Thoughts on the Boston market

[Marian Smith]

Family member just rented an apartment for $2500 mo...can't be bigger than 600 sq ft.  2-1.5.  with parking garage and 3 blocks to subway.  Heat is included in rent, although I doubt it costs all that much to heat such a small place.  Sommerville area, so atudents have to be driving up prices.  Guy at work said his dad sold the family home right around here somewhere,..no parking...in 1995 or 2000 or so and now the place is three condos,  each selling for twice what he sold the house for...still with no parking.  So everyone is living in 120 year old houses that have been split into 3-6 small apartments...the upper floors often have weird low ceiling angles in some or all rooms...like  over the sink or a bedroom window because they squeeze out just a little more space.  with street parking or tandem driveway parking.  Why dont they tear down some old houses and build high rise apartments (with parking garages for residents who need it)  with rents this high you'd think that is the highest and best use.  And the squares have restaurants etc with nothing above them...how could they not add a few stories above the stores for residential use?  again, with rents this high,  It just doesnt seem to make sense.  the condos sell for 3-400k up to 1M and single family homes 800k or so and up.  so rents do seem proportionate to values. Just so much higher than Texas.:-) and wondering if Boston is just growing too fast to keep up.  Oh, and tne houses/triplxes are not that well maintained....incredibly shabby for the prices.