Sometimes it just doesn't work out. Notables from the region's real estate scene sound off on which neighborhoods and/or buildings caused them to say it's not you, it's me.
Lara Gordon, a broker in Cambridge and Somerville: I work primarily in Cambridge and Somerville, and in the past couple years, I've noticed some of the more traditionally desirable neighborhoods are being eclipsed by the up-and-comers. I'm certainly not saying that Harvard Square or Davis are losing their appeal, but to some extent they've jumped the shark, while places like Area Four in Cambridge and East Somerville are becoming hotter by the day.
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David Bates, a Boston broker and our Bates By the Numbers columnist: Back Bay and Brookline. The lack of development in these awesome markets broke my heart.
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Jonathan Berk, real estate attorney, founder of the BuildingBOS blog and member of Boston's Onein3 Council: The Seaport and I are in a serious fight this year… but I hope to rekindle the flame at some point as the Seaport continues to develop. Right now, it feels like a missed opportunity to create a vibrant waterfront neighborhood similar to those that exist in Sydney and Vancouver. With only 461 new condo units planned over the next two years… lack of availability for workers to plant roots as residents may have negative impacts on the neighborhood's future sustainability.
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Nick Warren, president and CEO of Warren Residential: 22 Liberty in the Seaport, but just because I'm a broker. The building is gorgeous and the views are amazing but they won't allow any of us to bring our buyers there. I guess you can't say I'm breaking up with them, though, since we never even went on a first date!
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John A. Keith, a Boston broker: We moved to the Seaport (the SBW Seaport) in August from the South End. So, in a way, we broke up with the South End. It was amicable; we loved it there but the hot (HOT) real estate market made us an offer we couldn't refuse, so we sold (we bought in 2006), took the profit, and ran. I'm not so sure yet whether I like my new lover more than my old one—the lack of convenient public transportation in the Seaport has been a problem difficult to overcome. While I can deal with it (since I don't have a set schedule), my roommate's daily commute time has doubled—from 20 to 45 minutes. There's a nine minute walk followed by a wait for a #9 bus that's not over-filled, followed by a trip on the #39. Not pleasant.
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Paul McMorrow, Boston Globe op-ed columnist and CommonWealth magazine associate editor: I break up with that stupid Walgreens in Downtown Crossing twice a day. Biggest waste of real estate in the city. Never Forget.
And you? Which neighborhood or development did you break up with in 2014? Let us know in the comments section or through the always-discreet Curbed Boston Tipline.
· Our the Year in Curbed Boston archive [Curbed Boston]
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