Hotter than Tabasco sauce: the Boston RE market

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itchy

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I just checked Archboston after 2 days' absence. The amount of new approvals, announcements of projects, renders, etc., is mind-blowing. The Wired New York forum doesn't see that many new projects arise in a month (or much, much more some times).

The same thing happened two days prior, when again I checked the forum after 2-3 days away.

Is Boston on a mad building spree, or is there merely some bizarre coincidence in project announcements suddenly spiking? Curious to hear people's thoughts on this one.

[Mods, feel free to put this into an earlier thread, kill this thread, etc. I am creating this thread purely out of shock at the number of new projects and against my better judgment.]
 
To be 100% honest, I was considering either making a thread like this, or adding a post similar to what you said to one of the more active threads.

Boston's development is really booming right now.
 
There are only so many BRA hearings annually when major projects are approved, so major project announcements like the ones from this week have become pretty common. Last year BostonUrbEx, datadyne2007, and I (and possibly downburst & John Keith) attended a meeting where they approved the Filene's Tower, 1282 Boylston, and 3 other major projects (I think Waterside Place or 120 Kingston might've been among them... it becomes a big blur after you go to so many meetings).

I'm studying city planning right now at BU and I also work as a real estate agent, and everything I've learned in the last year boils down to simple economics. There is INSANE demand for housing in Boston right now and developers have finally begun coming out of the woodwork to bring these necessary projects to fruition. The Fenway Centers; the Seaport Squares; the Fan Piers; the Kensingtons (***which, BTW, I just toured today--beautiful interior, but still doesn't justify the ungodly rental prices).

Employers are hiring more people in Boston-Cambridge and want to be able to house them. Realistically, Boston alone must add 10,000 units a year to satisfy demand and 20,000 units a year to grow competitively in the global market. Only in the past year has the pace of development caught up with the real demand for housing in this city.

So hotter than Tabasco sauce? Nah, more like hotter than Satan's Blood.
 
Look for the volume of approvals to stay high throughout 2013. The rush is on to get approved before a new mayor takes office and potential uncertainty (beyond the current real or perceived uncertainties) is introduced. Market is great, demand is high, but the election is a huge factor.
 
Look for the volume of approvals to stay high throughout 2013. The rush is on to get approved before a new mayor takes office and potential uncertainty (beyond the current real or perceived uncertainties) is introduced. Market is great, demand is high, but the election is a huge factor.
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Do we have any idea what candidates would be considered "pro-development"?
 
We shit on the BRA a lot, but damn we have been/will be using a lot of steel.
 
Make your predictions now; will the Congress Street Garage redevelopment project be approve before Menino leaves office (with the office tower at 600ft)?

I say, yes!
 
Here is another one...AvalonBay just informed the residents of Sierra and Tango at NorthPoint that they are starting the conversion of the Maple Leaf Building into rental units in the next few weeks. They are building out 103 rental "micro loft" units ranging from 325 to 700 square feet. They recently bought the property from Archstone. Partners are ICON Architecture and Callahan Construction.
 
Make your predictions now; will the Congress Street Garage redevelopment project be approve before Menino leaves office (with the office tower at 600ft)?

I say, yes!
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Definitely. Menino/BRA are in steamrolling mode right now. If you have any political good will saved up with the mayor right now you are cashing in.
 
Speaking of using a lot of steel.....where does it all come from? As in, who are the big suppliers of steel in the Boston/Massachusetts area?
 
meddlepal said:
Do we have any idea what candidates would be considered "pro-development"?
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Mike Ross. He has said on numerous occasions both before and during the mayoral race that he is "aggressively pro-development."
 
Mike Ross has been going around with a pitch of taking some credit for the transformation of the parking lots/fast food joints/vacant lots in Fenway and encouraging re-planning and new development of those parcels.

I don't know how much of that is his doing but he has managed to generate a lot of interest in his campaign in my part of town.

P.S. Tabasco sauce is not that hot. Let's talk Habanero!
 
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The market for condos is insane right now. Probably a bit to do with the panic of rising interest rates but things are flying off the market before even the open houses. Not just luxury, back bay, Brookline either - Allston and mission hill as well. Inventory tends to be higher and stick around longer in old Southie which I'm not so sure I understand.
 
Shepard said:
The market for condos is insane right now. Probably a bit to do with the panic of rising interest rates but things are flying off the market before even the open houses. Not just luxury, back bay, Brookline either - Allston and mission hill as well. Inventory tends to be higher and stick around longer in old Southie which I'm not so sure I understand.
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Yeah the condo market is nuts. I recently bought a 1br in Fenway near the landmark center (hence the name) so I've gotten to experience it first hand.

Any place that is not a dungeon or 300sqft studio will get 3-4 offers within a couple of days of going on the market. Usually agents will list the property on Wednesday or Thursday, will have an open house on Saturday or Sunday, and will be under agreement by Monday. The open houses are usually zoos with 50+ people coming in an hour. Many condos sell for over asking price; I had to bid $15k over asking price to win my condo in a three way bidding war.

I think Boston's already low inventory combined with low interest rates is what's causing this mess. People suddenly have much more purchasing power due to low interest rates, so a lot of people are going fishing. Unfortunately in this case there aren't that many fish in the sea.
 
There was a rundown on all the candidate's position on development on either UHub or Boston.com (sorry, can't remember, and couldn't find it this morning). Basically, everyone gave some sort of varying lip service to "we need more middle-class housing" which is vague enough to hint at both developers and neighborhood groups in the same breath.
 
FenwayResident said:
Yeah the condo market is nuts. I recently bought a 1br in Fenway near the landmark center (hence the name) so I've gotten to experience it first hand.

Any place that is not a dungeon or 300sqft studio will get 3-4 offers within a couple of days of going on the market. Usually agents will list the property on Wednesday or Thursday, will have an open house on Saturday or Sunday, and will be under agreement by Monday. The open houses are usually zoos with 50+ people coming in an hour. Many condos sell for over asking price; I had to bid $15k over asking price to win my condo in a three way bidding war.

I think Boston's already low inventory combined with low interest rates is what's causing this mess. People suddenly have much more purchasing power due to low interest rates, so a lot of people are going fishing. Unfortunately in this case there aren't that many fish in the sea.
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The market isn't just limited to downtown Boston. I live in a two-unit condo in Winthrop and my downstairs neighbors put their house on the market in mid-April. They put it under agreement 3 days later, $10k above asking.
 
meddlepal said:
Do we have any idea what candidates would be considered "pro-development"?
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Marty Walsh. He was head of Building and Construction Trades Council (an association of union building construction laborers, carpenters, etc). My guess is he'll approve anything that he sees putting his guys to work.

mass88 said:
Speaking of using a lot of steel.....where does it all come from? As in, who are the big suppliers of steel in the Boston/Massachusetts area?
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Asia if there's not a "Buy America" provision. In my experience, Chinese steel is almost always cheaper for everything except the real basic (i.e., not labor intensive to manufacture) steel like sheeting or plates.
 
mass88 said:
Speaking of using a lot of steel.....where does it all come from? As in, who are the big suppliers of steel in the Boston/Massachusetts area?
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I see A LOT of steel coming out of Iron Horse Park in Billerica every morning. Pan Am brings it in there from somewhere.
 
Plenty of Cheap money & credit continue to come out of the market. The real estate market around Greater Boston is on fire. Interest rates also dropped to 3.5% but have recently rose to 4.25%

The only thing I can't figure out is people couldn't afford real estate in 2008 at these price levels but now they can?
 
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