Boston Real Estate Blog

Greater Boston Housing Report Card

John Ford — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 13:44:13 +0000

Boston Foundation Boston housing report card. Excerpt from the Executive Summary:

In a nutshell, this report contains some very good news, but also some surprisingly disturbing news about home affordability, rents, and foreclosures.

The good news is that we now have some fairly strong ndications that the current economic recession is
drawing to an end nationally and regionally, and that at least in Massachusetts we believe we have seen the
last of any major losses in jobs. We have also seen the first signs of an uptick in the housing market, with
sales beginning to perk up along with home prices.

The bad news is that while housing has become more affordable relative to household incomes in Greater
Boston, the region is now less affordable than ever compared with virtually every metro area we compete
with across the country. Moreover, despite the recession, rents in Greater Boston are now substantially
higher than before the recession began, and we have not seen any letup in the number of families falling
behind in their mortgage payments and therefore becoming subject to the initiation of foreclosure
activity.

In short, Greater Boston’s “housing crisis” is far from over.

Short Story About a Vacant Retail Space

John Ford — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 19:22:06 +0000

The picture above is a vacant storefront located at 395-403 Washington Street in Downtown Crossing.

Here’s a brief history about this storefront:

The first two floors have been vacant since the Barnes & Noble lease ended in May 2006. Parade of Shoes was the last to occupy the basement until their lease ended as well.

The first two floors add up to 25,000 square feet, and the basement totals 11,500 square feet. The two spaces used to be connected by an internal staircase.

CommonWealth Holding has owned the space for 45 years. Before Barnes & Noble left the space it was only vacant for three months for at least 75 years.

Barnes & Noble leased the first two floors from 1976 to 2006. Before that WT Grant occupied all three floors for retail from 1928 to 1976.

Amazing, for 75 years in row this retail space has almost always had a tenant. So why is it vacant now?

1. Because of the recession
2. Amazon made Book Stores less viable
3. Greedy landlord
4. Greedy developers for Filenes Basement that left a big hole in the ground.
5. other

What are your thoughts?

Story idea: Boston Courant (sorry no link)

Boston luxury condos -

John Ford — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 15:42:16 +0000

The million dollar plus Boston condo market is no longer recession proof.

1/1/09 - 10/31/09
Number of Boston condos sold $1mil plus - 213
Avg luxury condo price - $1,809,142.00
Medain luxury cond price - $1,475,000.00
Avg price per sq ft - $893.00
Avg days on the market - 143

1/1/08 - 10/31/08
Number of Boston condos sold $1mil plus - 416
Avg luxury condo price - $2,250,533.00
Medain luxury cond price - $1,672,500.00
Avg price per sq ft - $1,004.00
Avg days on the market - 124

Source: Link avg and med are based on $1mil plus.

Q & A on New Home Buyer Tax Credit

John Ford — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 12:44:35 +0000

The National Association of Realtors Web site has a nice Question & Answer section about the new homebuyer tax credit.

View today’s new Boston condo listings

Are Blogs (& Comments) Due 1st Amendment Protections?

John Ford — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 18:40:24 +0000

I just read about a fascinating court case involving the Mortgage Lender Implode O-Meter. This case might impact whether bloggers (like me) have the same First Amendment rights as traditional journalists. Also, it may have an impact on whether websites can protect the identities of those who post comments anonymously.

By Josh Rogers on Thursday, November 5, 2009.

Case could decide if bloggers have the same first amendment rights as traditional journalists and determine if media websites can protect the identities of those who post comments anonymously.

At issue are postings on the website called Mortgage lender Implode-O-meter. That’s a Las Vegas blog that tracks the mortgage lending industry. Last year, the blog reported the Plaistow-based Mortgage Specialists had been sanctioned by the state banking department, and posted a confidential document the company had sent to regulators. In response to that posting, someone calling themselves brianbattersby then posted that Mortgage Specialists President Mike Gill was under a tax lien, and had bought his way out of a fraud committed in 2002. The lawyer for Mortgage Specialists says neither claim is true. Mortgage Specialists asked the blog’s editor to remove the confidential document, which he did, and asked for him to identify brianbattersby, which he didn’t. A Superior Court Judge ordered the website to permanently remove the posts and reveal brianbattersby’s identity — a ruling the website’s attorney, Jeremy Eggleton, told the justices was wrong-headed, in the extreme.

“The trial courts order violates basic principles the 1st amendment, of the US constitution and essentially tramples on the rights both of implode explode both to speak, and to publish and to speak, as well as on the rights of the public to receive information and speak anonymously.”

The attorney for the Mortgage company, Alex Walker, argued that his client deserves the right to identify brianbattersby, that the impode/explode website is in no way journalism, and doesn’t deserve the protections afforded the press by court precedent.

“All of the information they get is received by them, they don’t go out and gather news. The mission on their website is indicates that they are all about transparency education and accountability — that they add a little bit of editorial work to keep the site coherent. But they are not a news gathering outfit.”

Read the full story.

Well, I guess I better be careful before I blog about Boston real estate rumors.

File Under: “Blogs are not a news gathering oufit.” Really?