Real Estate Information

Are you or someone you know worried about the cost of hiring a Real Estate Agent? Do you think that the cheaper agent may be saving you money? At first this may seem like a very reasonable assumption. Of course if you are paying your agent less then that's more money in yr pocket. Or is it?  If you are paying your agent less, are they really doing everything they can to advertise your property and get it sold quickly?  Are they going to put the time and effort into getting you a good buyer and the best possible price? Or will they just take whatever offer happens to come along with as little effort as possible?
Now it's true there are Agents out there that still have enough morals to still do their best work regardless of how much they are making, however they also need to be able to show discretion to the homes they take in, in  order to give clients the attention they deserve. Is your agent trying to take in too many clients to make p for the unreasonable prices?
Would you think twice about buying a $200 car? Of course, you would wonder whats wrong with it. In these tough times we all need to be very careful about where our money is going and be aware that there are people out there trying to take advantage of us. Remember the old saying your mom said to you "If its too good to be true.... it probably is"
Make sure when you chose your agent, or anything else for that matter, that you do so wisely and after research. 
 

So we all know that fathers day is coming up and a lot of you are wondering what you will do with your children and grandchildren.  Here are some things going on around RI that you may enjoy.

This week at your local Lowe's they will be holding a workshop for the kids to build a project for father's day. This project is intended for children between 1st and 5Th grade. The workshop is held from 10-11. Only the first 50 kids at each store is guaranteed a spot. They have aprons and goggles as well as kids sized hammers for your use and you take your project home with you. The best part about this project is it is free. These building projects are a great time to bond with your child, help teach them some life skills as well as give them some confidence.

The providence children's museum is also a great time for the family. They have recently redone the downstairs also so if you haven't been there lately you should go check it out. Now some of you may think you can't afford to go, but i have some good news for you. They have a lot of programs and nights that you can go for free and probably didn't even realize it. For starters if you have state health care you can go for free anytime. Show them your medical card and you are on your way. (mom and dad will need their id's )

Another great program they have is free Friday.    Free Friday is the 3rd Friday of every month from 5-8. In the summer they will be having free Friday every week.

There is also the Bank America Program which is not only good for the Children's museum but also for the RISD and the Woonsocket museum of work and culture.    This program gives you free admission to the museums the first full weekend of each month until December 2010. There have been mixed messages about how many get in free, so you may want to check either with your bank or the museum to make sure everyone in your group will be free.

Later on this week I will be posting some places that offer free kids dinners, Father's day specials, and Great Art walks so come back soon to see what else is going on in your neighborhood.

I’m often asked if this is a good time to buy a home.  Some clients are concerned that home prices may fall further than they have already.  They are assuming that the best course of action is to wait for the bottom in the market and then buy.  The problem with this approach is that you don’t know where the bottom is until you see it in the rear view mirror, meaning until you’ve missed it!

Home prices are one factor in determining your cost of ownership, but so are interest rates and financing availability.  Even though interest rates have gone up in the last six months, they are still near historic lows.  Since your monthly mortgage payment is a combination of paying down your principal and paying the interest owed, if home prices come down a little further but interest rates go up, it could cost you even more to service a mortgage on an identical home!

While a home is a major investment, it is also the center of your personal life.  It’s important to live in a home that reflects your taste and values, yet is within your financial “comfort zone.”  To that end, it may be more important to lock in today’s relatively low interest rates and low home prices, rather than to hope for a further break in prices in the future.

Please give me a call if I can be of any assistance in determining how much home you can afford in today’s market.