DNA Lofts in Boston

Devlin77 said:
Anyone gone through the building with an engineer or done any testing?
Click to expand...

I'm suspect of overall contstruction. I'm no mason, but when it was first under construction a mere 2-3 years ago, the exterior brickwork seemed like a hack job. It looked uneven, didn't seem to have much structural support, and tar paper was hanging out around the exhaust vents. It seemed like they were literally attaching bricks to the plywood underneath. Now they've spent the last few months repointing all of the 'new' construction, while the old part of the building has remained untouched.

Maybe they had one bad subcontractor and the rest of the building is perfect. If I was buying, I'd definitely have some concerns.
 
There is no Home Inspection contingency and the only financing contingency is through their lender, who probably sent someone through the building already, so I would encourage potential bidders to really go through the building with someone in the know prior to bidding.

In a perfect world, one buying broker would get a few potential buyers and they would hire one person to comb over the entire structure.

I've got a structural enginer that I might bring through.
 
I toured the property with other developers with an interest to purchase it from the bank. The Davis companies eventually bought the building from the bank for a very good number. The unanimous sentiment from all involved was that it is a well built building. I frankly think the masonry was well done. I know they had some problems with caulking at the windows, but that was fixed. That said, we did not go over the project with a fine tooth comb...IE: no engineers involved at the time. But my friend lived there for a year and I never heard about major issues.
 
I've toured the site a few times. I gotta say I like the units a lot. Very open and bright. I might have seen a few maintenance issues.

What are people's general thoughts on this? Do you think it would appreciate in 3 to 5 years? What about the neighborhood? Its a little gritty now, do people think it will get better? There was a rape down the street just last weekend.

If these go for close to asking price, one could own something close to what paying rent would cost in most parts of boston.
 
I like how the Google street view of DNA has a police cruiser parked outside.

As far as the area...(I live in Dot) I suppose its on the better half of Dot Ave, which is a very busy and LOUD street. As far as the neighborhood its not my first choice in Dot, but certainly not worst. JFK is close.

I don't anticipate any real south end level gentrification any time soon though.

Again..Dot Ave is LOUD. cars, sirens - police/ambulance, sub-woofers ect.

Bonus: The Banshee is next door!
 
u forgot very dirty part of boston my biggest pet peave and I've been here(Wellsley Park) for over 25 years!
 
Info from Banker & Tradesman:

59 units in building.
42 remained for sale before auction.

25 were to be sold at auction; developer added 3 more before it started.

Only 15 sold during auction.

Six sold after the auction.

Remaining units will be sold traditional way.

http://www.bankerandtradesman.com/news146849.html
 
I am not surprised that the auction fell apart at the seems.

The pricing was wrong!

I ended up being out of the country so I couldn't attend. I'd really like to hear where the gavel swung on the units that did sell.
 
Here are some numbers for those sold...averaged about $220 PSF

Unit. SF Sale Price Last Asking
c42 655sf $191k (212k)
C23 786sf $207k (255k)
A34 972sf $208k (315k)
C40 904sf $215k (293k)
A47 1083sf $222k (351k)
C43 1077sf $230k (350k)
A51 1114sf $236k (362k)
B9 1112sf $240k (361k)
B17 1168sf $239k (379k)
B54 1192sf $253k (387k)
C39 1237sf $257k (402k)
 
Those are some sweet numbers...man o man...good investment props
 
Looks like they only sold 12 units so far with at least 17 units remaining for sale. I think they have more like 25 units left but I don't know exactly.

Looks like they sold for about $210-$250 per sq ft excluding the two small units that sold.

I can only assume the remaining units will go for less than those numbers?
 
Here are the numbers that I have been able to find on the DNA lofts Sale/Auction. Some decent buys in there for home ownership but I don'd see rental units at these prices.

DNA LOFTS SALES STATS
Unit Sq Ft Sale Date Sales Price SP Per Sq Ft Approx condo fee
1 997 3/19/2010 $269,000 270 $370
2 1064 3/12/2009 $397,000 373 $395
3 1353 5/27/2011 $365,000 270 $503
4 1,361 - $506
5 1360 5/25/2011 $360,000 265 $505
6 1,148 - $426
7 1,648 - $645
8 1277 3/5/2010 $345,000 270 $474
9 1,112 - $446
10 1,238 - $460
11 1,287 - $511
12 1,178 - $471
13 894 12/1/2011 $216,000 242 $332
14 786 - $292
15 651 1/5/2012 $186,000 286 $242
16 1,052 - $391
17 1,168 11/22/2011 $244,000 209 $467
18 1,215 - $485
19 764 11/4/2009 $229,000 300 $284
20 1,332 1/9/2012 $243,500 183 $528
21 1,237 12/30/2011 $251,000 203 $493
22 904 11/21/2011 $213,000 236 $336
23 786 11/18/2011 $207,000 263 $292
24 611 - $227
25 1,075 11/30/2011 $229,000 213 $399
26 577 - $214
27 875 - $325
28 983 3/10/2010 $250,000 254 $365
29 1,083 1/10/2012 $231,000 213 $402
30 904 2/27/2009 $325,000 360 $336
31 842 - $313
32 1,110 - $412
33 1,114 1/4/2012 $233,000 209 $414
34 972 12/30/2011 $209,900 216 $361
35 1144 7/31/2009 $349,000 305 $425
36 1192 9/22/2009 $345,000 289 $443
37 764 11/4/2009 $235,000 308 $284
38 1,332 - $528
39 1,237 12/13/2011 $261,650 212 $493
40 904 11/21/2011 $215,000 238 $369
41 786 $211,850 270 $292
42 655 12/1/2011 $218,850 334 $277
43 1,077 12/13/2011 $234,650 218 $433
44 577 6/30/2009 $150,000 260 $214
45 875 4/8/2009 $315,000 360 $325
46 983 4/30/2010 $260,000 264 $365
47 1,083 - $402
48 904 7/31/2009 $275,000 304 $336
49 831 3/5/2009 $305,000 367 $309
50 1,100 1/6/2012 $225,000 205 $409
51 1,114 $239,750 215 $414
52 972 5/21/2009 $350,640 361 $361
53 1,144 12/2/2011 $243,000 212 $458
54 1,192 - $476
55 764 7/29/2009 $260,000 340 $284
56 1,537 - $615
57 1,320 11/1/2011 $386,200 293 $490
58 1,057 - $437
59 911 - $338

Sorry for the poor looking chart but you get the idea. PM for an excel version with more info.
 
I notice this morning they were tearing down a brick building behind this building are they expanding this project?
 
Maybe it's already asked and answered, but are there deed restrictions on the resale price of units? They may be deed restricted under some BRA guidelines. I think quite a few live/work units in Boston are deed restricted.

That may be a factor in the current sales price.
 
There were 8 deed restricted units however only one of them sold back in 09. I believe that the BRA released those units from affordability. It's possible that they have not or want them converted to rental units. I dont think much has happened to those units. It looks like unit 19 sold in 09, probably as affordable. I wonder if he can get out of the restriction if the other units were released.

Unit # Deck Flr Sq Ftg
24 y 2 611 Afford
27 n 2 875 Afford
6 n 1 1,148 Afford
14 n 1 786 Afford
16 y 1 1,052 Afford
19 n 2 764 Afford
26 n 2 577 Afford
31 n 2 842 Afford

It looks like the owners slapped $100,000 notes on each of the remaining units last week. 5 year notes. Seems like they are either planning on renting for a few years or just holding out for higher prices. Unlikely they would put the debt on and sell them immediately.
 
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Does anyone know someone living at DNA? I have a few questions that can't be answered by a real estate agent.
 
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