Sales of single family homes in Franklin County were down 25% and median price up 2.2% in March 2019 compared to March 2018. The sales were down in Hampshire and up in Hampden County. Median price was down in both Hampden and Hampshire County.
The average days on market was up 15% from 97 days in March 2018 compared to 82 days in March 2019. Listings that are pending (under agreement to sell) were up 17.6% from 518 listings pending in March 2018 to 609 listings pending sale in March 2019.
This Spring, get ready to build your home the way you want it. Check out these beautiful parcels of land for sale in Franklin County, Massachusetts. Then contact Wanda today for questions about these properties or building your own home.
138 wooded acres located high in the hills of Hawley! Potentially be a great spot to build a getaway place or year round home. There is plenty of room to roam and enjoy the sounds of nature. For those who are outdoor enthusiast Berkshire East Resort is located at the base of the hill where you can downhill ski, have fun on the alpine and zipline rides or the latest addition numerous mountain bike trails. In addition this area offers white water rafting, fishing, hiking, snowmobiling and so much more! Only 10 minutes away is the charming Village of Shelburne Falls and not far from the Berkshires. Call today for a map and go take a hike.
Phillips Hill Road, Colrain, MA
Secluded 4 acre wooded setting is the perfect spot to build your getaway in the country. It is located at the end of a quiet country road and abuts the Vermont State line and near Cooke State Forest. There is a passed percolation test on file and it is surveyed and ready to go. Near plenty of recreational activities including down hill skiing, hiking, fishing, snowmobiling, and more!
Legate Hill Road, Charlemont, MA
Beautiful 33 acre building site located on top of a knoll overlooking picturesque southwesterly mountain views. This private setting is the ideal spot to build your dream home or a getaway cabin in the woods. It is ready to go with a entrance roughed in, power at the street, surveyed and comes with a valid percolation test. It abuts snowmobile trails and located just minutes to Berkshire Resort that offers downhill skiing, zipline, alpine slide, and fabulous mountain bike trails. It is also located near the Deerfield River which is known for fly fishing and white water rafting. Charlemont is becoming the recreational capitol of New England and the perfect area for outdoor enthusiast.
Colrain Shelburne Road, Shelburne, MA
Beautiful Shelburne building lot with lovely views and open land. There is a very large pole barn that needs work but could be converted to provide excellent storage or enclose for shop space. This is a great spot to build and it is conveniently located less than 10 minutes from I-91 in Greenfield and Shelburne Falls. You are not far from Vermont or the Berkshires. Surrounded by fabulous recreational and cultural activities. The land has a passed percolation test, power at the street and survey on file.
Attractive 13 acre wooded parcel with 1928ft of frontage on two town maintained roads. It is a peaceful setting on a quiet country road. The land is relatively flat and there is a brook on the property. There is a recent passed percolation test and power along the street. It is perfect for someone who wants to build a getaway place to enjoy on weekends. It is located near many popular recreational activities that include Berkshire Resort that offers downhill skiing, alpine slide, zip lines, and popular mountain bike trails. In addition there is fly fishing and white water rafting on the Deerfield River, hiking trails, snowmobiling, cross country skiing and more. It is near Shelburne Falls, not far from Vermont and only 45 minutes to the Berkshires.
This is an amazing time of year where Winter and Summer overlap in our area. You can be skiing in the mountains in the morning and biking on the roads or kayaking the rivers in the afternoon. This makes it the perfect time of year to hold a pentathlon, combining five outdoor activities into one event. The 8th Annual Berkshire Highlands Pentathlon is this Saturday, April 6, starting and finishing at Berkshire East Mountain Resort.
The race has five legs- a 4 mile trail run, 16 mile road bike, 2 mile river paddle, 2 mile obstacle course run, and finally a climb up Berkshire East to a ski/snowboard down to the finish line. Participate in the pentathlon on your own as a “Braveheart” or as part of a team of two or five people. There is a special category for family teams, as well! The pentathlon is a fun way to challenge yourself in a variety of sports in the same race. After the race, all participants are welcome to a free meal at Berkshire East and a free beer from Berkshire Brewing Company!
You can also be part of the fun as a volunteer! The Berkshire Highlands Pentathlon is still seeking volunteers to help time and monitor the course. Volunteers are crucial to making this event happen and receive a free T-shirt and meal to say thanks for their help. Sign up for a volunteer role here.
Of course, supporters are always needed to boost up the participants. Come out and cheer on the participants as they challenge themselves. There are several great viewing areas for different legs of the course. Check out the best places to spectate here. Participants will meet at 10:15 am and the race starts at 11:00 am.
For more information and to register for the Pentathlon, click here.
Good luck to all the racers!
Custom designed magnificent log style home located in a private 12 acre setting conveniently located near Route 5 and I-91 just north of Bernardston center. This special home has been used as a successful Airbnb business and it is the ideal countryside retreat. You will instantly fall in love with the great room that features an open kitchen, dining and living area with 20ft cathedral ceiling, exposed beams and a beautiful stone gas fireplace. The master suite has a full bath with tiled shower, vaulted ceiling, den with sliding glass doors to the front porch, and a laundry room. There are two additional bedrooms each with their own private full bath, vaulted ceiling and sliding glass door with access to your own private porch. In addition there are gorgeous wood floors, radiant heat, 3 on demand hot water heaters, sprinkler system, mini split heat & air conditioning, huge full basement and attached 2 car garage. There is a small barn with fenced in area for sheep! Must be seen!
For the 10th year in a row, Shelburne Falls local theatre company, Piti, will hold their sweet performing arts festival, Syrup! This year, the festival will take place at the Shelburne Buckland Community Center in Shelburne Falls, with the benefit of having two stages for their performances. The�two-part event is scheduled for Saturday, March 9th and 23rd. This years Syrup festival will feature world class performances for all ages, a syrup tasting, free Real Pickles, and more.
Help Piti kick off the festival at 11 am on Saturday, March 9th, with a pancake brunch. Admission is free, just pay for your organic buckwheat pancakes and sample different local syrups. At noon, enjoy selections of Greatest Bits Volume 1 played by Carrie Ferguson. Then at 2:30 pm, Piti Theatres Olde Coleraine will return after a 3-year hiatus, a musical about Colrain at the dawn of the Industrial Revolution. At 3:30 pm, experience the clown performance of award-winning Alex the Jester. After his performance, Alex will lead a workshop called Primal Talk: Non-Verbal Stuff Made Fun for teens and adults about communication tools. Tickets are $12 for adults, $10 for students/seniors, and $5 for kids for the performances and $15 for the workshop.
Two weeks later come back for Day 2 of Syrup on March 23rd, an afternoon of works in progress showings and syrup tasting at The Barn at 31 Water Street in Shelburne Falls. This event is only for those aged 15+ and admission is free. The works to be shown include Narieka Maslas clown/dance piece and Jonathan Mirins Canary in the Goldmine a staged reading of the story of how him and his wife and production partner developed microwave sickness/electrical sensitivity.
Buy your tickets in advance and get more information at http://ptco.org/festivals/syrup/. Email info@ptco.org to register for the workshop. Have a sweet time at Syrup!
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Sales of single family homes in Franklin County were down 21.3% and median price up 17.6% in January 2019 compared to January 2018. The sales were down in both Hampshire and Hampden County and median price up in Hampden County but down in Hampshire County.
The average days on market was up 9.5% from 84 days in January, 2018 compared to 91 days in January, 2019. Listings that are pending (under agreement to sell) were up 18.9% from 344 listings pending in January 2018 to 409 listings pending sale in January, 2019.
The sale reports below and stats are provided from the Realtor Association of Pioneer Valley.
During this time of year, in the middle of winter in New England, the cold can start to get to me a little bit. When that happens, I like to escape to an oasis from the cold in South Deerfield, Magic Wings Butterfly Conservatory. The conservatory is 8,000 square-feet and houses nearly 4,000 exotic and domestic butterflies. The butterflies can flutter among various tropical plants and flowers and small ponds which hold Japanese Carp, or Koi fish. If you’re lucky, a butterfly might even land on you! The best part is: they keep the conservatory at tropical temperatures, so you can enjoy the warmth, even when it’s wintry weather outside.
Magic Wings also has a gift shop to purchase some butterfly souvenirs, outdoor gardens for the warmer weather, and a food court. They offer the option to host events in their facilities, as well, such as weddings, birthday parties, meetings, or other private parties.
Magic Wings is open every day from 9 am to 5 pm. The cost of admission is $16.00 for adults and $10.00 for children under 17. They also offer discounts for seniors and students. So if you need an escape from winter without taking a flight, just drive to Magic Wings in South Deerfield.
Click here to check out their website.
Sales of single family homes in Franklin County were down 8.5% and median price up 3.4% in 2018 compared to 2017. The sales were up in both Hampshire and Hampden County and median price up in Hampden County but down in Hampshire County.
The average days on market was down 12.8% from 78 days in 2017 compared to 68 days in 2018. Listings which are pending (under agreement to sell) were down 1.2% from 6076 listings pending in 2917 to 6,004 in 2018.
The sale reports are provided from the Realtor Association of Pioneer Valley.
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Was your new year’s resolution to get in shape? The middle of winter can be a tough time to get into a workout routine. The good news is Franklin County has many exercise facilities with a variety of offerings to tailor to your style. So you can stick to your New Years resolution this year!
Whether you’re looking for a single or family membership, the YMCA can suit you. They offer different levels of membership and even daily passes if you’re not looking for a commitment. The Y is great for people who are looking to exercise in a variety of ways. They have a full workout room with machines and weights, a pool, a gym, plus they offer classes ranging from spin to aqua aerobics. There are plenty of programs for kids, as well, such as sports teams like gymnastics, and school-aged child care.
Common Ground Fitness Center is perfect for adults who could use some support getting into and maintaining a healthy workout routine. While you can drop in and use the equipment at your own desire, they promote attendance of their group workout classes and use of personal trainers to help you keep coming. Common Ground offers high intensity workout classes such as TRX, PIYO, and boxing, as well as low-intensity ones like elasticize and yoga. Plus, their memberships are very affordable with tiered levels ranging from $30 to $70 a month.
Sometimes, the best way to take control of your workout routine is by having a personal trainer, someone to hold you accountable for showing up. For those who live in West Franklin County, there is a great personal fitness studio right in Shelburne Falls - Riverside Fitness Studio. Personal Trainer Tim, has been in the fitness industry for over 6 years and has been holding his own steady workout routine for over 10. He offers one-on-one or one-on-two training sessions that give results.
I hope this list is helpful in your start towards physical health and wellness this new year! Happy training!
We still have a few months until Spring, but that doesn’t mean you need to stay cooped up inside the house until then! Break through the cabin fever and head out to these local gems in Franklin County for outdoor adventuring in the snow.
Berkshire East Mountain Resort has activities year round. But in the winter, it is the best local mountain, located right in Charlemont, MA! It is a great beginner mountain but has trails for those more advanced as well. They offer lessons for snowboarding and skiing and have high quality equipment rentals. You can also take a fun ride on a tube at their snow tubing park. Afterwards, warm up inside the Crazy Horse Bar and Grill for some good food and drinks.
If sometimes you prefer a slower pace through the snow, then head over to Stump Sprouts Cross Country Ski Center, just up the road from Berkshire East in Hawley, MA. There you can cross country ski or snowshoe with beautiful expansive views of rural northwestern Massachusetts.
For more great cross country adventuring with different views, check out Northfield Mountain Cross Country Ski Area. Located on Route 63 in Northfield, they have 25 miles of trails groomed for classical and freestyle skiing. There, you can rent skis and snowshoesand take a lesson with a ski instructor. They also have trailside warming huts and a cozy base area yurt. Visit them Wednesday through Sunday 9 am to 4:30 pm.
Visit shelburnefalls.com or franklincc.org for more ideas on how to stay active this winter!
