I wonder if The Hamilton Companies will decline even further now that the founder is gone? I've seldom seen a less responsive management company. They seem to rely on the constant influx of new people to Boston to maintain their operation... I can't imagine their reputation wouldn't sink them in a market with less constant turnover...
I will grant that he was not a completely heartless human being, which distinguishes him slightly from the Wall St. vampires who completely destroyed people's lives. He was content to profit by making people miserable and frustrated until they moved on.
Any obituary that omits his remarkably ham handed attempts to co-opt tenant unions in the '80's, his federal conviction for attempting to bribe a City Councilor, and other sleazy tactics to maintain his empire shortchanges his complex legacy.
So yeah, just another capitalist landlord, whose obituary will whitewash his true nature.
In the late 80s, I was dating a girl whose mom was a loan officer at a small to mid sized bank. She came from humble beginnings. Once, over dinner, she related the tale of Harold Brown in tears in her office because he was going to lose some of his rental properties. She very curtly (as she told the tale) reminded him that at the end of the day, he will have a place to sleep, so perhaps he could cry a bit less.
There are good landlords and bad landlords. Brown's reputation from the 80s puts him squarely in the latter category.
in the 1970s, and I thought they were a good landlord. The rent was reasonable, the buildings were kept clean, they managed the snow well (shoveled it, salted the sidewalks), responded promptly to problems, and returned our security deposit promptly. Too bad he died.
Comments
Ugh...
I wonder if The Hamilton Companies will decline even further now that the founder is gone? I've seldom seen a less responsive management company. They seem to rely on the constant influx of new people to Boston to maintain their operation... I can't imagine their reputation wouldn't sink them in a market with less constant turnover...
Wow
Talk about a sanitized obituary. this guy was a notorious slum lord and served time in prison.
Wherever he is now, do you
Wherever he is now, do you think heat and hot water will be included?
Heat, yes.
Water - that could be extra.
Heat. Lots of heat. I would
Heat. Lots of heat. I would guess too much.
Not the worst, but the biggest...
I will grant that he was not a completely heartless human being, which distinguishes him slightly from the Wall St. vampires who completely destroyed people's lives. He was content to profit by making people miserable and frustrated until they moved on.
Any obituary that omits his remarkably ham handed attempts to co-opt tenant unions in the '80's, his federal conviction for attempting to bribe a City Councilor, and other sleazy tactics to maintain his empire shortchanges his complex legacy.
So yeah, just another capitalist landlord, whose obituary will whitewash his true nature.
I have a degree of separation from the man
In the late 80s, I was dating a girl whose mom was a loan officer at a small to mid sized bank. She came from humble beginnings. Once, over dinner, she related the tale of Harold Brown in tears in her office because he was going to lose some of his rental properties. She very curtly (as she told the tale) reminded him that at the end of the day, he will have a place to sleep, so perhaps he could cry a bit less.
There are good landlords and bad landlords. Brown's reputation from the 80s puts him squarely in the latter category.
For those who weren't living in Boston in 1985
This is an archived article from NYT 1985.
https://www.nytimes.com/1985/09/19/us/major-landlord-indicted-in-boston....
Allston-Brighton Paper 1986
http://www.bahistory.org/Newspapers/News_Citiz_19860620.pdf
I want 8% Annual Interest on
I want 8% Annual Interest on my 18 month CDI .
: Coolidge Bank, ,
From your link , sweet corn !
On the other hand
Mortgage rates in 1985 were around 11 percent. No free lunch.
https://www.infoplease.com/business-finance/us-economy-and-federal-budge...
I rented an apartment from Hamilton Realty
in the 1970s, and I thought they were a good landlord. The rent was reasonable, the buildings were kept clean, they managed the snow well (shoveled it, salted the sidewalks), responded promptly to problems, and returned our security deposit promptly. Too bad he died.