Serving the Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts

 

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Clients only: Register to receive daily email updates of new listings and access to our MLS extranet. Click here.

 
Northampton Real Estate; a Soaring Stock Market; Food Riots in the Middle East. What's the Connection? (April 27, 2011)

 
A Few Thoughts on Sovereign Debt (June 6, 2010)

 
Letter to a Friend Buying on the Cape: Don't! (November 21, 2009)

 
A Slow-Motion Train Wreck: The Debt Crisis and Real Estate  (December 11, 2008)

 
A Realtor's View from Hubbert's Peak: The End of Cheap Oil and Cheap Money (June 5, 2006)

 
War and Property Inflation (April 7, 2005)

 
Why Home Prices Are Going through the Roof: A Brief Guide to the "New Economy" (January 13, 2003)

 
From Patrick Killelea of Patrick.net, a great resource for real estate news:

"I want to cause a sea-change in the mentality of the US. I want people to see that mortgage debt is destructive, with no benefits at all, except for bankers. Mortgage debt just drives up prices and enslaves workers to their bosses. If we all paid cash for houses, or rented, we would be more prosperous, more free, and happier."

 
More Articles on the Housing Market:

The Great Repression, by Niall Ferguson (February 28, 2009). Ferguson on the only real solution to the financial crisis, one that the Obama team will come around to when all else has failed.

Depression in the East Points the Way for the Rest of the World, by Larry Elliott (The Guardian [UK], February 26, 2009)

What Is Your Home Worth? Both Less and More than You Think,  by Sharon Astyk (December 16, 2008)

A Word of Advice in a Real Estate Slump: Rent by David Leonhardt (New York Times, April 11, 2007)

Crisis Looms in Mortgage Markets by Gretchen Morgenson, March 11, 2007.

Un-Real Estate by James Grant, April 2005

Housing bubble in New England  (Dean Baker, Center for Economic and Policy Studies, Jan. 5, 2003)

"These are perilous times for asset markets ...." (Ian Campbell, UPI, Jan. 30, 2004)

 
     

"House of Cards: US, UK Home Prices to Decline Dramatically in Next Few Years."
See The Economist's survey of May 29, 2003

 
"Mortgage Markets Are Out of Control," New York Times, August 17, 2003

 
Co-buying: One solution to the high cost of housing in the Valley?

 
Considering an adjustable rate mortgage? It may be a risky proposition. See Homeowners Urged Caution on Hybrid Loans

 
For the effects of skyrocketing home prices on communities, see an article by Rebecca Solnit, Hollow City (as computer money flows into San Francisco, the quirkiness and creativity drain out). A cautionary tale for Northampton and other Valley towns.

 

 

How is EcoRealty different from other real estate agencies?

 

First of all, we are not salespersons but exclusive buyer agents. You will hear no sales chatter from us. We evaluate the property, look at future resale potential, point out problems, and act as if we were investing our own money in the property. 

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As your fiduciary agent, we will always act in your best interests, including playing the devil's advocate when you seem to be overeager about a property. We tend to form relationships of trust with our clients that make the home-buying experience more enjoyable and less stressful.

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We provide a breadth of information and advice about the home or land you're about to purchase that is quite rare:
  • A written evaluation of the property
  • Data on comparable sales
  • Information on environmental health issues impinging on the property
  • Advice on eco-renovations
  • Cautions about resale potential or lack thereof down the road. We were one of the only real estate companies in the country to see the problems with mortgage-backed securities and the dangers of a housing crash, and to alert our clients to them (in January 2003: see our article of that year, Why Home Prices Are Going Through the Roof). We were discouraging clients from purchasing properties at the height of the boom.

With EcoRealty, you will make a fully informed decision, supported (if you wish) by the structural inspectors, mortgage officers, and attorneys we recommend, all chosen for their interest in educating buyers and their professionalism, experience, and responsiveness.

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We strive to be attuned to the real needs of our clients and we are conscientious about ensuring that our clients do not get into a situation that will hurt them financially. 

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We also bring a certain sensibility to our work with clients with allergies, or clients with young children vulnerable to environmental toxins or electromagnetic pollution. 

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The "eco" (pronounced "eeco" as in ecosystem) in EcoRealty speaks of our keen interest in and broad knowledge of environmental health issues, our knowledge of green building, and our commitment to sustainable development.

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We give 10 percent of our aftertax profits to support local farming groups and land conservation funds.

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In the current economy (with its overhang of debt, ailing banks, high unemployment, and poor prospects), we are encouraging folks to hunker down but are aware that some have to move. In such cases, you'll receive honest, calm, well-informed advice on any real estate purchase, quite often contradicting the spin and distortions peddled by the media or the government.