Archive for the 'Multi-family' category

Location, location, location!!! Enjoy 3 Levels of Living in this beautiful Single Family across the street from the beach!! Large back deck and yard w/ water views. This property is being sold as-is and does need work. If your not afraid of a little renovation and would like to make yourself a million dollar home, please stop by the Open House Wednesday, May 22nd, from 5:30-7PM!! The property is located on 215 I Street in South Boston. To schedule a private showing, please do not hesitate to contact me. I can be reached via email michelle@capresidential.com or on my cell at 617-596-1948.

In a real estate transaction, no matter a South Boston Condo, a Back Bay Townhouse, or a Downtown Penthouse, both buyer and seller are out for their own financial interests from day one.  Without proper guidance, buyers often jeopardize their position and wind up paying more for their dream property, or lose it all together.  If you are in the market to purchase a new condo, single family or multi-family property anywhere in Boston, or Metro-Boston for that matter, don’t make any of these five mistakes when negotiating:

1)      Not Employing a Buyer’s Agent – For some reason, many buyers are leery of hiring a realtor to act on their behalf.  

Buyers fear that working with one agent will limit their options.  In fact, working with a designated agent can bring you more listings and opportunities than you can typically find on your own and generally do it much faster.  Good agents will also know if there are pre-construction units that are not yet on the market that they can suggest to you if you are willing to wait out the construction process.  

Buyers may also think that working with an agent will cost them money or that they could negotiate a lower price if they did not have an agent involved.  This is typically NOT the case at all.  Sellers must agree in advance of putting their property on the market with a listing agent, how much they will pay to sell their home.  The listing agent simply shares that fee with a buyers agent, if there is one.  By not having a buyers agent, you are essentially negotiating without representation against a seller who does.  A good buyers agent will have the discussion about how they are paid and typically should only receive their payment from the listing agent or seller. 

2)      Not Having the Same Information As the Seller – Before you submit an offer, you should remember the seller has already decided how much money they want from the sale of their property.  They have had the luxury of reviewing recent sales activity in their market and have set their expectations.  As a buyer, you also need to know the comparable properties they are basing the value of their property on, and figure out what is a fair market price, market conditions included.  Would you want to fall in love with a South End brownstone and not know that it is $75,000 overpriced?  I wouldn’t, but that is me. 

3)       Not Having Enough of a Deposit – As a buyer you want to always show a seller your seriousness with your Earnest Money Deposit amounts.  Acting conservatively by proposing a low deposit amount, no matter how well qualified you may be, will quickly tell the seller otherwise.  Sellers will generally gauge the strength of your offer first by price, and second by deposits and financing amounts.  In a competitive situation for a specific South Boston Condo, I have seen a buyer with low deposit amounts have their offer rejected in favor of an offer with the same price, but higher deposit amounts.   

4)      Having Too Many Contingencies – A contingency is a condition that must be met prior to either a contract signing or a closing.  The two most common contingencies are a Home Inspection before signing a purchase contract, and a Financing Contingency before closing on the sale.  These two are regarded as normal.  Additional contingencies such as “Subject to the Sale of Your Current Home” can tank your offer very quickly.  If you are a first time buyer, you need not worry about such a contingency!

5)      Being Impatient – As anxious as you feel to buy your new home, remember, a seller is just as anxious to sell theirs!  Having a buyers agent to separate your emotions from the transaction and act in a planned, strategic way, allows you the confidence that you won’t overpay and rush to judgment on your perfect property. 

I have personally purchased and sold property all over Boston, and Eastern MA for that matter, so I understand what it’s like on both sides of the fence.  Most people only buy or sell an average of 3 times in their lives, so it’s natural to be uncomfortable when it comes to negotiating the largest assets of your lifetime.  When you hire an agent, be sure they are a professional and are educated where you may not be.  It’s okay not to know everything!  A good buyers agent will set you at ease and always have your best interests at hand.

If you have any comments regarding this post, or are interested in buying a new property, please feel free to reach me at Andrew@capresidential.com.  

Here are a few of the New Develpements in South Boston:

Project Address:  2 H Street - Proposal calls for a multi-family residential development with 135 rental units and a 1,600 square foot retail space with associated garage parking for 206 spaces.

Project Address:   339 D Street - Proposal calls for 24 rental units and 30 parking spaces within a 4-story building. 

Project Address:  381 Congress Street - Proposal calls for 44 rental units, including 28 units of workforce and/or innovation housing at accessible rent levels and 16 short term rental units for nearby employers. 

Project Address:  395 West Broadway - Proposal calls for 24 rental units and 20 parking spaces with ground floor commercial space in the former South Boston Tribune building at 395 West Broadway. 

Project Address:   411 D Street - Proposal calls for 197 units of rental housing in two buildings and 129 parking spaces. 

Project Address:   630 East Second Street - Proposal calls for the construction of 15 units of housing in a three-story building and 21 at grade parking spaces as well as a 4,500 square foot 3-familty townhouse. 

Project Address:   881-883 East Second Street - Proposal calls for the construction of 16 residential rental units and 34 parking spaces in a new 4-story structure. 

Project Address:   902 East Second Street -The revised proposal calls for 36 rental units and 54 parking spaces and will be constructed as-of-right. The previously approved scheme called for 45 units and 52 parking spaces. 

Project Address:   273 D Street -Proposal calls for 24 new units of affordable housing for veterans and includes the adaptive reuse of the former D Street police station building and the construction of a new building. 

Project Address:   205 E Streets - Proposed development includes the conversion of Saint Augustine's School building into 39 residential units and 47 parking spaces. 

South Boston Condo Market Update!!! Average condo sale price in 2011 was $388,724.00.......average sale price thus far  this year is $420,038.00....time to BUY? call Capital Residential for a sneak peek at our upcoming listings!! time to SELL? call CAPRES for a no-nonsense market analysis of your condo/single family or multi-family home...617.268.1119

In today's crazy real estate market, especially here in South Boston where once proud 2 and 3 families stood tall, there are now signs everywhere advertising luxury condos! Rents are sky high, and they continue to rise, while the supply is super low . The million dollar question that you ask - do I rent or buy? Do you spend $3000-$4000 a month on rent or do you scrape up a little extra and achieve the American Dream of Home Ownership? Here in South Boston, a town that has enough realtors to make your head spin, you have more than one option.  But there should be only one choice when it comes to real estate.  That choice is Capital Residential Group (CRG).

Here at CRG we have experienced agents that handle all aspects of rentals and sales. Whether you are renting a studio for $1000/month or buying a $1,000,000 condo, all clients are treated the same. We want to welcome you to this unique and exciting town with the respect that you deserve. If you are about to begin your real estate search for a place to rent or buy, please do yourself a favor and make sure we are first on your list! Give us a call at 617-268-1119 or stop in our office at 611 East Broadway for coffee and a scone (our treat) and speak to one of our experienced agents. Spend as much time as you like in our office lounge browsing through our rentals and sales database. Here at CRG, we love turning newcomers into clients that end up being a friend for life! 

Do you want to live in South Boston but don't want to pay the high prices?  Don't exclude Dorchester from your search. 

What does Dorchester have to offer?

• Great neighborhoods
• More parking
• Convenient access to all forms of public transportation
• Beautiful homes
• Unbelievable restaurants
• Easy highway access

Sound Familiar???? 

I live there, I should know!  Call me to start your search of Dorchester Homes, Condos and Rentals today!

Lisa Radosta

617-686-5391

 Fantastic Thomas Park 2 family - all updated!! Rental unit is a 1 BR w/spacious LR & EIK and sliders to pvt deck. Owner's unit is an upper bi-level. The main living level has a large EIK, half bath, large living room, office/dining area & washer/dryer. There is a huge private deck off kitchen. The upper level has 2 large BRs & 3rd room (currenlty used as BR) and a full bath. Basement has w/d hookup for 1st flr unit. Well maintained property.

56 Telegraph St, South Boston.

Call John Collins at 617-504-6635 for more information.

Capital Residential Group will be hosting a free Multi-Family Investment Seminar on Saturday, September 24th, 2011. This seminar will cover the basics of researching, evaluating, and purchasing 2-4 family homes.

Whether you’re an experienced landlord looking to expand your real estate portfolio or someone who just wants to learn more about the buying process, please join us. 

This FREE 90 minute seminar will provide you with buying & investing tips from local and experienced landlords, real estate agents, mortgage brokers, and real estate investors. This group of professionals has a combined 50 years of experience in developing, financing and managing rental property throughout the city of Boston.

Some of the topics covered will include:

·         The beauty of leverage and how to use it to your advantage

·         How to finance your purchase & what lenders will expect from you

·         The basics of analyzing rental property – Understanding your income & expenses

·         Doing your due diligence – Researching your prospective sales & rental markets

·         Developing an investor’s mindset and building your future net-worth

·         The basics of managing your investment and how to build your property’s value 

Where:            611 East Broadway Street, Boston MA 02127

When:             Saturday, September 24^th – 6:00pm

Please reserve your spot today… Seats are limited!!

A free copy of “The Millionaire Real Estate Investor” for everyone that attends!

To reserve your seat for this upcoming seminar, please call Willie Mandrell at 617-297-8641, email Willie@capresidential.com or register at www.wjmandrell.com/seminars 

As Boston condo’s become ever more popular due to lifestyle desires and proximity to the amenities of a major US city, many buyers don’t take into consideration the association’s reserve account.

Most buyers know that a condo complex, may it be a former 2 family building or a 300+ unit facility with tennis courts and a pool, that their condo association fees are to cover items such as trash removal, snow removal (if you’re lucky), and the building’s master policy.  The more amenities an association provides, the higher the fees.  But most buyers don’t look beyond the actual association fee.  What they should really be questioning is how healthy the association’s reserve is.

In Massachusetts, the law states all condominiums to be required to maintain an adequate replacement reserve fund collected as part of the common expenses (GL Chapter 183A, S10(i)).  Now granted this may be overridden by a vote of 67% of the beneficial interest in the association at an annual meeting, but Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and FHA all require an annual operating budget to include a reserve fund of at least 10% of the budget.  Considering those GSE’s dominate the lending landscape, it is wise for the associations’ sake to be able to sell and finance units easily by having the reserve.  Also, as with anything, doing the bare minimum to pass can often get you in trouble down the line. 

The reality is, if an association has not properly been funding its reserve, and a deferred maintenance issue rears its head, as it often does with aging properties, the unit owners will face special assessments on top of their monthly condo association fees to pay for said projects.  For instance, if the property needs repointing, or a new roof, and there is not enough money in the reserve, then the unit owners will have to directly pay an increase, ie. special assessment, to have that work done. 

Reserve studies from qualified analysts can be great tools used by an association to give a much better idea of what the annual reserves should be based up on the status of the capital items at the association.  Feel free to inquire to your association to see if they have ever had one performed, especially if you are buying into an older complex. 

The bottom line is, just be cautious to not only confirm what your association has in reserves, but what that amount is in comparison to the actual budget.  That will be a tell-tale sign as to the health of your association, and the avoidance of any future special assessments.  

Andrew Schena

The Gate of Heaven School, which educated the youth of South Boston for decades, is being sold by the Archdiocese of Boston. According to Colliers International, the Archdiocese does not have an asking price for the 44,288 square foot property located at  609 East Foruth Street in South Boston, but will be reviewing offers throughout August. Although a residential development seems most likely, the property could serve as office, non-profit, educational, or institutional space.