Word: renting
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Since that time we have seen what may be the biggest urban real estate boom in American history, rents in places like Boston and Cambridge skyrocketing out of control as the white-flight trends of the 1970s and ’80s have reversed themselves and cities have become awash in college students, young professionals and wealthy middle-aged people looking for a shorter commute. With no more rent control, the Bay State has become the most expensive state in the country for renters...
...Cambridge, from 1993 to 2001 the going rent for a studio, one bedroom, two bedroom and three bedroom apartment in Cambridge increased 138, 123, 100 and 109 percent, respectively. That kind of price increase can only be described as profiteering, and I can guarantee you that it isn’t just elderly widows making all that cash. In fact, Harvard is making quite a bit. The Harvard Real Estate Services determines the price of its 2300 Harvard affiliate rental units based on the going rates of apartments in the Cambridge and Somerville area. While these apartments have not gone...
...college students looking for a cheap place to live are not the real victims of rent hikes though. If you venture outside the confines of Harvard Square and its beautiful surrounding neighborhoods, you’ll realize that Cambridge is for the most part, a lower income city. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development recommends that households spend no more than 25-30 percent of gross income on housing, but right now 78 percent of low-income Cambridge residents spend more than this income on rent, and 40 percent spend more than 75 percent of their income...
...thankfully a group of Cambridge residents have gathered the necessary signatures to bring restoring rent control up for a vote next Tuesday, Nov. 4. It is a diverse group pushing for limits on real estate profiteering—from renters sick of seeing their own rents increase boundlessly to homeowners tired of watching their neighbors and friends having to move away, only to be replaced by outsiders willing to pay exorbitant prices...
...this time the powers that be in the Massachusetts real estate world will not be able to march out the token small-time property owner who might otherwise be unable to afford proper upkeep if rent control is reestablished. Owner occupied buildings of three or fewer residences would be completely exempt from rent control under the new law, and owners with six or fewer units could file for exemptions if they have trouble meeting maintenance costs. Therefore, only those people wealthy enough to own large properties will have to take a cut in their enormous profits. It doesn?...