Housing Headlines

BROOKLINE --- The town select board has signed off on a two-part proposal which would rezone Harvard Street and the town’s existing multi-family districts. The plan is meant to comply with the state’s MBTA Communities Act. Town planners say it would lead to the construction of around 800 new housing units, 120 of which would be affordable. It now heads to a pre-Town Meeting review process before a likely final vote by Town Meeting in November or December.

BOSTON --- Last year, the East Boston Community Development Corp. bought 36 triple-deckers with 114 units of housing in East Boston, a $47 million transaction that illustrates how a partnership between the public sector, nonprofit organizations, and the private sector can secure housing. Housing advocates state that this kind of partnership can be replicated throughout the state.

REGION --- A Metropolitan Area Planning Council study states that there are more than 3,000 strip malls — roughly 14 square miles of them — across Greater Boston and many are “underutilized, underperforming or obsolete and they’d be ideal for helping solve the region’s housing crisis. The council estimates Eastern Massachusetts will need roughly 140,000 new multifamily housing units by 2030. If only 10% of those old malls were rebuilt to add housing, 125,000 units could be created.

STATE --- Massachusetts home prices hit a new record for the month of July, clearing $600,000 for the median single-family home, according to data released by the Warren Group and Massachusetts Association of Realtors. Monthly closed sales dipped in July for the first time in four months, reversing a slightly positive trend at the start of the summer. High interest rates continue to be a large factor in the subdued market, said MAR Treasurer Jim Major.

CHARLESTOWN --- The first phase of what will be a more than $1.4 billion, decade-long overhaul at Charlestown's Bunker Hill public housing complex is underway. The plan calls for 2,699 apartments in 15 buildings — a combination of deeply affordable units and another 1,689 market-rate units, 7 acres of open space, new commercial space, and a community center. (Another 100 replacement units will be built elsewhere in Charlestown.) Crucially, the market-rate and affordable units will be mixed together, with no physical distinctions between them.

BEDFORD --- The deadline to apply for an affordable home opportunity in Bedford is Monday, August 21. The purchase price for the 3-bedroom home is $252,000, which is set to be affordable for eligible buyers at or below 60 percent of the Area Median Income. Contact Lara Plaskon at lara@rhsohousing.org for more information.