Real Estate Search Blog

Feast your eyes on these new pictures of the brand new Newton North High School taken by the Boston Globe. The school is the most expensive school to be built in Massachusetts history. However, the new school is merely physical evidence of one of the best school systems in Massachusetts.

Newton North High School’s  New Auditorium:

The Indoor Pool:

A classroom:

At a total cost of $191 million, Newton MA now has even more bragging rights to add to its low crime rates, top public school instructors and administration, healthy local businesses, forward-thinking recreation programs, and close proximity to Boston. There is no better time to take a look at some of the beautiful homes for sale in Newton MA.

The city of Boston is once again advancing to become one of the safest cities in the country for drivers and pedestrians. A unanimous vote yesterday by the Boston City Council to outlaw text messaging while driving might help jump-start a state-wide prohibition. If approved by state legislators, this law would impose fines ranging from $100 to $300 for violators. The texting ban needs Mayor Thomas Menino’s approval to be sent to Beacon Hill.

Boston is known around the country and by its own residents as a walking city, so this new law may be great news for families in the area. It could be just another perk for people looking at real estate in Newton MA. The city of Newton is already one of the safest in the country. If you are considering looking at homes in MetroWest Boston, look to Christine Norcross and Partners for one of the most knowledgeable real estate agents in Newton MA.

The town of Newton, MA ranks as the number four safest city in America by Morgan Quitno Press. The Morgan Quitno Safest City ranking system is based on a city’s rate for six basic crime categories: murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary and motor vehicle theft. All cities of 75,000+ populations that reported crime data to the FBI for the six crime categories were included in the rankings. In this year’s survey, 371 cities were considered for the award.

The Boston area also ranks number four in Forbes’ America’s Safest Cities, published in October 2009. Rankings were configured on the basis of violent crime, workplace fatality rates, traffic death rates, and natural disaster risks, data collected by various U.S. government agencies. Notable about Boston is that it has the lowest traffic fatality rate of all other cities, mainly due to its user-friendly mass transit system. Check out some of the beautiful real estate in Boston.

If you’re looking at homes in Newton MA, you can be sure that this city has been nationally recognized by several respected sources for being one of the safest cities in America. Take a look at some of the gorgeous real estate in Newton MA. Perhaps you might consider relocating to Newton MA!

Thinking of selling your home in the near or distant future? There are several things you can do to make your home more appealing to potential buyers that don’t require a lot of effort or expense. These tips were pulled from a video on HGTV’s Frontdoor.com.

Tip 1: Hire it out

Hire a designer or realtor for about an hour to check out your home. Though you’ve always liked that art deco backsplash in the kitchen, a potential homebuyer might not. See what works and what doesn’t when it comes to the taste of the general public. If you’re not comfortable doing the work yourself, see these helpful tips for hiring a contractor or remodeler.

Tip 2: Get an Inspection

I’ve spoken with several real estate agents in Massachusetts, and most of them recommend having your home inspected before you do anything else. The inspector can point out major and minor problems that you can fix, before potential homebuyers see them.

Tip 3: Get a Fresh Look

Paint each room in a different earth tone. Doing so will give each room its own distinct feel — a house full of white rooms isn’t very appealing and doesn’t inspire buyers to imagine how they will decorate each room. Make sure to draw attention to accents like crown moldings. Below is a picture of the hallway of one of the homes for sale in Newton MA. The earthy, sandy color that the owners chose for the walls draws sharp contrast to the banister, the moldings, the small window, and the gleaming hardwood floors. Sometimes plain white paint just doesn’t do a home justice.

Tip 4: Decorate

Pick up a few home design magazines and see what you can do to improve the aesthetics of your home. Don’t go overboard with trends and embellishing — after all, when you move out the decor goes with you. Stick with basic decorating details. If your larger furniture has a busy or bright pattern, throw a few neutral slipcovers over them and add a couple of brightly colored pillows. Upgrade bland window blinds to neutral-colored drapes. If you can’t afford to overhaul your bathroom, paint it a neutral color and choose one bright accent color for the hand towels, shower curtain, and rug.

Tip 5: Get an Energy Audit

Visit your energy provider’s website to evaluate your home’s energy efficiency. You can find tips to quickly and inexpensively decrease your home’s electricity costs, like replacing regular lightbulbs with energy-saving ones. If you’re not planning to sell your home for some time, consider replacing windows with better-insulated ones. Take advantage of this federal tax credit which allows for 30% off your home energy-improving expenses (in effect until December 31, 2010.)

These basic tips should put you on the right path to selling a home.