpriced and make low offers on all of them until one is accepted?
Relax. There's a way to assure yourself of becoming a satisfied homeowner without taking the risk of paying too much. Consider for a moment how prices are set on the homes you will be seeing.
Some prices are arrived at by the owner's "guess-timation:, while others are decided only after thorough investigation of the present real estate market by knowledgable real estate agents. The latter involves careful study of homes for sale now as well as those which have sold recently. As a result, homes listed for sale with a highly successful real estate agent tend to be priced fairly up-front, from the very beginning.
Thus, by selecting your agent carefully, you can be assured of having a gnerous selection of homes from which to choose without having to worry about pricing. You'll be able to focus your concentration on features which fit your lifestyle and enjoy the process of choosing your next home...a satisfying experience.
Regards,
Jay Burnham
Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage
It is time to put an end to the Proposition 2 1/2 overrides in Hamilton and Wenham, Massachusetts. When Prop 2 1/2 was enacted in 1980 it had provisions to allow towns to pass overrides, but those overrides were intended for emergency purposes. Overrides were not intended to be used to subsidize school funding on an annual basis as has become the norm in our two towns. If override supporters in Hamilton and Wenham believe that "emergencies" have existed in our towns for 10 out of the past 11 years, then the answer lies with a broken system that obviously has not and can not be fixed by simply throwing more money at it.
Here's a little something that unfortunately many of our citizens do not realize: Each override is not one-time cost event. Each override is added to the basis of our tax cost and continues in effect year, after year after year. So we will be paying for last year's $1.8 mil override amount again this year and again in 2010 and 2011 and so on. We have been paying the $660k override passed in 1999 each year for 9 years now! That override alone has cost the taxpayers over $7 million.
And here's a FACT about ALL the overrides we have had to pay since 1998: The individual override amounts add up to $7,707,000. But hang on to your seats (and your wallets!) because compounded over the years, with the 2 1/2 % standard annual increase, and the real cost of those overrides has been whooping $39,518,000! Let me repeat that: $39,518,000!
If our national economy's meltdown has taught us anything, it's that we can not, and should not support a system that does not work. $39 million has not fixed the so-called "emergencies" in Hamilton and Wenham and another override certainly will not either. And did you know that we are the ONLY two towns in the Commonwealth with this kind of outrageous history of overrides? Just last year, out of 356 towns and cities in MA, only 102 sought override attempts...and two-thirds of those were rejected.
Residents must stop the override addiction in our two towns this year... By just saying NO! $39 million is enough! Help make a difference in 2009. Start on the local level.
Thank you,
Jay Burnham
Hamilton, MA
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