Open Houses New Year weekend
Here are this weekend’s Open Houses (just 1 in Beverly and Marblehead, 2 in Swampscott and 3 in Salem) :
Click on these links for details:
Marblehead Open Houses
Swampscott Open Houses
Salem Open Houses
Beverly Open House (more…)
New Listings after Christmas
Still quiet with just one new listing in each of Swampscott, Salem and Beverlky:
Click on these links for details: (more…)
No Open Houses Christmas weekend
There are no Open Houses this weekend in Beverly, Salem, Swampscott or Marblehead.
If you – or somebody you know – are considering buying or selling a home and have questions about the market and/or current home prices, please contact me on 617.834.8205 or ajoliver47@gmail.com.
Andrew Oliver, M.B.E.,M.B.A.
Market Analyst | Team Harborside | teamharborside.com
REALTOR®
m 617.834.8205
www.OliverReportsMA.com
“If you’re interested in Marblehead, you have to visit the blog of Mr. Andrew Oliver, author and curator of OliverReportsMA.com. He’s assembled the most comprehensive analysis of Essex County we know of with market data and trends going back decades. It’s a great starting point for those looking in the towns of Marblehead, Salem, Beverly, Lynn and Swampscott.”
__________________
Andrew Oliver, M.B.E., M.B.A.
Real Estate Advisor
Andrew.Oliver@Compass.com
www.TheFeinsGroup.com
www.OliverReportsFL.com
————
Compass
800 Laurel Oak Drive, Suite 400, Naples, FL 34108
m: 617.834.8205
New Listings before Christmas
Here are the latest New Listings:
Click on these links for details: (more…)
New Listings mid-week December 21
Here are the latest New Listings:
Click on these links for details: (more…)
Open Houses Sunday December 18
Here are today’s Open Houses:
Click on these links for details:
Marblehead Open Houses
Swampscott Open Houses
Salem Open Houses
Beverly Open House (more…)
New Listings week ending December 16
Here are the latest New Listings:
Click on these links for details: (more…)
Open Houses weekend December 17/18
Here are this weekend’s Open Houses (an updated list for Sunday will be posted tomorrow at 8 a.m.):
Click on these links for details:
Marblehead Open Houses
Swampscott Open Houses
Salem Open Houses
Beverly Open House (more…)
New Listings mid-week December 14
Here are the latest New Listings:
Click on these links for details: (more…)
Open Houses Sunday December 11
Here are today’s Open Houses:
Click on these links for details:
Marblehead Open Houses
Swampscott Open Houses
Salem Open Houses
Beverly Open House (more…)
Marblehead 2023 Property Tax Rate
The 2023 Property Tax rate of $10.00, for both residential and commercial property, has been approved by the Massachusetts Department of Revenue.This compares with a rate of $10.52 for 2022 but, with assessments climbing, tax bills will -as usual – be going up.
I will publish my usual breakdown, showing how the tax rate is calculated, next week.
And these recent articles:
Economic and mortgage commentary
Why Mortgage Rates Will Fall (more…)
Why Mortgage Rates Will Fall
I have read and heard several comments suggesting that the increase in the 30-year Fixed Rate Mortgage (FRM) this year has been a direct result of the increase in the Federal Reserve’s Fed Funds rate (FF).
This is not correct.
As I will demonstrate, the FRM is determined by market forces, and in particular by the extra yield – the “spread” – which investors require when buying pools of mortgages (Mortgage Backed Securities or MBS), as compared with the risk-free yield available with the 10-year Treasury Note (10T) which has the nearest duration to the expected life of a pool of mortgages.
In contrast, the FF is the rate that banks use when setting their Prime Rates. When the FF increases, banks increase their Prime Rates and therefore the interest rate on those loans whose rates are based upon Prime Rates – e.g. credit cards and auto loans.
And we will see that the FRM increased this year long before the Fed started to increase the FF rate.
Mortgage-Backed Securities (MBS)
A conventional mortgage or conventional loan is any type of home buyer’s loan that is not offered or secured by a government entity. Instead, conventional mortgages are available through private lenders, such as banks, credit unions, and mortgage companies.
Most conventional mortgages are packaged into mortgage-backed securities and sold to investors. This allows the bank or originator to use its capital to finance more mortgages.
The relationship between 10T and FRM
This chart shows how the two have moved in lockstep over the last 30-plus years:

Source: National Association of Realtors
New Listings week ending December 9
Here are the latest New Listings:
Click on these links for details: (more…)
Marblehead and Swampscott November sales still strong
November sales in Marblehead and Swampscott continue to show strength.
Marblehead
10 of 19 SFH sales in November were at or over List price, with 2 sales at 23% and 32% over list. Just 1 of the 4 Condo sales was over List.
Swampscott
6 of 10 SFH sales in October were at or over List price (5 over the Original List Price), while 5 of the 6 Condo sales were at or above List.
Comment
While sales continue to be strong – and often strongly above list price – it is interesting to note that 8 of the 14 SFHs currently available for sale in Marblehead have had price reductions, while 4 of the 9 in Swampscott have also seen price cuts – or “adjustments” or “improvements” as we like to call them.
Note also that in November, all but 1 of the sales where the price had been reduced subsequently took place below the reduced price.
The sample is small, but the implication is clear: over-pricing in this market leads to a lower sale price.
Open Houses weekend December 10/11
Here are this weekend’s Open Houses (an updated list for Sunday will be posted tomorrow at 8 a.m.):
Click on these links for details:
Marblehead Open Houses
Swampscott Open Houses
Salem Open Houses
Beverly Open House (more…)
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