After the Tax Credit Ended

The expanded and extended home buyer tax credit ended almost a month ago and since then, many have wondered what happened to the market? If you’re one of the one’s that been wondering, wonder no more we have the answer!

In Back Bay from 5/5/10-5/27/10 there were 34 condos sold. Out of the 34 condos sold 20 of them went for under $620,000 showing that despite an expired tax credit there are still plenty of first time buyers out there looking to purchase a home. During the same period last year only 16 Back Bay condos were sold. So will the housing market fall off a cliff as some have suggested? It would seem at this time that it’s unlikely but it’s still best to proceed with cautious optimism. If you’re interested in taking a look at what has come on the market recently or would like to discus listing your home for sale, please give us a call at 617-449-3642.

First 10 Days of May Market Report

This month’s market data shows  a return to the spring market and an improvement over last year’s crazy decline. The improvements in every neighborhood are a positive sign for the market but it will be more interesting to see what happens with the full month of data.

Back Bay 2010
11 Condo’s sold
Avg. Sale Price: $2,680,013
Avg. Price/Ft: $909.43

Back Bay 2009
9 Condo’s Sold
Avg. Sale Price: $1,514,778
Avg. Price/Ft: $919.01

Beacon Hill 2010
3 Condo’s Sold
Avg. Sale Price: $793,333
Avg. Price/Ft: $758.40

Beacon Hill 2009
1 Condo’s Sold
Avg. Sale Price: $637,500
Avg. Price/Ft: $671.05

South End 2010
13 Condo’s Sold
Avg. Sale Price: $604,962
Avg. Price/ft: $623.8

South End 2009
7 Condo’s Sold
Avg. Sale Price: $563,286
Avg. Price/ft: $609.80

Landlords and Facebook

Plenty of people have worried about their future boss seeing what’s on their facebook page but this week a new concern has popped up. What happens when your future landlord sees what’s on your page? This past week there was an application rejected because after receiving the application the landlord “Facebooked” the person applying and didn’t like what they saw. Photos of the applicant drunk large speakers in the background and people everywhere made the landlord uncomfortable that their place would be well maintained. The discovery is one that many people who have grown up with Facebook may have to deal with a lot more in the future.

The landlord didn’t break any fair housing laws when rejecting the applicant but at the same time it seems unfair. I’ll be the first to admit that a good portion of the photos on Facebook reflect this behavior but that’s because times of enjoyment are times when people take photos. No one has the photos of them studying for that large final exam, or when they are giving that big important presentation at work. So what can be done? Change your privacy settings. Know that just like your future employer may look at your Facebook page, so will your future landlord.