FARS Realty Group Wins 2007 MITX Award for Real Estate Category

We're proud to announce that FARSRealtyGroup.com was named the 2007 MITX Award Winner for the real estate category.

The MITX Awards is the largest and most prestigious awards competition in the country for interactive and web innovations and celebrates the best creative and technological accomplishments emerging from New England.

Congratulations to Lightfin Studios who led the redesign of the site.

Labels: fars realty group, mitx, real estate news

posted by B. Samii @ 7:52 AM 2 comments

Glory Days - Red Sox Do It Again

Congratulations to the 2007 World Series Champions - The BOSTON RED SOX!

Scenes from the parade yesterday....

Labels: boston red sox, world series 2007

posted by B. Samii @ 2:16 AM 0 comments

THE Buyers Market...

How many times in the past 12 months have you heard the real estate market referred to as a "Buyers Market"? About a zillion. And while it is true that we certainly are in a Buyers Market, it isn't clear to many prospective buyers what that really means. There are a number of obvious reasons why the current market is advantageous to buyers, but there are also a number of advantages that are not apparent. Here are the top five reasons why now is "the time to buy".

1. Sale Price - Not only are the prices of homes dropping, but it is not unusual for buyers in this market to offer 10-15% below the asking price for a home, and to get it! Sellers are much more willing to negotiate now than they have been in years, putting buyers in a position to buy homes that they simply could not have afforded in the market conditions that existed a few years ago.

2. Time - Since there are fewer buyers in the market today, there is less competition to make an offer quickly on a property that is of interest. Properties are staying on the market much longer, allowing buyers more time to look at a number of properties without feeling pressure to make a quick decision.

3. Financing - RATES ARE LOW. Great rates are available, and mortgage professionals are more service oriented than ever. Most mortgage professionals are available 24/7 to their clients to answer questions, give advice, and research the best alternatives to achieve the lowest rate possible. 100% financing is still available to qualified buyers who don't have a down payment. In addition, there are more and more programs available to assist first time homebuyers.

4. Inspection Concessions - Once they have a buyer, a seller does not want to lose them. After the home inspection, buyers in today's market are able to bring any and all concerns that they have to the sellers attention, and in most cases – the sellers will fix the problems, cutting the costs (and the headaches) for the buyers when they move into their new home.

5. Closing Costs - It is not uncommon in this market for buyers to ask sellers to pay for their closing costs. In many cases, buyers are able to get $5,000 worth of their closing costs paid for by the seller, enabling them to use that money to increase their down payment, purchase appliances, or make improvements to their new home.

If you are considering buying a home, now is the time.

Labels: buyers market, first time home buyer, housing market

posted by Lisa @ 4:04 AM 2 comments

Heating by Oil Isn't So Dirty Afterall

I recently attended a seminar held by the MOC (Massachusetts Oilheat Council) and it allowed me to learn a lot about the benefits of oil heat. Obviously there was a bias towards oil heat and it seemed slightly like a sales pitch, but it did provide clarity on many things that I always simply assumed to be a certain way. Below are some interesting facts.

Assumption #1 - Oil Heat is a "dirty" heat
Answer - Come to find out, oil used in home heating is biodegradable and can burn with close to zero emissions in today's newer systems. Of course you don't want to have major oil spills and need to perform regular maintenance on your system, but a good running system can burn just as "clean" as other fuels. Also, the strong odor could be considered to be a natural warning device. If your begin to smell a strong oil smell from your system, something is wrong! It's one of the first warning signs that you need to call in a specialist.

Assumption #2 - There is only one type of oil used in home heating
Answer - False! There have been major advances in recent years to incorporate reusable fuels ("BioHeat"), such as soy bean oil (biofuel). Many home heating oil providers sell fuels with 3-5% biofuel concentrations and a few have higher concentrations. Oils with biofuel can actually burn even more efficiently and cleaner than regular fuel. The only concern is that older systems should have their seals updated to handle the new substance to eliminate and chance of leaks. Newer systems should be compatible with the biofuel.

Assumption #3 - Most leaks from systems are in the tank or burner.
Answer - False! Most leaks occur in the line connecting the tank to the burner. Make sure your lines are checked yearly along with the tank and furnace.

Fuel tanks are changing too. Currently, newer below ground tanks have a double layer system that includes an inner plastic tank surrounded by a galvanized steel tank. This technology should be more readily available for in home above ground tanks in the near future.

To find out more about oil heat or to learn about potential ways to save money if you currently have an oil system, go to http://www.massoilheat.org/

Labels: Massachusetts Oilheat Council, MOC, Oil Heat

posted by ronnierealestate @ 7:22 AM 2 comments

Why Mortgage Life Insurance is Not a Good Idea

If you've recently taken out a mortgage, brace yourself for the onslaught. Before you even finish unpacking, your mailbox will likely be filled with offers for all kinds of services.

Obtaining a mortgage has traditionally been a trigger for life insurance agents and firms to begin marketing life insurance to the borrower. After all, the mortgage is of public record, and "mortgage leads" are peddled to life agents like candy.

"I've been in this business for almost 20 years, and I'm still waiting to see a 'mortgage' life insurance product that was a good value," says Byron Udell, founder and CEO of AccuQuote,a Web-based life insurance company.

While the assumption of a large debt is clearly one factor that affects the total amount of life insurance needed, it's not the only one. Nonetheless, life insurance companies continue to come up with products that are simple, and if one were to believe the marketing hype associated with them, you'd think they hit the bullseye when it comes to paying off a mortgage.

The problem? These policies are generally overpriced to begin with, and become more costly as time goes on because premiums generally stay level, but the policy face amount (or death benefit) is reduced on the same schedule as the debt is reducing. So, in short, the cost per thousand of coverage starts out much too high (relative to other, benchmark products), and only gets worse over time.

Further, when you die, in addition to paying off your mortgage and leaving your family debt-free, your spouse and children will also have income needs. Mortgage term does nothing to address these issues.

Reposted from breitbart.com

posted by Attorney Pete Smith @ 4:39 AM 0 comments

FOR SALE - Gorgeous 2 Bedroom Townhouse in Malden

Townhouse For Sale in Malden, MA - $329,900 (no condo fee)

OPEN HOUSE - 10/28/2007 from 12p.m. to 2:30p.m. (click here for address)

This property has it all and is in perfect condition. Built in 2005, it's central location is close to Route 93, two Orange line T stops and the North Station Commuter Rail.

• - 2 Bedrooms
• - 1.5 Baths
• - 1,000 Square Feet
• - Oak Hardwood Floors throughout First Floor
• - Stainless Steel appliances, Granite counters and Maple Cabinets in the Kitchen
• - 1 car garage parking
• - 2+ off street additional parking spots
• - Tons of storage with the closets, walk up attic and basement
• - Laundry room in basement (washer and dryer are included!)
• - Forced hot air gas furnace and central air conditioning
  
• - Wonderful outdoor space with yard and bricked patio
• - Pet friendly association (only 2 units, self governed)
  
• - Close to park with walking trails, tennis courts and basketball courts
  
• - No Condo fee!
• - CLICK HERE to see more photos
• - CLICK HERE to see the address and map of the area
• - Contact Ron Wright (ron@farsrealtygroup.com) to set up a showing today!
  

Labels: condo for sale, Malden, townhouse

posted by ronnierealestate @ 6:18 AM 0 comments

FARSRealtyGroup.com Finalist for MITX Awards

We are very pleased that our site, FARSRealtyGroup.com, has been selected as a finalist for the prestigious MITX awards.

The MITX (Massachusetts Innovation & Technology Exchange) Awards is an award competition that celebrates the best creative and technological accomplishments emerging from New England. Our site is competing against 4 other finalists for the Real Estate category. The award ceremony is on November 8th in Boston. View the complete list of finalists here.

Since the launch of the new website, our award-winning site has received numerous accolades and been featured in a number of web design galleries including: The Best Designs, Screenalicious, and The Daily Slurp (to name a few).

Our squeaky clean redesign was carried out by LightFin Studios.

Labels: fars realty group, mitx

posted by B. Samii @ 5:25 AM 1 comments

Old School Mentality Meets New School Banking

A news story about ING Direct was shown on ABC's Nightline last night. They interview the CEO of ING Direct, Arkadi Kuhlmann, who is known for his straight forward way of doing business and keeping things simple. To read the story or view the video clip, CLICK HERE. If you don't have time to read it, here are some amazing statistics about ING Direct.

1) Roughly 100,000 new members sign up with them each month.
2) 93% of their employees enjoy working there.
3) They have sold about 70,000 mortgages and only 6 have foreclosed!

If you think you can easily convince ING Direct to provide you with a mortgage, you will have your work cut out for you. This is the main reason why they have such an incredible foreclosure percentage. They simply do not deal with risky borrowers. Times have most definitely changed in the past year and it seems that more and more banks will begin to follow this simple and effective strategy.

I do not find it surprising that the CEO of an internet savings bank is telling people they should save more money, but it will be interesting to see how people's mentality over credit will change in the future.

Labels: foreclosure, ING Direct, mortgage crisis, Nightline

posted by ronnierealestate @ 5:27 AM 1 comments