Real estate news and features

W Hotel Residences
100 Stuart Street Boston

This truly unique property has created quite the buzz. 235 Hotel rooms and 123 Residences starting on the 16th Floor and ending on 28th floor which is the penthouse floor. I had an opportunity to walk through sales center with a client and this is going to be a property that will bring all buyers long term equity. Starting at 700 a sq. ft for backside units the W has priced units appropriately to bring value to all buyers. Units have great 360 views of the park, downtown and the waterfront.
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Our Mortgage network professionals have put together a FHA mortgage update. With market up and down and loan requirements changing on the hour it is good to stay in formed with what programs are out there so that you can access your chances of acquiring a loan when you decide to purchase.

Here are some quick FHA bullets
1)Can put as little as 3% down 1-4 units (tough on condos…must be approved, or spot approval under certain guidelines)

2)Allows for a non occupant co-borrower, with no income limits on owner occupied borrower (must show a relationship)

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Buying a HUD home in Nevada is emerging as another alternative for potentially a good bargain.   The active property list as of 10-24-08 had 48 available properties including manufactured homes, condos and single family residences.  There have been few HUD homes available in recent years due to the high percentage of conventional loans.  With the trend in financing switching back to FHA loans (46% of all Las Vegas closings in September were FHA), expect to see the number of HUD homes available to increase.

Here is a review of the HUD Home bid process and resources:

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Jean Jones of ProspectsPlus  recently gave an excellent presentation to our real estate office on the fundamentals of marketing and how to use the marketing and lead generation materials available from ProspectsPlus.  I encourage you to check out the cost effective and wide variety of marketing materials, personal brochures, postcards and more.  Contact Jean Jones directly for more information at 623-544-1205 or email:jjjjones99@aol.com.

Here are the six fundamentals of marketing Jean shared with our office:

Budget.  Every business needs a budget and a method [Read more →]

Old Adage Haunts Boston Condo Sales: Location. Location. Location.
By Thomas Grillo
Banker & Tradesman Staff Writer

A glimpse into sales at some of Boston’s newer condominium projects reveals strengths and weaknesses mostly based on location.

FP3, the $55 million luxury condo project at a former Congress Street warehouse in Fort Point, has struggled to find buyers. But less than two miles away, the lofts at 285 Columbus Lofts in the Back Bay has sold more than half of the units at the former Boston Red Cross headquarters building.

Buyers are also bullish on the North End compared to a questionable section of the South End near the Boston Medical Center.
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You could say Boston’s Seaport District and South Boston areas are under development. Here are a list of projects under review, approved and under construction.
Contact us at realestatebostonblog@gmail.com for more information on any of the projects below.

141 West Second Street

Status : Board Approved
Developer : Thomas Fitzgerald
Notes : Construction of a 2 story addition to an existing building for the provision of 23 units and 23 underground parking spaces

154 West Second Street (The Signal Building)

Status : Under Construction
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B & T reports

Rare Foreclosure Rattles Ritz

By Thomas Grillo
Banker & Tradesman Staff Writer

In a sign that the housing crisis is not limited to hardscrabble neighborhoods, a five-room condominium at the Ritz-Carlton Boston Common is facing foreclosure.

The 1,359-square foot unit is expected to be listed on the MLS Property Information Network by Charlesgate Realty Group later this month for $600,000, according to P.T. Vineburgh, the company’s founding partner.

“The housing and mortgage disaster is starting to transcend socio-economic lines,” said Vineburgh. “It’s now extended to the Ritz.”
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Debbie Huber,SRA of Huber Appraisal and Home Pride Insections in Las Vegas is today’s featured guest blogger.  Debbie has been appraising residential homes in Las Vegas for over 20 years and holds the SRA designation (Senior Residential Appraiser).  She is also a Past President of the Appraisal Commission for the State of Nevada.

Should appraisers use short sales or bank owned properties/repossessions as comparable sales or listings in their analyses? (Repo??™s or bank owned properties are also known as REO??™s.)  The best response to this question is that it depends on each particular subject property??™s subdivision or market area, and what the typical types of sales are in that particular subdivision and/or area. Sales and listing data must be analyzed sufficiently to determine which properties are not only the most similar to the subject in features, amenities, quality and location, but also those that represent ???normal??? terms of sale by typically motivated parties for the specific market area.

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Condo - Townhouse
1304-1312 Commonwealth Ave - Unit 5 List Price: $569,900
Approx. Living Area: 1985 sq. ft. ($287.10/sq. ft.)
Approx. Acres: Outdoor parking space 1 –
Association: Yes
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Mezzo Design Lofts have just updated their availability listings and a rare 3 bedroom has just come on the market. I rented one of these units 6 months ago and it is one of best deals out there on market today.

The Skinny

1 month free
$3200 a month - everything but electricity included!
1100+ sq. ft
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