2019 Remained Tight With a Low Number of Property Sales, and a High Price-Per-Square-Foot Average
Key Takeaways:
Market in 2019 remained tight with few properties turning over
The average price per-square-foot fell in 2019, due to 2018’s banner year
Private sale of 50 Greenough Street shows how sellers can obtain a high price without formally listing the property on the MLS
Market Insight: 2019 proved to be another tight year for Brookline multi-family housing – in fact, there was a 2.91% turnover in the three-family market. That constituted a total of 12 sales – with two of the higher priced sales having an abundance of land and intentionally omitted from my report. Those sales – 12 Harris Street and 157 Babcock Street clocked in at $3.1mm and $2.825mm, respectively.
In 2019, there were two property sales that demonstrate how a private sale (a sale that is not MLS-listed) can be both an effective and ineffective way of selling a property.
50 Greenough Street property made my three-family report as the highest price per-square-foot sale in Brookline of 2019. I put the deal together by matching a buyer and seller in my network. The property sold for $615 per-square-foot – showing that with the right broker, you can obtain a high price for your property when selling your property privately. Selling your property privately is part of my ‘Value Maximizer’ program for sellers.
On the other side of the private-sale story is 501 Boylston Street. This three-family property contains 7,431 square feet of living area and sold off-market for $2,150,000. Even with the negatives, such as extensive rehab work needed, a less than-desirable location on Route 9, and the positive of it being brick/masonry construction, the asset traded below $300 per-square-foot, ($289 technically). This appears to be a good buy.
Other noteworthy sales include the asset at 524 Harvard Street, which sold twice, (once privately), then traded again later in the year.
Outlook For 2020: With a passed override (Driscoll School), 2020 will be the year that some landlords will see an increase in property taxes again. There are pages and opinions that can be written about the long-term, quality-of-life impacts an override has on a submarket such as Brookline. However, the bottom-line for multi-family owners and the immediate news is clear: their property taxes will rise. For landlords who already receive a low return-on-equity, now may be the time to consider selling and reinvesting proceeds in areas that will provide a better return. My ‘Free Cash Flow’ program allows multi-family real estate owners the ability to convert equity into income, which works best in markets like Brookline.
In Brookline in 2019, investor-sellers paid an estimated $4,063,725 in capital gains taxes to the Federal Government. For creative strategies to defer taxes and build generational wealth, please see my ‘Free Cash Flow’ Program for sellers.
Please make sure to check out my market reports in Cambridge, Somerville, Everett, Medford, Malden, Watertown and Quincy. If are interested in selling, please check out my ‘Demand Driver’ or ‘Value Maximizer’ Programs for multi-family sellers or call/text me at 617 272 5440.
