Getting Ready for Spring

One thing we never have 100% control over is a buyer’s first impression of a home.  However with a little bit of work, we do have a pretty good ability to showcase what is great about a home.  Simple things like removing clutter and storing away extra stuff can go a long way. Whether you are planning on putting your home on the market for sale or just planning your annual Spring cleaning, below are some tips which may help make the project more manageable.

Wipe Walls and Ceilings: Use vacuum to remove dust.  For stubborn surface grime (especially in the kitchen) use a solvent free degreaser.  When dusting always remember to work from the top of the room down and avoid using dusting sprays.

Floors: Vacuum and shampoo rugs with a rotary shampoo machine remember rugs without backings such as antique rugs may need to be dry clean.  Non wood floors such as Vinyl and linoleum which have lost their shine should be waxed with a polish designed for these surfaces.

Upholstered Furnishing and Book shelves: Take cushions outside and gently beat them to remove dust. Use the vacuums upholstery tool to clean under seat cushions.  Take everything off bookshelves and dust shelves and books with a feather duster; use a vacuum to reach into tight spaces.  Wax wooden furniture by wiping surfaces with a soft cloth dampened with water and mild dish detergent.  Apply paste wax such as Butchers wax with a cotton rag folded into a square pad, let dry and buff with clean cloth.

Windows and Window Hardware:  Using warm water and a mild dishwashing liquid scrub each screen with a brush and rinse thoroughly. For window hardware liquid polishes work well for medium tarnished surfaces, paste and creams are for heavier areas.  Using newspapers instead of clothes will give your windows a cleaner look.  Many draperies and curtains are machine washable; check labels.  Wipe wooden blinds with a damp cloth; warm water mixed with a mild dishwashing liquid is safe for metal and vinyl blinds.

Bedrooms: Turn over mattress and replace cool weather bedding with warm weather bedding.  Most pillows can be machine washed; this rids them of mold, bacteria and odors

Outdoor spaces: Clean porch ceilings and walls; sweep up cob webs and debris.  Scrub decks, Patios driveways and walkways.  Wash outdoor furnishings with mild dishwashing liquid, water and a soft bristled brush.  Inspect light fixtures; wash covering and inspect for damaged wires and connections

Ensure fire safety:  Change batteries in smoke detectors and make sure that units are all dust free.

Residential home sales: Will 2012 be the breakout year?

 April 23, 2012

Here is some good news. Residential homes sales in New Hampshire are up 17 percent above 2011 and the highest they've been since 2007.  Read the new article from the NH Association of REALTORS


Read The Article...

Stella Demetri Presented with Award

On Tuesday, April 19th, Stella Demetri was presented with an award of $500 for recruiting Derek Gilmore as an agent for our Nashua office. 

Thank you Stella, and welcome Derek!

New Hampshire Housing Market: Current Snapshot

On many levels, New Hampshire’s financial well being is the real estate market.  Not only are our tax revenues derived from the sale and assessment of real estate, our home owners also have a vested interest in what is taking place in the market and where we stand versus years past. The chart below shows the home sales for the first two months of 2012 versus 2011. The trend that was predicted in December of last year has played itself out so far in the first 60 days of the year: many more homes sold at slightly reduced or even pricing.

The trend of move units sold is almost universal across the state while the depreciation (and appreciation) on prices is more volatile. One of the main reasons for the resurgence of the housing market we feel is due in part to interest rate stabilization.

Many Realtors® feel that although we are experiencing some problems, the road to recovery has begun.Home affordability is at an all time high, if you are planning on staying in one place for more than 4 years, you have a steady job, good credit and a good savings than purchasing a home is the right path for you as a home buyer.   Taking advantage of today’s market is the best long term investment a buyer can make.  With interest rates at an all time low a family who was looking for a home a year or more ago can expect lower interest rates today, and their monthly payments may end up being lower as a result. 

Now is the time for home buyers to take advantage of programs such as USDA’s Rural Development  financing programs or NH Housing grants for those who qualify and FHA now qualifying people with as little as 3.5% down.  Also many credit unions and banks are offering special financing in their local communities.

For many families this market is creating an opportunity to purchase a home for much less than before.Many analyst hope that with all these opportunities we may see a positive change to the Real Estate market in the future.

FEELING LUCKY? Did you ever dream of winning the lottery?

So you may have missed the big one last Friday. I know we all bought a ticket… if for nothing else than to just dream of what could be. But we are giving you a second chance at playing the lottery.

 Real Living The Norwood Group is hosting a contest beginning March 27^th thru April 13^th.

“212 Chances to Become a Millionaire in 2012”.   

This campaign will consist of an insert which will be placed in the Amherst Citizen on March 27^th. 

At no obligation/no cost the readers can tear off the bottom sheet and mail it back (postage paid).  All inserts returned will be put into a box. On April 27^th 2012 at 4:00P a name will be picked and the winner will receive 212 lottery tickets for a chance to become a millionaire in 2012. The winner will then be invited to come to the Amherst office to collect their 212 lottery tickets with the hopes of receiving that winning ticket.

Many of the agents of Real Living are extremely active in their community and are excited about the contest as a fun way of giving back. We are looking forward to the contest drawing and meeting the winner.  We would like to wish all the contestants the best of luck.

Trends in NH Real Estate

The January 202 New Hampshire residential numbers are in...volume is up in Hillsborough County and across the state. With the current interest rates and great value in homes today, we expect to see more of this for the rest of the year.

What do you think?

Check out the report here

Back to the Future? 1991 vs. 2011

The Holidays and 2011 has come and gone. Leap Year Day  and the New Hampshire Primary and has come and gone.  Housing was used as a wepon by both encumbants and hopfulls this primary season, but as the snow settles, lets now look back at what really is going on in the state and around the corner.

To do this, lets pull the lense back. Back a few years to 1986, not because of the great year for Boston sports, but because it was a great year for New Hampshire Real Estate. With 58,000 total real estate deed transfers in the state that year, it was the highest on record and the lowest foreclosure percentage in the 35 years, we have had this statistic measured. In the five years that followed we saw the foreclosure rate rise (to higher levels than our current challenges) and the transfer of property seize up. From 1991 through 1996 our real estate market expanded. Total property transfers increased by almost 20%; the total percentage of foreclosure transfers dropped from a peak of just under 20% to almost 6%; interest rates dropped for a 30 year fixed by 2.5% and our state created almost 50,000 jobs. 

So what does this history lesson tell us? What does where we are today have in common with our non so distant past of the early ninties? What is different?

For starters consider the graph below. While the total transfers of real estate in the state is not the only measure of recovery it is a good indicator of what consumers and corporations are feeling in terms of confidence to make a long term purchase. What we feel is similar is the increase in total transfers of real estate from 2009 through 2011.

Real estate is a reaction to stability and the comfort people have in choices. Not shown on the above graph is the 20,000+/- jobs that have been created in the state since December of 2009. Also not show is the decrease in a 30 year fixed interest rate by about a half of a point over that same span. We see this all as a positive indicator. Recessions and recoveries are cyllical and we see this year as a turning point for that recovery in the state.

No analysis would be complete, however without a look at some of the differences in the cycles. In 1986 the decline in the market was like slamming on the brakes, but we arrived at our current condition by pumping them. Our recovery beyond 1991 was shown with a spike in foreclosures up to 20% and then a slow recovery year over year, but because currently we had no spike we have remained around 15% foreclosure rate for the past few years.

Overall we believe that the recession and recoveries of two decades ago share more in common that what they are apart. However because this go around did not have the “shock” decline effect, we feel that it will be a bit slower to recover as there are still issues to work out. Surely no one in 2012 is slamming on the gas, but we feel that people are staying away from the brake petal.