Ali: I can almost guarantee you that I know the neighborhood you are talking about (I live in Rowley and have been looking to move to a bigger house for 5 years (had to convince my husband to move)). I am not in the Real Estate business. Here is the skinny.

2 of the houses are on their way to foreclosure, so the price has dropped.

1 For Sale by Owner

2 of the houses were built as the market went bad and the builders are having trouble selling. One is now rented and will be so for the next two years.

1 is on and off the market - nice house

The new houses going in are all custom homes. Some lots have protected wetlands but that is VERY common in Rowley because we have some pretty well-known salt marshes. There are 6 more lots ranging from 259K-314K. They are all permitted for 4 bedroom with percs done for the septic systems.

Hope that helps.

Start with the town hall and ask around. The town hall will also have wetland maps for you to view. The building department might have some insight. Also try this site- http://www.epa.gov/superfund/sites/. I also recommend putting the name of the street in google to see if anything appears. Talking to the neighbors might help give you some insight to the neighborhood. Finding out what the land was used for prior to the neighborhood being built will also help give you some insight.

I also suggest driving around neighboring streets to see if there is something near the neighborhood that may be a deterrent such as power stations, high voltage power lines, train tracks, commercial sites and so on... Google maps or Microsoft Live is a great way to get a satellite view and the general area.

Don't forget we are in a softening market and houses are loosing approx a half of a percent per month. It is getting increasingly difficult to sell homes. Many builders started their projects years ago and have based all of their pricing and stats in a solid housing market. There are many builders having to do multiple price changes to get their properties sold. It might just be the sign of the times

Hi Ali - You can also talk to the town of Rowley Inspection Department. They have open office hours. Here's a link with info: http://www.town.rowley.ma.us/common/index.php?com=rowl&d…
Most likely it is not an environmental problem but you can ask there. And one of the things I would look at is the town wetlands map to find out if the general area has wetlands/water issues. You could also inquire if the subdivision has had code violation issues.
Worth a visit to inquire. Good luck.

Thanks for the feedback everyone. Much appreciated.

Ali,

This is just the nature of the current market conditions. If you are really concerned about environmental hazards, I recommend that you go to a web site that I use all the time with my buyers:

http://www.epa.gov/epahome/commsearch.htm

The EnviroMapper is really great - it maps out regulated sites anywhere in the US. Unfortunately, I just tried it and it's currently is having issues. Try it again in a couple of days and hopefully they will have it resolved.

Jim

If the sellers are aware of what you are worried about they would be required to disclose thoise issues. Get the sellers disclosures from the properties that have been on the market.

This is common for SEVERAL areas in Massachusetts right now and has more to do with the current state of the market than any environmental issues in most cases. Especially in new construction where builders are often carrying construction loans. This is not to say there may be something else at play as well. Your best bet is to consult a qualified Realtor in the Rowley area. They will be able to give you valuable insight into this particular development. Rest assured, beautiful new homes sitting on the market and selling for below assessed value is not uncommon throughout the area in this market.