Monthly Archives: May 2013

BOSTON, MA - May 30, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- A Melrose landlord and property manager have been ordered to pay more than $38,000 in a housing discrimination case that resulted from posting a Craigslist advertisement indicating their unwillingness to rent to families with children because of the lead status of a rental unit, Attorney General Martha Coakley announced today.

WALTHAM, MA - May 29, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Massachusetts Association of REALTORS® (MAR) reported today that the lack of homes for sale over the past several months once again pushed the number of closed home sales down in April. However, a big jump in the number of new listings on the market in April could indicate a positive shift in future closed sales. Median home prices went up for the seventh straight month. Both sales and median prices of condominiums were up again

WASHINGTON, D.C. - May 24, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- On May 22nd, City Clerk Maureen Feeney swore in Mayor Menino’s two new appointees to the Boston Fair Housing Commission’s five-member board. In the photo below, Fair Housing Commissioners Mary White and Marlena Richardson (hands raised) are officially sworn in, while accompanied by existing Fair Housing Commissioners, Fair Housing Commission staff, and Dion Irish, the Executive Director of the Office of Civil Rights.

EUGENE, OR - May 24, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- The innovative technology of IDX Broker software is now easily accessible on the professional real estate website of broker Richard Harris, thanks to his partnership with IDX, Inc. Now, Massachusetts MLS Property Info Network (MLSPIN) is synced with the website Harris hosts, integrating thousands of MLSPIN properties on his search page. The revolutionary IDX Broker software has simplified not only the search capabilities Harris boasts, but the entire online real estate search process for agents, brokers and potential buyers

WASHINGTON, D.C. - May 23, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Mayor Thomas M. Menino today announced the members of an advisory panel that will help identify and address Boston’s new housing needs. The Housing Boston 2020 Advisory Panel is comprised of housing professionals who will work with key personnel from the city’s housing agencies to develop strategies to manage Boston’s current and future housing challenges. The group convened for their first meeting yesterday.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - May 22, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Mayor Thomas M. Menino today gave a full progress update on Boston’s innovation center, and revealed the name of the building under construction at 75 Northern Avenue on the South Boston Waterfront. District Hall will play a central role in the social infrastructure of the growing Innovation District and will serve as a home base for entrepreneurs to make connections, build relationships, and convene programs and events.

BOSTON, MA - May 22, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Massachusetts homeowners have received more than $637 million in total consumer relief during the first full year since the National Mortgage Settlement, according to numbers provided by the five major banks. The self-reported data includes raw numbers about completed relief and ongoing trial loan modifications that have not yet been audited by the National Monitor for compliance with the court ordered settlement.

EUGENE, OR - May 22, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts real estate agent Christopher Dallas has become the latest professional to integrate the dynamic IDX Broker software onto his professional website, creating a helpful and simple search page for Massachusetts home seekers. Massachusetts MLS Property Info Network (MLSPIN) listings are seamlessly linked to the search page Dallas employs, giving him the ability to display thousands of listings on his convenient and easy-to-use Claremont Park Properties website.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - May 21, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Boston Parks and Recreation Department would like to remind property owners and contractors that it is illegal to remove street trees without review or approval from the City of Boston Tree Warden. Street trees on public property are protected by Massachusetts General Law Ch. 87, and may not be cut down without a public hearing and authorization by the City Tree Warden

BOSTON, MA - May 16, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- MassHousing has awarded $104,950 to support sober housing programs in Boston, Worcester and Springfield. The MassHousing grants will come from the Center for Community Recovery Innovations, Inc. (CCRI), a nonprofit subsidiary corporation of MassHousing that supports non-profits that create or preserve affordable sober housing in Massachusetts for recovering substance abusers. CCRI to date has awarded more than $6 million in grants for more than 1,500 units of substance-free housing in more than 35 communities for men, women, families, veterans, the homeless and ex-offender

BOSTON - May 16, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- MassHousing has been named a finalist for two Rosoff Awards presented by The Ad Club to companies with meaningful diversity, mentoring and inclusion programs.

EUGENE, OR - May 16, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- IDX, Inc. is pleased to announce Lawrence Costa, as the latest real estate broker to synchronize a custom IDX solution to his professional website. As the newest subscriber to the amazing IDX Broker software, Costa now hosts a dynamic real estate search page and thousands of Massachusetts MLS Property Info Network (MLSPIN) property listings online. This innovative IDX solution extracts raw listings data from MLSPIN and seamlessly integrates it onto the Century 21 Classic Gold website Costa hosts, creating a comprehensive database of Carver, Massachusetts area property listings for home seekers to search

BOSTON - May 15, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- A Dorchester man was sentenced yesterday for operating a mortgage fraud scheme to sell his own home and to buy other residential properties.

BOSTON - May 14, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley today issued the following statement in response to a study from The Warren Group reporting a significant decline in Massachusetts foreclosures during the month of March, and crediting the state’s new loan modification law as one of the major reasons for that reduction:

BOSTON - May 10, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- In an effort to help Massachusetts municipalities with high rates of distressed and vacant properties turn the corner on the foreclosure crisis, Attorney General Martha Coakley today opened the application period for a $1 million grant program designed to identify and return bank-owned properties to productive residential use