Plaistow Police, Fire Marshal’s Office Arrest Man Alleged to Be Connected with Condo Explosion (MA)

A 40-year-old Plaistow, N.H., man was arrested yesterday in connection with an explosion at a Westville Road condominium complex last Nov. 10.  Derek John Blanchette was arrested and charged with alleged reckless conduct, use of a deadly weapon; endangering the welfare of a child; falsifying physical evidence; acts prohibited, involving ketamine; and acts prohibited, involving […]

Improperly filed easement could complicate Rockaway Annex condo development (MA)

An issue relating to the developer’s right to install a water line along an access easement on adjacent private property could delay the comprehensive permit process for the proposed 12-unit condominium development at 25 Ipswich Street in the Rockaway Annex neighborhood.    Read the article…………………………….

Fire Tears Through Multiple Units in Brewster (MA)

Crews responded to the end of Cherrywood Lane after police and firefighters discovered a fully involved condominium shortly after 1:00 a.m. this morning. About 75% of the structure was engulfed with flames. A second alarm was struck, bringing additional crews from surrounding towns, according to radio transmissions   Read the article…………………………….

Join the Somerville Condominium Review Board (MA)

The City of Somerville’s Condominium Review Board (CRB) seeks two new members.   The CRB is responsible for administering the City’s Condominium Conversion Ordinance, which governs proposed conversion of rental units to condominium units and substantial rehabilitation of existing rental units.    Read the article…………………………….

Condo Fire At Briarwood Closes Gifford Street (MA)

Falmouth Police Department closed Gifford Street to assist Falmouth Fire and Rescue Department as they dealt with a two-alarm structure fire in Briarwood Condos, Thursday, January 2. Reports of smoke rising between the Falmouth Service center and the skate park alerted emergency services to respond to the scene at 30 Pine Valley Drive. No injuries […]

This hidden mineral is crumbling thousands of home foundations across New England

In 2020, Karen Bilotti and her husband, Sam, started to notice fine lines in their basement’s concrete walls. Ordinarily, they might not have given them a second thought. But the Bilottis had recently heard about a growing group of nearby homeowners in Massachusetts with larger cracks in their foundations, and Sam began to worry.    […]

Two-alarm fire reported at Falmouth condo complex (MA)

Firefighters responded to the Briarwood Condos at 30 Pine Valley Drive in Falmouth sometime after 9:30 AM Thursday for a structure fire. Crews found heavy smoke showing on arrival. Gusty winds also proved a challenge as the fire went to two-alarms.   Read the article…………………………….

Cantabrigians forced to evacuate luxury condos face insurance denial, potential permanent loss (MA)

Riverview Condominium residents have been evacuating their homes speedily over the past month due to recently discovered structural issues in the building, including low concrete strength and corrosion. Now they face yet another challenge: home insurance companies denying their claims, and the looming potential of losing their homes permanently with no financial assistance in sight.  […]

Land & Waters Preservation Trust announces grant fund opportunity (MA)

Land & Waters Preservation Trust Endowment will be awarding up to $15,000 in grants to worthy projects in April.  Land & Waters Preservation Trust, administered by the Initiative Foundation, is a joint endowment of Whitefish Area Property Owners Association and the Pine River Watershed Alliance.  Read the article…………………………….

‘It’s Like Going Downtown In South Boston:’ Taylor’s Point Residents Feud Over Parking (MA)

Taylor’s Point residents are at odds over parking and have turned to the Bourne Select Board for support. Several residents attended the board’s meeting on Tuesday, December 3, to comment on a situation in which their neighbors, many of whom are seasonal homeowners, rent out their lawns for parking, particularly to Massachusetts Maritime Academy students.  […]

Town To Meet With Lookout Ridge Owners (MA)

The Lookout Ridge subdivision located off Great Hill Road has raised concerns with both residents and the town regarding drainage issues, the lack of a homeowner’s association and an unresponsive developer.    Read the article…………………………….

Buying a condo? There are concessions out there (MA)

Everyone loves a holiday giveaway, and savvy condo buyers can score one if they know what to ask for during sales negotiations.  Concessions around things like free rent are common in the Boston apartment market: Zillow reported nearly 30 percent of apartment listings in the city in October came with a freebie like waived parking […]

Small fire at Hyannis condo complex termed suspicious (MA)

A small fire was discovered at the Cromwell Court condos at 168 Barnstable Road shortly after 11 PM Saturday. An automatic alarm activation brought firefighters to building 9 where some cardboard boxes were found on fire and quickly extinguished. An investigation is underway into the incident. No injuries were reported.    Read the article…………………………….

‘One jackass ruins it’: Holiday decor fuels HOA fights (MA)

There are certain signs that the holidays are in full swing. The garlands will be hung, the halls will be decked, and attorney Mark S. Einhorn will field calls from homeowners associations facing lawsuit threats over holiday decor. Read the article…………………………….

Print Shop condo building is unusually run down after only 15 years, affordable trust acknowledges (MA)

Cambridge has been helping low- and moderate-income residents buy affordable homes for more than 30 years. Now many of those homes need extensive work, maintenance that’s too expensive for homeowners who remain lower-income. And some are looking for more city support to save their housing.  In October 2023, the city’s Affordable Housing Trust agreed to […]

Woman dies from injuries after fire at Stoughton condo complex (MA)

A woman has died after being injured in a fire last week in Stoughton, Massachusetts.  The fire broke out Thursday at a condominium complex on Greenbrook Drive. Crews airlifted the woman, who was in her 90s, to Massachusetts General Hospital.    Read the article…………………………….

Firefighters respond to blaze in Stoughton condo complex; medical helicopter called in (MA)

Firefighters responded to a fire in a condo complex in Stoughton, Massachusetts, on Thursday afternoon.  The fire was reported just before 2:30 p.m. at a condominium complex on Greenbrook Drive.  Aerial footage showed numerous fire engines and vehicles surrounding the building, though no smoke or fire was immediately visible.    Read the article…………………………….

Issues Piling Up At Lookout Ridge (MA)

In the time that residents have lived within the housing development, it seems that problems have begun to arise.  More so, until these issues within the subdivision are resolved, the homeowners cannot create a homeowner’s association, which has become a major concern for residents within the subdivision.  Homeowners associations are typically responsible for the care […]

Williamstown Select Board Talks Policy on Plowing Private Ways (MA)

The Select Board last week discussed a policy to guide decisions on whether to accept private ways for snow plowing by town personnel.  Actually, the town has an existing policy, and the Department of Public Works currently plows 10 private roads under that policy, which was enacted by the board in late 1980s.   Read the […]

Condo Owners’ Long Wait for Year-Round OK (MA)

Elaine Eliopoulos told the Truro Select Board on Sept. 10 that she and the other owners of the 13 residential units at the Anchorage on the Bay condominiums at 596 Shore Road had spent two years trying to get approvals from the town for the year-round occupancy of their units, to no avail.   Read the […]

Solve It 7: Condo Check (MA)

A group of Beverly condo owners were fed up when their finances were mishandled, so they demanded their money back. When that didn’t happen, they called Solve It 7.   Read the article…………………………….

Hate your HOA rules? There may be a way around them (MA)

Homeowners in subdivisions with HOAs are still required to pay dues for the services their association provides, such as trash collection, but controls on owner behavior — ones that prevent you from leaving your boat in the driveway, requiring your fence to be a certain height, breed restrictions on your pets, and limits on how […]

Stony Brook’s ‘abusive’ president removed from board (MA)

The allegations against the board president piled up over the years. Repair requests ignored. Phony court charges. Baseless eviction proceedings. Election rules violated. Surveillance. Harassment. Intimidation. Misuse of funds.  Read the article…………………………….Residents of Stony Brook Gardens Cooperative in Jamaica Plain expressed deep relief earlier this month after a judge ordered the development’s embattled board leader […]

Faulty concrete found in massive condo community in Boston suburbs (MA)

More crumbling concrete found in Massachusetts, and this time, it’s been discovered in a massive condo community not far from Boston.  Those who live there say it’s a warning sign for everyone in the state, and Beacon Hill must finally take action to help struggling homeowners financially.  The size of some cracks is frightening as […]

Condo Seeks Bar On Enforcement Of Corp. Transparency Act

A Boston condominium association has asked a federal judge to shield it and other Massachusetts condo boards from enforcement of an anti-money laundering measure, saying the requirement to submit personal information to a government database creates an undue and unnecessary burden on volunteer organizations.   Read the article (PDF)…………………………….

Fire damages condo in Falmouth (MA)

A fire was reported at a condo complex in Falmouth about 8:30 PM Friday. The fire at Megansett Shores on County Road reportedly started on a stove. Firefighters checked for possible fire extension to the attic. One person was evaluated by EMTs. Further details were not immediately available.    Read the article…………………………….

Farrwood Drive Developer Pays City $95,000 for Road Repairs, Says Owners Now Working Together (MA)

King H. Weinstein of Farrwood Drive Inc. told WHAV he worked only on several single-family lots and the Islington Crossing apartments, while responsibility has been confusing among the five or six older condominium associations representing 600 homes. He explained he has also sought street repairs, but the problem dates back decades before formal condominium rules.  […]

Condo fire in Wilbraham caused by potential lightening strike (MA)

Crews responded to a house fire on Cherry Drive in Wilbraham around 9 p.m. Thursday night that was potentially caused by a lightning strike.  When our Western Mass News crews arrived at the scene we could see some damage caused to the last unit of a 4-unit condo.   Read the article…………………………….

‘Are we going to end up homeless?’ Chelmsford condo complex facing condemnation (MA)

Thirty families could soon end up without a home after the town of Chelmsford, Massachusetts, found concerning structural damages at Milestone Condo.  Many of the residents of the building on Chelmsford Street are low-income families, seniors, and people with disabilities. They now face a seemingly impossible task: find over a million dollars for the repairs […]

For a condo board trustee, neighbors demand much time

Q: About a year ago, I got roped into joining the board of trustees at my condo association, which has been more demanding than I expected since we’re dealing with a number of pressing issues. Now, neighbors will stop me in the parking lot or laundry room with questions and complaints, or even knock on […]

Protecting your investment: Navigating the state’s rising home insurance premiums and risks (MA)

Five percent of Massachusetts homes aren’t insured, the Consumer Federation of America reported in March. With premiums expected to hit a record high in the United States this year, inflation driving up construction costs, and climate change ratcheting up the disaster risk, it’s surprising the number isn’t higher.   Read the article…………………………….

7 Investigates: Community in Crisis (MA)

The frustration is growing by the day among the residents of a condominium complex in Somerville.  An expanding homeless encampment under I-93 directly across from their lobby has become a chaotic scene over the past few months.  “I walk out here and there are people that shouldn’t be inside inside,” said Somerville resident Harish Rajaram.  […]

Manchester Community Center suing Harbor’s Point Association (MA)

The nonprofit Manchester Community Center is suing its landlord, Harbor’s Point Condominium Association, claiming the association engaged in unfair and deceptive trade practices.  The lawsuit, filed Feb. 20 in Essex Superior Court in Lawrence, seeks damages amounting to $1.3 million.  In the suit, the Community Center alleges Harbor’s Point forced the center to sign leases […]

Fannie Mae keeps a secret condo blacklist. Why? (MA)

Shortly after Nicholas Perricone bought his condo in the Financial District on June 30, 2022, he joined the building’s board of trustees. That’s when he began hearing stories of fellow owners who tried to sell their units only to have the deals fall apart at the loan office.    Read the article…………………………