Interest in Landlording

Landlords are required to follow rules while handling the money of their tenants. One of them relates to the security deposits that they collect when someone first moves in. Tenants are supposed to earn interest on their deposits at a rate defined by the state. For many years (since 2002) the state held the required security deposit interest rate at 1.5%. This page on the CT Department of Banking site shows the historical interest rates

Gardening in Greater Hartford

The snowless winter has made sledding nearly impossible this season. We got a few runs in after the Halloween storm, and a few more after a modest snowfall in January, but since then the sleds have been idle. Instead we’ve been thinking about spring and the upcoming gardening season. And it seems like others are on the same page. Last week we learned about an updated plant hardiness map from the USDA. The map for

News from West Hartford

At the end of last week there were two news stories in which we had the opportunity to contribute. First was a piece in the West Hartford News about the market conditions in West Hartford. The 2011 revaluation and associated grand list are almost complete, just waiting on the final appeals by individual property owners. That process has not seemed to be a big concern to home buyers as sales activity is up over last

Unsafe Neighborhoods

Yesterday Amy noticed a story come across the wire about a new Microsoft patent. One of the main benefits, which appears in the abstract of the actual filing, is that it will allow walking directions to be provided that take into account “unsafe” neighborhoods. The story caught our attention because as real estate agents we are not allowed to talk about neighborhoods as “safe” or “unsafe.” An area’s level of safety is a personal perception

January Contracts: A Fast Start to 2012

The number of single-family homes that went under contract in January 2012 jumped 14% over January of last year. The total of 458 deals that came together signals that the local real estate markets are off and running for 2012. We have heard a number of theories as to why buyers are active so early in the year. One is that the lack of snow has everyone acting like it’s spring. Another line of thinking