Cash out while you can; very corrupt Town. Can do much better in Wakefield or Stoneham unless you are compelled to stay because of schools

General rule of thumb is you trade up in a down market and trade down in an up market. the idea is that you can use the % change in price to your advantage. For example if you own a 500,000 home and want to buy a 1,000,000 home, if the market is down 10% the difference between your home and the more expensive one has shrunk from 500,000 to 450,000. If the market is up 10% the difference has increased to 550,000 a swing of 100.000.

Hi Mel,
I have worked in Winchester in RE for 14 years and live here as well. I don't necessarily think that living 5 houses away from one of the 5 elementary schools is such a positive thing. Buyers will complain that the house is too close and the noise during recess (warmer weather) is too disturbing. Also, depending on which elementary school you live near, parking could be a problem with teachers parking on the street, perhaps in front of your house. That being said, I would say move away from the school. I think the only way to advise you on whether to sell, is to look at your house. How long ago did you buy it? How much have you put into it? These are key factors. The real estate market in Winchester is down but there are still buyers out there. If you are in the Lincoln or Ambrose district, that is still the most desirable place where people are looking and you might sell your house right away, depending on your pricing. Pricing is everything in today's market.
Laurie Fallon
REMAX Leading Edge 748 Main Street Winchester
781-729-5505

Not sure what state you are in but I think a general statement is appropriate here: If your happy where you are stay there why move?, but if you wnat to move for any reason now is a great time to do so. A good Realtor should be able to use the strengths of your home and area to sell your home, you will likely have to be realistice about price due to the market. But keep this in mind, the house you may consider buying will have to be also. So all in all it could be a net wash or gain as you can make up on the buy side and lower sales price on the sales price.

Stay put in Winchester in this market. Right now Winchester is doing great in terms of Real Estate Market. If you are emtnioning about Muraco school. That's the best elementary school. So if you are selling your current house. Buy another house in Winchester.

Good Luck!

Hi Mel,

Since you already live in Winchester I don't need to give you the sales pitch! But if you are considering other communities, I would just caution you to stick with comparable communities. You can upgrade, yet get more for your money if you are not tied to the Boston commute that Winchester offers. Which communities have you considered?

The market in the Western suburb communities is steady, although it is tipping to the buyers market side of things. What this means to a seller moving up is that if you prepare your home for sale and price it correctly, you should be able to to do well upgrading. This is a market for first time buyers, investors and sellers moving up. Down-sizing should stay on hold unless a person is leaving the area entirely.

Hope this helps you - let me know if I can be of any further help.

Julie Duncan
RE/MAX Landmark

If you are going to move to bigger home, it is great time because for the same %, bigger home may have more saving than the saving you passed to your buyer. So, move up is the right time.

On the other hand, if you plan to downsize, people normally do it at the market peak when same % up on real estate, bigger home make more money dollar wise.

Ideally, you would buy a bigger home now for some good saving, and rent out your smaller one since the rental market is great.

e.g. back in 90's when market was at the lowest to come back up like now, I move to the bigger home I could afford, yet catch the 3.875% ARM and rent out my condo and use the rent to pay mortgate of the bigger house. This is important concept since if one only own ONE house, when market jump again, you still do not benefit too much since you have to live at your only home. Whereas if you have more than one, when market jump again, you can cash in the other one.

Are you looking to downsize from you current home? Winchester is a great town. There are not many drawbacks to living in Winchester either. The tax rate may be a concern to someone who doesn't live in the town now. (It's probably one of the highest tax rates in the area). First time home buyers don't usually look in Winchester for that reason. You should first decide where you want to move to, how much your current house would sell for and what your time frame is. If you have any additional questions for me, please contact me at my personal website. Hope to hear from you soon!

Where you live has only to do with your lifestyle and your ability to afford - market timing should not have anything to do with where you live. If you want to upgrade in Winchester the only financial considerations are- how long are you going to be in your next place and do you have enough equity to move - rates are outrageously good so if you have equity and you WANT to move its not a bad time to do so. The lower price that you will get on your home will be reflected in your buy as well