Real Estate News

Real Estate 101

2010-10-18T07:40:00.001-07:00

Real Estate 101

Well the first thing to do when looking to purchase a home is to get preapproved, if you are going to finance your home purchase. I stated in one of my other hubs, then you should find an agent and find a home. MLS is the main source for listing information on homes for sale. I would like to walk through an MLS listing with you to show you what each section means. First off MLS stands for Multiple Listing Service, which Realtors/Agents use to list and sell properties. Most of the bigger home search engines pull their listing information from MLS, Realtor.com, aol.com, yahoo.com, zillow.com etx, etx. If you look at these listings on these other sites they usually have whats called an MLS ID number on them. This ID number is used by Realtors to locate the property in MLS. Lets walk through a listing
Below is a home for sale at www.gropmanrealestate.com (my firm). Starting at the top we see the MLS number as we already talked about. Next to that it tells you the status, in this case it is active; some could be inactive, expired, underagreement, sold, etx. Under that you have the type of home, single family, condo, multifamily etx. Moving on is pretty self explanatory, address, price, style, rooms, beds, baths, fireplaces, directions, schools, and subdivisions. After that we move on to the remarks, where Realtors can use their catch phrases like "location, location, location" or "diamond in the rough" to try and sell the property.
Property Information is the next section. This section tells you all about the house itself, starting with living area (how big the house is). This section also lets you know how it is heated, and how big the lot size is. Next we move on to some subsections, including rooms and room sizes if available and features. Features is very important, it breaks down all the features of a home, including if it has a basement, how it was built (construction: Frame in example below) and when it was built. Some other important info in this section is the tax information and disclosures (example below states Realtor is related to seller). This disclosure doesn't mean much but sometimes sellers disclose that the septic system has failed, or they have lead paint etx, and can be a very important fact in the decision to buy that home or not. Taxes are shown for a tax year, with assessed value, zoning code, and book and page. The book and page is the book and page where the last deed was recorded at the Registry of Deeds. The zoning code (RES) stands for residential.
The last section in the example below is Market information. This section tells you how long a property has been on the market for, and what the original price was when it was originally listed. This section allows a buyer to see if the seller has dropped the price or not, and try to gauge motivation for selling.
Hope this was helpful check out www.gropmanrealestate.com and www.fantasyfootballreporters.com
Here is the example of what an MLS listing looks like:
MLS # 71120037 - Active
Single Family - Detached 9 Bertino List Price: $169,900 Wareham, MA : Onset 02558
Plymouth County Style: Colonial Color: Total Rooms: 5 Bedrooms: 2 Full/Half/Master Baths: 1/0/ Fireplaces: 0 Grade School: Middle School: High School: Neighborhood/Sub-Division: Directions: Onset ave to Bertino Remarks 2 story home bigger then it looks with 2 beds up and 1 bath down. Close to Onset beaches and to route 495. New furnace in 2004. Call today to setup a showing. Property Information Approx. Living Area: 791 sq. ft. Approx. Acres: 0.16 (7050 sq. ft.) Garage Spaces: 0 -- Living Area Includes: Heat Zones: Forced Air, Oil Parking Spaces: 4 Off-Street Living Area Source: Public Record Cool Zones: None Approx. Street Frontage: Living Area Disclosures: Room Levels, Dimensions and Features Room Level Size Features Features Basement: Yes Partial, Crawl Beach: Yes Bay Beach Ownership: Public Beach - Miles to: 1 to 2 Mile Construction: Frame Exterior: Clapboard, Aluminum Exterior Features: Storage Shed Foundation Size: 0 x 0 Foundation Description: Poured Concrete Lot Description: Paved Drive Road Type: Public Roof Material: Asphalt/Fiberglass Shingles Sewer and Water: City/Town Water, City/Town Sewer Waterfront: No Other Property Info Disclosure Declaration: Yes Disclosures: Seller is related to agent. Home leased through summer 2010. Will be available for November Exclusions: Home Own Assn: No Lead Paint: Unknown UFFI: Warranty Available: Year Built: 1946 Source: Public Record Year Built Description: Actual Year Round: Tax Information Pin #: Assessed: $187,300 Tax: $1536 Tax Year: 2007 Book: 18401 Page: 53 Cert: Zoning Code: res Map: Block: Lot: Market Information Listing Date: 8/24/2010 Listing Market Time: MLS# has been on for 55 day(s) Days on Market: Property has been on the market for a total of 329 day(s) Office Market Time: Office has listed this property for 329 day(s) Expiration Date: Original Price: $169,900 Off Market Date: Sale Date:

Real Estate Update

2010-10-07T09:47:00.001-07:00

Real Estate has been so busy the last few weeks, anyone else notice that? http://www.gropmanrealtygroup.com/ let me know how we can be of service!!!

The Real Estate Market

2010-10-01T11:03:00.000-07:00

Plymouth, Bristol, and Barnstable counties in MA have been pretty hot for my company over the last month or so. It was extremely slow, following the end of the first time buyer tax credit in May. That being said, the last month has been extremely busy. A lot of calls for first time buyers and investors and renters. This time of year usually is busy for rentals because winter is getting close and people are looking for a warm place to stay, plus the summer rentals are all coming to an end. Check us out http://www.gropmanrealtygroup.com/

Cape Cod Real Estate Update

2010-09-03T09:01:00.000-07:00

As most of you know I own Gropman Realty Group in Buzzards Bay/Wareham, MA. I am going to talk about the market that I am seeing.

I was extremely slow after the first time buyers credit went away in May. But more recently I have been extremely busy with showings and rentals. Rentals always increase this time of year, I feel like people in the area want to make sure they are all set for the winter time. For the increase in showings not sure, but prices are extremely good and the rates are even better. If you need any real estate services please let us know at www.gropmanrealtygroup.com, we are never too busy to answer any of your questions. thanks again.

Real Estate Bubble has Burst?

2010-08-26T13:43:00.000-07:00

The real estate market has hit the lowest it has been in almost two decades. Home sales are down, foreclosures are still high, and the permits for new homes being built are very low. All this even when interest rates being at all time lows, and with credit card debt per household average, at the lowest it has been in almost ten years. Doesn't make much sense. Not to mention that prices of homes are fairly low. Something has to give and hopefully soon. I personally have been busy in MA real estate market. Let me know if you or anyone you know is looking to buy or sell in this buyers market. www.gropmanrealtygroup.com thanks

Real Estate News

2010-08-23T11:33:00.000-07:00

The real estate market has slowed down to a crawl. The tax credit helped, but more as a band aid, then an actual fix to the problem. The applications for mortgages, and the application for permits for new homes is way down also. The only good thing is that interest rates are still at record lows, but on the flip side banks are still weary and being very strict on who they will lend money to. Hopefully a new, more permanant stimilus is put into place to help fix the problem. www.gropmanrealtygroup.com, http://hubpages.com/profile/Local+Realtor, and follow on twitter @gropmanrealtygroup thanks guys

Short Sales

2010-07-27T22:52:00.000-07:00

In today's real estate market the inventory of homes for sale is high with many of them being short sales or foreclosures. Short sales have historically been very tough to deal with. Up until recently there was no regulation to help or regulate a short sale. Banks are well oiled machines when comes to pretty much everything except short sales in my estimation. A short sale is typically anything but short; it means selling your house for less money then what you owe. Bank approval is needed to do a short sale. Visit www.gropmanrealtygroup.com for free home searches including foreclosures and short sales.

Changes

2010-07-27T22:43:00.000-07:00

Changed my blog template and added gadgets to it. Let me know how it looks.

Movies

2010-07-24T06:26:00.001-07:00

Going to see twilight today finally. Saw Avatar last night finally that was great. www.gropmanrealtygroup.com for all your real estate needs. Thanks

Insurance license

2010-07-17T14:47:00.001-07:00

I passed the casualty portion of my test!!! Thanks everyone for the good luck wishes. Let me know if you or someone you know needs insurance, homeowners, auto, and business coverages. thanks

p and c insurance

2010-07-15T20:45:00.001-07:00

Finished studying for the night. Passed my property insurance test today, and have the casualty exam tomorrow wish we luck.

How to Blog

2010-07-11T17:27:00.001-07:00

Starting out blogging, any suggestions? Thanks

Frank Gropman

Gropman Realty Group

Broker Owner

774-263-8989
www.gropmanrealtygroup.com

Selling? Buying? Market Slowdown?

2010-07-09T12:14:00.000-07:00

I have been extremely busy the last two weeks for showings and incoming leads. Not sure about you other professionals but it seems that it is picking up. Selling leads and buying leads alike. Hopefully the market slowdown turns into a market up swing.

Medium Priced Home Sales

2010-07-06T17:23:00.000-07:00

Medium priced homes from 450k to 750k haven't been selling. Only a handfull of homes in the past year have actually sold in Wareham in this price range (mls listed homes). It seems that these priced homes have been hit very hard from the recession. Any thoughts? Not just Wareham but other towns too.

Real Estate Blog

2010-07-06T06:51:00.001-07:00

Hi all this is my first blog post. I am the Broker/Owner of Gropman Realty Group my name is Francis Grompan. My company is based in Wareham, but we sell real estate in most of MA. Please feel free to visit us at www.gropmanrealtygroup.com