Political Phone Calls: What's Your Opinion? Take A Survey

Now I know what our neighbors to the north in New Hampshire fel,t just a few weeks ago. We here in Massachusetts are now getting a barrage of phone calls prior to Super Tuesday. And I thought the Super Bowl was enough! These automated phone calls are certainly a misuse of technology.

barrage of calls = gabbage of calls ;)


Any comments? And please stay on subject.

You can take a survey right here: Click Here to take survey

Patriots Fan - Giant Winner - Take A Mass Real Estate Salesperson Class

You can be a New England Patriots Fan and still be a giant winner in 2008! Despite the gloomy talk, Real Estate is still alive and selling in Massachusetts. To get in on this, you must be licensed.

Annex Real Estate School offers a full lineup of Spring Classes starting on February 5th. Become a licensed Massachusetts Real Estate Salesperson and get in on the action now. Visit the WEBSITE to see the your classsroom opportunites for February, March, April and May!

Read more Information about getting your license.

Already licensed as a Salesperson and want to get your Massachusetts Real Estate Brokers license? Call 617-773-2576 NOW to get into the February Class. If we are unable to take your call, please leave your call back number and a convenient time to contact you.

The cost of the Salespersons Program is still only $200 and the cost of the Brokers Program is still only $250. The cost of your course includes professional textbooks as well as other classroom material.

You can email the Registrar. We return emails.

Annex Real Estate School
49 Beale Street
Quincy, MA 02170
617-773-ALSO (2576)

Patriots Official Massachusetts Real Estate License School ;) !

We'd like to be the Official Real Estate School of the New England Patriots! Until that happens though, we do want to go on record. Win or lose, the Patriots are our team. And on Monday morning we will still be admiring our team that made it to the Super Bowl.

On Tuesday, Februry 5th, there will be the return to reality, as Annex Real Estate School starts it's February schedule of Massachusetts Real Estate License Classes with the traditional MIDWEEK classes. There is the Morning Program that go from 9 am to noon, on Tuesdays and Thursdays for four weeks. (24 hours of state mandated classroom instruction).

Then there is the traditional MIDWEEK Evening Program that meets on Tuesday and Thursday evenings from 6:30 to 9:30 pm. This program also starts on February 5th and runs for four weeks. (24 hours of state mandated classroom instruction).

For those who would like an INTENSIVE WEEKEND Program, that will start on Friday evening, February 15th, at 5:30 pm. The classes will then continue on Saturday and Sunday, February 16th and 17th, 8 am to 6 pm, both days. (24 hours of state mandated classroom instruction).

What is so important about '24 hours of state mandated classroom instruction'?
We don't want you to be misled by what you might read elsewhere. We've taken online courses and sometimes they're great. But, in Massachusetts, in order to qualify, all of your pre-Licensing Instruction and Continuing Education must be given at an Authorized Massachusetts Real Estate School. There must be a Massachusetts Approved Real Estate Instructor present in the classroom, ie , 'live' instruction.

At Annex Real Estate School your pre-Licensing Instuctors are all state Approved who are also experinced Real Estate Brokers. You can read a synopsis of the process to become a Massachusets Real Estate Salesperson by clicking on the link. If you need an Application, just download one from the HIGHLIGHT on the school page. Application 02T for the MIDWEEK Program. Be sure to check off your choice of Days or Evenings. Download Application 02W for the WEEKEND Program.

What do we like about the Patriots? Besides being our hometown team, we like their attitude! They know that their success depends upon their education, training, practice, as well as their commitment to each game. They're also out there with a 'no brag' attitude. They have played each game as the most important.

It's also the attitude that makes for a successful real estate agent. With all this negative talk, there are real estate agents and offices that are just going about their business of servicing their clients and customers. They have stayed focused in their job of putting sales together. With the right education, training and practices they know they can be succesful in the real estate field.

For those who are already licensed Massachusetts Real Estate Salespersons and want to advance their career by becoming a Real Estate Broker, Annex Real Estate School has a program for you. There will be a Massachusetts Real Estate Brokers License Class that will start the 2nd week of February. This is a 30 hour program.

This Brokers Course is being taught by experienced, practicing Real Estate Brokers who are Approved Real Estate Instructors. Your lead instructor, with over 28 years of of practical real estate experience, is the Co-Owner of one of Quincy's major real estate offices with over 70 agents. Don't miss out on this incredible experience of sharing real estate knowledge with your fellow students other while learning the information needed to pass the Massachusetts. This class has not been posted to the website so call direct 617-773-2576 to apply and get information. If we are unable to take your call, please leave your call back number and when is a good time to contact you. Or, you can email the Registrar at Annex Real Estate School
We do answer emails!

Availability of all classes and programs depends upon registration. Class size limited to assure class quality. Pre-registration is a must.

Annex Real Estate School is conveniently located at 49 Beale Street in Quincy and is near the Wollaston T stop on the Red Line.

Massachusett Real Estate Broker Class

Are you a Massachusetts licensed Real Estate Salesperson? Are you looking to advance your career by becoming a Real Estate Broker?

Annex Real Estate School announces a Massachusets Real Estate Broker license class starting the second week in February. Don't miss out on this incredible experience of sharing real estate knowledge with each other while learning the information needed to pass the Massachusetts Real Estate Brokers test.

This course will be team taught by experienced, Massachusett Approved Real Estate Instructors, both of whom have been Real Estate Brokers for over 29 years. Holding both Realtor and other nationally recognized Professional Designations, they are Life Members of the Plymouth and South Shore Association of Realtors. Your Lead Instructor is the Co-Owner of a major Quincy real estate office, with over 70 agents.

Information about this class has not yet been posted to the website. So, to register and reserve your place, call the school direct line 617-773-2576. If we are unable to take your call, please leave a call back number and a good time to reach you. We also reply to emails. Just click here to send an email to the Registrar. Be sure to put February Brokers Class in the Subject of your email.

Class availabilty depends upon enrollment. Class size will definitely be limited to assure class quality. Pre-enrollment is a must.

Annex Real Estate School is conveniently located in the Wollaston section of Quincy, near the Wollaston T stop on the Red Line.

Annex Real Estate School
49 Beale Street
Quincy, MA 02170
617-773-ALSO (2576)




Map of Annex Real Estate School

49 Beale Street,02170

TAX TIME: Consumer Alert from the MA Office of Consumer Affairs

I just received this email that is entiitled "Consumer Alert from the MA Office of Consumer Affairs" It has to do with your tax refund.

I found it interesting and feel that may benefit some of our readers, so I have copied that email here, in full. As you read through the Alert, you will see a reference to an Advisory, that has been issued by Massachusetts Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation. For your convenience I have copied that Advisory to a folder at Annex Real Estate School, so you can easily access it. The link to that, as well as to an Adobe Reader (if you need it), are at the bottom of this posting.

But, please read the message from Dane Crane, first.

Email from Dan Crane, Undersecretary of the Massachusetts Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation:

"Dear Massachusetts resident,

My name is Dan Crane, and I am the Undersecretary of the Massachusetts Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation.

I would like to highlight an issue that is very timely. As tax season is upon us, the Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation advises Massachusetts consumers to be wary of tax refund loans, also known as refund anticipation loans (RALs). RALS are secured by and paid from your pending federal or state tax refund. Many tax preparers advertise them as an easy alternative to waiting for your refund check.

Instead of paying the high fees and interest that are associated with refund anticipation loans, there are alternatives for consumers to quickly access their tax refunds. The attached advisory details the resources available to help consumers obtain the money that is due to them. The advisory is in PDF format so you will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to open the file. If you already have Acrobat Reader you will be able to open the newsletter without any problems. If you do not have it, you can go to the link below and download it. There is no fee associated with downloading Acrobat Reader.

http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html

Since one of the objectives of the office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation is to provide information so that consumers can make educated and informed choices, this consumer advisory is the first that we will send you periodically to address important and timely issues as they develop.

Please check our website frequently for consumer advisories on other topics that may be of interest to you.

Thank you."

Click to get a copy of the Advisory of the Massachusetts Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation.

Click here to download an Adobe Reader.

Morning and Evening Massachusetts Real Estate License Classes in February

If you only have mornings or evenings free, you can still take a class to prepare for the Massachusetts state examination to become a Massachusetts Licensed Real Estate Salesperson.

Starting on February 5th, these evenly paced classes will meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays for 4 weeks.
If you are in the morning program, your class will be from 9 am to noon.
If you are in the evening program, your class will be from 6:30 pm to 9:30 pm
Our flexibility allows you to match your schedule to the class schedule.
All students must complete all 24 hours of classroom instruction to qualify for the Massachusetts state examination.

The cost of the course is only $200, which includes two textbooks. One book, Modern Real Estate Practice is used to study for the General section of the examination. The other book, Massachusett Real Estate: Practice & Law, is used to study for the Massachusetts specific section of the examination. These books will then become a usefull part of your real estate library.

All pre-licensing students atAnnex Real Estate School also receive their own copy of the Massachusetts Real Estate License Law and Regulations, which is produced by the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Real Estate Brokers & Salespersons. This handy booklet is used in class and is an excellent study guide to prepare for licensing questions that are a part of the Massachusetts section of the exam.

You can check out the website at http://AnnexRealEstateSchool.com and download Application 02T for the Traditional 4 Week Course. Please indicate your choice of 'Days' or 'Nights' on the Application.

If you are looking for a faster paced, intensive class, there will be one WEEKEND CLASS in FEBRUARY, starting Friday evening, February 15th, 5:30 pm to 9:30 pm. The class then continues on Saturday and Sunday, February 16th and 17th, 8 am to 6pm both days. Download Application 02W on the WEBSITE for the February Weekend Class. Still only $200 and 24 hours of state mandatory classroom hours. If you believe that this is the course for you, then call 617-773-2576 or email the Registrar now, as this is a popular program.

These classes are being offered by Annex Real Estate School, which is conveniently located in the Wollaston section of Quincy, near the Wollaston T stop on the Red Line.

You can email the Registrar@AnnexRealEstateSchool.com or call 617-773-ALSO (2576) for more information.

Class availability depends upon registration. Class size will be limited to assure class quality. Pre-enrollment is a must.

Annex Real Estate School
49 Beale Street
Quincy, MA 02170
Mass License #1119

Map of Annex Real Estate School49 Beale St, Quincy MA

8 Ways To Improve Your Credit

I found this article about the "8 Ways to Improve Your Credit" online at realtor.org, and I thought that it might be interesting for people who come to our site, so here it is:

'Credit scores, along with your overall income and debt, are a big factor in determining if you’ll qualify for a loan and what loan terms you’ll be able to qualify for.

1. Check for and correct errors in your credit report. Mistakes happen, and you could be paying for someone else’s poor financial management.

2. Pay down credit card bills. If possible, pay off the entire balance every month. However, transferring credit card debt from one card to another could lower your score.

3. Don’t charge your credit cards to the maximum limit.

4. Wait 12 months after credit difficulties to apply for a mortgage. You’re penalized less for problems after a year.

5. Don’t purchase big-ticket items for your new home on credit cards until after the loan is approved. The amounts will add to your debt.

6. Don’t open new credit card accounts before applying for a mortgage. Having too much available credit can lower your score.

7. Shop for mortgage rates all at once. Too many credit applications can lower your score, but multiple inquiries from the same type of lender are counted as one inquiry if submitted over a short period of time.

8. Avoid finance companies. Even if you pay the loan on time, the interest is high and it will probably be considered a sign of poor credit management.

This information is copyrighted by the Fannie Mae Foundation and is used with permission of the Fannie Mae Foundation. To obtain a complete copy of the publication, “Knowing and Understanding Your Credit,” visit http://www.homebuyingguide.org. '



Reprinted from REALTOR (R) Magazine Online by permission of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS (R).

N.Y. Giants Open N.Y Stock Exchange: Market and Interest Rates Drop!

OK, As a Patriot fan, I cannot help it! The New York Giants, who will meet the New England Patriots for the Super Bowl, were there this morning at the ringing of the bell to open today's session of the New York Exchange. The Dow Jones Industrial Average then dropped over 465!

Then more news. Around 10:30 am came the announcement that the Federal Open Market Committee, the Federal Reserve, had dropped the federal funds rate by 75 basis points (3/4 of a PERCENT) to 3 -1/2 percent.

While cheering for the Patriots, do we also cheer for the economy after hearing this news? This certainly shows the level of concern for a recession in our economy.

The President and Congress are meeting in urgency on the tax rebate/refund idea. This would give $800 to individual taxpayers and $1600 to married couples.

There is a hint that this refund to taxpayers will be part of a package that will also have some stimulus for business .

What will be the impact of the rate cut on the housing market? Obviously there is no change for existing fixed rate mortgages, but where will the rate go for future loans?

The immediate impact of this rate cut will be on existing adjustable rate mortgages and credit cards. It is hoped that this will bolster consummer confidence and spending. The next date for the number to be published is Jan 29th, with the FOMC meeting scheduled for January 29th and 30th.

With the housing still projected to decrease, we're not necessarily at the bottom yet. Here in New England, particulary in Massachustts south of of Boston, in Norfolk and Plymouth counties, the drop is not as severe as in many other places.

Real Estate Continuing Education Classes in Massachusetts

Are you a licensed Massachusetts Real Estate Salesperson or Broker looking for Continuing Education Classes? You must have a total of 12 hours of Continuing Education to maintain the Active Status of your license.

Annex Real Estate School will have two days of Continuing Education Classes the WEEKEND of January 26 and 27. You can take the classes without missing the Patriots! :)

Three 2 hour Modules will be offered each day. Saturday's Classes includes:

Offers

National Economic Trends and the Real Estate Market

Foreclosures

On Sunday, the three 2 hour Modules covered will be:

Dual Agency

Anti-trust

Technology and Real Estate Brokerage

Come and be prepared to learn and discuss these topics.

Take all six Modules or just the ones you need to fullfill your requirements. The cost of each 2 hour Module is only $20.

Class size will be limited to insure class quality. Call or email now to secure your place in the CLASS.

You can go to the website at http://AnnexRealEstateSchool.com where you will find an Application in the HIGHLIGHTS column or just CLICK HERE.

Annex Real Estate School is conveniently located in the Wollaston section of Quincy near the Wollaston T stop on the Red Line.

Annex Real Estate School

49 Beale Street

Quincy, MA 02170

617-773-ALSO (2576)

Mass License #1119

Map of Annex Real Estate School,
49 Beale Street,02170

Fannie Mae CEO Outlines Short Term and Long Term Fixes to Mitigate US Housing Woes

On Wednesday, January 8, 2008, Daniel Mudd, President and CEO of Fannie Mae, spoke to th U.S. Chamber of Commerce with his predictions on the state America's business 2008. Asummary of his remarks might be the following statement "The state of American business in 2008 and beyond will depend on the choices we make about housing today."

He outlined five short term actions: "First, the Treasury Hope Now initiative is an important step. By helping a set of subprime borrowers to freeze their payments at the initial ARM rates, we can avoid creating a whole new class of distressed borrowers.

Second, lenders and policymakers should pursue the most generous means possible to refinance ARM borrowers facing resets into long term, fixed-rate mortgages. This will require innovative high quality products that replace the sloppy credit that has been – appropriately – withdrawn from the market. There is now, for example, a 40-year mortgage designed to keep payments lower but level for the life of the loan. Washington Post columnist Steve Pearlstein has suggested a kind of “equity participation mortgage” for subprime refinancings in which both the lender and the borrower share any eventual recovery of the equity lost in the refinance.

Third, public outreach is critical. It’s a senseless tragedy when people lose their homes just because they didn’t know what to do – and were afraid to ask.

Fourth, banking regulators could give their institutions favorable CRA consideration for what you could call “MRA” – or Mortgage Reinvestment Act – loans. Banks would receive extra CRA credit for providing secure financing to borrowers who are facing exploding subprime loans and in communities suffering foreclosures.

Fifth, in those cases where foreclosure appears inevitable, and the family cannot stay in the home, alternatives exist to leave the home in good condition and enable a quick exit with minimal financial damage to the family AND the lender.

Here’s a not-to-do: Policies should not damage the credit markets by cramming down losses or abrogating the rights of lien or securities holders. Altering basic contracts would have a high price. Investors left with the losses would not easily return to the market. That inevitably would shrink the pool of credit. The Chamber has sounded the warning against regulating risk out of a system that relies on risk and reward as its foundation."

He then went on to suggest 5 long term reformsplans "Long-term, I believe the focus should be two-fold. First, we need to make balanced reforms to the lending system. Second, we need to restore the fundamental healthy demand for housing, based on people who want and can afford to buy a home. I’ll offer some examples"............."There are five key areas that are ripe for reform:

First, mortgage brokers should be licensed. A House-passed bill, supported by the brokers themselves, would create a national registry of loan originators regardless of where they work in the industry. It also establishes strict national standards for loan originators that include criminal background checks, fingerprinting, continuing education and testing.

Second, predatory lending laws should be strengthened: Clearly we need to tighten the definition and toughen the penalties for ripping people off. Here, the efforts by Congressman Frank and Senator Dodd have been a good start. The challenge, however, is to get the definitions and penalties right so that we stop bad lending without discouraging the good lending. Where borrowers were defrauded, the fraud should be vigorously prosecuted.

Third, we should improve mortgage disclosure. Much of the present hangover came from consumers taking on loan products they didn’t understand, payments they couldn’t afford, and/or calculations for pricing and fees that belong in a supercomputer, not a mortgage. As we’re seeing now, when enough consumers get hurt, the industry gets hurt too. So the industry’s long-term financial incentive is to provide more simplicity, transparency and consistency. One cover page – your starting rate, your maximum rate, your starting payment and your maximum payment – that’s it. The Fed’s effort to simplify mortgage disclosures is welcome. So is the Mortgage Bankers’. The challenge, here, though, is to avoid the perfect from becoming the enemy of the good.

Fourth, we should improve homebuyer education: The mortgage industry should make a commitment to arm consumers with financial literacy and homebuyer education so they avoid making the wrong mortgage choices in the first place.

Fifth, we need a private-label market review. While the so-called private market has nearly collapsed from the subprime meltdown, it will rise again. So it’s worth taking a hard look at what happened to allow so much unsustainable lending there. The rating agencies, Wall Street, structured investment vehicles, the creation of instruments to disperse risk that actually magnified risk – these are all due scrutiny and introspection, if not regulation."

Mudd then went on to outline four lessons that are to be learned from recent events. Perhaps my favorite is the first "Lesson one: When they say the old rules don’t apply, apply the old rules. No market is exempted from the laws of gravity, and that includes housing and home loans. Home prices were not going to keep rising without interruption; supply and demand eventually have their due.


The full text of Danial Mudd's speach to the Chamber of Commer follow:

"Good afternoon, and happy new year – I hope. The state of American business this year will depend, I believe, on how we get through the toughest housing correction in our lifetimes.
It is clear that housing is critical to the US economy. The building, selling, buying, lending, fixing and furnishing of homes generates 9 million jobs, six percent of all employment, and more than 20 percent of our gross domestic product. Typically we spend 20 to 30 percent of our income on housing and our homes represent 18 percent of our net worth.
It is also clear that the housing correction has been damaging to the economy. It’s taken $166 billion off the GDP … cut the jobs outlook by nearly half a million … knocked $1.2 trillion off of property values – and raised the specter of broader recession.
For the business community, the quality of life for every one of our workers depends on the houses they go home to, the communities they live in – and how many of their productive hours are disrupted by fear of whether they can make that house payment.
So when we examine the state of American business, and look at the year ahead, the housing correction is the relevant topic. Simply stated, the state of American business for 2008 depends on how quickly housing stops detracting from GDP.
I’d like to touch on how we got here, and then offer some thoughts about what we can do right now – and in the long term – to get through the correction to recovery.
What Happened?
Let me review briefly how we got here.
As the decade started, incomes were rising and interest rates were low and stable. Demand for homes outpaced supply, driving a sustained boom in home prices. Affordability plummeted.
Nevertheless, first-time homebuyers scrambled to get in, spending more and more of their income to purchase homes. The mortgage market, being efficient and responsive, offered new loan products with features that lowered initial monthly payments – teaser-rates, interest-only, negative amortization and the like.
These products shifted more risk to consumers. But demand continued to spiral prices upward. Credit underwriters kept underwriting, and all bets were covered by the upward march of home values. Homeowners took out a steady stream of cash – nearly two trillion dollars since 2003 – by refinancing or borrowing against the value of their rising equity.
The homebuilding market – also being efficient and responsive – built a record 7 million new single-family homes during this period, boosting supply significantly.
Then … cracks started showing in the market. Inventories of unsold homes began to grow. Some of those new mortgage features expired and consumers – particularly at the lower end of the credit spectrum – started to struggle as their monthly payments jumped up.
Last summer, the music stopped. Subprime foreclosures began to mount. Investors pulled back, touching off a liquidity crisis among subprime lenders, and six out of the top ten folded or were sold. Many large-scale lenders carried significant exposure to subprime loans – and they responded by tightening up. That triggered a broader credit crunch.
The markets began to exude the scent of panic in August and again in October, and distressed mortgages began to crop up in places we hadn’t seen before – Wall Street, big banks, hedge funds, overseas investors. You began to hear about holders of esoteric securities like CDO’s, SIV’s, and beyond. Essentially by Thanksgiving, confidence had evaporated.
Today, my expectation is that home prices – on average, nationally – are likely to decline by 10 to 12 percent, peak to trough, through 2010. Specifically, home prices are likely to remain weak into '09, and then perhaps begin to gain modestly in 2010. That depends on inventories and consumer confidence. But the housing market as a whole (credit, construction, foreclosures and so forth) should begin stabilizing – stabilizing, not booming, or even recovered – in the second half of this year, and the correction could morph into recovery by 2010.
However, the duration of housing’s drag on GDP can be shortened or lengthened, depending on whether the industry, policymakers and regulators come together to make the right choices.
Having studied past dislocations in Texas, California, Asia, in the 1970s, it is clear that there is no single magic bullet. Multiple parties will have to take multiple steps over time to restore confidence. The most effective steps, historically, are solutions that buy time to restore normal housing supply and demand … solutions that have broad political support … and solutions that take a hard, realistic stance to “getting it over with” – rather than just nickel-and-diming the problem.
With that in mind, there are two broad policy areas to focus on here, and I think it is extremely important to keep them un-muddled.

First, there are immediate actions to make housing’s drag on the economy short and shallow. Second, there are longer-term reforms that take the lessons of this crisis to heart and buttress the future strength of the housing industry.
What we do right now
Let me sketch some immediate actions that I believe would make the slowdown shorter and shallower.
According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s third quarter 2007 National Delinquency Survey, over 90 percent of mortgage borrowers were current – they generally have good loans on good property. But for those in trouble, the first goal is to avoid foreclosure – a lose-lose proposition for homeowners, lenders and communities. Door-to-door, it costs roughly $20,000 to $50,000 to foreclose – and with the average home of $140,000, you can see what I mean.
Here are five short-term remedies:
First, the Treasury Hope Now initiative is an important step. By helping a set of subprime borrowers to freeze their payments at the initial ARM rates, we can avoid creating a whole new class of distressed borrowers.

Second, lenders and policymakers should pursue the most generous means possible to refinance ARM borrowers facing resets into long term, fixed-rate mortgages. This will require innovative high quality products that replace the sloppy credit that has been – appropriately – withdrawn from the market. There is now, for example, a 40-year mortgage designed to keep payments lower but level for the life of the loan. Washington Post columnist Steve Pearlstein has suggested a kind of “equity participation mortgage” for subprime refinancings in which both the lender and the borrower share any eventual recovery of the equity lost in the refinance.

Third, public outreach is critical. It’s a senseless tragedy when people lose their homes just because they didn’t know what to do – and were afraid to ask.

Fourth, banking regulators could give their institutions favorable CRA consideration for what you could call “MRA” – or Mortgage Reinvestment Act – loans. Banks would receive extra CRA credit for providing secure financing to borrowers who are facing exploding subprime loans and in communities suffering foreclosures.

Fifth, in those cases where foreclosure appears inevitable, and the family cannot stay in the home, alternatives exist to leave the home in good condition and enable a quick exit with minimal financial damage to the family AND the lender.

Here’s a not-to-do: Policies should not damage the credit markets by cramming down losses or abrogating the rights of lien or securities holders. Altering basic contracts would have a high price. Investors left with the losses would not easily return to the market. That inevitably would shrink the pool of credit. The Chamber has sounded the warning against regulating risk out of a system that relies on risk and reward as its foundation.

So … in the near term, keep the foreclosure wave from becoming a malignancy on communities and our economy. That means buying time for borrowers and lenders to work through the cycle, making safer fixed-rate refinancing available to those who qualify, and delivering services and counseling to every at-risk borrower out there. Will these efforts require some stretching by our industry? Yes. Will they be costly in the short term? Yes. Will they help restore confidence to the housing market? If we act fast, yes.


What we do long term
Long-term, I believe the focus should be two-fold. First, we need to make balanced reforms to the lending system. Second, we need to restore the fundamental healthy demand for housing, based on people who want and can afford to buy a home. I’ll offer some examples.
Reforms to the lending system need to moderate excess, again, without creating disincentives for rational, responsible risk taking … what we call “lending.” We have a credit crunch now, but we don’t want to amplify cycles in the future.
There are five key areas that are ripe for reform:
First, mortgage brokers should be licensed. A House-passed bill, supported by the brokers themselves, would create a national registry of loan originators regardless of where they work in the industry. It also establishes strict national standards for loan originators that include criminal background checks, fingerprinting, continuing education and testing.

Second, predatory lending laws should be strengthened: Clearly we need to tighten the definition and toughen the penalties for ripping people off. Here, the efforts by Congressman Frank and Senator Dodd have been a good start. The challenge, however, is to get the definitions and penalties right so that we stop bad lending without discouraging the good lending. Where borrowers were defrauded, the fraud should be vigorously prosecuted.

Third, we should improve mortgage disclosure. Much of the present hangover came from consumers taking on loan products they didn’t understand, payments they couldn’t afford, and/or calculations for pricing and fees that belong in a supercomputer, not a mortgage. As we’re seeing now, when enough consumers get hurt, the industry gets hurt too. So the industry’s long-term financial incentive is to provide more simplicity, transparency and consistency. One cover page – your starting rate, your maximum rate, your starting payment and your maximum payment – that’s it. The Fed’s effort to simplify mortgage disclosures is welcome. So is the Mortgage Bankers’. The challenge, here, though, is to avoid the perfect from becoming the enemy of the good.

Fourth, we should improve homebuyer education: The mortgage industry should make a commitment to arm consumers with financial literacy and homebuyer education so they avoid making the wrong mortgage choices in the first place.

Fifth, we need a private-label market review. While the so-called private market has nearly collapsed from the subprime meltdown, it will rise again. So it’s worth taking a hard look at what happened to allow so much unsustainable lending there. The rating agencies, Wall Street, structured investment vehicles, the creation of instruments to disperse risk that actually magnified risk – these are all due scrutiny and introspection, if not regulation.

As we make these balanced reforms to the system, we also should look at ways to unleash the latent demand for housing. I can think of three groups of people we should reach:
First, New Americans are the fastest growing segment of the population and housing market. Their path to homeownership remains tortuous. Over the past ten years, the IRS has issued close to 8 million individual tax identification numbers – ITINs – to new Americans. ITIN lending is a tough issue for the mortgage industry because there is no unified regulatory view of whether the ITIN is an appropriate form of legal verification. Maybe it’s time to create a national standard for ITIN use that would allow the mortgage industry to serve these taxpayers. Eight million potential legal homebuyers – even if only five to ten percent ultimately qualify – would produce a big jump in demand, and would illuminate a huge gray area in US lending.

Second, armed forces veterans and military personnel are another underserved population. I think the people who defend America deserve a shot at the American Dream. Right now, VA loans offer favorable rates and terms. We could beef that up by offering lower down payments, help with closing costs, homebuyer savings programs, affordable loans, and homebuyer counseling, offered through military credit unions and banks that serve base communities. I’m suggesting that the mortgage industry team up with the VA like it has with FHA to give all military families the best we have to offer. This is another source of huge demand.

Third, minority families and communities are at greatest risk of foreclosure because they took on a disproportionate share of subprime loans. Whole neighborhoods could be wiped out. The African American homeownership rate, after years of slow gain, is already sliding backwards. Our progress as a nation to achieve housing equality is at risk. We must not let the housing correction take our eyes off closing the gap in minority homeownership. Perhaps the community lending rules for banks could be changed to define underserved areas as not just based on income, but also those with large minority populations.


I put these proposals under the long-term umbrella, but we shouldn’t wait to work on them. None of them – demystifying loan disclosures, educating borrowers, jailing predators, serving communities long ignored or shunned – are new. What IS new is the urgency to act – and the recognition that it’s critical to the industry’s health.
The GSE role
Now, allow me one luxury. I’ve spoken for 20 minutes, and not mentioned four words even once: Fannie, Freddie, Mae or Mac. Obviously, this all matters a lot to my company. We have a lot at stake. Essentially, we are the largest US lender, property holder, housing investor, and the key link between the global capital markets and Main Street. Our job, under charter, is to help provide stability, liquidity, and affordability to the market in good times and in times like these.
Let me tick off where we stand on three or four matters relevant to the problems at hand:
There has been concern about illiquidity in the jumbo market – those loans above $417,000 where Fannie and Freddie do not, by law, participate. In a lot of lower-cost states, this is not an issue. But in high-cost states like California, New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut and Florida, a $400,000 home is near the median. Secretary Paulson, the mortgage bankers and others have called for raising the loan limit. I agree, and Fannie Mae is ready to take action.

Likewise, we endorse legislation, along the lines of the bill passed by the House of Representatives, to modernize the regulatory oversight of the GSEs, which gives our regulator powers no different than those typical to regulators of banks or other financial companies. We’d like to see legislation.

Fannie Mae has a major role to play in minimizing foreclosures. We have an initiative called “HomeStay” that streamlines refinancing of subprime ARMs into prime, fixed-rate loans. We are part of Treasury’s Hope Now initiative. Our foreclosure-prevention operations in Dallas help about half of our seriously delinquent borrowers work out their loans. Last year we helped about 100,000 homeowners stay in their homes. We reimburse lenders for referring troubled consumers to counseling agencies, and we have donated more than $7 million to these agencies to make sure they can respond.

Finally, to ensure that we’re in good shape to weather the correction and help the market through it, we’ve adjusted our pricing, tightened our credit standards and bolstered our capital reserves. These steps are critical to our ability to help stabilize the market in the longer run.

During the housing run-up, we kept our exposure to subprime and exotica limited. But no one is immune to the rise in foreclosures and decline in mortgage values, and we’re taking our lumps. Again, we are not the sole solution to the market’s woes, but we are part of the answer. Ok, enough about us…

Lessons learned
So … looking back, we know what led up to the housing correction – risky lending chasing rising home prices fueling more risky lending … until the bubble burst. Looking at the situation now, there are some short-term remedies to minimize the pain as the correction plays out. Looking ahead, there are some longer-term remedies that would help protect borrowers and sustain a healthy demand for homes.
But stepping back from the particular problems and solutions, what are the greater lessons we can learn from this experience, to ensure – as best we can – it never happens again?
Lessons tend to get better and clearer over time, but already, at least four seem clear.
Lesson one: When they say the old rules don’t apply, apply the old rules. No market is exempted from the laws of gravity, and that includes housing and home loans. Home prices were not going to keep rising without interruption; supply and demand eventually have their due.

Lesson two: Financial shocks often begin with a liquidity correction in one segment – in this case the subprime market – that spreads across the landscape. Modern credit markets are not divided into discrete buckets. When investors flee and the funding stops flowing to one area, it winds up affecting the entire watershed – in this case hurting not just people who made bad choices, but millions more who lose their jobs or can’t buy a home.

Lesson three: The fractured nature of the industry, both in terms of participants and regulators, complicates a coordinated response to a crisis like this. Think about the parties involved when you buy a home – a builder … a Realtor … an inspector … a mortgage originator and/or broker … a title company … lawyers. And you could have gotten your mortgage under the unseen purview of any number of regulators: the Fed … the OCC … the OTS … the SEC … OFHEO … the FDIC … the state insurance commissioner … the state banking commissioner, or others. Accordingly, when problems arise, figuring out what the problem is, what to do about it, and who holds the policy controls takes time. We need a more unified approach to housing finance policies. For another day, maybe a single, national regulatory agency will make sense.

Lesson four: The policy choices are not as stark as “free market” versus “bailout.” No one is in favor of bailouts. Nor does anyone seriously think American markets – particularly the financial markets – should be free from rules, regulations or consequences. The best proposals, in fact, seek to help families who can be helped, strengthen consumer protections and provide a measure of stability to the market, while avoiding broad moral hazard.


Taken together, these four lessons point, I hope, to a new appreciation for the role of housing in the economy, in the financial markets, in our policymaking and in our political process. The correction has given us an opportunity to come together and remind ourselves of what’s really important: And that is the interests of the families who buy or rent the homes we build, sell and finance. What’s good for them is good for housing, a good system … which can be made better.
Going forward
Indeed, as we go forward, there seems to be a lot of room for consensus and common ground for minimizing the impact of the correction on homeowners, communities and the economy.
The notion seems pretty fundamental in this country that a prosperous, sustainable society is built on stable communities where the right to own property gives citizens a stake in the place where they live. And so it is in our shared interest to work to stabilize the communities where that stake is in jeopardy. If families have the means to own a home, it should be possible to help them stay there. If not, we should be able to find rental housing. In most cases, we should focus on affording consumers the time and flexibility to work through this crisis.
Moreover, on the other side of the correction, underneath the turmoil, there are fundamental factors supporting a strong, stable housing market, and we want to get back there as quickly and smoothly as possible, so that housing resumes its role as a stable contributor to the GDP.
Our nation is growing. Immigration, economic expansion and demographics all drive the demand for homeownership. Over the next 10 years, one way or another, the US population is expected to grow by over 26 million people. They will create 15 million new households. They will demand 2 million new homes built every year. I believe as the current cycle works itself out, and the correction turns to recovery, home price growth will reassert itself at sustainable rates.
The question for the state of the economy is simply whether we pull together and deliver a recovery sooner, or we wait and hope until later, at the cost of time, money and human suffering. The state of American business in 2008 and beyond will depend on the choices we make about housing today.
Thank you. "

Morning and Evening Classes for Your Massachusetts Real Estate License

If you only have mornings or evenings free, you can still prepare to take the Massachusetts state examination to become a Licensed Real Estate Salesperson.


Starting on January 8th, these evenly paced classes will meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays for 4 weeks. If you are in the morning program, your class will be from 9 am to noon. If you are in the evening program, your class will be from 6:30 pm to 9:30 pm





The classes are being offered by Annex Real Estate School, which is conveniently located in the Wollaston section of Quincy, near the Wollaston T stop on the Red Line. You can check out the website at http://AnnexRealEstateSchool.com and download Application 01T

You can email the Registrar@AnnexRealEstateSchool.com or call 617-773-ALSO (2576) for more information.

Class availability depends upon registration. Class size will be limited to assure class quality. Pre-enrollment is a must.

Annex Real Estate School

49 Beale Street

Quincy, MA 02170


Mass License #1119

Map of
Annex Real Estate School
49 Beale St, Quincy MA

Annex Real Estate - Website Move!

Just want to let all of our past and future associates know that the move of the Annex Real Estate School website to its' new host is complete.

Unfortunately, there are still some link to the old site on Comcast that still come up in Google, Yahoo and MSN searches.

If you have saved a link to the old site, just visit the new Annex Real Estate School and save the link to your Favorites or Bookmark.

We have had some very successful three day weekend pre- license classes, both for the Massachusetts Real Estate Salesperson and Massachusetts Real Estate Broker examinations.

There is a three day Broker class scheduled for December 14, 15 and 16th.

Then, in January there will be both the traditional 4 week class starting on January 8th, with both day and evening sessions, and an intensive weekend class, starting Friday evening, January 18th.

Also planned for January is a weekend Continuing Education program on January 26 and 27. Massachusetts Real Estate Brokers and Salespersons, who want to keep their license Active, must take 12 hours of approved Continuing Education classes in the 2 year period before they renew. Massachusetts does not permit any online classes. During this weekend program, licensees will have the opportunity to take all the required classes, 6 hours per day.

Call the school's new number, 617-773-ALSO (2576) , extension 18, and get
more information about the school and our classes. If we cannot take your call, please leave your name, number, and a good time to call back.

Or email the RegistrarB@AnnexRealEstateSchool.com

Have a Happy New Year!

We Joined Technocrati

Technorati Profile

Annex Real Estate School - New Web Host for Our Massachusetts Real Estate Classes

If any of you are using Comcast as your Internet Service Provider, and have a web page hosted there, then you've read or heard about the changes that are going on. While the file storage size is being increased, the format and templates available to subscribers has changed. From reading the Help forums, it is obvious that many websites being hosted by Comcast are unreachable by the subscribers to update or edit them.

Fortunately, Annex Real Estate School started this summer with plans to move the website to another host. So at this time, all of our pages are up online at
AnnexRealEstateSchool.com . If you find yourself still linking to the site at Comcast, just type http://AnnexRealEstateSchool.com directly into the address bar at the top of your browser, and you should be there!

And, as we wish you a Happy Thanksgiving, we want to remind you that there will be two intensive Weekend Courses before the end of of the year.

The first offering is a Weekend Massachusetts Real Estate Salepersons Course. The class will start on Friday evening, November 30th, from 5:30 pm to 9:30 pm. The class then continues on Saturday and Sunday, December 1st and 2nd, 8:00 am to 6:00 pm both days (24 hours of state mandated class instruction).

The cost of this Salesperson pre-licensing class is still only $200 and includes two professional texbooks. You can read more about the licensing process at the Career Info page of the website. Download an Application there, or just click on
Dec Weekend Sales Class .

For Massachusett licensed Real Estate Salespersons who want to advance their career by becoming a licensed Real Estate broker, there will be an intensive Weekend Brokers Class. Because there are state mandated 30 hours of pre-licensing classroom insturction for the Brokers exam, this class will start on Friday, December 14th, 9:00 am to 7:00 pm. The class will continue on Saturday and Sunday, December 15th and 16th, also 9:00 am to 7:00 pm, both days. The cost of this Brokers pre-licensing class is still only $250, and includes three professional texbooks.

See the "About" (Career Info) page on the website, and read about the licensing process to become a Massachusetts licensed Real Estate Brokers. Download an Application from the site or click here for
Dec Weekend Brokers Class .

If you have any questions about either class, please call our direct line 617-773-ALSO (2576) extension 18. When you leave a message, please speak your return phone number slowly and tell us what are conveient times to reach you.

You can also email Annex Real Estate School directly. Be sure to include wether you are writing about the Saleperson or Brokers class.


Annex Real Estate School is conveniently located at 49 Beale Street in the Wollaston section of Quincy near the Wollaston T stop on the Red Line.

View Larger Map

Annex Real Estate School

49 Beale Street

Quincy, MA 02170

Mass. Real Estate Brokers and Salesperson - Weekend Classes in December

Annex Real Estate School announces two Accelerated Classes for December.

An intensive Weekend Massachusetts Real Estate Salesperson Class starts Friday evening, November 30th, 5:30 to 9:30 pm. The class then continues Saturday and Sunday, December 1 and 2, from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm, both days. Students must attend all 24 hours of class to qualify for the Massachusetts state Real Estate Salesperson Examination.

The cost of the Saleperson course is only $200, including two textbooks.

Class availability depends upon registration. Class size will be limited to insure class quality.

An intensive Weekend Massachusetts Real Estate Brokers Class starts Friday, December 14, 9:00 am to 7:00 pm. The class then continues Satuday and Sunday, December 15th and 16th, 9:00 am to 7:00 pm, both days. Students must attend all 30 hours of class to qualify for the Massachusetts state Real Estate Brokers Examination. This class is intended for Massachusetts licensed Real Estate Salespersons who wish to advance their career to the next level.

The cost of the Brokers course is only $250, including three textbooks.

Class availability depends upon registration. Class size will be limited to insure class quality.

For more information or to requst an Application call 617-773-2576 ext 18, or email

December Weekend Sales Class You can Download a December Salesperson Class Application

or

December Weekend Brokers Class You can Download a December Brokers Class Application

Annex Real Estate School is conveniently located in Quincy, MA near the Wollaston T stop on the Red Line.


View Larger Map




Annex Real Estate School
49 Beale Street
Quincy, MA 02170

Massachusetts Real Estate Classes for Red Sox Fans

If you are ready to become the Real Estate Rookie of the Year for 2008, you have to start by getting your Real Estate Salesperson's License. Annex Real Estate School, conveniently located in the Wollaston Section of Quincy, Massachusetts, has been preparing students for the Massachusetts Real Estate Salesperson state exam since 1991. The school is situated at 49 Beale Street, right near the Wollaton T stop on the Red Line.


The pre-licensing examination consists of two sections. The first Section, of 80 questions, tests the Candidate's General knowledge of real estate on subjects such as Types of Ownership, Real Estate Brokerage, Real Estate Economics and Affordability, Real Estate Financing, Real Estate Appraisal, and Real Estate Math. The second Section, of 30 questions, test the Candidate for their specific Knowledge of Real Estate, as conducted in Massachusetts. In this part of the exam, the Candidiate will show that they have learned about Massachusetts Licensing Requirements, Agency, Rental, Environmental Issues and other important subjects. It is necessary to achieve a score of 70% on both parts of the examination to pass and become licensed.

That is why getting the best available pre-licensing education is important. Part of the challange is that the Massachusetts pre-licensing course is only 24 hours in duration. Therefore, it the potential candidiate needs to find a Massachusetts Real Estate School that will optimize their learning experience. At Annex Real Estate School, we take pride in the preparation that our students get for their examination.

All of the pre-licensing classes at Annex Real Estate School are taught by experienced Massachusetts Real Estate Brokers who are also licensed by the state as Real Estate Instructors. The instructors bring their practical knowledge of the real estate business to their class presentations.

In addition to the environment of a successful real estate office, the students benefit from the two texts that are used in the Salepersons Class. Instead of relying on a script, Annex Real Estate School uses "Modern Real Estate Practice" and "Massachusetts Real Estate: Practice and Law", both published by Dearborn Publishing, " the nation's premier provider of real estate education and training materials. " The cost of these texts is included in the tuition for the course. Not only do the assist in the preparation for the exam, but will serve as an excellent reference after you have your license.

Other class handouts are also used, as well as a copy of the important Massachusetts "Real Estate License law and Regulations" which is produced by the "Massachusetts Board of Registration of Real Estate Brokers and Salespersons". This Booklet is very important for studing the for the Massachusetts Section of the examination.

So , what does this cost and where and how do you get started? The cost of the Massachusetts pre-licensing course is still only $200, which includes both texts. You can visit the WEBSITE, send an email to Information or call 617-773-ALSO (617-773- 2576). extension 18. More information about the licensing process can also be found at the About Tab on the website. You can download and print an Application under the Highlights on the Web Site





Map of
49 Beale Street, 02170



OK! If you're not a Red Sox Fan, you can still get into the class :)

Boston Red Sox American League East Champions

What does this incredible news mean for Real Estate? :) More to follow!

Added October 1st: Have you seen the back cover of the October issue of the Reader's Digest. Just makes me want to smile some more.

Along with the rally at Boston's City Hall Plaza, I was just reading online at Yahoo Financial News about today's rally on the New York stock exchange. The Dow has set a new high amidst rumors of another interest rate cut. Now, the mortgage rates have not gone down after September's 1/2 percent cut. In fact, the rates have been higher on some days. So why the good feeling?

Well, lower rates from the Fed will mean lower adustable rate mortgages, lower home equity loans, lower credit card bills, to name a few significant items. I don't see why this won't have a positive effect on consumer attitude which will lead to more activity in the real estate market.

Massachusetts Real Estate Brokers Class

Annex Real Estate School announces a Massachusetts Real Estate Brokers Class that will begin on October 1st. This class is intended for Massachusetts Real Estate Salespersons who have been working for a Massachusetts Real Estate Broker for at least one year and now wish to advance their own career. The class will be held at our convenient location of 49 Beale Street, in Quincy, near the Wollaston T stop on Red Line.

To learn more about the licensing process, go to the ABOUT page on the website.

Class hours are 6:30 to 9:30 pm on Monday and Wednesday evenings. The cost of the course is still only $250 which includes 3 textbooks and class material.

Call now 617-472-4330 ext 333 or EMAIL.

Class availability depends upon registration. Class size will be limited to insure class quality.

Applications are available under Highlights on the Home page, see Course#10BR.

WEEKEND Mass Real Estate Classes

There are still a few seats available in the Weekend Class that starts this evening, September 7th.!

Visit the ANNEX REAL ESTATE SCHOOL WEBSITE and look under the Highlights on the left side of the page.

Boston Red Sox, Boston Real Estate Market, Massachusetts Real Estate Classes

As a Boston Red Sox fan, I got used to the expression "Wait until next year!". Because it seemed that we were always waiting for the opportunity to see our team come out on top. Now, we're not waiting! Having tasted victory, we can have real dreams about winning, even after last night's game with the Yankees.

Many buyers and sellers have also developed a wait until next week, or next month or next month attitude. Sellers are looking for a rebound in prices. Buyers are looking for a further decline. So who is right? If you need to buy or sell, then the right time is now. Only a crystal ball holds the answer to the prices and interest rates for next week, next month and next year. Some people will try to make an educated guess and some will be right.

So what is the connection between baseball and real estate classes? There is an expression, "If you want to win, you have to play the game". Although the real estate market is more than just a game, you can not make money as a real estate saleperson unless you are licensed. Once licensed, you can work for a real estate broker and help real sellers and buyers meet their goals.

This might be a good time to get a real estate license. There is a good supply of listings, there are a lot of buyers and the interest rate is still affordable for many. So this looks like a there is the chance for a good real estate saleperson to learn the business.

Annex Real Estate School offers you the opportunity to take a real estate class in the environment of a real estate office. All of the teachers are exoerienced Massachusetts Real Estate Brokers who are also licensed by the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Real Estate Brokers and Salespersons as Massachusetts Real Estate Instructors.

Visit the website now. Click on the ABOUT tab to learn more about the licensing process. The September classes are forming now.

Opportunities in Today's Real Estate Market

Boston Red Sox Standings Are Up Again! OK! When the gap in the standings between the Red Sox and Yankees was down to 4 games, practically every Boston sports commentator had something to say. Now we're up 6 games. No matter where they are at the end of the season, true Red Sox fans will not desert the team.

What about the fans of the local real estate market? If you've been involved in real estate for any length of time, you've seen the ups and the downs. Right now, the market has it's problems. The latest surge and fall back has many confused and worried.

Starting with a short supply of residential properties and a pent up demand, the law of Supply and Demand went to work and we saw the prices of home increase dramatically. This was further fueled by the low interest rates which helped to overcome the increasing prices. As word of the higher prices being paid reached the ears of the neighbors, more and more existing houses were added to the market. 'My house is better than my neighbor's, so I should get more.' became the chant

Developers didn't want to be left out, so we also saw more new home construction. Empty lots disappeared and older homes were torn down to make room for a new dwelling. Where zoning permitted, more homes were put up on the lot. And the prices kept going up. Condos and townhouses went up, and unlike earlier times, they were not just priced for the lower end of the market. Experienced real estate brokers felt 'sticker shock' as they previewed new listings. Newer associates enthusiastically listed and sold.

The mortgage lenders didn't want to be left out. New product became available to allow more and more buyers to get into the market. Unfortunately, the news now dramatically shows us that there were loans that shouldn't have been made. The implosion that is now effecting not only the financial market but also the stock market is the fallout of these loans. What's wrong with this picture? Adjustable rate mortgages were made to marginal buyers, when the only way rates were going is up. What is going to happen when zero down buyer finds that he or she can no longer afford the monthly payment?

It's really not surprising to see where this was going. Supply and Demand showed up again. With more and more choices, buyer enthusiasm changed. I believe that appraisers have a word for it: Substitution. Buyers didn't need to grab at the first property they viewed as they now had choices. That telling statistic, Days on the Market has grown higher and higher. And buyers started offering less than the asking price.

So today in today's news we read of lowering prices, houses not selling, increasing foreclosures, lenders closing or declaring bankruptcy.

Is there a bright side? Last night, on WBZ Channel 4, Boston, there is a hint of a promise. Click HERE for a link to their website with a story and film clip. Also, you can read the latest news from the website of the Massachusetts Association of Realtors

An observation: Earlier this month, Annex Real Estate School, located in Quincy, Massachusetts, ran a mid-week class pre-licensing class. This class is a prerequisite to taking the Massachusetts state exam to become a licensed Real Estate Salesperson. This class was a full.The average age of the students, 30-40. The class was very articulate and several students went up a the following week, took and passed the exam. These people obviously feel that there is a future in real estate.

If you've read this far, there are classes scheduled in September, October, and November. Enrollment applications are coming in. Class size will be limited to insure quality and pre-registration is a must. You can click HERE to go to the website to get an application or read more about the licensing process by clicking on the ABOUT link.

Questions? Send them an EMAIL or call the school 617-472-4330 ext 333.

And if you're ready to participate in the market as a Buyer or Seller, Check out Century 21 Annex Realty Please tell them you read about them here!

If you've got a comment to make, please do. Just stay on subject.

Continuing Education Classes for Massachusetts Licensed Real Estate Brokers and Salespersons

Are you a Massachusetts licensed Real Estate Broker or Salesperson looking for Continuing Education classes to keep your license ACTIVE?

Annex Real Estate School offers 12 hours of Continuing Education classes in September.
The classes have been chosen from the newly revised list of Approved Courses. The cost of each 2 hour class is still only $20 per Module. All C.E. modules are taught by licensed Real Estate Brokers or Specialty Experts.

To maintain the quality of these classes, class size is limited and pre-registration is a must.

Call now: 617-472-4330 extension 333 or
email CE08@AnnexRealEstateSchool.com

Visit the school's website Annex Real Estate School.
You can download an Application for the
September Continuing Education Series HERE.

Annex Real Estate School is conveniently located at 49 Beale Street, Quincy, across from the parking lot of the Wollaston T stop on the Red Line.

Massachusetts Real Estate Classes in August at Annex Real Estate School

Massachusetts Real Estate Classes for Real Estate Salesperson License
The following news item is about to be release by PRLEAP News services on Monday, July 23rd:

(PRLEAP.COM) Because many persons do not want to give up their summer weekends, Annex Real Estate School of Quincy, Massachusetts, will have an intensive mid-week marathon class in August.

The classes will be held at the school’s convenient location at 49 Beale Street, Quincy, which is across from the parking lot of the Wollaston stop of the T Red Line.

The class hours are 9:00 am to 5:30 pm on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, August 7, 8, and 9th (24 hours of instruction).

The cost of the course is still only $200 which includes two professional text books from Dearborn Publishing, the nation’s leading supplier of Real Estate educational material.

All students will also receive thier own copy of the Massachusetts Real Estate Rules and Regulations which is produced by the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Real Estate Brokers and salespersons.

In order to maintain the quality of the class, class size is limited and pre-registration is a must.

If you feel that this intensive course is for you, then call 617-472-4330 extension 333 or email scprl@annexrealestateschool.com

Visit the website http://annexrealestateschool.com/

You can download an application under the ‘Highlights’ on the Home Page and HERE

Applications can also be mailed or emailed. Look at the "ABOUT’ tab on the website if you want more information about the licensing process in Massachusetts.

Annex Real Estate School
49 Beale Street
Quincy, MA 02170

Real Estate ClassesTaught by Real Estate Brokers

You can get a printable copy of the press release here.

Annex Real Estate School Offers Massachusetts Real Estate Classes to Become a Licensed Salesperson over the Summer

Annex Real Estate School, conveniently located in Quincy near the Wollaston T stop on the Red Line, has announced a new series of Massachusetts Real Estate Classes for the Summer Months and September. Following up on the three week class being given in the evening in June, there will be the more traditional four week class during July. This class will start on Monday evening, July 9th. Classes will be held on Monday and Wednesday evenings*, from 6:30 pm to 9:30 pm. This leaves your days and weekends free to enjoy the summer!

Are you looking for a faster, more intensive class? In August, one time only, the entire course will be held on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, August 7, 8, and 9, from 9 am to 5:30 pm each day.

Then in September, there will be two classes, again, an intensive weekend that starts on Friday evening, September 7th from 5:30 to 9:30 pm. The class then goes on Saturday and Sunday, September 8 and 9, from 8 am to 6 pm, both days.

If you want the more traditional pace? Also in September, a four week course on Tuesdays and Thursdays, starting on September 18th. In addition to the evening class, a morning class is also scheduled from 9 am to noon, on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

We are still able to keep the cost of these Massachusetts Real Estate Salesperson Classes at $200, which includes two texts from Dearborn Publising. For "more than forty years" Dearborn "has been..the leader in providing real estate professionals with the tools to build successful real estate careers." All students also receive their own copy of the "Massachusetts Real Estate License Law and Regulations" produced by the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Real Estate Brokers and Salesmen. This booklet is reviewed in class.

In order to maintain the quality of each class, pre-registration is a must.

To get more information call 617-472-4330 ext 333 for the school or email registrar@AnnexRealEstateSchool.com

To find out more about the process of getting your Massachusetts Real Estate License, visit the ABOUT page on the school's website.

Annex Real Estate School, where 'About' is 'about your real estate career.

Massachusetts Real Estate Classes, Taught By Massachusetts Real Estate
Brokers.

* Note: This a change of nights for July class only from the original posting.

Annex Real Estate School Now Offering 3 Week Real Estate Salesperson Class in June

Using a format that was already successful with a Real Estate Brokers Course, Annex Real Estate School is now offering a special 3 week Real Estate Saleperson class for June. This accelerated course will start on June 12th and will run on Tuesday and Thursday evenings from 6 to 10 pm.

All prelicensing courses at Annex Real Estate School are taught by experienced real estate Brokers, who are also licensed by the state as real estate Instructors. Students at the Annex Real Estate School have the bonus of being taught in the environment of an active real estate office, learning about the practical world of real estate along with the essential material for the licensing exam.

At Annex Real Estate School. we care about your learning experience, so we use the latest professional textbooks to enhance your General and Massachusetts knowledge. Not only do these books serve as excellent tools to prepare for your exam, but good practical knowledge. Each student also receives their own copy of "Massachusetts Real Estate Rules and Regulations" which is produced by the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Real Estate Brokers and Salesmen. This usefull text is reviewed in class as part of the preparation for the Massachusetts specific section of your exam.

Pre-registration is a must for this class, so call now 617-472-4330 ext 333 for information or email AnnexRealEstateSchool@comcast.net

Visit the school's WEBSITE . Find the Application in the Highlights Section.

HANOVER MASSACHUSETTS ***** REAL ESTATE *****: Hanover, Mass., Surveys Residents to Improve Park Properties

HANOVER MASSACHUSETTS

***** REAL ESTATE *****: Hanover, Mass., Surveys Residents to Improve Park Properties

Annex Real Estate School Celebrates Red Sox Win: Real Estate Term Used to Describe Beckett's Injury!

Annex Real Estate School joins the rest of Red Sox Nation in celebrating yesterday's come back win of 6-5 over the Orioles. All of their 6 runs were scored in the bottom half of the ninth inning! This article from the Official Red Sox site, tells it all!

What was of special interest to real estate students at the Annex Real Estate School, is the use of the word"avulsion" to describe Josh Beckett's injury to his right middle finger. Here, Beckett describes what happened as " "My skin just tore," Beckett said."

In class, students learn that this same word is used in real estate terminologly to describe a sudden loss of land, ususally from the rapid flow of water, as by a flooding river or stream!

Yesterday's success of the Red Sox was possible because they saw the opportunity and used it. If real estate is to be the career for you, check out the different courses at Annex Real Estate School and see what opportunities might be there for you.

Are You Looking for a Chance to Study for Your Mass. Real Estate License During Daytime Hours?

Annex Real Estate School is setting up an extra day class to prepare persons to take the Massachusetts exam to become a licensed Real Estate Salesperson. THIS CLASS IS NOW FORMING. The class will be held at the school's convenient location in the Wollaston section of Quincy. This class will meet during the daytime and will be set up to finish by the end of June. The hours and days of the week of this special group will be set to meet the consensus of the class. If you are interested in becoming part of the class, you must call NOW while the class is forming. 617-472-4330 ext 312. In Massachusetts, to become a Real Estate Salesperson, candidates must take 24 hours of instruction at an Approved Real Estate School as a prerequisite to taking the state exam. All of Annex Real Estate School's pre-licensing courses are taught by practicing, experienced Real Estate Brokers who are also licensed by the state as Real Estate Instructors. The BONUS is that you will be in a classroom experience which is in a real estate office environment! You will not only have the real estate knowledge needed to pass the test, but you will also have a very good understanding of the real estate business.

This course costs only $200 which includes books and class material. We use nationally recognized textbooks, "Modern Real Estate Practice" for the General Section of the Exam and "Massachusetts Real Estate: Practice and Law", for the Massachusetts section of the Exam. These books are published by Dearborn Publishing. Students will also receive their own copy of "Massachusetts Rules and Regulations" which is produced by the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Real Estate brokers and Salesmen. This is used in class to study those subjects for the exam. Upon successful completion of the course, students will also receive the State of Massachusetts; Real Estate Candidate Handbook. Call NOW 617-472-4330 ext 312 to arrange for your place in this class.

Or email Annex Real Estate School

First Time Home Buyers: Free Seminar

Are you a first time home buyer? This might just be the right time for you!
The first time home buyer is out there shopping in a buyer's market, with low interest rates, and no house to sell!

It's not too late to register for the free, no obligation, seminar. Click here for a copy of the flyer: "The Art of Home Buying in a Buyers Market", a program that has been designed with you in mind. You will have the opportunity to hear and ask questions of a mortgage officer, an attorney, and a Realtor on the home buying process. This seminar is being held from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. on Monday, May 16, in the Hancock Room at the Sheraton Braintree Hotel, 37 Forbes Rd., Braintree.

Ruthie Dollarhide, Realtor at Century 21 Annex Realty, Pamela Linskey, Attorney at the Law Offices of Pamela Linskey and Mike King, Vice President at Summitt Mortgage will cover topics of interest to today's Real Estate Buyer:

Defining the Roles of Real Estate Agents and how that impacts the Buyer.

How will purchasing a home affect your overall financial outlook?

The purchase process from offer to closing and important tax benefits of home ownership

An overview of the mortgage process, including credits scores, types of loans and zero downpayment options.

Raffle and prizes


Seating is limited Please RSVP by Monday, May 14 to Lisa Mutchler at 781.374.5032 or lmutchler@summitmortgage.com

Mass Real Estate Classes in May at Annex Real Estate School

Annex Real Estate School, of Quincy, has announced it's May line up up Real Estate Classes . These classes are for those who wish to start a new career in real estate by becoming a Real Estate Salesperson. The classes will be held at their convenient location in the Wollaston section of Quincy. One of the pre-requisites of becoming a Real Estate Salesperson is to take a 24 hour pre-licensing course in an Approved Massachusetts Real Estate School.
There is the traditional 4 week course that starts on Tuesday, May 8th, and is taught on Tuesdays and Thursdays. You can chose either the day class, from 9:00 a.m. to noon, or the evening class which is from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m.
Annex Real Estate School also offers an intensive weekend course is scheduled to start Friday evening, May 18th. The class runs 4 hours on Friday, from 5:30 p.m to 9:30 p.m. and then on Saturday and Sunday May 19 and 20, from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. both days.
At Annex Real Estate School our Massachusetts licensed Instructors are Experienced Real Estate Brokers. We use nationally recognized textbooks, "Modern Real Estate Practice" and "Massachusetts Real Estate: Practice and Law", published by Dearborn Publishing. Students will also receive and review "Massachusetts Rules and Regulations" which is produced by the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Real Estate brokers and Salesmen.
The cost of either the 4 week course or the intensive weekend course is only $200, which includes these books.
Upon successful completion of the course, students will also receive the State of Massachusetts; Real Estate Candidate Handbook.

Call 617-472-4330 ext 333 to reserve your place in one of these classes or email AnnexRealEstateSchool@comcast.net
Visit the website of Annex Real Estate School for the latest class postings

Newest Release by Federal Reserve has Promissing Signs for Greater Boston's Real Estate Market

In the April 25th release of the Beige Book , the Federal Reserve report shows promise for the greater Boston's real estate market. Noted in the Summary that: " In contrast, the Boston District reported that the volume of residential sales across New England shows signs of increasing, though prices remained below 2006 levels."

More specifically, the Boston section of the report says:

"Residential Real Estate

Across New England, the volume of residential sales shows signs of increasing. In Massachusetts, sales volume increased year-on-year in both January and February. Single-family home sales reported from Massachusetts multiple listing services increased 1.2 percent in February from a year earlier after a double-digit year-on-year increase in January. Contacts in New Hampshire and Maine also cite signs of improved sales activity. Increased sales volume and lower overall inventory has led to improved supply conditions in regional markets. In Massachusetts, the total number of listings decreased 17 percent from February 2006 to February 2007. At the current pace of sales, there is around 12.3 months of supply in the Massachusetts market, down from over 15 months in February 2006. Market conditions, however, continue to favor buyers across the region, as supply exceeds what contacts feel is balanced in most locations.

Though sales volume is increasing, prices remain below their previous year levels. In Massachusetts, single family home prices were down in February from the previous year's levels by around 4 percent while condominium prices were down 1.8 percent. Contacts in Connecticut, Maine, and New Hampshire also report year-on-year price declines.

Overall, contacts are encouraged by recent changes, suggesting that New England residential markets are returning to what they term more normal conditions. "

You can read the full APRIL 25th REPORT HERE.

Buyer's Market: If It's On the Front Page, Does That Make It Official?

Front page article on today's Patriot Ledger (complete with color photo !) "FOR SOME, A TIME TO BUY". The feature story by Andrew Lightman tells why two couples chose to buy now. One couple wanted out from their apartment. The other buyers are engaged to be married this fall and saw the 'buyer friendly' market as the opportunity to buy now.

Both are taking advantage of the continuing low interest rate and large inventory of homes for sale. Interviews with the publications editor of the Warren group and a local Realtor, reinforced the advantages that buyers have today. This is particulary true for first time home buyers, as they do not have to worry about how long it might take to sell.

There is no guarantee as to how long either the interest rate will stay low with a large inventory.

The lesson is that if you want to benefit from today's market conditions conditions, you have to stop being a "looker" and turn yourself into a "buyer"!

Annex Real Estate School Announces May Weekend Class

Annex Real Estate School has announced a Weekend Class to prepare students for the Massachusetts Real Estate Salesperson Exam. This intensive course begins on Friday evening, May 18th and continues on Saturday and Sunday, and will meet the mandatory state requirements.

All pre-licensing courses at Annex Real Estate School are taught by experienced Massachusetts Real Estate brokers who are also licensed Real Estate Instructors.

You can call 617-472-4330 ext 333 to request a brochure and application or email AnnexRealEstateSchool@comcast.net

Visit the School Website for more information

The cost of the course is only $200 which includes the texts: "Modern Real Estate Practice", "Massachusetts Real Estate, Practice and Law" from Dearborn Publishing, and "Massachusetts Real Estate Rules and Regulations". Upon successful completion of the course, students will also receive the "State of Massachusetts Real Estate Candidate Handbook.

HANOVER MASSACHUSETTS ***** REAL ESTATE *****: The Art of Home Buying in a Buyers Market : Free Seminar May 16, 2007

HANOVER MASSACHUSETTS

***** REAL ESTATE *****: The Art of Home Buying in a Buyers Market : Free Seminar May 16, 2007

View the Flyer HERE

More Good Real Estate News for the South Shore of Boston

In a feature article on the Business page of last night's Patriot Ledger, Steve Adams says "The South Shore may have some of the state's best bargains for house hunters this spring"....."In a sign that the real estate downturn may be approaching its nadir, however, sales activity rebounded in the first quarter statewide."

Using data releaed by the Massachusetts Association of Realtors, the median price of a single family home in the region fell 4.3 percent from a year ago compared with 1.1 percent, statewise.

“The housing market in Massachusetts is gaining momentum and we can continue to feel good about where it is headed,” said MAR President Doug Azarian, broker/owner of Century21 Dream Homes in Falmouth. “With prices remaining stable and supplies decreasing, we can expect the spring home buying season to be active.”

So what does it mean for buyers and sellers? Good news for Sellers: Buyers are out there, and they're really looking to buy! Good news for Buyers: Sellers have repriced and the prices are near bottom with good interest rates still there!

If Buyers and Sellers can get past the gloomy news that had been prevalent for some months, they can make the deal that will satisfy both.

Annex Real Estate School Announces Next Accelerated Real Estate Brokers Class Will Start April 30th

Annex Real Estate School announced today that the next Accelerated Massachusetts Real Estate Brokers Class will start on April 30th. Massachusetts Real Estate Salespersons who wish to advance their Real Estate career to Broker must take 30 hours of instruction at an Approved Real Estate School as a prerequisite to taking the state exam. Annex Real Estate School now offers a small, accelerated course that meets the state requirements. This accelerated format has already been successfully tried with a small group, demonstrating the need and feasibility of such a course.
This group will meet 10 hours per week for 3 weeks at the school's location in Wollaston.
This course costs only $250 which includes books "Modern Real Estate Practice", "Massachusetts Real Estate, Practice and Law" from Dearborn Publishing, and "Massachusetts Real Estate Rules and Regulations",and class material. This Brokers class will also receive "Guide to Passing the Promissor Real Estate Exam" (Dearborn Publishing.) This book recently received a 5 star review on Amazon.com

Upon successful completion of the course, students will also receive the "State of Massachusetts Real Estate Candidate Handbook.

All of Annex Real Estate School's pre-licensing courses are taught by experienced Real Estate Brokers who are also licensed by the state as Real Estate Instructors.

Call NOW 617-472-4330 ext 333 to arrange for your place in this class.

The PR Leap online press release service has just posted more information about this class to the Internet.

Email AnnexRealEstateSchool@comcast.net
Website: http://annexrealestateschool.home.comcast.net/

Red Sox Sweep Series and Tie Four HR Record

One of the benefits of growing up the the greater Boston area is being a Red Sox fan. You don't have to attend every game or sit glued to the TV to share in Red Sox pride as part of the Red Sox Nation.

But several times, last night I went back to ESPN to catch up on the score. Red Sox vs Yankees....as the lead switched back and forth, my switching channels became less frequent. Go Sox! Well, we all know the the game ended with our Red Sox winners 7-6. As for the 4 straight home runs in the 3rd inning, that was frosting on the cake.

HANOVER MASSACHUSETTS ***** REAL ESTATE *****: Last Week "...Sales gaining steam ". This Week, a Quincy Bungalow for $849,000 !!

HANOVER MASSACHUSETTS

***** REAL ESTATE *****: Last Week "...Sales gaining steam ". This Week, a Quincy Bungalow for $849,000 !!

Weekend Class Coming up at Annex Real Estate School AND Special Offer

Start your real estate career by preparing for the Massachusetts Real Estate Saleperson examination at Annex Real Estate School on one weekend.

This Massachusetts state required class will be held in Quincy starting on Friday evening, April 27, and continuing days April 28 and 29. Massachusetts requires students to attend all 24 hours of classsroom instruction to qualify for the examination.

Annex Real Estate School is conveniently located at 49 Beale Street in the Wollaston section of Quincy near the Wollaston T stop on the Red Line. Map of 49 Beale St Quincy, MA 02170-2618, US


The cost of the course is only $200 which also includes two texts,"Modern Real Estate Practice" and "Massachusetts Real Estate: Practice & Law" (Dearborn), as well as a copy of "Massachusetts Real Estate License Law and Regulation". Those who complete the course will also receive "The Real Estate Candidate Handbook".

All Annex Real Estate School pre-licensing courses are taught by Massachusetts licensed Real Estate Brokers who are also licensed by the state as Real Estate Instructors.

Call now 617-472-4330 ext 333 to reserve your place in this popular class, or Email .

Visit the website: http://AnnexRealEstateSchool.Home.comcast.net

CALLERS: Ask about the Special Offer

HANOVER MASSACHUSETTS ***** REAL ESTATE *****: Century 21 Gold Jacket Draws Attention

HANOVER MASSACHUSETTS

***** REAL ESTATE *****: Century 21 Gold Jacket Draws Attention