Market Commentary

The Batterymarch Insider

“The Batterymarch Insider” is a brief snapshot of our current market thinking and some highlights of what we see going on in the downtown Boston market. As always, our “terms of use” apply. We encourage you to subscribe.

In this issue:

Investors dumping condominium units

New Four Seasons – no takers, bad omen for new developments

288 Commonwealth Ave, PH – It’s not the broker, it’s the price

315 Commonwealth – $9.0 million shell, we see value – Well Bought

2 Commonwealth Ave., unit 11C – $10.5 million condo, did they negotiate? – Well Sold

What’s Catching Our Eye

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“You’re Not Getting Paid to Think”

Post author By Andrew Haigney
Post date December 3, 2020

The Illusion of Fiduciary Duty in Real Estate

Early in my real estate career, I had a client who was looking to buy a Beacon Hill home. We looked seriously at a relatively expensive property that was being offered by the firm that I was then affiliated with. After some due diligence, I uncovered a litany of fairly serious compliance problems with the property. I brought the issues to the attention of the office manager and I was shocked when he scolded me, stating that “your job is to open the door and turn on the lights, you’re not getting paid to think.”

When I pressed the manager, explaining that we had a obligation to disclose these known defects, he staunchly disagreed insisting that any controversy down the road would be between the seller and the buyer. Walking away, I thought to myself, “these guys make the old Wall Street bucket shops look like saints.”

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The Batterymarch Insider

Post author By Andrew Haigney
Post date November 20, 2020

In this issue:

Beacon Hill single family market comes to life

110 Stuart St. – Taking losses at the “W”

10 Otis Place, unit 4B – Outstanding flat of the Hill property

10 Walnut St., unit 3 – $6.2 million duplex – Well Bought

300 Boylston St., unit 905 – Great location, full price – Well Sold

What’s Catching Our Eye

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Days on Market – Caveat Emptor

Post author By Andrew Haigney
Post date November 19, 2020

This report is part of a series looking at days on market and how this data influences buying and selling decisions. As always, our “terms of use” apply.

The number of days a property sits on the market, days on market (DOM), is the ultimate valuation test for a property and more broadly it’s a component of overall market health. When the DOM start to rack up, there is often a perception in the market place that there is something wrong with that particular property. This drives some sales agents to step over what we see as an ethical boundary and manipulate DOM data.

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The Batterymarch Insider

Post author By Andrew Haigney
Post date November 13, 2020

In this issue:

Real estate sales data – Garbage in, Garbage out

157 Beacon St., unit 2 – Death by 1,000 cuts

20 Chestnut St., unit 1 – Price cut, $2,000+/sf for basement living?

Millennium Place, unit 1202 – Seller takes a loss – Well Bought

45 Temple St (The Archer) – Pre-Corona deals – Well Sold

What’s Catching Our Eye

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The Batterymarch Insider

Post author By Andrew Haigney
Post date November 6, 2020

In this issue:

South End bidding wars

771 Harrison Ave – Developer offers big sales incentives, buyer beware

33 Mt Vernon St., unit 1 – Price cut, attractive valuation

112 West Concord St., unit 1 – No winners in a bidding war – Well Sold

484 Beacon Street, PH – Needs updating, but good value – Well Bought

What’s Catching Our Eye

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The Batterymarch Insider

Post author By Andrew Haigney
Post date October 30, 2020

In this issue:

Brisk sales in the Seaport

117 Beacon St., $9.25 million triplex, 20% discount – Well Sold

6 West Cedar St. – Solid Beacon Hill single family, needs everything – Well Sold

41 Mt. Vernon St., unit 1B – 9.5% price cut, still seems too pricey

30 Chestnut – $16.995 single family? Time will tell

What’s Catching Our Eye

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The Great Boston Building Boom

Post author By Andrew Haigney
Post date October 28, 2020
1 Comment on The Great Boston Building Boom

(It’s Not Just the Seaport)

As the supply demand dynamic for urban residential real estate continues to be disrupted by Covid-19, we take comfort that medical experts agree that the pandemic will eventually pass and life will start to get back to normal. While it remains to be seen if consumers will quickly re-embrace urban living in the post-pandemic world, the downtown Boston market will be grappling with a threat that may have longer lasting repercussions – the great building boom.

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The Insider

Post author By Andrew Haigney
Post date October 22, 2020

“The Insider” is a brief snapshot of our current market thinking and some highlights of what we see going on in the downtown Boston market. As always, our “terms of use” apply. We encourage you to subscribe.

In this issue:

Urban vs Green Acres

771 Harrison Ave. (The Cosmopolitan) – Huge price cuts

175 Beacon St. – Single family white elephant moves, $11.75 million – Well Bought

2 Commonwealth Ave., unit 11C – Gets a quick contract

75 Beacon St., unit 1 – $9.3 million lower level duplex – Well Sold

What’s Catching Our Eye

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Batterymarch Group Shakes Up Boston Real Estate Brokerage

Post author By Andrew Haigney
Post date October 21, 2020

Real Estate Fiduciary Services

BOSTON – Buying and selling real estate can be tricky business. In Massachusetts, real estate sales agents routinely represent both the buyer and seller in the same transaction, a practice known as dual agency. According to real estate broker Andrew Haigney, “In a dual agency situation, the “double agent” is relieved of the fiduciary duty they may have owed one of the parties, and even better, the agent typically gets double the compensation.” Haigney calls these the high-five transactions – where the agents go back to the office and high five everyone. Haigney thinks it’s time that consumers have a level playing field.

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