The questions people actually ask

Yes. I work in Korean, English, and Japanese, and I use Korean for everything that matters — the first consultation, offer strategy, reading the lease or purchase contract line by line before you sign, and the phone calls with lenders and attorneys where a misunderstanding costs real money. You never have to negotiate in your second language.

Greater Boston: Boston proper, Brookline, Cambridge, Newton, Watertown, Waltham, Lexington, Allston-Brighton, Back Bay, the South End, and Quincy. If you are looking somewhere nearby that isn't on that list — Somerville, Medford, Arlington, Malden, Dorchester — ask me. I work across the region and will tell you honestly if a market is outside what I know well.

Yes, and it is a large part of my practice. First-time buyers need more of an agent's time, not less: what a pre-approval actually means, which inspection findings are worth walking away over, how much cash you really need at closing. I plan for that time rather than rushing it.

We sign a written buyer agency agreement before touring, and it states my compensation and who pays it. Since the 2024 industry-wide changes, buyer-agent compensation is negotiated rather than assumed, and it may be paid by the seller, by you, or split. I put the number in front of you before you commit to anything, and there is no charge for a first consultation.

Yes. I am a licensed Massachusetts real estate salesperson, license #9571004, affiliated with eXp Realty, and a REALTOR® bound by the National Association of REALTORS® Code of Ethics. I have lived in Greater Boston for over sixteen years.

Most of my relocation clients start that way. We do video tours, neighborhood briefings, and document preparation across the time difference, so you land with a shortlist instead of starting from zero. Some clients sign a lease before their flight; others wait to see places in person. Both work.

Less than most people assume. Conventional loans can go to 3% down for qualified first-time buyers, FHA to 3.5%, and VA and USDA to zero for those who qualify. Massachusetts also runs first-time buyer programs — MassHousing and the ONE Mortgage program among them — that lower the down payment or the monthly cost. The right number depends on the price, the loan, and how long you plan to stay, which is exactly what a lender conversation settles.

A pre-approval is a lender's written estimate of what they will actually lend you after reviewing your income, assets, and credit. It is stronger than a pre-qualification, which is only a conversation. Get one before you tour seriously — in Greater Boston, offers without a pre-approval attached are usually not taken seriously, and good units move in days.

From accepted offer to closing, typically 30 to 60 days with a mortgage. Massachusetts adds two steps many buyers from other states have not seen: an Offer to Purchase followed by a fuller Purchase and Sale agreement about a week or two later, usually with an attorney on each side. Finding the right home is the unpredictable part — that can take a weekend or six months.

In Massachusetts, escrow usually refers to two different things. First, your deposit money held by a neutral party — often the listing broker or an attorney — between contract and closing. Second, the escrow account your lender may keep after closing, where part of your monthly payment is set aside to pay property taxes and homeowners insurance when they come due.

You should have one. It is not required by law, and in a competitive market some buyers shorten or waive the contingency to win — a real risk I will walk you through rather than decide for you. An inspection typically covers structure, roof, heating, electrical, and plumbing. In Greater Boston's older housing stock, the findings that matter most tend to be heating systems, knob-and-tube wiring, water in basements, and lead paint.

Closing costs are the fees to complete the purchase beyond your down payment: lender fees, attorney, title insurance, recording, appraisal, and prepaid taxes and insurance. For Massachusetts buyers they commonly land somewhere around 2% to 5% of the purchase price. Your lender must give you a Loan Estimate with itemized figures within three business days of your application, and a Closing Disclosure at least three business days before closing.

It depends on how long you will hold it and how much control you want. Condos cost less to enter in the core neighborhoods and hand maintenance to an association, but you inherit that association's finances, rules, and special assessments — reading their documents is part of the diligence. Single-families give you control and land, cost more up front, and put every repair on you.

They are Boston's classic multi-family buildings — two or three stacked units in one structure. Buyers use them to live in one unit and rent the others, which can carry much of the mortgage. They also come with landlord obligations, tenant law, and a different loan calculation than a single-family. It is a real strategy, not a shortcut.

Yes. There is no citizenship or residency requirement to own property in Massachusetts. Financing is the part that takes planning: some lenders build a credit file from alternative records like rent and utility history, some offer foreign national loan programs with a larger down payment, and some clients buy in cash. What does not work is assuming a US bank will simply accept a Korean credit history.

Often yes. H-1B, L-1, E-2, F-1, and green card holders all buy homes here. Lenders generally look at your visa category, how much time remains on it, your employment, and your US income history. The requirements vary enough between lenders that the first move is talking to two or three, not assuming a no.

An ITIN is a taxpayer identification number for people who file US taxes without a Social Security number. Some lenders offer mortgage programs to ITIN holders, typically with a larger down payment and a higher rate than a conventional loan. They exist, they are a legitimate path, and they should be compared carefully against waiting until other options open.

There is no waiting period to buy. Lenders, though, generally want to see US income and credit history — often around two years, though many programs accept less, and some accept none with a larger down payment. If you arrived recently, the useful question is not whether you can buy but which lender's rules fit your file.

Not to own property. For most mainstream mortgage programs you will need either an SSN or an ITIN, because the lender has to pull a credit file and report to the IRS. A cash purchase does not require either, though you will still need identification and documented, traceable funds.

Both happen, and the right answer usually comes down to financing rather than preference. A student on an F-1 visa can legally own property, but with little or no US income and credit, qualifying for a mortgage on their own is difficult. Parents buying in their own name avoids that, but non-resident buyers face their own set of lender requirements. There are also tax and future-sale consequences to whose name is on the deed, which is a question for a CPA and an attorney rather than for me. What I can do is lay out which structures your lender will actually finance before you decide.

Yes, and it happens regularly. Video tours, remote document signing, and a power of attorney for closing all exist for exactly this. What does not travel well is judgment about a building or a street, so I walk properties myself and tell you what a photo will not. Plan for the time difference in the schedule rather than against it.

A clear paper trail. Lenders are not troubled by funds arriving from abroad; they are troubled by money that appears without explanation. Expect to document where the funds came from, the transfer itself, and that the money is genuinely yours rather than borrowed. Korea also has its own outbound remittance reporting, so it is worth asking your Korean bank early what they require. Starting the transfers before you are under contract, rather than during, removes most of the friction.

That is a calculation, not a rule, and anyone who answers it without your numbers is guessing. What decides it: how long you will actually hold the property, closing costs on the way in and again on the way out, condo fees and property tax, what the same money would rent, and what happens if plans change in year two. Owning can come out ahead over four years and it can also come out behind. I will run it with your actual figures before you decide, and I will tell you when renting is the better answer.

Two safeguards cover most of the risk. First, verify the licence: Massachusetts publishes a public licence lookup, and any agent should give you their licence number without hesitation. Second, never send money on instructions that arrive by email. Wire fraud in real estate typically works by impersonating a party at closing and changing the account details at the last minute; call the escrow or closing attorney at a number you already had, and confirm by voice before any transfer. Listings that ask for a deposit before you have seen documentation are a separate and older trick.

Because dozens of universities set the calendar. Landlords aligned leases to the academic year decades ago, the practice spread well beyond student housing, and now one day in September is moving day for much of the city. Peak inventory for September 1 units appears in spring and early summer; searching in October means choosing from what is left.

Four things, and only four: first month's rent, last month's rent, a security deposit of no more than one month's rent, and the actual cost of a new lock and key. That is Massachusetts General Laws chapter 186, section 15B. Amenity fees, pet deposits, and administrative fees charged at move-in are not on that list. If you are asked for one, ask why.

Not always. Some listings are advertised as no-fee, meaning the owner pays the broker. Others expect the tenant to pay, commonly one month's rent. It should be disclosed and agreed in writing before you apply, not discovered at signing. I will tell you which of the two a listing is before we tour it.

Typically photo identification, proof of income such as recent pay stubs or an offer letter, bank statements, references from a prior landlord, and permission to run a credit check. If you are arriving from abroad without US credit, a strong document package — an offer letter, proof of funds, a guarantor, or a company letter — is what takes its place. Assemble it before you start touring, not after you find the apartment.

A guarantor is someone who signs the lease promising to pay if you cannot. Students and new arrivals are often asked for one. Most landlords want a guarantor with US income and credit; when you do not have someone who qualifies, paid guarantor services exist, and some landlords will accept additional prepaid rent instead. It is worth asking which the landlord prefers before you assume you are disqualified.

From September 15 through May 31, a landlord must be able to heat every habitable room to at least 68°F between 7:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m., and 64°F overnight. That is the State Sanitary Code, 105 CMR 410.180. If a landlord will not fix it, Boston residents can call 311 to reach Inspectional Services — after documenting the temperature and notifying the landlord in writing.

Yes, and I would rather do that than fix a problem later. I read the lease with you in Korean and flag what actually matters — automatic renewal clauses, who is responsible for utilities and snow, subletting rules, what happens if your visa or job changes, and any charge that should not be there under Massachusetts law.

Spring draws the largest pool of buyers, and early fall is a real second season here. But the right time depends more on your own timeline, your equity, and what competing inventory looks like in your specific neighborhood than on the calendar. A well-priced home in January outperforms an overpriced one in May.

Usually less than people expect. Paint, decluttering, deep cleaning, and lighting return more than a renovation you will not enjoy. The repairs worth making are the ones an inspector will find anyway and a buyer will use to renegotiate. I walk the house with you and tell you which is which before you spend anything.

It is negotiated and written into the listing agreement before anything is marketed, along with what the seller offers a buyer's agent, if anything. Since the 2024 changes, that offer is no longer published in the MLS and is handled separately. Nothing about it should be a surprise to you later.

Some do, many do not at current prices — and an honest answer requires running the numbers on the specific building rather than the neighborhood. Rents, taxes, insurance, water and sewer, vacancy, and deferred maintenance all move the result. Where owner-occupied two- and three-families still work is often as a way to reduce what you pay to live somewhere, not as pure investment yield.

Yes, in detail. Massachusetts is a tenant-protective state, and the rules on security deposits, required conditions, entry, and eviction carry real penalties for getting them wrong — the security deposit statute alone allows treble damages. Many small landlords are exposed without knowing it. I would rather you know before a problem than after.