12 must-see open houses in Greater Boston this weekend (Dec. 21-22)
From a one-bedroom condo in Wakefield ideal for commuters that's listed for $239,000 to a new five-bedroom Brookline town house for $2,695,000.
Massachusetts is one of the 10 states with the highest average home equity gains in the country, according to the CoreLogic Homeowner Equity Report.
The report, which provides a quarterly overview of the distribution of equity across all US single-family residential properties with a mortgage, shows the national home equity in the third quarter of 2019 rose 5.1 percent year over year (nearly $457 billion), with an average of $5,300 per homeowner.
Idaho saw the largest equity gains as homeowners averaged an increase of $25,800, followed behind by Wyoming ($24,000), Utah ($21,000), and Montana ($17,800). Massachusetts tied with New Hampshire and Illinois for No. 10 on the list, with roughly $10,000 in home equity gains.
In addition, the total number of mortgaged residential properties with negative equity, meaning if the current market value of the home falls below the balance of the mortgage used to purchase it, decreased by 4 percent from the second quarter of the year to 2 million homes, or 3.7 percent.
“Ten years ago, during the depths of the Great Recession, more than 11 million homeowners had negative equity or 25 percent of mortgaged homes,” said Frank Nothaft, CoreLogic’s chief economist. “After more than eight years of rising home prices and employment growth, [the number of] underwater owners has been slashed.”
The decrease in negative equity can be seen across the country, from San Francisco at a negative equity share of 0.7 percent to Boston at 3.2 percent.
Here are 12 must-see open houses to help you buy a home and start building equity — from a one-bedroom condo in Wakefield ideal for commuters for $239,000 to a new five-bedroom luxury town house in Brookline for $2,695,000.
Check them out:
Under $500,000
11 Columbia Road, Unit 6, Wakefield
$239,000
1 bedroom, 1 full bath
492 square feet
Open house: Saturday, Dec. 21, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
***
25 Brewster Lane, Acton
$349,000
2 bedrooms, 2 full baths
1,209 square feet
Open houses: Saturday, Dec. 21, and Sunday, Dec. 22, from noon to 2 p.m.
***
1607 Commonwealth Ave., Brighton
$419,000
1 bedroom, 1 full bath
589 square feet
Open house: Saturday, Dec. 21, from 11 a.m. to noon.
***
20 Ferris Wheel Lane, Dartmouth
$450,000
3 bedrooms, 2 full baths, 1 half bath
1,998 square feet
0.19-acre lot
Open house: Sunday, Dec. 22, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
$500,000 to $1 million
16 Tucker Terrace, Methuen
$609,900
3 bedrooms, 2 full baths, 1 half bath
3,204 square feet
Open house: Sunday, Dec. 22, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
***
114 Plummer Ave., Winthrop
$649,900
4 bedrooms, 2 full baths, 1 half bath
1,890 square feet
0.1-acre lot
Open house: Sunday, Dec. 22, from noon to 2 p.m.
***
Lot 3 Rawson Farm Drive, Mendon
$669,900
4 bedrooms, 2 full baths, 1 half bath
2,795 square feet
1.51-acre lot
Open house: Sunday, Dec. 22, from 1 to 3 p.m.
***
4 Scarlet Court, Easton
$799,900
5 bedrooms, 3 full baths, 1 half bath
4,446 square feet
0.44-acre lot
Open house: Saturday, Dec. 21, from 1 to 2 p.m.
$1 million-plus
45 Saint Botolph St., Back Bay
$1,075,000
2 bedrooms, 2 full baths
1,076 square feet
Open house: Saturday, Dec. 21, from 1 to 2 p.m.
***
40 Stonewood Drive, Canton
$1,375,000
4 bedrooms, 4 full baths, 1 half bath
4,276 square feet
0.98-acre lot
Open houses: Saturday, Dec. 21, and Sunday, Dec. 22, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
***
429 Columbus Ave., Boston
$1,999,000
3 bedrooms, 2 full baths, 1 half bath
1,893 square feet
Open house: Sunday, Dec. 22, from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
***
110 Griggs Road, Brookline
$2,695,000
5 bedrooms, 4 full baths, 1 half bath
3,135 square feet
Open houses: Saturday, Dec. 21, and Sunday, Dec. 22, from noon to 1:30 p.m.
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