Mar
5
We are all so busy that we forget….
March 5, 2011 | Buyers | Leave a Comment
It’s easy to be busy and forget to be productive. Everyday make your list, prioritize it, and stick to it. You can make a difference…
Mar
2
Going Up? Depends on your outlook.
March 2, 2011 | Buyers, Move Up Sellers, Sellers | Leave a Comment
GOING UP?
Are you successful? Just average? Struggling? Before you respond, consider where your response is coming from. Like everything else, your reaction depends on your perspective.
These judgments are relative to where you are on the ladder. Feelings of success come from comparisons to those who have accomplished less. Likewise, feelings of failure arise from looking at those who have accomplished more. Where you stand right now can affect your perspective even more than where you have been or the steps you are planning yet to take.
Comparing your work to that of others often introduces doubt. The wisdom of Lao-tsu’s Tao Te Ching tells us that “whether you go up the ladder or down it, your position is shaky.” You might assume that a job promotion would raise one’s confidence and sense of worth, but studies have found that “nearly half of recently promoted managers… express uncertainty and doubt about themselves and their new position.” (Cassirer and Reskin, 2000)
The trouble is that a promotion places you in a position where you are no longer the best among lesser performers (a big fish in a little pond). Now you feel like a little fish in a big pond, measuring yourself against those who have already arrived. The big fish enjoys more confidence and security, while the little fish frantically fights to maintain against his larger competitors.
Once you realize, however, that it is only your own perspective that is holding you back, you can begin to take action. Again, it must start from the inside out, because you cannot cause change around you until you have effected change within you. Remember that it’s not the size of the fish or the pond that matters – it’s how much you enjoy being in the water!
Feb
28
Got a screw loose? Easy homeowner’s tip
February 28, 2011 | Buyers, Homeowner's Tips, Sellers | Leave a Comment
Feb
24
Interesting Lesson in Anger Management
February 24, 2011 | Buyers, Just for fun, Sellers | Leave a Comment
Lesson in Anger Management
BITTER FRUIT!
Here’s an interesting lesson in anger management. A bar in eastern China has developed a novel way of attracting clients – allowing customers to beat up the staff! The Rising Sun Anger Release Bar encourages its patrons to smash glasses, rant out loud, and actually punch specially trained workers.
At first you may think, “Hey, that’s not a bad idea! What a great way to safely release all that pent up steam.” After all, pressure today comes from every corner of our lives – work, family, finances. It might be tempting to vent your anger under such circumstances, but is literally hitting out the best, if not easiest, solution?
We become angry with others who don’t meet our expectations, but often that anger really comes from our own unhappiness with ourselves. If we feel the type of outrage that would lead us to desire harming another, that would suggest a need for an adjustment in lifestyle and psychology. After all, it has been said that he who angers you, conquers you.
As in William Blake’s poem, the first step is to speak your anger. The effects of repression are twofold, in that the cause of your wrath remains completely unaware and unable to compromise (or apologize), and those feelings of negativity will continue to grow and fester from within, leaving you in worse shape than before The Great Offense.
In the words of Marcus Aurelius, “How much more grievous are the consequences of anger than the causes of it.” That applies whether you go to an Anger Release Bar or choose to repress your wrath. Balance is only achieved once you can both confront and conquer those feelings, either on your own or with a little help. Dig in and rip out that “Poison Tree” by the roots!
Feb
5
Fun stuff…Say Happy Birthday to Dusty
February 5, 2011 | Just for fun | 1 Comment
Dusty is my 16 year old Italian Greyhound who loves to exercise with us. Happy Birthday Dusty!
Feb
4
Worried About Your Market?
February 4, 2011 | Buyers, Empty Nesters, First Time Buyers, Move Up Sellers, Real Estate News, Sellers | Leave a Comment
Feb
4
New Improved Homestead Act goes into Effect 3/16/2011
February 4, 2011 | Buyers, Real Estate News, Sellers | 12 Comments
New Improved Homestead Act 3/16/2011
New Improved Homestead Act Offers More Protection for Homeowners….and….goes into effect 3/16/2011…
Here are some improvements below and a link to get your own forms if you don’t already have a homestead….
All Massachusetts homeowners will receive an automatic homestead exemption of $125,000 for protection against certain creditor claims on their principal residence without having to do anything.
All Mass. residents are eligible for a $500,000 “declared homestead exemption” by filing a declaration of homestead at the registry of deeds. For married couples, both spouses will now have to sign the form–which is a change from prior practice.
Homesteads are now available on 2-4 family homes, and for homes in trust.
The existing “elderly and disabled” homestead will remain available at $500,000.
If you have a homestead as a single person, and get married, the homestead automatically protects your new spouse! Homesteads now pass on to the surviving spouse and children who live in the home.
You do not have to re-file a homestead after a refinance. There’s always been confusion here, with lenders requiring homeowners to either subordinate or release homesteads. Under the new law, homesteads are automatically subordinate to mortgages, and lenders are specifically prohibited from having borrowers waive or release a homestead.
Closing attorneys in mortgage transactions must now provide borrowers with a notice of availability of a homestead.
Here’s a link to the forms and more detailed information….http://lawlib.state.ma.us/subject/about/homestead.html
You can complete your own homestead forms and record them yourself at your County Registry of Deeds.
Feb
3
DON’T GIVE IT AWAY
February 3, 2011 | Buyers, Real Estate News, Sellers | Leave a Comment
While indicators show that housing is making a comeback, the glut of negative reporting is still making people skittish about buying a home. This has created a hot rental market, with few places available to lease and rising rent rates. Consider some reasons why it’s always better to own than to rent.
First, as owner, you are your own landlord. You won’t be kicked out for any reason other than not making your mortgage payments. You control every other aspect of how you choose to live in your home.
Even more important, those monthly payments are a kind of forced savings, helping you to build equity. Although it’s possible that home values could fall further, the same could happen to your 401(k). But over the long term, both types of investment are more likely to see gains.
Right now, interest rates are still very low, which means that if you choose a fixed-rate mortgage, that rate will never change, and you will build equity at an even quicker pace.
Another reason to opt for the ownership route is that you’ll find – particularly now with so few leases available – that the nicest homes in the safest neighborhoods with the best schools will be offered for sale and not for rent. Give me a call and we’ll turn that rent payment into savings and security instead.