Last summer, we wrote about Massachusetts' new Accessory Dwelling Unit law and the opportunities it created for homeowners to add a smaller, independent living unit to their property. At the time, the big question was simple: Would homeowners actually take advantage of the new law? One year later, we have an answer: Yes—but building an ADU may not be quite as simple as the new law makes it sound. The Interest Is Real: The early numbers are encouraging. According to a recent report...

Most people assume that if a property is listed for sale, the seller owns it. Unfortunately, that's not always the case. A recent Massachusetts case involving a vacant parcel in Mashpee serves as a sobering reminder that real estate fraud continues to evolve. An individual posing as the owner of a vacant lot succeeded in selling the property to an unsuspecting buyer. The fraud was not discovered until months later, when the true owner learned that a home was being constructed on land he never...

One of the most common questions I hear from both buyers and sellers lately is: “Should we wait for interest rates to come down?” It’s an understandable question. Many buyers are hoping for a significant drop in mortgage rates before jumping into the market, while many sellers are wondering whether lower rates could bring more buyers off the sidelines. Recently, however, several major housing and mortgage industry forecasts — including projections discussed by Yahoo Finance and Fannie Mae —...