condos

The perils of condo life

adamg — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 14:29:15 -0400

Ms. Bart sits on her condo board and her report on recent issues is like something out of Del Boca Vista, phase II:

... When I took out the trash on Sunday afternoon, I saw a bag dead center on top of the dumpster. I tried to climb up to toss it in the trash, but the dumpster was wet with rain. My neighbor (and employee of the management company) Wally got the bag down. Rather than toss it immediately into the dumpster, he opened it to see if the owner could be ascertained. (Our dumpster isn't exactly difficult to use. It's got sliding doors about four feet off the ground and is in excellent repair. This improper disposal was on purpose.) Well, the trash had unshredded paperwork in it. The trash belonged to Captain Recycle, a rabblerouser who once ordered a giant recycling dumpster for the community without asking anyone. His fiancee performed a 'go recycling - let's save the Earth' cheer at our last annual owner's meeting. He purposely, improperly dumped his garbage (in a manner that could have resulted in trash all over our communal gardens) AND HE DIDN'T RECYCLE!!!!! ...

Today's most pretentious address

adamg — Sun, 27 Nov 2005 08:40:20 -0500

No, it's not Louisburg Square or some place in the Back Bay or EaBo. Presenting: XII Stoneholm Street (The building before it got all Roman-numeralish).

Via John.

Dueling condo buildings

adamg — Thu, 17 Nov 2005 07:50:51 -0500

It's a condo cat fight on the South Boston waterfront!

881 E. First St. doesn't like 9 W. Broadway:

... If you like Ct. Sq. Press/ 9 West Broadway but don't like the high price (or paying for a big advertising budget), the high common fees (& paying for a concierge you might never need or use), having to ante up $38K for parking (& having to wait going years to get it) and want a loft that is really in the Seaport (and not at the end of West Broadway's less than desirable neighborhood), then come visit us at 881. We're cooler. They're not and we know it! ...

9 W. Broadway (in the form of bloggin' Realtor John, who lives there), returns fire:

... Our condo fees are higher than the typical South End / South Boston condos, because our fees include the concierge, daily common area cleaning and trash removal, maintenance of a landscaped courtyard, and a fitness center. Plus, the fees cover most of our heat and hot water charges (and covers the cost of natural gas for cooking).

"West Broadway's less than desirable neighborhood"? Um, this is the neighborhood that the Boston Globe called "Boston's hottest". Your building is in a neighborhood ripe for what they used to call "urban renewal".

Wait, you didn't hear what I just said? That's because there are planes landing less than a 1/4 of a mile from your building, and they are reversing their engines as they land from 5:30 AM to midnight, seven days a week, 52 weeks a year. ...

Meow!

Why not more condos?

adamg — Tue, 04 Oct 2005 08:05:19 -0400

John says that while 5,000 new condos in Boston sounds like a lot, Miami has 61,000 planned:

... To many people, the limited number of new buildings is a good thing; to others, perhaps those looking for a cheap, nice place to live, the lack of inventory is keeping prices too high to buy. ...

Most expensive condos in Boston

adamg — Wed, 27 Apr 2005 12:01:35 -0400

John, a real-estate agent, compiles the list, which tops off at a scosh under $14 MILLON (and it's not even in EaBo, although it does come with a washer/dryer).