Teardowns - spreading like cancer (Boston, Newton: foreclosure, appliances, houses)

[semiurbanite]

Originally Posted by smc733

I would agree with what you say about Natick/Reading. I'd see a 15-20% correction there as likely

No, no the crash will be in Somerville not Natick. It's all Location Location Location, and you can't beat being in the amazing jobs center of metro west, plus you have a great mall to keep prices up.

[panchilly]

Originally Posted by semiurbanite

No, no the crash will be in Somerville not Natick. It's all Location Location Location, and you can't beat being in the amazing jobs center of metro west, plus you have a great mall to keep prices up.

Semiurbanite,

You are trying to push the idea that one should buy into the inner urban core at all costs. You are pushing the mindset to not weight prices and value for the money into the decision. I agree that the closer in you are, the desirability goes up, but the prices go up too. You need to maximize desirability per dollar spent. Additionally, i don't believe the desirability goes down as fast as you think it does as you get a town or 2 past the 128 belt.

The attitude you are pushing, to buy at all costs without regard to fundamentals is PRECISELY the type of mindset that causes huge bubbles and their inevitable crash.

The folks stretching to the max to buy at all costs and getting a 1.1M converted condo in Somerville might be in for a rude awakening.

[GeoffD]

Originally Posted by Shrewsburried

The bones, systems, and layout were all good, which is where things get costly.

Yeah, well.... I’m a moron. There isn’t much original framing left. The forced hot air heating system was replaced with forced hot water. The outside faucets are the only original plumbing, rewired. I salvaged the original panel and the whole house surge protector. Dozens of “while it’s opened up...” conversations.

My best friend did most of the work and acted as my general contractor. He told me to throw a match at it. For what I spent, I would have had a way nicer house ripping it down and starting over.

[chicagoliz]

Originally Posted by semiurbanite

No, no the crash will be in Somerville not Natick. It's all Location Location Location, and you can't beat being in the amazing jobs center of metro west, plus you have a great mall to keep prices up.

Totally disagree. I think Somerville will stay high for the long term. There is an explosion of jobs in Cambridge and in Boston. Especially with so many jobs in Cambridge, and with the transportation not designed to go into Cambridge, but to Boston, anything even remotely considered commutable to Cambridge is going to hold value. Somerville isn't going anywhere.

[johngolf]

Originally Posted by panchilly

Semiurbanite,

You are trying to push the idea that one should buy into the inner urban core at all costs. You are pushing the mindset to not weight prices and value for the money into the decision. I agree that the closer in you are, the desirability goes up, but the prices go up too. You need to maximize desirability per dollar spent. Additionally, i don't believe the desirability goes down as fast as you think it does as you get a town or 2 past the 128 belt.

The attitude you are pushing, to buy at all costs without regard to fundamentals is PRECISELY the type of mindset that causes huge bubbles and their inevitable crash.

The folks stretching to the max to buy at all costs and getting a 1.1M converted condo in Somerville might be in for a rude awakening.

One of the things Pan has said that I agree with.

I am one of those that made my living in MA. Bought low, sold high, and got the he!! out of there come retirement time. Bye..bye..MA.

[wolfgang239]

Originally Posted by chicagoliz

Totally disagree. I think Somerville will stay high for the long term. There is an explosion of jobs in Cambridge and in Boston. Especially with so many jobs in Cambridge, and with the transportation not designed to go into Cambridge, but to Boston, anything even remotely considered commutable to Cambridge is going to hold value. Somerville isn't going anywhere.

Nah he's being facetious. There's a mini tech dudebro my assets are more valuable than yours squabble on here that involves poking fun at other people's decisions even though there is never a one size fits all solution.

[MikePRU]

Originally Posted by yellowstatus

Interesting thread, with excellent thoughts from MikePRU as usual. I've been visiting many open homes in the Camberville area, and I feel inadequate in assessing build quality. Many offerings are gut renovated condo conversions. With the professional staging, nearly all look good to me. What do you look for in terms of quality construction?

Thanks! Often it's hard to determine the quality of a construction project once it's done. It's pretty easy to spot cheap fixtures. However, poorly done plumbing or electrical or structural work is not always easy to spot. It's important to know the local players and who does good work and who does not.

Originally Posted by scorpio516

Yes. It happens every day. EVERYONE who builds houses do rush jobs. EVERYONE cuts corners. If you don't, your out of business.

That Wellesley house is the definition of McMansion. Mishmash of styles. Big house on a small lot.
Money has nothing to do with weather it's a mcmansion or not

I often say to my clients that it's not a question of IF a speculative developer is going to cut corners building a house. The questions that need to be answered are what corners got cut and how badly. Some corners are a lot more important than others.

Originally Posted by Amontillado

We can talk about "teardowns spreading like cancer", but we're in an environment where the cost of a lot, plus the cost of demolishing the house that's on it, is still worth paying to get a new house. People are willing to do that. How can we argue?

You highlight an important point. The developers are just providing a service the consumers in the market place demand. If no one buys these houses then they'll cease to be built quite quickly.

Originally Posted by miu

Twenty years ago, this sort of thing was going on in Boca Raton, FL. People buying perfectly good homes, bulldozing them and building something larger on the lot. Ridiculous.

Interesting! My parents have lived in Boca for about 20 years. I've never personally noticed a teardown there. However, they seem to somehow frequently find large tracts of land to put up new developments on.

Originally Posted by GeoffD

How about 50+ year of DIY?

Last time I moved I came close to buying a 1960's era home. During the home inspection we spotted some lamp chord that was spliced into an electrical socket and all other manner of really scary DIY. Luckily, the person who ended up buying it had the funds to completely renovate it.

Originally Posted by panchilly

Semiurbanite,

You are trying to push the idea that one should buy into the inner urban core at all costs. You are pushing the mindset to not weight prices and value for the money into the decision. I agree that the closer in you are, the desirability goes up, but the prices go up too. You need to maximize desirability per dollar spent. Additionally, i don't believe the desirability goes down as fast as you think it does as you get a town or 2 past the 128 belt.

The attitude you are pushing, to buy at all costs without regard to fundamentals is PRECISELY the type of mindset that causes huge bubbles and their inevitable crash.

The folks stretching to the max to buy at all costs and getting a 1.1M converted condo in Somerville might be in for a rude awakening.

I feel like you guys are opposite sides of the same coin.

[FCMA]

It’s kind of inevitable that teardowns are becoming so common. The overall housing stock in MA is getting very, very tired and the economy is hot. People with massive means want space and modernity and the typical styles of houses built in the early 20th century usually don’t offer both without a massive renovation or by just starting from scratch.

There are SO MANY overpriced hovels in the Boston area. I have been inside so many ugly split post-war split levels in the suburbs. And Somerville buildings with tired features and permanent essences of stale cigarettes and sweaty armpits, fetching $2k per month per floor as rentals or $800k to buy. Built by and for the working and middle class of a past generation, and now affordable only to the upper classes who you can’t quite blame for wanting them gone - they’re substandard for the money, but if money is no object you may as well carry out the ultimate fix.

[MassVt]

Originally Posted by FCMA

It’s kind of inevitable that teardowns are becoming so common. The overall housing stock in MA is getting very, very tired and the economy is hot. People with massive means want space and modernity and the typical styles of houses built in the early 20th century usually don’t offer both without a massive renovation or by just starting from scratch.

There are SO MANY overpriced hovels in the Boston area. I have been inside so many ugly split post-war split levels in the suburbs. And Somerville buildings with tired features and permanent essences of stale cigarettes and sweaty armpits, fetching $2k per month per floor as rentals or $800k to buy. Built by and for the working and middle class of a past generation, and now affordable only to the upper classes who you can’t quite blame for wanting them gone - they’re substandard for the money, but if money is no object you may as well carry out the ultimate fix.

This post sums up the problems of the Boston housing market very well. Too many old, tired dumps for sale for outrageous prices---the kind of places that I would just walk by, in search of something nicer and more "kept up". It's hard to imagine a 3rd-floor triple-decker unit --the kind of place that previous generations fled at warp speed---is now demanding such a ludicrous sum of money. You know , the kinds of places that had a yard the size of a postage stamp, surrounded by an ugly chain-link fence, no trees and a "Beware of the Dog" sign posted on the front door. No thanks.

[semiurbanite]

Originally Posted by MassVt

This post sums up the problems of the Boston housing market very well. Too many old, tired dumps for sale for outrageous prices---the kind of places that I would just walk by, in search of something nicer and more "kept up". It's hard to imagine a 3rd-floor triple-decker unit --the kind of place that previous generations fled at warp speed---is now demanding such a ludicrous sum of money. You know , the kinds of places that had a yard the size of a postage stamp, surrounded by an ugly chain-link fence, no trees and a "Beware of the Dog" sign posted on the front door. No thanks.

Many have been upgraded to luxury appliances, central AC, wooden fences and landscaping.