Accurate Court Data Shows The “Eviction Crisis” Is A Fallacy You may have noticed the featured article in Sunday’s Boston Globe Magazine on the supposed “eviction crisis” in Massachusetts. Titled “As rents soar in Boston, low-income tenants try to stave off eviction,” investigative reporter Jenifer McKim cited inaccurate court statistics to create the false narrative that thousands of innocent tenants are being thrown out on the street by greedy landlords. Using this fallacy,…

Rent Escrow, Security Deposit Reform, and Elderly Housing Legislation Filed By Trade Group Historically, Massachusetts rental property owners have struggled to overcome the coordinated and organized political lobbying of tenant rights and rent control groups at the State House. I remember just a few years ago I testified on Beacon Hill for the rent escrow bill against a small army of tenant advocates. That is now changing in a big way. Previously splintered across many…

Bumpy Ride Ahead — Expect Some Delays For Certain Loans I asked my friend David Gaffin, Senior Mortgage Banker and Branch Manager at Fairway Mortgage – Hudson (DGaffin@fairwaymc.com), whether and to what extent the federal government shutdown is affecting real estate closings in Massachusetts. Here’s what he has to say. Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac Loans — Mixed Bag on Impact/Delays In general, the shutdown doesn’t impact loan processing at these agencies because…

Bumpy Ride Ahead — Expect Some Delays For Certain Loans I asked my friend David Gaffin, Senior Mortgage Banker and Branch Manager at Fairway Mortgage – Hudson (DGaffin@fairwaymc.com), whether and to what extent the federal government shutdown is affecting real estate closings in Massachusetts. Here’s what he has to say. Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac Loans — Mixed Bag on Impact/Delays In general, the shutdown doesn’t impact loan processing at these agencies because…

New Occupancy Tax, Statewide Registry, Insurance Requirements, and Inspections At the very end of 2018 without much fanfare, Governor Baker signed into law a bill regulating and taxing short-term rentals. The new law provides for new taxes, a statewide registry, insurance requirements, and inspections varying by town/city. It becomes effective on July 1, 2019. Overview of RequirementsThe new law expands the state’s hotel and motel tax to include the short-term rental of homes (condominiums, single…

Attorney General Healy Announces Indictments Against Allen Seymour and Ex-Wife As I’ve written here before, I have been representing three families victimized by convicted felon, Allen Seymour, in a brazen complex real estate forgery scam. As a result of the courageous testimony from my clients, I’m happy to report that a statewide Grand Jury has just handed down a 22 count indictment against Seymour on charges of forgery, uttering, larceny, and money laundering. Seymour’s…