Magazine Archive
Magazine Archive
A Matter of Life and Death
What happens when Uncle Sam and the Grim Reaper join forces? The death tax, otherwise known as the largest tax bill you’ll ever pay but never see. Thankfully, unlike death itself, this tax can be avoided or minimized with proper estate planning.
A Cable TV Exodus
Am I the only one that thinks that cable companies are a bunch of thieves? Actually, I know I’m not. I hear the same thing from my clients all the time. But this is getting out of hand. Every other day, I see someone make a post about it, or I get a call from someone who is fed up with their cable bills. While the numbers are not exact, from my experience, monthly bills are ranging from $230-$290 a month! That's insanity.
Catch The Tail End of this HOT Summer Market & Earn TOP DOLLAR on Your Home - How Can YOU Earn 5-20% Over The List Price Of Your Home?
The summer months are a prime time for real estate and provide valuable tips for both buyers and sellers looking to make a splash in this scorching market. While the summer real estate market is typically associated with high activity and fierce competition, the tail end of this season often presents a unique set of opportunities. As the summer draws to a close, savvy buyers and sellers can take advantage of several factors that make the tail end of the market an enticing time to engage in real estate transactions. In this blog post, we'll explore a big reason to consider jumping into the tail end of the summer real estate market… Earning 5-10% OVER the list price of your home.
A Perfect Storm
Severe storms can be unpredictable and dangerous, so it's crucial to stay prepared and know how to keep you and your loved ones safe. Here are 5 tips to stay out of danger.
Back to School Tips For Families
With the school year starting, we wanted to share a few tips to help you and your family handle the transition to another year at school. Jeff Londraville is the author of The Filter, and has worked for decades in education.
5 Important Values to Teach Your Kids
Alex Cook Has a Message for You
Paintbrush in hand, Alex Cook surveyed the brick wall on Bridge Street. He’d never painted publicly before. For years he’d swapped sketchbooks with his two best friends in Wellesley. Sometimes they rode bikes to Bertucci’s just after the dinner rush, because in the restaurant was a giant chalkboard known to moonlight as a canvas. The manager gave them free dinner rolls and all-access to the chalk stash, and though their murals were ephemeral – they would be erased for tomorrow’s specials – they were always meaningful.
Preparation is a Small Price to Pay
The couple wanted desperately to buy a house in the Valley. They were tired of renting. Or perhaps they wanted to move closer to their parents, or to better schools for their kids.
But like many prospective buyers, they were priced out of the Valley’s housing market, with its sky-rocketing prices, limited inventory, and rising interest rates. They couldn’t come up with a down payment and they wondered whether they could afford the monthly mortgage. And so they decided to give up the dream of home-ownership, at least for the time being.
College Material
If college is on the horizon for your soon-to-be freshman, this will be a summer for computer shopping. We asked tech expert Scott Haselkorn for tips on where to start
On Medication
Let's unravel the mysteries of prescription drug coverage for Medicare enrollees and ensure you have all the information you need to access affordable medications.
Meet the Verriden Family!
It seemed to be a morning like any other. The minivan containing the Verriden family had just parked at Springfield’s Academy Hill School. Zach Verriden looked at his children grinning and giggling in the back three rows like they always did. But on this day, Zach (also Academy Hill’s principal) saw another adorable face - the children had smuggled their puppy, Gus, into the van!
It’s hard to fluster Zach, the even-kneeled midwesterner who dedicates his life to working with children - but the dog abduction by his well-intentioned children almost broke Verriden. Luckily, he was able to turn the dilemma into delight as the students of Academy Hill had a new mascot for the day - although Zach’s gray hairs are forever.
Such hijinks are the norm in the Verriden household. Zach and Anya, and their four children Henry (9), Tommy (8), Katy (7) and Sam (4), and their three dogs, Rosy (12), Maggie (2), and Gus (4 months), are always up to something. Sports and dance, Cub Scouts and Daisy’s, art, swimming, music, enrichment activities, and more, the Verriden’s are on the move.
Cool Down With Mini-Splits!
Mini-split HVAC systems, also known as ductless HVAC systems, have gained popularity in recent years due to their energy efficiency, flexibility, and ease of installation - and at Berkshire Heating and Air Conditioning, we have everything you need to install (or repair) this relatively new product in your home.
Small Wonders
Mini-split HVAC systems, also known as ductless HVAC systems, have gained popularity in recent years due to their energy efficiency, flexibility, and ease of installation - and at Berkshire Heating and Air Conditioning, we have everything you need to install (or repair) this relatively new product in your home.
The Truth Behind Fiction
I’ve often encountered people who question the point of including the reading of fiction in our educational system. In a typical English class, students read and write about poetry, short stories, and longer forms of fiction, usually without fully understanding why. In fact, ELA and the other arts are treated frequently as unimportant subjects, consistently placed behind math and science.
Numbers Game: Q&A With Margot Douillet
We sat down with Margot Douillet, a gifted analyst and the first female coach of the Futures Collegiate Baseball League, a competitive summer league that mirrors the style of a minor league season. As the Director of Operations for the Pittsfield Suns, Douillet took the field -- and the helm -- last summer when she was 20 years old.
Saving Sight & Serving Community with Vision: Meet Andrew Lam
Surgeon, writer, family man, philanthropist and mansion saver are just some of the superlatives fitting of Dr. Andrew Lam. Over the past 15 years, Andrew, his wife Christina, and their children Alex (19), Audrey (17), Sophia (17), and Daniel (12), have left their mark on Longmeadow, creating a rich history while preserving some of the town’s past.
Lisa Lippiello Shows Grace Under Pressure
Downton Valley has a royal feel to it. A long, winding driveway leads to a stately home that rises over the Pioneer Valley. Inside, the “Dowager Room” and the “Isobel Room” nod to two of the most powerful female characters on the historical drama “Downton Abbey.” But the woman behind this bed-and-breakfast home is a contemporary queen.
She rules.
The best thing about Lisa Lippiello is that she is a humble monarch. Before she was a mother, wife and entrepreneur; before she was a managing partner at a law firm in Northampton, she was just a little girl drawn to the ocean. “I have photos of my father racing to the shore because I was crawling through the sand to the water,” she says with a laugh. The water was her happy place; it would be her steady companion as she navigated her parent’ divorce and was tasked with caring for her younger brother.
And So Our Lives Continue
It's a rainy Sunday morning in April. My wife is driving down to the city to meet her daughter, who flew in to take her mom to lunch and a show. We celebrated on Friday, her actual birthday – with a pancake breakfast in bed; followed by a leisurely day with our puppy, Milo; and capped off with a romantic dinner at The Blue Heron Restaurant.
I'm sitting on our daybed on the porch now, my computer perched on my lap. Somewhat reluctantly, I turned on the gas stove this morning in an effort to temper the chilly April air. All I can hear is the steady patter of rain on the porch roof, an occasional flutter of ducks fishing on the river, and a contented sigh from Milo, who is lying by my side. Suddenly I catch a whir of red brushing across the porch window: A cardinal has sent his blessing for a sweet day at home.
Risky Business
I recently received a panicked email from a potential client who told me that one of their competitors may be taking legal action against them. The reason? Both companies share the same business name in the same industry.
Brand identity is a critical aspect of any business, and it's essential to ensure that you're not infringing on any existing trademarks or brand names when starting a new company. My potential client’s situation could have been avoided if their company had examined their brand and competition from the start.
Here’s why it's crucial to work with a professional to safeguard your brand
House of Music
When he’s not working as an allergist and immunologist at AIANE in Northampton, Dr. Jonathan Bayuk runs One Roof, a nonprofit that puts on musical festivals to fund homes for the unsheltered.
Proudly Forward
Grace Moreno is a force, and she’s the force behind the ever-expanding Massachusetts LGBT Chamber of Commerce. Of its 465 members, more than a quarter are based in the western part of the state – and last November the chamber opened an office in Easthampton to take even better care of them.