By Sean Smith, Special to the BIR, special to the BIR, October 2, 2014 Irish Heritage Festival '13 Dorchester’s Irish Heritage Festival is back for its fourth year, with a full slate of Irish music and dance performances, family entertainment, and cultural activities, as well as food and vendor booths. The festival will take place on Oct. 12 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Florian Hall (55 Hallet Street) and the John McKeon Post AmVets 146 (4 Hilltop St.); there will be a suggested donation at the entrance of $5 per person, or $20 per family, to support the event. Among the Continue reading >>>

Children 12 and under in costume will eat free at Salvatore’s all week FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE WHAT: From Monday, October 27th, 2014 until Saturday, November 1st, 2014 Salvatore’s, the upscale casual Italian restaurant with five locations in the Greater Boston area, is ready to show its Halloween spirit this year. All children ages 12 and under who come dressed for the occasion in their Halloween best will eat free at all Salvatore’s locations. Children must be accompanied by an adult making a qualified purchase and this offer cannot be combined with Continue reading >>>

When considering going to a high-quality Italian restaurant in the greater Boston area, one would likely head straight to the North End. Fine Italian dining is offered right at the seaport and in the theatre district, however.  Salvatore’s Restaurants are the ideal places for those who are looking for high quality Italian food without actually going to the North End. Salvatore’s was created by Sal Lupoli, known for the popular Sal’s Pizza chain throughout the greater Boston area, and is a full service Italian restaurant. It has locations in Andover, Medford, and Lawrence, as well as the Continue reading >>>

As dozens of new luxury apartment complexes open around Greater Boston, the rental market appears to be getting more pet-friendly. A new Watertown complex is using DNA testing to make sure the grounds remain uncontaminated. Watertown Mews, a 206-unit complex that opened in May at 1 Repton Place, now is 78-percent leased and 46 tenants have dogs, according to Community Manager Trenda Wallace. Dog owners are required to submit samples of their pets’ waste, which are stored in a database by PetPrintsUSA. The Georgia company stores these “poo prints” to track renters who don’t pick up Continue reading >>>

BOSTON — Michael Smith, Avison Young Principal and Managing Director of the company’s Boston office, announced that Laura Spressert has joined the Boston office as Vice-President of Marketing, effective immediately. Spressert will direct Avison Young’s marketing, public relations and branding efforts throughout the Greater Boston region. A longstanding industry leader, Spressert brings more than a decade of commercial real estate experience to Avison Young. “We are very pleased to have Laura Spressert join our expanding operation in Boston. Her relevant experience, skill set and creativity Continue reading >>>

Boston sellers are looking lucky, while buyers might want to think twice. A Zillow analysis in the metro area shows the top five markets for home sellers and homebuyers. Sellers’ markets mean homes are listed for a shorter time, prices are slashed less frequently, and properties are sold at prices close to or greater than their last listing price, according to the real estate database. In buyers’ markets, the opposite is true. In the markets favorable for sellers, the median sales price exceeds the median listed price. Brookline is the exception here, where the asking price is very high. In Continue reading >>>