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2016 ANNUAL PROPERTY TRANSFERS DIRECTORY Call 617.896.5388 or email datasolutions@thewarrengroup.com Est ab li s h e d 1 8 7 2
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WEEK OF MONDAY, JANUARY 30, 2017
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A Publication of The Warren Group RISK VS. REWARD
The Carrot Or The Stick? Wells Fargo Abuses Prompt A Second Look At Incentives BY LAURA ALIX BANKER & TRADESMAN STAFF
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allout from the Wells Fargo account opening scandal is still reverberating throughout the banking industry, as bankers field questions over their incentive programs and ponder how else they might measure and reward performance among their branch staff. Laura Hay, managing director at Pearl Meyer and head of its national banking group, said the scandal at Wells Fargo, just one of several surrounding the mega-bank in recent days, has prompted many bankers to reexamine their own incentive programs for front line employees. That may be in part because stakeholders have questions about those incentive programs. A recent survey out of Pearl Meyer found the majority of respondents had fielded questions from executive management (72 percent), the board of directors (51 percent) and employees (32 percent). Large percentages of Pearl Meyer’s respondents also said they’re still using volume and cross-selling metrics (55 and 47 percent, respectively) to reward their branch staff. Hay said that those volume and cross-sellContinued on Page 8
UPS AND DOWNS
BY JIM MORRISON | BANKER & TRADESMAN STAFF
DESPITE SOFTENING IN HIGH END, BOSTON-AREA RENTS NOT DROPPING OVERALL Average Rents Dropped Five Straight Months, Finished The Year Up Vs. 2015
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he average rent in Greater Boston may be declining, but for the typical couple looking to rent a two-bedroom in the city, rents remain among the highest in the country – and they’re still rising. There are signs, however, that they may have reached a plateau. After five straight months of decline, the average residential monthly rent in Boston in December 2016 was $2,291, up slightly from December 2015, when the average rent was $2,265, according to Axiometrics, a rental property data provider. So rents dipped in the second half of 2016, but still finished the year up from the year before. Are rents going up? Or down? According to rental agents who are in the trenches every day, Boston’s rental story is more nuanced than that. Trends vary by neighborhood, type of building and price range so much that general, citywide statistics leave a lot of the story untold.
High End Softening Skews Averages
Van French, a rental agent with Gibson Sotheby’s who lives and works primarily in the South End, said most of his clients are looking to rent a two-bedroom unit for around $3000 a month. “Generally speaking, the high end of the market – $4,000-plus per month – has softened, but the mid-range is still very strong,” French said. “That said, landlords will still get a premium for a quality home on a quality street.” To complicate the picture, large building owners are offering a couple of months of free rent, gift cards and other incentives to attract renters, said P.T. Vineburgh, founding partner of Charlesgate Realty. “I do see a definite softening in the high-end
JOB CREATION
Offices, Housing Reawaken Downtown Haverhill Gateway City Puts Development On The Fast Track
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BY STEVE ADAMS BANKER & TRADESMAN STAFF
an a former mill town on the New Hampshire border become a proving ground for developing new office buildings and market-rate housing in Massachusetts’ economically disadvantaged Gateway Cities? In downtown Haverhill, the first office tenants are beginning interior fit-outs at Harbor Place, a $70 million commercial and residential complex that will include the new headquarters of Pentucket Bank and a satellite campus for University of MassachusettsLowell. Public areas are being redesigned to connect with the Merrimack River, which remains mostly hidden behind rows of aging brick buildings where upper-floor space has sat vacant for decades. Lawrence-based developer Lupoli Cos. is drawing up plans for a 12-story office and apartment building, reContinued on Page 10
BOSTON TWO-BEDROOM RENTAL AVERAGES Within A 10-Mile Radius
Within A 5-Mile Radius
January 2015
$2,798
January 2015
$3,017
January 2016
$2,867
January 2016
$3,075
January 2017
$2,971
January 2017
$3,161 Source: Rainmaker Insights
CONTENTS Points ����������������������������������������������������������������������� 4
In Person ������������������������������������������������������������������ 7
Classified Sections ������������������������������������������������� 11
By The Numbers ������������������������������������������������������� 6
Commercial & Industrial ������������������������������������������ 9
CRE Insider ������������������������������������������������������������ B1
Residential ������������������������������������������������������������ 10
Banking & Lending �������������������������������������������������� 8
Records Section ������������������������������������������������������ C1