Buy or Rent? Must Ask Questions To Help You Decide

Whether you should buy or rent a home depends on your wants, needs, priorities, short and long term goals. Given the option, most people still prefer to own, especially these days when rents have gone up and mortgage rates have gone down. The decision is not only financial, but in fact, most people buy for quality of life reasons.

Here are some must ask questions to answer before you decide:

1)      What are your short and long term plans?

2)      What type of house do you want?

3)      What community do you want to live in?

4)      What is the upfront cost?  Down payment that goes toward the purchase price vs. security deposit, first and last month rent, rental agent fee.

5)      What is the actual after tax cost?

6)      How often do you want to move? A landlord can decide to sell the property at the end of your lease term end do you want to move after a year? What if you have children in school and there aren’t any rentals in that school district?

7)      Do you have a pet(s)? Many landlords do not allow any pets.

8)      How important is control over your living space?

9)      Do you like to decorate? You can’t change a rental; and why would you want to spend money on someone else’ property?

10)   How do you feel about paying your landlord’s mortgage/expenses, building some else’ wealth?

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Maynard Real Estate Market Report - Low Inventory; Good Time to Sell!

Happy New Year and welcome to the first Maynard MA Real Estate Market Conditions report 2011.


Prices for single family homes in Maynard range from $175,000 to $639,900. The median list price is $311,500; the average is $329,352. There are currently 28 single-family homes on the market in Maynard 2 more than there were one year ago. The average time on the market is 187 days, up 38% from last year at this time.

Of the 28 active listings, 3 already have accepted offers and are being shown until contingencies are cleared. There are 9 single family homes with sales pending up from zero one month age. Buyers came out strong over the Thanksgiving and New Year holiday weekends.

There were 98 closed sales of single family homes in Maynard for 2010 compared with 94. The median sale price for 2010 was $297,500; the average was $306,740. The median sale price for 2009 was $280,000; the 2009 average was $284,000. December sales were down from December 2009; only 4 compared with 9.

For anyone looking for easy living, the number of condominiums/townhouses in Maynard has also increased from this time last year. There are 18 available of which 2 already have accepted offers waiting for contingencies to clear.

Prices range from $89,000 for apartment style condos to $320,000 for new townhouses. Prices at the established townhouse developments of Apple Ridge, Oak Ridge, and Deer Hedge Run start at $200,000 for a short-sale listing at Oak Ridge. Others start at $239,000 for a 3-level unit at Deer Hedge that can use updating. At the peak these townhouses were selling up to the $320s so they are an excellent value in the $200s. Year end data show that there were 24 closed condo/townhouse sales in Maynard during 2010; the median sale price was $239,000, the average was $244,744. In 2009 there were 31 sales with slightly lower median and average sale prices.

Maynard offers more affordable housing options for buyers than the surrounding towns of Sudbury, Acton, Concord, and Stow, and the town has lots of activities and amenities including an active downtown with a variety of specialty shops and restaurants, a movie theatre, live arts, music, and theatre. Outdoor activities include hiking, fishing, tennis, canoeing, and golf. There are lots parks, and an outdoor walking tract.

Low mortgage interest rates make this a great time for anyone who would enjoy living in Maynard to become a homeowner. Visit http://www.marilynmessenger.com/ to search complete MLS listings with addresses and maps; news and information and market reports for Sudbury, Stow, Maynard, and Weston MA. Facebook users - "like" and search without leaving FB at www.facebook.com/livingwestofboston.
 
Data source: MLSPIN (Multiple Listing Service Property Information Network.