Your Next Chapter Starts Here
A Buyer’s Guide to the North Shore
William Phipps THE STORYTELLING REALTOR®
William Phipps
Hailing from England, another part of the world with an indelible link to the water, I have a deep sense of respect and passion for the character of Newburyport and the maritime surroundings of Cape Ann.
I have spent 30 years in advertising learning one thing most people in this industry never figure out. Emotions drive decisions. Data justifies them afterwards. 80% of every decision, including the biggest financial one most people will ever make, is emotional first.
I am here to help you write your next real estate story, and I’d love to begin that next chapter with you.
William Phipps Real Estate Advisor
The Engel & Völkers Buying Experience
From starter homes to dream homes, at Engel &Völkers I am part of a team that provides unparalleled and personalized buying experiences for all our clients. I believe that buying a home is one of the most important decisions you will make, and it would be an honor and my passion to be part of this journey with you.
As a trusted advisor, I make it my responsibility to understand your home buying goals – from your overall vision and budget, your priorities from neighborhood amenities and architectural details and to help you discover the right space to call your own. Stories matter. Because when emotions are sparked, decisions follow. And finding the right home on the North Shore starts with understanding the story you want to write next.
The Power of Investing in Ownership
Making the decision to buy a home, whether for the first time, or moving to a new one is a moment to celebrate. It’s the start of your next real estate story. With it comes both financial and emotional benefits to owning a home. After all, a home is the center of your world.
Ensuring Simplicity
Seek professional advice from a trusted mortgage broker about your financing options (if you are financing)– we work with some amazing colleagues if you’d like an introduction.
Freedom to Live
Owning a property allows you to live your own luxury, giving you room to grow, room to breathe, and room to live.
Stability
A home should be a place of comfort and happiness. With homeownership comes a sense of security in an investment and a space where memories are made.
The Story Advantage
On the North Shore, the homes that hold their value longest are the ones with the strongest stories. Federal architecture on High Street. A widow’s walk above the rooflines. A garden that took thirty years to look that way. These are not sentimental details. They are equity.
Getting Started: The Buying Process
The reasons for buying a home are personal, so the first thing to consider is what you want to achieve in purchasing a home. Buying a home is filled with both strategic thinking and emotions. With ever-changing market conditions and other variables, various factors may affect the path you take in finding the property that’s right for you. As your consultant, an Engel &
Völkers advisor helps you understand the market landscape and determine, based on your goals, if now is in fact the right time to buy and then identifying the correct approach. As far as the property itself, it’s wise to invest the time to outline the key factors and features relating to your search, including:
Will doesn’t just open doors; he knows how to structure a deal, navigate the fine print, and set you up for success. That kind of insight and dedication is extremely rare, and it truly felt like having a trusted partner in my corner. Simply put, Will gets it, and he genuinely enjoys what he does. That energy comes through in the way he works.
Max, Former Client
Location. Character. Story.
Location, Location, Location
This is one of the most important factors to consider when you’re looking for your new home, because unlike structures, paint colors, and flooring, the location of your home cannot be changed. Beyond the physical location of the home within the city or town, you should also think about its location in the
neighborhood, community, and/or the building, as this too will have an impact on your home’s value. The following pages introduce some of the most distinctive communities across Essex County and coastal New Hampshire. Each one has a story worth knowing before you decide where yours begins.
To learn more about location, watch here.
Wingersheek
Federal architecture on a working waterfront. The cultural capital of the North Shore. A city that fought to preserve its story in the 1970s when others would have demolished it. That decision is now worth approximately $1.1 million on average. Some choices age well.
Newbury Newburyport
Saltwater marsh, Plum Island beaches and a main street that doesn’t try too hard. Up 73% since 2020 in neighbouring Rowley and tracking close behind. The North Shore’s most quietly compelling address. The buyers who find it early tend to stay.
Ipswich
John Updike lived here for seventeen years and took careful notes. Crane Beach. Castle Hill. The Gatsbyesque estate that hosts a thousand weddings a summer. A town that understands that character and value are the same thing.
Gloucester is one of the most breathtaking coastlines on the East Coast. Both modest homes and estates well into the millions are available here for lovers of the sea. Natives enjoy a rich heritage in commercial fishing and shipbuilding, and now an emerging center for research on marine life and conservation.
Andover Gloucester
One of the great New England towns. Phillips Academy. Tree lined streets of extraordinary Federal and Colonial architecture. A community that has understood the relationship between education, character and property value for three hundred years. The market agrees.
Portsmouth, NH
The most walkable small city on the New England coast.Georgian architecture, acclaimed restaurants, a working harbour and no income tax. Massachusetts buyers have been discovering this for a decade. The ones who arrived early paid $400,000. The median is now $867,000. The border is closer than most people think.
What Type of Home Do You Want?
Are you looking for a single-family home, townhouse, condominium, co-op or a multi-family building?
There are many options and considerations for each that will impact your search.
Signel Family
Condominium or Coop
Multi-Family
Historic Character Home
Land for Development
Your Must - Haves
New Build
Older Character Home
Conservation Land / Marsh Access
Identify your must-haves and list them out in priority, for both you and whomever you may be purchasing your home with. Make a list of your non-negotiables when it comes to a home and take that with you when you are visiting properties.
Beach Access
__Bedrooms
__Bathrooms
Swimming Pool
Local amenities
Water view
Large yard
Gated community
Fireplace
Other____________
Your Buying Power
It’s important to identify what you are ableto afford when it comes to a home and how much a lender is willing to loan based on key factors such as income, debt, expenses etc. Your advisor can help you work within that budget and take into account other considerations as it relates to the property you seek.
$250K - $499K
$500K- 749K
$750K - $1M
$1M - $1.5M
$1.5M+
The Key Step To Buying a Home
Choose your Advisor
Find the right person to partner with you on this journey.
Start the Search
Get ready for the fun to start, and for your weekends to be busy!
Inspect the Property
Ensure a professional examines things from top to toe.
Tackle the Finances
Work with a mortgage broker to find the right financial support that suits you and confirm pre-approval or funds.
Write the Offer
Using your advisor’s guidance, create the most compelling package you can to beat the competition.
Wait for Appraisal
Where needed, the lender will confirm the value.
Execute Purchase & Sale
The contract that secures your offer, subject to final appraisal.
Confirm the Mortgage Commitement
Progress to Closing
The keys are soon yours, with final documents to be signed and the final home inspection.
Pack your moving day kit
The lending paperwork, if needed, that is one of the final steps.
From trash bags and clothes, to beverages and snacks, make sure you have the things you need.
Streamlined Negotiation Strategies.
Steps To a Successful Offer Acceptance
Every transaction is different, but there are several areas that we focus on at Engel & Völkers By The Sea. These guide our approach and help make your offer the most compelling one.
Ensuring Simplicity
A seller and their listing agent may be looking at several offers. My job is to make sure yours is easy to understand, lays out the important parameters to you as a potential buyer and theirs as a seller.
Being Competitive
It goes without saying that rising to the top requires your offer to be the most compelling. But price alone is not the only factor that goes into a seller’s decisions. Presenting your offer in a way that answers their needs is often the key – whether that’s the confidence in your finances, or the speed that we move – there are many ways we can help your offer be the best one.
Having Flexibility
Most offers may go through a cycle of counters between buyers and sellers before acceptance. And being flexible is one of the keys to success – at the end of the day working with the listing agent is a key role for myself as your advisor to balance the needs of each party and keep the deal on track.
Staying Human
This is where the power of stories works even harder - telling your story as a buyer can make a difference. A letter that articulates why a home speaks to you, written well, can be the deciding factor when two offers are close. This is where thirty years of storytelling earns its place.
Time to Celebrate
At Engel &Völkers, we believe in clients for life. The relationship does not end at the closing table. It begins there. At Engel & Völkers, the home you have just bought has a story. So does the community it sits in. Understanding both is integral to how I serve my clients, long after the keys are in your hand. Stories matter. Let’s begin yours.
A place for your thoughts
Notes &
Reminders
A place for your thoughts
Notes &
Reminders
A place for your thoughts
Notes &
Reminders
A place for your thoughts
Notes &
Reminders
