"So how's the new house?," we're often asked. Only two months from closing, and already my first impulse is to blurt out "Ack! We've turned into one of them!" in response. Yes, buying a house has a way of changing your perspective so fast, you wonder if you've had a recent lobotomy.
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October 29, 2007
From homebuyer to homeowner
October 10, 2007
Arlington: the rules still apply
Well, the cat's out of the bag about Arlington, thanks to today's Globe story by Sacha Pfeiffer. We looked hard – and eventually bought – in Arlington for all the reasons mentioned in the story, and we're delighted with the our new house, friendly neighbors, and thriving town. But after looking at over 30 homes here during our search, it was clear to us that the fundamentals still apply, even in a hot market.
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September 19, 2007
The half million dollar fixer-upper
Early on our search, we had to give up on the dream of finding a fixer-upper for our first house. This old standby strategy for first-time homebuyers has really taken a beating from the stratospheric climb in home prices since the late 90s. And the recent credit crunch just might finish it off.
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August 30, 2007
Know your credit score
The widely-publicized credit crunch is making it harder for many buyers to get a mortgage at a good rate, or at all. Knowing and improving your credit score is all-important if you're in the market for real estate. Thanks to valuable tips from our first-time homebuyer's class, I was able to raise mine significantly before we applied for a mortgage.
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August 14, 2007
Buyer's Market? What Buyer's Market?
Does the overall market downturn represent a buyer’s market, as I recently suggested? Not to one reader. "Pardon me while I scoff in your general direction," wrote in political blogger Greg Decker.
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August 8, 2007
The 10-year rule
Our home search has been longer and more arduous than we imagined. And I think a big reason is the buyer's market we've been in.
Huh? Lots of inventory, falling prices, houses selling for huge sums under asking price...what’s not to love? I'll tell you what: the very market conditions making it so tough for sellers also create a hidden problem for us.
July 25, 2007
Shall we dance?
Making an offer has been the most nerve-wracking part of the homebuying process so far. In a market like Boston's where prices are absurdly high and the future of home values uncertain, the weight of two simple questions seems crushing: Do we want this house? And how much are we willing to pay?
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July 19, 2007
Top 10 pet peeves about listing agents
Things that actually happened to us in our Boston area home search - some more than once.
1. Trailing us around the house like a puppy. One guy chased us to the basement to ask if we liked the place. Shoo!
2. Inventing non-existent competition. The puppy also claimed he "expected four offers" that day; two months later, it's still on the market.
July 18, 2007
Can your mortgage make you richer?
I'm holding a perky, orange piece of junk mail from my online bank asking this very question. The "get-richer" pitch? A mortgage with super-low closing costs (Good!) a low rate with no points (Good!)...and a 5/1 Adjustable Rate (Now, wait just a minute....)
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July 10, 2007
The web-savvy homebuyer
Most homebuyers can find houses on the Internet now, but there is a lot more information out there than you'll find on most realtor websites. Here's a few ways to broaden your horizons:
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July 6, 2007
"Oh yes, you can do that"
It's tough to sell a house with only one bath, no bonus rooms, or some other deficiency that didn't bother past generations -- but might turn off today's buyers. In our search we've seen lots of attic conversions, added sunrooms, or half baths created in old pantries. And we've heard some amusing straight-faced pitches from seller agents at less updated homes.
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July 2, 2007
Tales from the seller's side
I've received a couple of nice notes from sellers commenting on my determination to get a good price as a way to protect ourselves from continued price stagnation or declines. It's clear there are perils aplenty for folks on the other side of the transaction, especially if they bought fairly recently.
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