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WEEK OF MONDAY, FEBRUARY 29, 2016
financial
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A Publication of The Warren Group SUPPLY AND DEMAND
massachusetts
CREInsider The
INVENTORY IS LOW AND WON’T RECOVER QUICKLY
A SUPPLEMENT TO BANKER & TRADESMAN
“Eventually inventory will outstrip demand, but it will take some time. The bottom line is if you’re thinking about selling, this is a great time. For sellers who are waiting for the right moment, this is the right moment.” — Larry Rideout, CEO, Gibson Sotheby’s Cambridge
BY STEVE ADAMS BANKER & TRADESMAN STAFF
F
or all of its acclaim as an economic success story – luring thousands of well-paying jobs from startups to corporate behemoths – Boston’s Seaport District still has a bit of an image problem. Bland architecture, sparse public and cultural amenities and a shortage of services for full-time residents are frequent complaints lobbed at current conditions in the 1,000-acre district. But as residential buildings start to dominate the next wave of development, the Seaport could start to look and feel a lot more like a Boston neighborhood. Continued on Page B5
BY JIM MORRISON BANKER & TRADESMAN STAFF
H
A Top-Down Market
It’s a trickle-down effect that begins at the high end of the market, said Larry Rideout, co-owner and CEO of Continued on Page 8
Will Residential Projects Spice Up Seaport Architecture? A New Look For Next Wave Of Development
Experts Say Approval Process For New Housing Too Slow, Expensive
ome sale prices are approaching all-time highs. The number of sales has been growing steadily upward since 2011, but the inventory of single-family homes and condos for sale is about half wof what it was in 2012, frustrating real estate agents across the commonwealth, who all seem to have more buyers than sellers. In January 2012, there were 24,372 single-family homes and 8,205 condominiums on the market, according to the Massachusetts Association of Realtors (MAR). After four years of steady decline, MAR reported last month, there were 14,291 single-family homes and 3,808 condos on the market. “The lack of inventory is certainly our biggest issue in the real estate business right now,” said Annie Blatz, president of MAR. Recent increases in home prices are supposed to incentive people to sell their homes and move up or move on, at least in theory. Most homeowners who bought at the peak of the market and were underwater for years have regained equity and could now sell their homes. So when are all those listings going to come online?
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
VICTORY!
Inventory Snapshot: HOMES ON THE MARKET Single-Family Homes JANUARY 2012
24,373
JANUARY 2016
14,291
Community Banks Triumph On Revised FDIC Proposal Local Bankers Still Concerned About Loan Mix Index
Condominiums JANUARY 2012
8,205
JANUARY 2016
3,808
Source: Massachusetts Association of Realtors
CONTENTS Points ����������������������������������������������������������������������� 4
Residential �������������������������������������������������������������� 8
Classified Sections ������������������������������������������������� 12
By The Numbers ������������������������������������������������������� 6
Banking & Lending �������������������������������������������������� 9
CRE Insider ����������������������������������������������������������� B1
In Person ������������������������������������������������������������������ 7
Commercial & Industrial ���������������������������������������� 10
Records Section ������������������������������������������������������ C1
BY LAURA ALIX BANKER & TRADESMAN STAFF
C
ommunity banks won a victory with a newly revised proposal from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) that would tweak how banks are assessed for deposit insurance, but industry observers say the new proposed rule still has a few kinks they’d like to see worked out. When the FDIC released the original proposal last summer, an outcry went up among the nation’s community banks. Specifically, the proposed rule concerned how banks under $10 billion in assets are assessed for deposit insurance, and it would Continued on Page 9