Portsmouth NH Real Estate

This posting is a favor for a very good friend of mine.  He has a wonderful fully furnished monthly rental on Winnacunnet in Hampton, only a short walk to the beach.  The property has a cozy fireplace and a healthy bundle of firewood ready for you!  You can find more information on this wonderful retreat at Driftwood Landing

For now, take a look at this flyer the owner sent me for distribution.  I have walked through the property and I give it two thumbs up!  This ia a WONDERFUL rental home.  Cozy, nicely decorated and very roomy with lots of bedrooms for a family or guests.

What your home was worth two years ago, one year ago and even six months ago may not apply today.  When you get ready to sell your home, call me for a FREE CMA (Comparative Market Analysis).

Before I create your report, I will ask you a few basic questions to get what I need to base the report on.  I can have a full report prepared for you in a matter of hours if needed.  The report will take into consideration similar or "comparative" homes in your area which have recently sold.  These homes will match the important characteristics of your home as closely as possible.  The report will also take into consideration comparable homes which have recently gone into contract and those which are still on the market.

Your report will be personal and be based on your home and your neighborhood.

The CMA will identify the market price range for your home.  This range can change on a monthly basis as comparable homes in your area sell at higher or lower prices dictated by the market.  The market price is what the market is willing to pay for your property at that time.  This is why it becomes very important to properly price your home as soon as you decide to list it.

The market price is not a set rate across the country.  The rate varies by state, county, town and even neighborhood.  And not all market rates have been decreasing.  The market price on your home will be as unique as your neighborhood.

If you would like to put your house on the market, give me a call for your free report.  I will deliver the report personally and go over the highlights line by line.  I look forward to meeting you!

As a proud new-ish mother of an 18 month old precious boy, and as someone who is planning 'family addition number two' VERY soon, I understand the concern of families who are new and families who are growing.  You start out with plenty of room.  Then the new baby room takes place of the office.  Toys accumulate left and right.  You never knew you could accumulate so much STUFF.  Your home used to be neat and tidy with everything in its place.  But now walking through your home is like navigating the gauntlet.  Trust me, I'm there. 

- Joshua - Our Real Life Miracle Baby -

Now you might be growing again, or want to grow, but you need more room.  Maybe you need another baby room, or a play room, or just more room for all of your STUFF.  But the problem is, how can you get more room right now?  Times look tough.

Real estate agents understand this dilemma better than anyone.  Fear can be a difficult hurdle to pass.  But you should know that if you are in the position to buy up, now is the time to do so.  Buying a home right now is like shopping in the blue light isle at Kmart.  THIS IS A BUYER'S MARKET. 

New home buyers: give me a call.  I understand the needs for families and I can help locate the perfect home for you in the Seacoast area of your preference.  If you need to sell your home and buy a larger one to accommodate the growing needs of your family, I can help you there as well.  Explain your situation to me and let me take care of you.  I will do the best I can to provide you with the highest level of service for your family.

Wishing you many happy years, from my growing family to yours.

Rebecca, Joshua and Baby Josh.

Smile and take comfort in the humorous words of old.

"Economist: A man who states the obvious in terms of the incomprehensible."

-Alfred A. Knopf

"I believe that banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties than standing armies.... The issuing powers should be taken from the banks and restored to the people to whom it properly belongs."

-Thomas Jefferson

"The hardest thing in the world to understand is the income tax."

-Albert Einstein

"The instability of the economy is equaled only by the instability of economists."

-John H. Williams

"There are two things that can disrupt the American economy. One is a war. The other is a meeting of the Federal Reserve Board."

-Will Rogers

"Never spend your money before you have earned it."

-Thomas Jefferson

"A bank is a place where they lend you an umbrella in fair weather and ask for it back when it begins to rain."

-Robert Frost

"If all economists were laid end to end, they would not reach a conclusion."

-George Bernard Shaw

"In this world, nothing is certain but death and taxes."

-Benjamin Franklin

"In a real estate man's eye, the most expensive part of the city is where he has a house to sell.”

-Will Rogers

"An economist is an expert who will know tomorrow why the things he predicted yesterday didn't happen today."

-Laurence J. Peter

"Ask five economists and you'll get five different answers (six if one went to Harvard)."

-Edgar R. Fiedler

"Economics is extremely useful as a form of employment for economists."

-John Kenneth Galbraith

One of my favorites all time websites is Amazon.Com.  I love books and I love a good bargain even more than books!  On Amazon, you can search for the book you want and once you find it, you can purchase a used version for sometimes less than a dollar.

Home Staging books are flying off the shelves.  It has become steadily more apparent that properly staging a home can increase a chance for a sale in any market and even lead to multiple offers.  The books are so popular, even the used versions are not so inexpensive.  Here are the top five home staging books as per Amazon.Com.  They are linked to their product pages so you can click on one.  (They are NOT linked to any commission account).

Rather than getting a book, it is HIGHLY recommended to hire a PROFESSIONAL home stager rather than attempting to stage your home yourself.  A professional can bring in their own insight, their own ideas and a breath of fresh air with fresh eyes to bring life to a stale home. 

In the seacoast NH area, the most highly sought after stager is Sharon Tara. 

If Sharon isn't in your area, here are the top 5 Home Staging books from Amazon!  (Top five in sales)

The Idiot's Guide to Staging Your Home to Sell. New - $12.89

Home Staging: The Winning Way to Sell Your House for More Money.  New - $13.57

Home Staging for Dummies.  New - $13.59

301 Simple Things. New - $16.47

Designed to Sell.  New - $11.61

I live on Woodbury Ave in Portsmouth, the portion which nearly ends with Islington, where our Keller Williams office is located, and where it looks more like 'The Road to Baghdad'.  The city of Portsmouth has been working on this portion of Woodbury to extend the curbs inward and install sidewalks where there have been none.  I knew about the project before it started and I was happy about it.  We needed sidewalks.  I would feel much safer strolling with my son on a sidewalk, rather than racing across a busy street to get to the smaller streets with a small child for our daily walk.  So it was, and is, a good thing.  And, of course, there is more to the project than just sidewalks.

There are also tickets.  Lots of tickets and warnings.  The police are directing traffic in this area and if you go one mph too fast, you WILL get a ticket.  Check out the Portsmouth Woodbury Ave Improvements page on the city website.  It lists how many tickets and how many warnings have already been cited!:

http://www.cityofportsmouth.com/projects/3.htm

Thankfully, I have not been one of the more unfortunate.  The improvements page also lets us know that we may be nearing the end.  Paving began today.  And it does look like the Woodbury Improvement Project might be close to its finish.  Then again, I never did get that degree in road construction.  Joke.

Yesterday, while driving home, I pulled over in the middle of the construction to snap this sad picture:

This sign was on the corner of Woodbury and Rockingham.  It is not much of a field, but a thin strip of land abutting the bridge.  And I do not know the whole story behind the sign or the land or how the project is affecting this piece, but I do know it is a shame.  Even if the improvements are for the best, it is difficult to watch any land be taken away from someone, regardless of compensation.  Any thoughts?

When you decide to purchase a home, your first inclination is usually to locate a real estate agent, or maybe you look at a few homes first on your local MLS, just to see what is out there.  Checking out the inventory on your own is always fine, but before you call a real estate agent, you will want to sit down and take an hour to write a list.

Write a list of the TOP 10 attributes which are the most important to you and what you are looking for in a new home.  For example....walk in closets, a modern kitchen, at least 4 bedrooms, a two car attached garage.  It should take you a little while, so devote some time to you.  You might think of an important attribute later on.  After you make the list, prioritize it.  Move your most important features to the top of the list.

When you call your real estate agent, he or she will always ask you to list off the features in a home which are must-haves for you, or which are the most important.  If you have your list, you will be prepared.  I always find that when you are asked such an abstract question, it is much more difficult to think of replies when you are put on the spot.  And then you might find yourself thinking of the answers you should have said an hour after the phone call.  By having the list, you will be more prepared and you will also feel more confident about conveying your real interest in a new home when you speak for the first time with a Realtor.

This information also helps your Realtor find the perfect home for you.  You can search on the MLS system yourself, but armed with exactly what to look for, an experienced real estate agent can hone in on the perfect selection of homes for you.  A Realtor knows the MLS system, and is an expert at locating properties using buyer-specific variables!

Halloween has always been a holiday of special interest in my family. 

First, I grew up in Danvers, Massachusetts which is on the north shore.  For those of you who would like an interesting and SPOOKY piece of historic information, Danvers is the actual Old Salem Village of where the infamous Salem Witch Trials occurred.  The actual trials took place in The Town of Salem, which still exists, and the witches were hung on Gallows Hill in Salem Village (Danvers), an area still unpopular with the local residents.  The area brings in tens of thousands of tourists for each Hallow's Eve.

Second, my dear Uncle John is the East Coast man of Halloween you may already know. He is better known as Professor Nightmare.  Seriously.  Professor Nightmare owns SpookyWorld, which is actually going to be hosted this year at Canobie Lake Park in Salem, NH.  Not only does he own Spookyworld, but he also owns almost all of the Haunted Houses in Salem, Massachusetts, including the Museum of Myths and Monsters.  He even built a new haunted amusement park in Hong Kong, China.

You have probably heard many of the radio ads for either SpookyWorld or Witch's Woods. Yup, my Uncle has Witch's Woods too.  Well, not only does he own them, he also works the ads.  That is his creepy voice you hear all day on the radio! 

Can you image the suffering and torment inflicted on children who had an Uncle who went by the name of Professor Nightmare?  I still suffer from flashbacks.  I can't even begin to describe what is was like for my sister, cousins and I to grow up with my Uncle John, Professor Nightmare.  Halloween wasn't just one day of the year for us, it was a lifestyle.  As children we were regularly terrorized!  Uncle John would meticulously create elaborate plots in which he would scare the socks right off us nearly every single week.  He had new ways to scare us every time he saw us.  He made his own masks, too.  The scariest masks you have ever seen, and they worked well.  As All Hallow's Eve would get closer, he would construct extravagant haunted house mazes through the basement of my Grandmother's house.  All the neighborhood kids would go.  I guess that is where he got his start.  Even his dog is named Spooky. 

If you think your family is strange.....please.....I have you beat.  My Uncle is Professor Nightmare, I mean, c'mon.  It was practically 'The Adams Family'.

I am very excited that Spookyworld this year is being hosted at Canobie Lake Park in Salem, NH.  YOU NEED TO GO!  If you have not been to a Haunted House since you were a kid, visit my Uncle's.  His haunts are much creepier than any haunted house you can remember as a kid.  He is extremely talented.  On the same token, they won't give you a heart attack....it IS, after all, meant for kids.  Move over Salem, MASS!  Salem, NH is the NEW home of Halloween!

September 16, 2008 - October 16, 2008

The last month in Portsmouth Sales

Residential:

Address                                                        List $       Close $    Close Date

208 Colonial Dr. Portsmouth NH                      $229,000 $224,000 09/26/2008

21 Harrison Avenue Portsmouth NH                 $274,900 $272,000 09/26/2008

60 Fairview Avenue Portsmouth NH                  $285,000 $280,000 09/16/2008

14 Central Ave. Portsmouth NH                       $294,900 $289,900 09/23/2008

2 Wentworth House Road Portsmouth NH         $299,950 $250,000 09/26/2008

71 Kensington Road Portsmouth NH                $314,900 $305,000 09/16/2008

623 Greenland Rd. Portsmouth NH                  $350,000 $325,000 09/29/2008

21 Madison St. Portsmouth NH                       $425,000 $405,000 10/10/2008

470 F W HARTFORD Portsmouth NH                $559,500 $550,000 09/19/2008

Condos:

Address:                                                      List $      Close $    Close Date

737#1 ISLINGTON Portsmouth NH                   $154,000 $150,000 09/26/2008

136 Hill Street Portsmouth NH                        $167,500 $160,000 09/22/2008

28 Langdon St. Portsmouth NH                       $215,000 $200,000 09/24/2008

23 Spinnaker Way Portsmouth NH                   $224,900 $222,000 09/29/2008

159 Woodbury Portsmouth NH                        $299,900 $295,000 09/22/2008

44 Albacore Way Portsmouth NH                     $304,900 $304,900 09/25/2008

245 Islington Portsmouth NH                          $349,900 $343,500 10/08/2008

77 Hanover Street Portsmouth NH                   $399,900 $397,000 10/06/2008

121 Bow St Portsmouth NH                             $799,900 $760,000  10/14/2008

77 Hanover St. #20 Portsmouth NH                 $1,100,000 $900,000 10/03/2008 

Manufactured Homes / Mobile:

211 Oriental Gardens Portsmouth NH              $29,000    $23,500   09/29/2008

423 STRIPED BASS AVENUE Portsmouth NH      $50,000   $32,000    10/03/2008 

I found this blog while reading up on my daily dose of Realtor blogs.  I think you will appreciate it.