In Andover we are offering an additional workshop on Wednesday, May 30 & Thursday, May 31 from 6 to 8:30 p.m. and finishing on Saturday, June 2 from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.  We will meet at the Memorial Hall Library on North Main Street. For an information sheet and registration form please email EOLeary@CoastalHB.org.

Coastal Homebuyer Education is now administering the down payment assistance program for the Town of Andover, MA. For more information and an application, please contact Martha Solish at MSolish@CoastalHB.org or 978-314-7453.

To register for a workshop please email Ellie O'Leary at EOLeary@CoastalHB.org to get the information sheet and the registration form. Cost is $50 per household.

The next three workshops have been added to the schedule.

• April 21 & 28, 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
• May 12 & 19, 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
• June 21 & 22, 6 to 8:30 p.m., June 23 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m

New Year, New Schedule

Our first three workshops of  2012 have been scheduled. We will meet in Newburyport in January, February, and March at the following dates and times.

January 21 & 28, two Saturdays, from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
February 16 & 17, 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., and Saturday 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
March 17 & 24, two Saturdays, from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
(All of the Saturday dates include a break for lunch)

New Board Member

We would like to welcome our newest Board Member: Trisha McCarthy of Keller Williams Realty in Newburyport MA. Trisha is the 2011 President-Elect for Massachusetts Association of Realtors®, serves on the National Association of Realtors® Committee for Land Use, Public Policy, Environmental Issues and Risk Management, and is also a member of the New Hampshire Association of Realtors. Trisha has volunteered as a guest speaker in our First Time Homebuyer Workshops a number of times in recent years and will be our guest speaker this Saturday March 5.

Be Prepared for Credit Checks

In the workshops, I always tell people while they are going through the puchase of a home, do not make any major changes. No new credit, new cars, or even furniture - this includes washers and dryers. Click here for an article on exactly this topic.