Understanding the Metrowest Boston Real Estate Market

I really don’t want to talk about  content that is readily available in the news and in commonly used real estate sites.  That’s why I haven’t shared sales statistics –quarterly or otherwise.  You can get it elsewhere.  And how do people use that information anyway?  For many buyers in many places, it certainly hasn’t supplied that critical incentive to buy, even with historically low mortgage interest rates. Real estate market trends that are identified are often undone by the next quarter’s data.  And the sum total of national indices are just plain bleak.  A good deal of the time.  The fact is Boston area home values are holding up better than national statistics.

You Still Can’t Beat Location

Not a day goes by when I’m not asked  when the home seller’s market will return.  Or when I’m told by a home buyer that they are going to make a lowball offer because it’s a buyer’s market. Or when people empathize with me as a Realtor® because they automatically assume I must be depressed by market conditions. Hmm.  If you listen to the grim drum beat coming out of the worst hit states (Nevada, California, Florida) or the latest projections from this or that homebuilder group, you are likely to conclude that this is a home buyer’s market. Well, it depends on which communities you’re talking about. You can’t generalize because, to use a cliche, in real estate it’s still all about “location, location, location”.

Newton, Brookline and Cambridge MA Real Estate

I was recently at a group showing in Newton MA. A single-family home in a lovely neighborhood that needed complete renovation.  There were cars parked on both sides of the street and more cruising, looking for a place to park.  There must have been 100+ people–agents and their clients–at this showing. Multiple offers were submitted.  I just put a two-family in Cambridge MA under agreement; there were 6 offers on this property.  The bid that was accepted was over the asking price. And my listings for two, newly renovated condominiums in Brookline’s Washington Square neighborhood sold in less than 24 hours–one at asking, one above.  If you are working in these markets, you are likely to conclude that things are pretty good. And the way you go about home buying or home selling is contingent on what communities you’re operating in.  It’s not a one-size fits-all proposition. The media clamor about curent real estate market conditions is not helpful. Figure this out with a skilled and experienced real estate professional.  Contact Roz at RG-Homes.