Posted by Susy Thielen on October 12th, 2006 — in Housing News
Thursday, October 12, 2006
Keene Sentinel
JEANNINE AVERSA
Associated Press
WASHINGTON — The go-go days for home prices are over, but Mike Pietrafesa thinks it is still tough for people to buy their first slice of the American dream.
“There are lots and lots of houses for sale that seem as though they are priced ridiculously and they aren’t selling,” said Pietrafesa of Nassau County, N.Y. “I certainly think that the old standard of having 20 percent of your house value as a down payment is really out of the window these days. I definitely think it is harder, in that respect, for first-time buyers.” Read the rest of this page »
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Posted by Susy Thielen on October 3rd, 2006 — in Housing News
October 3, 2006
New York Times
By JANNY SCOTT and RANDAL C. ARCHIBOLD
The burden of housing costs in nearly every part of the country grew sharply from 2000 to 2005, according to new Census Bureau data being made public today. The numbers vividly illustrate the impact, often distributed unevenly, of the crushing combination of escalating real estate prices and largely stagnant incomes. Read the rest of this page »
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Posted by Susy Thielen on September 27th, 2006 — in Housing News
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
Keene Sentinel Editorial
To hear some people tell it, you could wake up tomorrow morning to find that government agents had snatched your home overnight and slipped it to a greedy mall developer. Such an unlikely threat is the basis for a constitutional amendment on the November ballot that would forever bar any New Hampshire government from taking land for private purposes. The amendment is one of many similar restrictions being considered around the country in the wake of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling last year that nothing in the federal Constitution could keep a Connecticut city from forcefully acquiring and then turning over nine homes to a private office developer.
The appeal of being safe in one’s home is certainly compelling, but there are good reasons to reject the constitutional initiative in New Hampshire November 7 and leave this matter to the Legislature. They include: Read the rest of this page »
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Posted by Susy Thielen on September 19th, 2006 — in Housing News
Sunday, September 17, 2006
Keene Sentinel Editorial
For the last 23 years Ocean National Bank and its local predecessors — Keene Savings Bank and Granite Bank — have hosted an economic seminar that’s not so much a working session as it is a meal for a couple of hundred local business people at the Keene County Club, followed by an economist’s short talk, followed by a round of golf. Read the rest of this page »
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Posted by Susy Thielen on September 19th, 2006 — in Housing News
Friday, September 15, 2006
PETER J. CLEARY
Sentinel Staff
With the organization carrying more debt than it can handle, Cheshire Housing Trust is selling its apartment building at 37 Main St. in Keene, according to Linda Mangones, the acting director of the trust. Read the rest of this page »
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Posted by Susy Thielen on September 13th, 2006 — in Housing News
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
Freeman Klopott
Keene Sentinel Staff
RINDGE — Voters in Rindge chose not to join neighboring towns that have in recent years passed laws to slow development.
In a vote Tuesday, Rindge voters turned down, 632-459, a proposal that would have stopped major construction projects until the town’s master plan is finalized and voted on in March.
The ordinance would have placed a hold on constructing buildings of more than 10,000 square feet and subdivisions with more than three lots. Read the rest of this page »
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Posted by Susy Thielen on September 5th, 2006 — in Housing News
Tuesday, September 05, 2006
PETER J. CLEARY
Keene Sentinel Staff
PETERBOROUGH — Peterborough’s downtown could be home to new affordable housing if a town resident has her way.
Ivy Vann is planning to put a new road and high-density residential area on 22 acres she owns off High Street.
“I want to create a new street which will look just like the rest of that part of Peterborough,” she said. Generally, she knows she’d like to build houses that are affordable to schoolteachers and nurses, she said. Read the rest of this page »
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Posted by Susy Thielen on September 5th, 2006 — in Housing News
Tuesday, September 05, 2006
Ian Bagley
Keene Sentinel Staff
FITZWILLIAM - Fitzwilliam is holding a special town meeting next month so voters can decide if they want to buy a 350-acre property on Jaffrey Road.
Selectmen have scheduled the meeting for Tuesday, Oct. 17. Read the rest of this page »
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Posted by Susy Thielen on September 4th, 2006 — in NH Housing Coalitions, Housing News
Sunday, September 03, 2006
Emily Aronson
Portsmouth Herald
A study by a Washington, D.C., think tank has concluded southern New Hampshire has highly restrictive zoning laws when it comes to affordable housing.
The Brookings Institution, a nonprofit organization, analyzed land-use regulations in the 50 largest metropolitan areas in the country. The study was based on the idea that “local land-use regulations help define the character of cities, towns, counties and entire regions.” Read the rest of this page »
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Posted by Susy Thielen on September 4th, 2006 — in Housing News
Friday, September 01, 2006
Keene Sentinel Editorial
Give the Fitzwilliam selectmen credit for plain talk. They could have said they wanted the town to buy a 350-acre property on Jaffrey Road and Route 119 for conservation purposes or to preserve a favorite view.
But they didn’t play word games. They said that buying the property would be cheaper for taxpayers than allowing a private developer to eventually put up houses there. Houses bring families, and families bring children, and children require schools, and in New Hampshire schools cost a fortune in local property taxes. Read the rest of this page »
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