What’s the Central Mass Real Estate market like in June 2026? My workload is pretty intense right now. What do I have going on?
So many out of state sellers.
I’ve got a few clients upcoming and under agreement who I’ve never even met, and probably won’t meet! I have one listing under agreement now where I took their lived-in house, packed up anything extraneous, and got it ready to sell. I never even met them until long after it was under agreement when I was at the house to meet the appraiser and they were here from Arizona. I love that people trust me to get in there with them to get the job done.
“How long does it take you to get our house on the market?”
I frequently get this question. My answer is always that I work at whatever pace the client needs. Sometimes I’ll be working with people for a year or two before they finally are ready. I’ve got a transaction right now where I started talking with the sellers in 2019! One time I had people walk into my office in Westminster and tell me they were moving to Canada next week, forever. They asked me to print out papers on the spot, and by the time they left, I had keys to their house. They moved to Canada the following week, I did sell their house, but never saw them again.
Speaking of Canada. I had something new happen last week!
I remember when I was new in real estate and I asked my broker how long it would be before I had a day that went by where I didn’t have any questions and I’d know how to do everything. I remember him telling me he’s been at it for 28 years, and he’s still waiting for that day. Well, my ‘first time for everything moment’ related to Canada is that I have a client managing a parent’s estate, from Canada. We have the house under agreement, and because of the nature of the estate, we needed to obtain something called a license to sell. My client found a notary in Canada and fulfilled all of the requirements. Alas, the submitted paperwork came back rejected by the probate court. The seller would need to go to the embassy in her country and obtain an apostille. That’s a vocabulary word from my real estate licensing course that I’ve never seen since. According to the internet, an apostille is a specialized government certificate that authenticates a document’s signature and seal. It ensures that public documents—such as birth certificates, diplomas, or powers of attorney—issued in one country are recognized as legally valid in another. Well, it turned out to be simpler for my client to come back to the United States and start the process over with all the documents signed in the United States.
Off market transactions and you win some, you lose some
Every once in a while, I will have an off market transaction for one reason or another. I actually prefer that all of my listings get exposed to the open market, but sometimes things work out before a property is listed. I just closed a transaction where my seller clients live in Wyoming, and wanted to sell, and there was a tenant in the house here in Westminster. This combination of parameters is not for the faint of heart. We ended up not listing the house, because a relative of the tenant was interested. We still had a home inspection, all kinds of negotiations, coordinating timing and maintaining good relations throughout. I was thrilled things worked out for the sellers, the buyers and the tenant – – we closed just two days after she vacated – – and quite validating to me, the tenant called me to let me know she passed on my name to someone who might need to sell. Now that’s a recommendation! As far as the “you win some, you lose some”, the other day I went on a listing appointment, and I was so excited to be able to help the seller. Alas, that turned out to be not in the cards when I learned the next morning that a family member wants the seller to work with someone else very specific. But, working in real estate is a constantly moving workload. As quickly as that one disappeared, within the hour a seller in Princeton reappeared, ready to sell, since it turned out their off-market transaction to a friend was off the table. I just keep a good attitude, ready to jump in and help where buyers and sellers recognize what I bring to the party.
Buyers!
My team is working with sooo many buyers right now. If you know someone who could really benefit from a strategy session before they start going out to open houses and trying to navigate the Central Mass Real Estate market, tell them to call, text or reach out in any way.
This job is rough, and every once in a while you need a “feels awesome” transaction.
About a month ago, while driving my daughter to the airport, I got a call from someone with a property to sell in Westminster. The caller was interviewing multiple agents. From our conversation, among other things, she really appreciated my depth of transactions in Westminster and how I could pick up where the family left off after spending a significant amount of time going through everything in the home.
No offense to the dozens of other families I’ve worked with this year, but this one will certainly be at the top of my 2026 list of feel good transactions. After the family went through and identified everything they wanted to keep, we still had a lot of good quality/great condition furniture, decor, tools and so much more. The sellers trusted me to connect items with people. I bet I interacted with 40 sets of people, from all walks of life, who benefited from items coming out of this house. It just felt really good, for me, and for the family. I actually learned, after I was already chosen as the broker for this listing, that the couple who lived there—turns out the husband was one of my favorite high school teachers, someone who made a difference to me. I’ve been more than happy to make a difference for the family in their emptying of the home in preparation for the sale, and they felt good knowing it made a difference to all the people who benefited from their generosity.
One last thing–why I don’t post your sold story…because it’s not my story to tell
I’m a vault. No one is ever going to hear your personal details related to your transaction working with me. I always cringe when I see realtors posting all kinds of personal stuff about their buyer and seller clients when it comes to the closing. Whether you are a seller or a buyer—respect for your privacy is key. Take a look at this video below for my thoughts on that! As always, reach out for anything real estate related — or anything local you think I might be a resource for. I’m here, I’m busy, and I’m happy to help.
If you’d like to talk about getting your home ready to sell, considering multi-generational living, should you stay or should you sell, figuring out the right ownership structure, or finding a good home for that wedding dress — I am genuinely local, genuinely accessible, and I have a lengthy track record of extremely satisfied clients–both buyers and sellers. If you, or anyone you know, are moving to (or from) Central Massachusetts, I’m here to deliver an exceptional experience. My team combines strong communication, proven strategies and deep local expertise to guide throughout the home selling and buying process. If you’re considering the purchase or sale of residential real estate, you owe it to yourself to have a confidential conversation with me.
Jennifer Shenk, Real Estate Broker
Keller Williams Realty North Central
107 Main Street, Westminster
Call/Text: 978 870 9260
Email: jennifershenk@kw.com
