This holiday brings the happiest of memories for me. I hope that this one is very special for all of you. I love this holiday and the reason for it. It is just fun and celebration. There is no shopping to do and the cooking is light and easy.
So from coast to coast in ActiveRain I wish you all the best Fourth of July ever. If it rainnig where you are I hope it stops before all the fun begins.
Our town is actively getting ready for a blast of fun for 2 days. We are extending our celebration to Sunday and having a cookout so we can go and visit here and there with friends and family.
It is a great time to celebrate all we have that is so dear and precious and most definitely our freedom. Let Freedom Ring and Go 4th and Celebrate. Fireworks in Needham on the 3rd. We can't hardly wait and we will be on the high school hill before everyone else most likely
It makes me think of that song "Celebrate Good Time, Come On."
Pat Baker, Realtor(R), GREEN(R), ABR(R) Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, Needham/Boston, MA 617-435-3471
there is no better place to celebrate the 4th of July than Needham. Now the weather must cooperate because we have paid our dues for the last 2 weeks of mostly rain. We are due for terrific weather on the 3rd for Fireworks and the 4th starting with the parade at 9:05 AM
I will always love the 4th here. Why go anywhere. It is a STAY-VACATION in Needham for the rockin' est celebration ever!
Here is the parade route and the activities below. When you see a person with an Exchange Club T- Shirt on, please thank them for all their hard work and then give a donation to help defray the cost to put on this monumental celebration! The Enchange Club works tirelessly every 4th of July to make memorable for all us and they certainly do.
Pat Baker, Realtor(R), GREEN(R), ABR(R) Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, Needham/Boston, MA 617-435-3471
I love real state even when the market is not busy I still love it! I love marketing homes of all kinds. I love the previews broker caravan day. I enjoy the people who are attracted to this profession. I believe we are the glue to holding the economy together and we need more glue right now. The economy will recover and our industry will be the catalyst.
i got my real estate broker's license in the summr of 1979 and worked hard for 3 years then I had a long sabatical. I left when interest rates were 18.5% and it was super hard to get a mortgage. Money was tight then. We were no computers, nointernet, no cellphones, no pagers, no VCR's, no fax, no GPS, no DVD's, no Iphone, no ipod, and no lock box key. I typed or wrote by hand a listing and kept in a 3 ring notebook. I sold lots of houses and then the interest rate when so high and my sales got reduced. It is hard believe that none of those things were around and yet we all lived pretty nicely. I love those technologies and I am always looking for the latest new techology. The world of technology facinates me.
I was really young then and by the way i am biologically still YOUNG. Some days I feel younger than I did then. I remember being tired back then. Then someone introduced me to some unbelievable stuff and I was like a whirlwin and no it was not drugs.
Aside from all that I hear one day we have bottomed out, then I hear we have not reached bottom then I hear from Warren Buffet that there is no sign of recovery. For one thing, I hope he is really wrong. I believe that our real estate industry will help bolster up our economy if only they would do a few things for everyone, like give all home buyers a tax credit of $15,000 whether they are first time buyers or not. Afterall we are the ones that are taking the hit for all these bailouts. That would stimulate the economy so much in so many sectors.
I just feel like the real estate industry is key to our recovery and the sooner we fix the housing industry the better. Our first priority is to fix our economy and everything else will be taken care of.
Pat Baker, Realtor, Green, ABR - Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, Needham, MA 617-435-3471 www.patannbaker.com
According to a state representative in Massachusetts pigeons are going to be very much needed soon because Massachusetts is striving to be the capital for Hollywood East. Soon we will have new studio in Plymouth and he feels that pigeons need to be protected. It seems that someone in the town of Westport is doing genetic testing on pigeons and I personally never knew this was going on. This foolishness is a good distraction from all the nutty other things that are going in and out of our country. We could have need of Pigeon Czar in Massachusetts. "God Save The Commonwealth"
Now I have no problem with pigeons but come on. I think there are plenty of pigeons and more than enough for the movies that will be made at Hollywood East. It is good for a laugh though.
So this representative feels he must take care of his constituents who have made investments in pigeons. There will be more and more demand for pigeons to be used in movies and not pigeons who are not from the Massachusetts area. He feels he needs to help his constituents and the pigeons are included.
Pat Baker, Realtor Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, Needham, MA 617-435-3471 www.patannbaker.com
Here is a nice piece and Bill Dermody, President of the Massachusetts Association of Realtors and Manager of Needham's Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage is being interviewed regarding the first time buyer tax credit and how we need to Sweetin' the deal for first time home buyers.
We need more than that and the lawmakers are working on just that. Real Estate is always local and this is a local interview along with homes in Needham that are on the market.
Need to expand and get more for all home buyers up to $15,000.
See IRS 5405.
Pat Baker, Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage of Needham, MA
This is truly wonderful for our children to be living in Needham and so close to the Boston Ballet School in Newtonville. My granddaughter is in her 3 rd year there and it is a treat. So close to Needham and right next to it is a wonderful shop called "Brussel Sprouts" and just next to that is a store where you can outfit a ballerina and it is all right there in one little block.
It is all just wonderful. We went to peek week yesterday and that was a treat. The children are amazing and some will be picked for the "Nutcraker."
A little aside here. If you have not seen "Game Plan" it is a treat too. One of the chidlren is throughout the movie because she is part of this wonderful organization and very talented. It is about a football player and his little girl who is supposed to be going to ballet school. See it if you have not. We have watched so many times especially knowing that she is in it.
The child can start at 2. This is a great opportunity for our childrenand in my case grandchildren.
I just love the 4th of July. I love the cookout, the family, and no shopping. It is just great to kick off the summer this way for us in this great town of Needham. Best of all is the Needham Celebration that starts on Friday July 3rd with the best fireworks you could possibly ever see and enjoy on top of the the Needham High School hill. There are none to compare and since we didn't have them last year I am expecting them to be the best.
Thanks to The Exchange Club of Needham members who work tirelessly to make this two-day event happen every year. I am so grateful.
My first day to visit Needham was the 4th of July 1965. that was a day to remember and everyone since has been as well. Somehow the weather always cooperates too. Only 1 year when I was on a float did it rain and it was cold too.
There is so much to do and so much to see, great food, amazing parade, a town wide fun Needham event. I have only missed 2 in the last 44 years.
Here is a link for The Exchange Club with some photos.
For some of the time I will be sharing with you "green" issues. Other blogs will focus on town events and what makes Needham the unique community it is. It is a little like "Mayberry" in some ways. The tree-lined street beckon you as you walk or travel through town.
The lovely streets of Needham include but not exclusive are: Fair Oaks Park (by far the best street in Needham), Coulton Park, Harris Avenue, Great Plain Avenue, Woodlawn Street, May Street, Burr Drive, Coolidge Avenue, Eaton Road, Prince Street, Plymouth Road, Manning Street, Tower Avenue, Parker Road, Broadmeadow Road, Bird Street, Grosvenor, Hillcrest Road, Birds Hill Avenue, Thornton Road, Melrose Avenue, Brookline Avenue, Lindbergh Avenue, Lexington Street, Concord Road, Burnside Road, Webster Street, Green Street, Needhamdale Road, Parkvale Road, Smith Road, Bonwood Road, Mt. Vernon, Beaufort, Washington Avenue, and I could go on and on. I have not kept to one particular part of town but there are just so many great neighborhoods. That is one of the reasons people keep purchasing homes in this lovely community.
You know that saying "Life is Good" well it is in Needham. We are a community that comes together and a community that really cares about our residents. The town has so much to offer for all ages. I personally feel it is a great town to bring up a family, to retire to, or live in whatever stage in life you are. Lots of folks love the Pool & Racquet Club on Central Avenue, the Park & Recreation Department is superb. Needham YMCA has lot to offer at an affordable price.
Our civic organizations are pretty hard to beat. I mention specifically The Exchange Club because they put on the best Fourth of July Celebration anywhere in the whole United States for sure. The Rotary Club of Needham does some big outreaches in the community, for example, the Pancake Breakfast in October which is there largest fundraiser. This makes it possible to give 4 $8000 scholarships to worthy High School graduates in Needham.
Having lived in Needham, MA now since 1965 I know every street and everything about this great town. I am a resource and I am also a "green" resource.
I have included a link to a helpful booklet "A Family Guide to Going Green"
There are 61 single family homes on the market $1,000,000 and up to $3.499,000. The average List price is $1,500,331 for that portion of the Needham luxury market.
Essentially almost half the inventory is over a million dollars. The total properties on the market is 135 single family homes. Median price range for all inventory is $899,000 and average price is $1,037,828.
The strongest part of the market is from $500,000 to $899,000 as far as properties under agreement for the past month.
For the first quarter of 2009 home sold at 94% of asking price. The price change was 17.9% for Needhamproper (02492) and slight change in Needham Heights(02494) of .64% and homes sold at 95.3% of asking price. the percentage of home sales 60% for (02494) Needham Heights and -22.58%. 24 single family homes sold in Needham Height (02494) average days on market 84, while 16 single family homes sold in Needham proper (02492) average days on market 89.
Historic low mortgage rates have created a favorable buying environment at this time. The forecast of the next quarter is for an increase in home sales.
I have read and heard from 2 economists who say that we are out of the recession. There is a slight upswing and it is slight but there is optimism that the housing market will be stronger towards the last quarter.
The home prices could stay flat or go up. With the Tax Credit available now and the low home prices it is clearly a good time to get into the housing market. Home prices will go up and the deadline for tax credit is November 30, 2009.
Disclaimer: ActiveRain Corp. does not necessarily endorse the real estate agents, loan officers and brokers listed on this site. These real estate profiles, blogs and blog entries are provided here as a courtesy to our visitors to help them make an informed decision when buying or selling a house. ActiveRain Corp. takes no responsibility for the content in these profiles, that are written by the members of this community.
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