Northampton in Massachusetts is home to some of the most notable attractions like the Iron Horse Music Hall, established in the 1970s, along with other bookstores, artisanal bakeries, ethnic eateries and art galleries. According to an article on The Boston Globe, it is a small city with just over 28,000 residents. Jordi Herold, the co-founder of the Iron Horse Music Hall said, "Between parks and bike paths, it's a great place to raise a family. It's a very gentle living experience."
The gentle living experience must be good enough that this winter, contrary to what many believe a slow time for real estate, sales was good in Northampton. According to WWLP, there are two main reasons why real estate sales was not slow in this small city. The first one is that there is no snow on the ground. The mild weather allowed potential homebuyers to look around the city.
The second reason is that mortgage interest rates remain low. Even if the Federal Reserve rates were upped in December, mortgage rates have stayed unchanged. Many analysts have explained that the Federal Reserve rate increase is only one of the many factors that can move mortgage rates. In addition, experts say that mortgage rates will or can move on their own, with or without the rate changes dictated by the Federal Reserve.
The volatile stock market helps keep the average interest rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage low. Just recently, it was reportedly down to 3.97 percent. According to The Boston Globe, there are 50 houses for sale in Northampton. It is also worth noting that December home sales in the Northeast is higher by 6.1 percent from last year.
So it is a buyer's market in Northampton. According to Realtor Dayne Tracy of the Murphy's Realtors, when an area sees a storm after another, many things remain down. He added that they kept getting calls for house showing and then noted that lower rates and gas prices are good for everybody.
