LuxBeat Local Real Estate Professionals discuss rumors, facts and opinions on Luxury Real Estate in Boston, MA and Providence, RI

Exciting condo Auction at Audobon Condos at 16 Miner St. in Boston, MA.

For more info:

http://www.luxuryboston.com/Audobon-Condo-Auction-Condos

20 Brimmer Street on the flat of Beacon Hill in Boston is going to auction.  Please visit —–>20 Brimmer Street Auction<------ for pictures and more information.

Luxury Residential Group is pleased to announce the hire of Laura M. Levin.  Laura is currently attending Harvard Business School and recently graduated from the Swiss Finance Academy in ’08 and Georgetown in ’07. Laura will be focusing on luxury apartment rentals and condo sales throughout Boston, MA and Cambridge, MA.

Thought I would just vent a little on the blog here.  If you own a real estate company and depend heavily on Condo Sales, you might as well lock up your doors or downsize fast.  The total number of Condo sales over the first 6 months in and around Boston is down 30% to 70% depending on the neighborhood. Yes, 30% to 70%!!!!! Otis, Coldwell, Sotheby’s, look out below.

One of Boston’s premier office towers, The John Hancock Tower was foreclosed on.  Bet you did not know that. It recently sold at auction in New York City for $660 million. That is half of the $1.3 BILLION dollar price tag it sold for 2 years ago.

Beautiful Mandarin Boston Rental Listing – Located at 776 Boylston Street in Boston’s prestigious Back Bay and attached to some of the highest end shopping and restaurants in New England, this stunning 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom unit sits on the 10th floor of the exclusive residence tower. Unit Features:
– 1,860 Square feet of living space
– Hotel services
– Juliet balconies
– Chef’s kitchen
– 5 piece master bathroom
– Enormous walk-in closet
– Gas fireplace
– Recessed lighting
– 1 Valet, Garage parking space
– In unit washer/dryer
– Wine Fridge
– Brazilian Cherry Hardwood Flooring
– 24/7 Concierge and security
Price: $10,200/month(Gas, A/C, heat, hot water, and parking included)

I had the chance to visit the W Residences(<-----floorplans) sales office this week. I was very impressed with the finishes(Dark Bamboo flooring, granite/stone countertops, double sinks, soaking tub, granite countertops, and beautiful floor to ceiling windows).  The pricing was a bit steep but with new construction costs, it is tough to price anything reasonably. On the rear of the building, facing the South End, pricing starts in the $800/foot range.  On the front however, we are looking at pricing in the range of $1,050(Lower Floors) up to $1,500 for the beautiful penthouses.  Your 2 bedroom, front facing entry point is $1,375,000 and quickly moves to $2,000,000+ as you move to higher floors. The building will be spectacular with its hotel services, spa, gym, valet parking, bars, lounges and fine dining. I will be looking forward to seeing how sales go in this challenging time and poor lending environment.

Due to the rough economy, some luxury condo seller’s are resorting to renting their units out in order to stop the proverbial bleeding. Rather than making money, some owners are willing to let their Ultra Luxury Condos rent for prices that put then at a HUGE loss per month.  In most cases, owners are unable to recoup more than 50-60% of their carrying costs.  This is shown by some of the recent rentals at The Mandarin Oriental, One Charles and The Ritz Carlton. Units that were on the sales market for $2.5 to $3.5 million dollars are now renting, in some cases, between $5,500 and $8,000.  I will let you do that math but keep in mind, the condo fees alone, in most of these buildings, are $1.00 to $1.75/square foot. The deals are out there, you just need to find the right agent to dig them up for you.