John Morrison - Boston area real estate - Everything you need to know about buying in Massachusetts

The folks at Harvard have just released their latest housing study: SON (State of the Nation's Housing) 2008. If you would rather check out a quick overview, check out their fact sheet. In case you were wondering, yes, we have problems all across the country. Since this is a "current assessment" ...

I've been thinking lately. Maybe not always a good sign, but I've come up with some harebrained incredible ideas for solving or at least mitigating the foreclosure crisis in this country. 1. Have lenders agree to work with buyers who are behind on payments but are trying to still live in the home...

You are serious about leaving where you are currently living. You have found a great agent to help you find your ideal home (clearly you will choose an Exclusive Buyer’s Agent to ensure that your best interests are represented!), and now you have to take the important step of applying for and obt...

Are you in trouble with your mortgage payments? You are not alone. I found an informative article over at Yahoo! Finance that provides more discouraging detail about the foreclosure crisis that is facing this country and has not abated yet. Of note - 1 in every 483 homeowners across the country h...

I read with great disappointment a recent article by Binyamin Applebaum that appeared in the Boston Globe’s Sunday Magazine. The first issue I would like to take up is that Mr. Applebaum states, “The National Association of Realtors? “This is the best market in years in terms of choice,” said a r...

I read a recent article in the L.A. Times that discusses the perceived benefits of hiring a professional stager to come in and hopefully make your home look more appealing to potential buyers. This article mentions the National Association of Exclusive Buyer Agents (NAEBA), an organization that w...

Shouldn’t we blame REALTORS® for this mess that we currently find ourselves in? A recent study asking consumers how they felt about real estate agents came to some interesting conclusions. When asked about REALTORS® in general, people were mostly wishy-washy - some were in favor, some were not, m...

Home sales are way down, that much we know. Sales closing in March of 2008 were down almost a third from the same time frame a year earlier. How come? Without knowing all the facts, one would first point to the struggling economy. Recession fears are all over the news right now. Is that the probl...

Painting a room is the easiest way to make it look updated or completely change its feel. Next time you are preparing to redo your living room, don’t reach for the traditional gallon of paint that you always use. Harsh and harmful chemicals are in that can, and once on your wall it takes up to th...

Ok, you just wrapped up demolition on your rehab. Or maybe you are designing and building your dream home. Time to think about saving money, and perhaps some energy costs. Let’s go double green! The two best types of insulation to consider are cellulose and closed cell. Cellulose may be the green...