John McCarthy

Over the last few weeks I have had meetings with a number of first time buyers trying to break into this seller’s market. If we have heard this once, we have heard it a million times that buying a home is probably the biggest investment you will ever make. Not only...

In the past I have written extensively about what a homeowner can do to increase the value of their home. Just as there are projects you can take on to improve your home’s value there are “fixes” you may be doing that inadvertently lower your home’s value.  A lot of...

The consensus among buyers, sellers, REALTORS®, mortgage agents and anyone else who is in real estate is that it is nuts out there. There is a huge lack of inventory and lots of qualified and eager buyers. Homes are selling very, very quickly. As a seller you are...

Over the last few weeks I have had meetings with a number of first time buyers trying to break into this brutal seller’s market. If we have heard this once, we have heard it a million times that buying a home is probably the biggest investment you will ever make. Not...

I was asked this very question the other day. Why should we hire you? Why should I list my house with you? What can you do for me? I can just put my house on the market and get it sold in this market! I get these questions quite a bit. The National Association of...

With inventory virtually nonexistent and interest rates continuing at all-time lows the amount of buyers out there is ridiculous. This past weekend we had an open house with over 150 people in 3 hours. In my 19+ years as a realtor I have never had that many people at...

When should we sell? Now? Next year? When the kids leave? Wait until the pandemic is over? According to the National Association of Realtors® people sell on average every 10 years. Sounds like a long time but I had a seller that was in their home for 68 years and many...

With spring right around the corner (I know, we haven’t even seen snow yet but I can think positively right?) the real estate market should be very strong, maybe not as crazy as spring 2021 but most economists see a sellers’ market with 5% price increase over 2021. If...

I have a closing on Friday on a new home and after months of consulting with the builder on all aspects of the home the buyer considers the builder “a friend”. Why aren’t all transactions like this? Sitting in these closings I usually think what can I do to help...

As I write this, the forecast for tonight is snow, not much but it seems like it’s a little early this year.  Most of us with the exception of skiers, snowboarders, shovel and snow plow makers don’t particularly care for winter.  Winter brings cold, snow and often a...