Housing Headlines

WAREHAM --- Faced with the prospect of having their mobile home park bought by national investors, the senior residents of the Royal Crest mobile home park fought back, using the state's Right of First Refusal statute to form a cooperative and buy their mobile park for $12.1 million. Support for their bid came from the Cooperative Development Institute, which helps support efforts to turn housing parks into cooperatives. Additional support came from from private lenders, state funds and ROC USA Capital.

Massachusetts workers, flocking to southern New Hampshire to take advantage of its relatively affordable home prices, have helped jack up the Granite State housing market, pushing demand to previously unseen levels. According to the city of Nashua’s July housing market report, the median sale price for a single-family home jumped to $440,000. The inventory of homes in Nashua dropped almost 15% from June to July. And most of the home sales during that time exceeded the list price.

HADLEY — The Select Board plans to issue a letter supporting Valley Community Development’s interest in converting the EconoLodge hotel on Route 9 into a 51-unit affordable housing complex will be issued by the Select Board. The 63-room hotel at 329 Russell St. would be converted into a mix of studio and one-bedroom apartments using a mix of state and federal funding.

REVERE --- In a vote described as a move to slow development, Revere City Council voted against mayor Brian Arrigo's inclusionary zoning proposal, another blow to residents who are feeling rising housing costs. The proposed ordinance could have been a turning point in Revere’s broader transformation, advocates say. Without it, they fear the building boom will continue to drive up rents and eventually force lower income tenants out.

POCASSET --- Cape Cod mobile homeowners are in a legal battle against Crown Communities, LLC, which owns and operates 17 other mobile home parks. Crown Communities is trying to buy the homeowners’ land in Pocasset and residents are fighting it. Both sides are scheduled for a August 15, court date at Barnstable Superior Court where Crown is suing both the homeowners association that formed to buy the mobile home park and the current owner, claiming that Crown is the rightful buyer.

BOSTON --- The Baker administration has pared back the multifamily zoning required of many communities along and around the MBTA system after smaller towns complained of a one-size-fits-all approach to interpreting a new housing law. Some communities had criticized the proposed “MBTA Communities” rules, which mandate new multifamily zoning in some 175 cities and towns across eastern Massachusetts, issued by the state Executive Office of Housing & Economic Development. They expressed fears of being overwhelmed by development that could cripple their waste water systems, roads, schools, or other critical municipal services. In the final rules issued Wednesday, the agency takes a more nuanced approach, particularly trimming requirements for smaller towns with no train stations.