Tenant Rules!

ATTENTION to all Premier’s current and future tenants! We all need to adhere to the following rules to ensure the proper functioning of the building’s drainage system.

Please note that the main plumbing pipes in most of our buildings are cast iron and foreign objects included but not limited to the list below are prohibited from being flushed down the toilets or washed down the sinks. Please keep in mind that tenants are responsible for all issues that are caused by tenant failure to comply with the before mentioned policy. Please be responsible with what both you and your guests are putting down the sinks and toilets. Please familiarize yourself with the below list.

What NOT to Flush Down the Toilet:

1. Feminine Products
Tampons and other feminine hygiene products are not supposed to be flushed down the toilet.

2. Cooking Grease/Food

Grease should never be poured down any drain, period. It may look like a liquid that can easily be dumped down a drain, but when it cools, it will congeal and clog up your pipes. Collect your grease in a glass jar and throw it in the trash, or save the grease and reuse it, especially bacon grease.

3. Baby Wipes/Wet Wipes/Cleaning Pads
Wipes are also increasingly causing clogs and backups in sewage pipes across the country. Although some of these brands might say they are flush-able on the box, there are groups that are revising the guidelines, so soon all wet wipes will have a noticeable DO NOT FLUSH symbol on the packaging. If you must use these, throw them away in the trash can.

4. Dental Floss
Floss is not biodegradable and can cause serious clogs and environmental damage.

5. Q-tips/Cotton Balls
You might think that cotton will break down, since some toilet paper is made from cotton linen (Cottonelle/Cottonsoft), but they don’t! They will clump together, causing stoppages at bends in the pipes.

6. Diapers

Just because there is human waste inside does not mean that they are OK to flush.

What to Know About Renting in Boston Amid the Coronavirus Pandemic

The Boston area was already a tough and competitive rental market to navigate, now the Coronavirus has added another layer of difficulty. Firstly, amidst the Coronavirus pandemic, competition and prices have remained steady for Boston’s real estate market. Below are some answers to common questions Boston renters have been asking during this time. 

What happens if I have an issue with my apartment, such as something breaking or I need an urgent repair?

Luckily, Boston Governor Charlie Baker listed property managers as essential workers who are allowed to conduct business with safety precautions during the Coronavirus pandemic.  Workers such as plumbers, electricians, exterminators, inspectors, and other service providers who provide services that are necessary to maintaining the safety, sanitation, and essential operation of residences, construction sites and projects, and needed facilities are considered essential workers. 

Therefore, if you have a problem with your apartment you can contact your landlord about an urgent repair or issue such as infestation or broken heat. In fact, it’s your right under state law to expect such fixes. Thus, you should feel free and comfortable to reach out to your property’s owner about any necessary repairs.

I can’t make rent May 1. Will I be evicted?

No. As of April 20, there is a moratorium in place in Massachusetts which pauses all non-emergency eviction proceedings. The moratorium lasts 120 days from April 20 or 45 days from the lifting of Gov. Charlie Baker’s emergency declaration due to the pandemic, whichever comes first.

Furthermore, the national government introduced the $2 trillion coronavirus rescue package titled the CARES Act. The CARES Act includes a 120-day moratorium on most evictions at properties that receive federal subsidies or that federal entities insure. The moratorium protects these tenants from new eviction actions for nonpayment of rent and from fees related to such nonpayment.

However, this doesn’t protect against eviction proceedings in progress before President Donald Trump signed the CARES Act on March 27. 

Can my landlord still raise the rent? 

Yes. That is the way the rental market works, amidst a health pandemic or not.  Massachusetts landlords, however, must provide written notices of any rent increase ahead of a lease ending, and tenants must have time to consider and to sign into agreement any increase. The rent cannot go up during a lease, either. 

Furthermore, tenants do not have a right to a lease renewal or other extension, amidst the coronavirus or not. Landlords hold the right to raise rent for pretty much any reason at the end of a lease (except in retaliation for taking action because of a lack of repairs or other rights violations). Additionally, there is no rent control in Massachusetts (as of right now).

Large Percentage of Boston Residents Struggled with Housing Costs in April

According to recent reports, nearly 1 in 4 tenant and owner households had trouble making the rent or the mortgage at the start of April. Although it is impossible to report the exact number of tenants and owners struggling to meet rent this month, studies found that at least 24 percent of homeowners and tenants nationwide made partial or no payments at all. The economic upheaval of course is due to the coronavirus pandemic. 

In areas defined as “high density” (more than 10,000 people per square mile), 28 percent of people surveyed reported they made no or partial rent and mortgage payments for April. Boston density exceeds 13,000 people per square mile. The correlation between high density and late rent/mortgage payments might simply be a reflection of the densest areas tending to be the most expensive to live in. 

Although homeowners and tenants alike have been facing serious challenges amidst the coronavirus pandemic, they are getting support from major mortgage lenders and banks. Presently, at least a dozen major mortgage lenders have agreed to offer qualified Boston borrowers at least three months of deferred payments on their home loans under a plan that the city brokered. Furthermore, there have been numerous aid programs and funds made available for qualified tenants. Also, most evictions have stopped temporarily in Boston. 

Although rents and prices remained expensive in Boston, in the next coming weeks we might be seeing both come down at least temporarily. 

Massachusetts Extends Order Closing Non-Essential Businesses

Governor Charlie Baker on Tuesday March 31st extended the order requiring all non-essential businesses with physical locations to stay closed, in an attempt to slow the spread of the coronavirus. The original order, which began a week ago on March 24, was set to expire at noon on April 7. The new order goes until May 4.

Additionally, Baker said that he is extending the 10-person limit on gatherings until May 4. Baker reiterated that Massachusetts has been taking early and aggressive steps to slow the spread of the coronavirus, and that he must continue to protect the welfare of Massachusetts and our country.

Baker's announcement came shortly after President Trump extended the federal guidelines on social distancing for another month. The Massachusetts order does not apply to essential businesses, which include grocery stores, liquor stores, pharmacies, restaurants offering takeout and delivery, utility companies, Uber and Lyft drivers, and hospitals.

Furthermore, Baker said he would announce an updated list of businesses deemed essential. Among the changes are hotels and Airbnbs which should be used for limited purposes only. This includes housing front-line workers fighting the coronavirus and residents displaced from their home. He cautioned against booking hotels and Airbnbs for leisure purposes. Governor Baker also warned that he expects a surge of coronavirus patients to arrive as early as April 7.

Services provided by Premier Property Solutions, LLC and your associations vendors (Janitorial, Elevator, HVAC, Plumbing, Drain, Electrical, Roofing, Fire Alarm, Maintenance, Garage Door, Etc.,) can continue to conduct business in Massachusetts and are deemed essential services as listed by the emergency order.

Boston Mayer Halts Most Construction, Halting New Real Estate Developments

Due to fears of spreading the harmful Coronavirus (COVID-19), the Boston Planning and Development Agency has indefinitely postponed all public meetings discussing proposed development projects under review. Furthermore, Mayor Marty Walsh ordered all regular construction activity throughout Boston be suspended as of Tuesday, March 17. Developers and contractors will have a week to formally implement the suspension. 

The decision to postpone all project development meetings followed Walsh’s recommendations that any gatherings with 25 people or more people must be postponed or canceled. Governor Charlie Baker issued a ban on large gatherings statewide on March 15^th. The BPDA’s move to halt all project development meetings, essentially stops the development-review process for the city, as the agency reviews most projects before they can undergo construction. The BPDA’s monthly board meetings asses project based on their potential effects on the environment, transportation, and the overall public. 

Walsh’s construction suspension will stop work for at least 2 weeks on projects that are already underway, impacting numerous project developers and construction workers. Boston has been in the process of a construction boom, which has added thousands of condos, apartments, and hotels throughout the city.

Boston-area Home Prices are Increasing at the Start of 2020

It appears that the much anticipated buyer's market for Boston in 2020 is not here yet. Newly released data reveals that prices rose in the Boston-area in January, as well as sales, amidst a stagnant supply that is nowhere near keeping up with demand. 

According to data published by the Greater Boston Association of Realtors, the median single-family home and condo sales set records in the month of January. The median detached single-family sales price was $605,000, up 2.7 percent from January 2019; and the median condo price was $577,500, up 2.2 percent. 

Despite the continuous increase in prices, the Boston housing market continues to favor the sellers, as sales are increasing annually. A relatively mild winter and lowered mortgage rates were strong contributing factors to such high sale increases. 

Furthermore, the supply of available homes continues to dwindle. The number of active single-family listings was down 32.1 percent annually in January, and the number of new listings for the month were down 18 percent. For condos, the number of active listings was down 19.1 percent and new ones were down 8.8 percent.

With inventory so low, buyers are essentially competing with many others for a limited supply of real estate on the market, which is driving prices up. Thus, Boston continues to be a seller's market, for the time being. 

Increasing Rent Hikes in Boston Could Slow Down in 2020

For years Boston rents have been highly increasing, and have presently reached a point where even $4,000 a month is hardly enough to lease a unit in the high-end Boston market.

High-end market units close to Boston, with many more expected to come online this year, currently boast monthly rents ranging from $5,000 to just over $10,000. The average rent in Greater Boston for the last quarter of 2019 was $2,349 in all apartment categories — that’s up from $2,223 the prior year and $2,117 in 2017.

It’s the fourth-highest average rent nationwide, behind New York ($3,599), San Francisco ($3,153), and San Jose ($2,630).

Market experts predict that Boston-area rents will continue to rise in 2020. However, the flood of new units set to come online this year is expected to ease the price increases. Most likely, the increase in newly constructed units will help slow rent increases in older units. 

Average rents in Greater Boston rose 4.2 percent over the course of the past year, compared with nearly 5 percent growth in 2018. Zillow anticipates a “slow, but steady increase” of 1.3 percent this year, 

Another great sign for renters is that there are more apartment listings than there were at this time last year, and it’s taking longer to rent them.

This is a drastic change from recent years, when the rental inventory, especially for midrange units, has been tight and highly competitive. Greater Boston ended the year with an average rental vacancy rate of 5 percent, slightly higher than the national average of 4.7 percent.