Page 4 - New England Condominium April 2022

4 NEW ENGLAND CONDOMINIUM
-APRIL 2022
NEWENGLANDCONDO.COM
Industry Pulse
Events
IREM Holds Virtual Installation
The Boston Chapter of the Institute of
Real Estate Management (IREM) will hold
its Governmental Legislative Meeting, new
members installation, and update on leg-
islative issues from 11:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
on Wednesday, April 13 via Zoom. Keynote
speaker will be Ted Thurn, IREM Senior Di-
rector, Government Affairs. For details, visit
www.iremboston.org.
CAI Holds Community Conversations
The Community Associations Institute
(CAI) will hold its quarterly Community
Conversation virtually at 2:00 p.m. on April
13. Held quarterly in collaboration with CAI
chapters, this conversation is led by commu-
nity association leaders and industry experts.
Join us and find solutions to create a powerful
and positive impact on the community asso-
ciations you serve.
Free to all members (advanced registra-
tion required). Non-members: $25 each.
Visit www.caionline.org for details.
BOMA Plans Benefit Event
The Boston Chapter of Building Own-
ers and Managers Association (BOMA) will
hold its Annual Benefit to support Bridge
Over Troubled Waters, Boston’s foremost
agency providing life-changing services for
homeless, runaway, and at-risk youth, on
Thursday, April 7, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at
City Winery, 80 Beverly Street, Boston. The
event includes a festive cocktail soiree, music,
and raffle prizes. For details visit www.boma-
boston.org.
Law & Legislation
NH Program to Help Struggling
Homeowners
A new federally funded program will pro-
vide relief to eligible homeowners struggling
to pay their mortgage, property taxes, utility
bills, and other costs during the coronavirus
pandemic, New Hampshire authorities an-
nounced last month.
The New Hampshire Homeowner As-
sistance Fund will offer assistance for delin-
quent mortgage payments, property taxes,
homeowner insurance and condominium
fees, and utility payments, the Associated
Press reported.
According
to
the
state’s
website
(www.homehelpnh.org), to be eligible,
homeowners must:
• Have experienced a COVID related re-
duction in income or increase in household
expense after January 21, 2020.
• Own and occupy the property as their
primary residence.
• Have incomes of less than 125% of Area
Median Income.
The Homeowner Assistance Fund covers
mortgage loan reinstatement with a maxi-
mum benefit of $20,000; property charges
default resolution, maximum benefit of
$20,000; and utility/internet payment assis-
tance, maximum benefit $3,000. The total
assistance per household is $20,000 for all
programs combined.
Applications are being accepted, and ini-
tial payments to providers were anticipated
by late March. The program, established
through the Governor’s Office for Emer-
gency Relief and Recovery in partnership
with the New Hampshire Housing Finance
Authority, is expected to be available through
at least 2022.
Similar Homeowner Assistance Fund
(HAF) programs have previously been estab-
lished in Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
CT Airs “Right to Charge” Bill
Connecticut
environmental
officials
are pushing for legislation that would grant
condo owners and renters the right to install
their own car chargers, part of a broader ef-
fort to dramatically expand the state’s electric
vehicle charging infrastructure, according to
the
Energy News Network (ENN)
.
The so-called right-to-charge legislation
would prevent condominium and home-
owners’ associations and landlords from pro-
hibiting or “unreasonably” restricting resi-
dents who have a designated parking space
from installing charging equipment.
Under the law, individual residents would
be responsible for paying all of the costs as-
sociated with the purchase and installation of
a charger, which can easily exceed $1,000. A
state incentive program (the Electric Vehicle
Charging Program) launched in January,
however, could help defray the expense.
Under that program, homeowners can
receive rebates of up to $500 for a Level 2
charger, as well as up to $500 for any electrical
upgrades that might be needed. Participants
can also receive additional credits for charg-
ing their vehicles in off-peak hours under
demand response programs administered
by Eversource and United Illuminating, the
ENN
reported.
In testimony submitted to the legisla-
ture, state Department of Energy and Envi-
ronmental Protection Commissioner Katie
Dykes said, “A right-to-charge law will help
ensure that the opportunities available to
single-family home dwellers to own electric
vehicles and participate in demand response
programs are also available to those who live
in multi-unit dwellings.”
However, at a recent public hearing on
the Connecticut bill, organizations represent-
ing condominium associations and landlords
opposed the measure, saying it is a “one size
fits all” approach to housing developments
that vary widely in size, layout, infrastruc-
ture, and parking availability.
According to the
ENN
report, Karl Kue-
gler, Jr., director of community association
management for Imagineers LLC, which
manages about 200 common interest com-
munities in Connecticut, said at the hearing
that many of the standalone garages with
multiple bays commonly found at these com-
plexes “have barely enough electricity to sup-
ply the lighting and a couple of utility outlets
within the building.”
“Right-to-charge” language is also includ-
ed in Senate Bill 4, a comprehensive package
that includes a host of measures to drive elec-
tric vehicle adoption, including expanding
the state electric vehicle rebate program, and
setting goals to electrify all school buses and
state-owned vehicles, according to
ENN.
Real Estate &
Development
Vermont Home Prices Soar
During Pandemic
The median price of a home in Vermont
rose by 19% during the pandemic, accord-
ing to data from the Vermont Department
of Taxes. In a March report, the department
said the median Vermont home sold for
$270,000 in 2021, up from $245,000 in 2020,
and $227,500 in 2019.
“This is the largest home price increase
seen since 2005,” Mia Watson of the nonprof-
it Vermont Housing Finance Agency said
on the agency’s website. While 19% was the
state average, Caledonia, Lamoille, and Essex
counties saw price growth stats of 35%, 33%,
and 31%, respectively.
The prices in the report are for homes of
“primary residence,” which includes single
family, condominium, and mobile homes,
but excludes vacation homes. Prices are not
adjusted for inflation.
Meanwhile, the state’s Department of Fi-
nance and Management predicted in a new
report that Vermont housing prices will con-
tinue to surge by more than 10% in 2022,
and will likely continue to increase by 8.9%
in 2023.
Boston Hot Spots: Parking
A Boston couple was offered as much as
$750,000 for one of their valet parking spots
when they prepared to sell their condomini-
um, the
Wall Street Journal
reported.
The
Journal
said that Douglas Reeves,
68, and Amy Reeves, 59, are listing their
4,000-square-foot condo — which boasts
four bedrooms and dazzling views of the
Charles River and Public Garden — for $10.5
million. City assessing records show the
Reeves’ condo at 100 Beacon St. has an as-
sessed value of $6.8 million.
According to the
Journal,
the residence
includes two covered valet parking spaces,
and Amy Reeves told the paper they’ve re-
fused offers from potential buyers offering up
to $750,000 for just one space.
High-priced parking spaces are not un-
usual in the city. The
Boston Globe
reported
in September that Campion and Company, a
Boston real estate firm, had listed a parking
space on West Brookline St. for $375,000, and
in 2015, a garage parking spot on Beacon Hill
was listed for $650,000. In 2013, a pair of tan-
dem spaces behind 298 Commonwealth Ave.
sold for $560,000.
Senior Cohousing Planned in Littleton, MA
Nauset Construction has broken ground
and foundation work is now underway for
Hager Homestead, a five-building, 24-unit,
55+ cohousing development that will be built
in two phases in Littleton, Massachusetts, ac-
cording to a press release. Located on a 15-
acre site, the new community will be the first
cohousing development for seniors in New
England.
“Many seniors are looking for a down-
sized, community-oriented, environmen-
tally friendly lifestyle, and that’s what Hager
Homestead will provide,” said Matthew
Blackham of Massachusetts Cohousing,
LLC, which is developing the project in con-
junction with the residents of the commu-
nity. Cohousing consists of privately-owned
homes clustered around shared open space
and a common house with shared amenities.
“We’re offering a purposefully designed com-
munity where everyone has a say, and where
residents can connect with one another to
create a real community.”
Designed by Concord, New Hampshire-
based Sheldon Pennoyer Architects, the
project centers around a historic, three-story,
2,500-square-foot farmhouse built in 1795
in the Federal style. The building, which fea-
tures several original masonry fireplaces, will
be re-imagined as the Hager Homestead’s
Common House, and serve as the social cen-
ter for the community.
Hager Homestead will also feature 12
acres of open space—which will be protected
in perpetuity by a conservation restriction—
consisting of a meadow, a pond, and wetlands
bounded by Beaver Brook. A walking path
at the rear of the property will also be des-
ignated as a public amenity for the residents
of Littleton. Eighty percent of the total acre-
age of the development will be green, open
space.
n
PULSE
Please submit Pulse items to
Pat Gale at
patgale@yrinc.com