Town of Natick
The impression most people have of Natick is based upon the popular Route 9 shopping areas. This is home to the very large Natick Collection mall, with exclusive shops and housing. In the same area you have dozens of national chain stores, strip malls, and office buildings.
Located 18 miles west of Boston, this community is actually a very well-kept collection of residential homes surrounding a character filled town common. There are picturesque sites along the Charles River in South Natick, Cochituate State Park offers boating and public beaches, and there is even a town owned 9 hole Sassamon Trace Golf Course.
Natick schools have enjoyed very good tests scores on the recent MCAS testing, and have a very involved community in keeping the schools funded (passing a tax override to keep services running intact in March 2008).
The median house price is $435000 (April 2008) and the average tax bill is $4829 (2007).
Metrowest Town’s Recycling Programs
July 13th, 2010
Thank you to the person on www.HollistonFreeCycle.com (which is a Yahoo Group) for the links to all the local Metrowest recycling information.
I feel that Massachusetts does a pretty good job, either thru grassroots organizations or towns saving money, in providing recycling opportunities to the local residents.
Ashland Recycling Program Info
Framingham Recycling Program Info
Holliston Recycling Program Info
Hopkinton Recycling Program Info
Milford Recycling Program Info
Sherborn Recycling Program Info
Check out the previous posts regarding related sites:
Asbestos Removal Article from 2008
I hope you find these links as a useful source of information whenever you are searching out information on your town’s recycling program.
Ed Daniels of the MAHome Team can be reached at Ed@MAhome.com or 508-341-7880. He calls Holliston his hometown and works with Re/Max Executive Realty selling homes all around the Metrowest area.Categories: Ashland, Bellingham, Framingham, Holliston, Hopkinton, Local Communities, Medway, Milford, Natick, Real Estate, Town Hall Info
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Metrowest Foreclosure Updates
July 7th, 2010
Today I received a news release from RealtyTrac, which is the leading online source for foreclosure properties. The report made me question how the specific Metrowest Massachusetts marketplace is doing in regards to foreclosures. This post will report on the following questions you may have:
- Are there a bunch of foreclosures driving down home values in our area?
- How much of a discount can I get if I buy one of these foreclosure properties?
- Is the market getting worse or better out there?
Foreclosures in Massachusetts
RealtyTrac reports that Massachusetts is one of the top 5 states in % of foreclosure sales for the 1st quarter of 2010. (June 30th – Not really sure why it took so long to issue these stats??) As alarming as this sounds, let’s look a bit closer…
Number of foreclosure sales were 2,111 in quarter 1, which is 42% of all sales! Sounds bad, right?
How does this compare to other states they reported on? It works out to .9% of Total foreclosures in the United States.
Still digging a bit deeper, I checked MLS data for number of sales in MA for the 1st quarter. MLS reports 6628 total single family home sales, which works out to 32% of all single family home sales are foreclosure sales. Since they report 2,111 were ALL sales, let’s add condos and multifamilies to that number… now it is over 11,000 sales, or about 19% of all sales.
Remember, this MLS data does not include any For Sale By Owner homes either.
OK, I know what your thinking… It is still a high number, Ed! I agree. So, because I am not feeling this strain on the marketplace as a Full Time Realtor in Metrowest Boston, I want to dig even deeper!
In the Metrowest towns of Ashland, Framingham, Holliston, Hopkinton, Natick, and Southborough I pulled data from MLS regarding bank owned property. Here are the findings using only single family properties since the start of 2010:
17 out of 552 Active homes are labeled Bank Owned (3%)
13 out of 158 Under Agreement homes are Bank Owned (8%)
34 out of 597 Sold homes are Bank Owned (5%)
I don’t know about you, but there are two results from this investigation.
Number 1 is that I feel better now than I do after reading RealtyTrac’s data.
Number 2, where the heck are they getting those numbers from?
Some explanations is that they classify homes in “pre-foreclosure” or “scheduled for auctions” and MLS is only as good as the agent that enters in the data as “lender owned” or “Short Sale”.
In my test of RealtyTrac’s data, the 1st property I checked was in Ashland. It was listed as a fairly new addition to the property site. Come to find out it was sold months ago on MLS. So for some reason their data is not updated as it should be.
Discounts when Buying a Foreclosure Property
Realtytrac reported that there is quite a discount that a buyer of a foreclosed property can receive. Again, take this with a grain of salt since the way they create these numbers is, in my opinion, flawed.
Massachusetts’ average Foreclosure sales price is reported as $161,089. This is about a 35% discount to non-foreclosure sales in the marketplace for the 1st quarter.
They seem to compare Average Sales Prices of all Foreclosure Sales to Average Sales Prices of Normal Sales. Since the majority of Foreclosure properties are on the lower end and are trashed by the past owners or lack of upkeep, OF COURSE they are going to be a discount. Classify this stat as
“worthless data for people who think for a moment!”
From my experience, if you are handy and have some cash… there are lots of great deals out there to go after. These are both foreclosures and non-foreclosures!
Local Market Conditions are Improving
The best evaluation of the local marketplace, in my opinion, contains the following:
A Local group of towns
Use a Specific category of housing, such as Single Family Homes
Look at past several years data to compare it to
Use 6 mos. or a year worth of history
When I do this for Metrowest Boston towns (specifics I am happy to share if you wish), I find the marketplace is showing strength even though Home Owners have taken a hit on property values over the past several years. So, better for Buyers than it is for Sellers.
Here are two tidbits:
Average Days on Market is 96. Over the past 5 years this has ranged from 85 days to 119 days, so very reasonable.
Ratio of Selling Price to Listing Price is 97%. Over the past 5 years this has ranged from 96-98%, so again, very reasonable number.
I put together a graph of the Selling Prices over the course of the past 5 years for these Metrowest towns. There is a 17% decrease in Median Home Values over this time frame. This is data from July to July in each one of these years.
Here is a graph of the Total Number of Sales for these local towns. Look at that promising increase of sales over the past year! The area is running 10% fewer sales than we had 5 years ago.
Everyone under the sun is forecasting that the economy is faltering again, and it is very rare to hear that any uptick in this marketplace has legs to it. Therefore, my report is that the local marketplace numbers right now have strength. We will have to evaluate in this way, often, to see if this continues. I will keep you posted on these numbers over the second half of the year.
Ed Daniels of The MAhome Team can be reached at 508-341-7880 or Ed@MAhome.com to create a custom evaluation of your local marketplace and tell you what your home is worth today.Categories: Ashland, Framingham, Holliston, Hopkinton, Local Communities, Market Conditions, Natick, Real Estate, Southborough
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Metrowest Hazardous Waste Days
April 5th, 2010
Spring is here and cleanouts have begun! Time to plan for getting rid of all that hazardous waste around your home.
The Metrowest Boston area has special days set aside for homeowners to rid the house of waste.
Holliston Hazardous Waste Day -
July 24th, 2010 9-noon at Adams Middle School
Natick Hazardous Waste Day -
May 15th, 2010 from 9-noon - Natick District Court
Limited: Only 300 cars, so pre-register here
Framingham Hazardous Waste Day -
October – Town site for all recycling info
I will post more details from other area towns as they become announced.
The Metrowest Boston area appreciates that you dispose of your household chemicals at these special days that are offered.
Ed Daniels of Remax Executive Realty serves the Metrowest area towns. If considering a move, the MAhome Team would love the opportunity to help. Contact them at 508-341-7880 and Ed@MAhome.com
Categories: Events in Community, Framingham, Holliston, Natick
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Metrowest Election Results for Senate
January 20th, 2010
The election results are IN for Senator in Washington. The Metrowest region had a great turnout and for that we can all be proud that democracy is working!
Below are results from each Metrowest MA town and the vote counts for either Scott Brown (R) or Martha Coakley (D):
Town - Winner - Vote count
Ashland Brown 3467 vs 2897
Bellingham Brown 4090 vs 2179
Framingham Coakley 10329 vs 9149
Franklin Brown 8828 vs 4470
Holliston Brown 3725 vs 2921
Hopkinton Brown 4123 vs 2600
Marlborough Brown 6817 vs 5037
Medway Brown 3641 vs 2044
Milford Brown 5432 vs 3561
Millis Brown 2430 vs 1383
Natick Coakley 7208 vs 6954
Northborough Brown 3816 vs 2486
Shrewsbury Brown 7867 vs 5242
Southborough Brown 2689 vs 1845
Upton Brown 2125 vs 1138
Westborough Brown 3822 vs 2996
Results for other towns not posted here can be found by
Good luck to Scott Brown as he heads to Washington to help all citizens of Massachusetts. The people have spoken with their votes and now it is his job to take care of us!
Ed Daniels of Re/Max Executive Realty is a local Realtor and home owner in Metrowest Boston.
He can be contacted at 508-341-7880 for help in learning about the Metrowest area and buying/selling a home.
Categories: Ashland, Bellingham, Framingham, Grafton, Holliston, Hopkinton, Local Communities, Marlborough, Medway, Milford, Natick, Southborough, Town Hall Info, Westborough
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Affordable Condo Options Newly Available
September 28th, 2009
Over the past few weeks there have been 2 condo options that have come available in our area that could become really good deals. I mention “could” because one is an auction property and one is an income restricted option.
Natick has luxury condominiums at the Natick Mall going to auction on October 4th. The minimum bids are significantly less than what the asking prices have been over the past year.
Some people may respond that they were overpriced to begin with, but only time will tell whether these unique Metrowest properties will hold their value. The fact is, there is nothing else like them in our area.
The auction process is also difficult to determine what will be the result. This process requires attending the auction with a $10,000 cashiers check, signing a Purchase & Sale Agreement that day, and closing within a month. Not a process to be going thru blindly!
Holliston is now offering affordable condo options at The Orchards at Holliston. This 72 unit complex is currently under construction. The location is 353 Highland Street, towards the Ashland town line. Four of these units are available for buyers who fit certain income criteria.
The selling price of these few units is $166,500. The deadline for applications on these units is November 9th. The luxury units have 1,580 square feet of space and are townhouse style.
If you meet the following income guidelines, it is a great opportunity:
$46,300 one person Household
$52,550 two person Household
$59,550 three person Household
$66,150 four person Household
There is an informational meeting at Holliston Town Hall in Room 105 on Oct 21st from 6-8pm.
We find ourselves in a time when mortgage rates are close to 30 year lows, affordability indexes are looking their best in decades, and there are some motivated sellers. Nobody will be able to determine if we have hit the low point in the real estate market until we look back in history, but indicators show it is a good point, if not the low point.
Ed Daniels of Remax Executive Realty is an 11 year veteran of the real estate business, as well as a lifelong resident of Metrowest Boston. Contact him at 508-341-7880 with any questions or comments.
Categories: Featured Listings, Holliston, Natick, Real Estate
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Nordstrom is Having a Sale… on Condos!
September 11th, 2009
Natick has one-of-a-kind luxury condos that are going on the auction block next month. The Nouvelle at Natick is a 215 unit project that is connected with the mall. About 20% of the units are going to be auctioned October 4th.
The developers are in trouble. They built this development just as the economy was going into a tailspin. They have sold or put under contract only a total of 37 condos. Ouch!
Using town records, I was only able to verify 18 sold units, and selling prices ranged from $369900 to $1.2 million. The following are the units being auctioned:
- 1 Bedroom & 1 BR + Study $160K-$210K
796-1078 sq ft units
- 2 Bedroom & 2 BR + Study $220K-$315K
1068-1591 sq ft units
- 3 Bedroom (only 1 unit auctioned) $350,000
1774 sq ft
- Penthouse (2 units) $375K-$475K
1596-2110 sq ft units
The marketing department has tried everything to entice the local Realtor community to sell these units. Incentives for months of condo fees or mortgage payments have not worked to bring in sales. These prices have just been too high for such a unique housing option in Metrowest.
You will need a deposit of $10,000 on auction day, and I would highly recommend doing all your homework about unit locations, pricing, and mortgage financing. If you are an investor you likely will need 20-25% down payment to get your financing.
These very unique Metrowest condo options were never a good investment to consider, until now. Feel free to contact me for all details of the process and the property options. The developer will pay the commission of your Buyer Agent when bidding on these units, so take advantage of this guidance.
“We Live Where You Live” Ed Daniels of Remax Executive Realty can help you with this auction process and perhaps get you a great investment. He can be reached at 508-341-7880.Categories: Featured Listings, Market Conditions, Natick, Real Estate
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Important Info on Local Hospitals: Customer Satisfaction
May 10th, 2008
The Metrowest Boston towns are just a short drive to some of the most highly regarded hospitals in the country. I don’t think I have ever heard of Massachusetts residents complaining about the level of care that is available nearby.
There is a survey that I discovered that does highlight some customer satisfaction numbers you may find interesting.
Surveys are interesting subjects because there always seems to be a motivation behind them. This survey was conducted by The Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS). This government body seems to give hospitals a tool to get better at their care, but more importantly, it gives the consumer a way to compare hospital care.
My wife and I are about to have our second child. This time around we are using Newton-Wellesley Hospital, as opposed to Beth Israel Hospital in Boston the first time around. The choice was strictly based upon health insurance reasons, but if it wasn’t, I would use this site to try to evaluate the level of care.
Our method of choosing a hospital prior to a site like this would be asking a handful of friends about their personal experience during their stay. You can see how this might get a little difficult if you are talking about personal matters with your health.
The Metrowest Daily News wrote a good article about the site and the method of the surveys. Click here for the full story.
The link for the HCAHPS can be reached by clicking here: www.HospitalCare.hhs.gov.
Here in the Metrowest area, there are several regional hospitals for residents to choose from:
Metrowest Medical Center Framingham, MA
Milford Regional Medical Center Milford, MA
Marlborough Hospital Marlborough, MA
Newton-Wellesley Hospital Newton, MA
UMass Memorial Medical Center Worcester, MA
Metrowest Medical Center - Leonard Morse Campus Natick, MA
The survey asks questions of patients regarding noise, cleanliness, communication with staff, clear home recovery instructions, among other areas.
It allows hospital management to track how they do compared to other hospitals and where they are lacking in the eyes of the patient.
Newton-Wellesley Hospital reported an 82% rating of patients who said they would definately recommend the hospital, which was the top score from the hospitals listed above.
I am glad to hear that, and I am sure you will hear about it if I fall within the 18% who doesn’t!
Categories: Framingham, Marlborough, Milford, Natick, Preferred Business
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Foreclosure Real Estate Secrets
February 3rd, 2008
First time buyers of real estate are salivating at the idea that the Buyer’s Market in Massachusetts is offering “steals” in every neighborhood. They hear of foreclosures, auctions, and people unloading property at every turn.
This is not only a falsehood, but when buyers learn of the process, they usually run for the hills.
Let me explain how foreclosures work…
Home owners who do not pay their mortgage over time will have the bank try to take it over or sell it. The process is known as foreclosure, and the first attempt to sell the property is known as the auction.
The auction is advertised in a legal section of your local newspaper. To participate, you would bring a deposit check to the event. The bidder than stands on the curb and raises their hand if they are willing to pay x dollars for the home.
Notice how I did not say anything about looking inside the property, inspection conditions, or financing contingencies… this is because they don’t exist! You buy sight unseen, perhaps someone will still be living there when you end up buying it, and if you don’t show up in 30 days with payment in full, the deposit is retained by the auction house.
Not a great course of events for a rookie home buyer.
A bank representative is usually at the auction also. They are there to “bid” if the bank wants to buy it back rather than allow anyone else to “steal” the property. They will then prepare the home for listing with a local realtor. This is also known as a REO property, referring to the Real Estate Owned department of the bank.
A buyer can now preview the home, conduct an inspection, and negotiate on price, but at this point the bank usually spends a bit of money on the process and still is not going to allow the home to sell for an outrageous price.
There is certainly a lot more REO property in Massachusetts recently, but these properties are not for buyers who do not have financial resources or lack nerves of steel. They usually need at least cosmetic work, but most have quite a few inspection issues. There are companies out there that are in this business full time and they are also going to compete with your bids.
My official recommendation in 2008, stick with the listed properties and do your due diligence on a property you plan on buying. Currently it is a slim margin of benefit that you will receive from buying a foreclosure and not worth it. It may be in the future, just not right now in Metrowest Boston.
Contact me if you have questions or concerns about REO properties or click here to view listings on the MLS.
Categories: Ashland, Framingham, Grafton, Holliston, Hopkinton, Market Conditions, Marlborough, Milford, Natick, Real Estate, Southborough, Westborough
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4 Crucial Reasons to Buy In this Perfect Market
November 27th, 2007
You have been hearing all sorts of bad news in every newspaper article for the past 2 years. These are the 4 reasons why this is THE perfect time to be a Buyer. You should not delay, even if it means dealing with getting less for your current home!
As a full time Realtor in the Metrowest area for the past 10 years, I have seen mostly “good times”.
But were they?
My buyer clients were buying with multiple offers in the first few days a home was listed. Interest rates were good, but prices were climbing at double digit rates.
Ok, they were good times for Sellers.
Many of my home buying clients paid over asking price and had to convince the appraiser that the place was worth it. Many appraisers used appreciation factors in their assessments and the banks signed off on them.
So now is the “Good Times” for the Buyers! Here is why:
1. Interest Rates: They are falling again and today I was just told by my mortgage brokers that they have dipped to 6%. You can’t find 100% deals easily or have terrible credit, but others should take advantage
Call the MAhome Team if we can connect you to a professional, ethical and competitive local mortgage broker for a free pre-approval.
2. Motivated Sellers: There are the foreclosure and short sales, but overall most of the people selling in this market are doing it because they need to. Job change, growing families, or financial struggles are some of the reasons that they are moving.
You need to have a professional Realtor in your corner to deal with the “distressed” situations, but having a strong negotiator on your side will result in even benefits. Negotiate in your mortgage points or closing costs, have condo fees paid for the year, or have inspection issues corrected are some of these benefits.
3. Choices: Buyers of homes around Metrowest have lots of options. A few years ago buyers would be looking every day at the new to market listings. Today we could take your dream home criteria and have several days of homes worth to tour.
Make sure to visit the MAhome Team MLS search to see a map search. Slide bars to fit your criteria and watch the push-pins pop up all over the Metrowest area that are for sale!
4. The Move Up Premium: It is not an easy environment to Sell a home, but WHEN you are successful, you will get a discounted price on the purchase.
For example, you are selling your home to get a “better” one. It will cost more and have lots more room and be located in the primo neighborhood. You sell your home for 10% less than you could have 2 years ago, it takes 6 months, but you did it! It listed for $390000, but only sold it for $351000.
Now, the move up home is in the $600K price range. You negotiate hard and get a good deal on the perfect place. You estimate it is 10% less than you could have bought it for 2 years ago! Therefore, you get the $660000 home for only $600000.
There it is… “losing” $41K off the sale and “discounting” the purchase by $60K. A buyer who is upgrading their home is doing better than they would 2 years ago!
Take advantage of a professional Realtor who will keep your best interests as the priority, the MAhome Team is that Realtor. If you know of someone thinking of buying or selling a home, who would appreciate the kind of service I offer, we would appreciate your referrals.
Categories: Ashland, Framingham, Grafton, Holliston, Hopkinton, Market Conditions, Marlborough, Milford, Natick, Real Estate, Southborough, Westborough
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What??! Boston Area Real Estate “fairly valued”??
November 21st, 2007
SmartMoney Magazine reports in the December 2007 issue that Massachusetts real estate is considered “fairly valued”.
They compared local housing prices with other factors, including household income, population density, and interest rates.
Generally, when home prices and incomes grow in tandem in a particular metro area, that market is probably fairly valued; when home prices rise much faster, the market becomes overvalued and a real estate slump is a real danger.
Link to Smartmoney Stats: http://www.smartmoney.com/mag/download/december2007housing.xls
Link to SmartMoney Magazine Article:
http://www.smartmoney.com/mag/index.cfm?story=december2007-housing
Here are the stats that the article reports:
Worcester MA Median Price of $244,300;
10% overvalued; -3% home price chg 06-07
Springfield MA Median Price of $214,100;
10% overvalued; 1% home price chg 06-07
Essex County MA Median Price of $333,800;
6% overvalued; -3% home price chg 06-07
Boston-Quincy Median Price of $345,100;
2% undervalued; -3% home price chg 06-07
Cambridge-Framingham MP of $$379,500;
5% undervalued; -2% home price chg 06-07
All of these areas fall within the study’s classification of “fairly valued”. For all you people who are wondering where NOT to go buy a home because it is “extremely overvalued”, stay away from Miami, California, and Honolulu. They recommend the “undervalued” markets of Dallas, Rochester NY, and Tulsa.
Categories: Ashland, Framingham, Holliston, Hopkinton, Milford, Natick, Real Estate
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