Spotlight On: Greg Vasil, President & CEO, Greater Boston Real Estate Board

Spotlight On: Greg Vasil, President & CEO, Greater Boston Real Estate Board

3 min read December 2022 — Founded in 1889, Greater Boston Real Estate Board (GBREB) is the oldest real estate trade association in America, representing over 10,000 real estate professionals today. Invest: spoke with Greg Vasil, president & CEO, about the association’s highlights over the past year, how interest rate hikes are affecting business and the challenges the real estate sector is facing.

What have been the highlights for you and your team in the past year?

We’re the oldest real estate trade association in the United States that has both residential and commercial under one roof. Coming out of the pandemic and from a virtual world back to regular events has been immense. These are impressive times. We’ve seen development, low rates and buildings trading in higher numbers. And once rates increased, everything changed. We’ve always speculated; what could potentially change the construction boom in Boston. Nobody would have anticipated the pandemic followed by high-interest rates and inflation.

Has there been any significant shift in clients’ service demands in the last 12 months?

In the last 12 months, it’s been getting closer to normal. But from 2020 to the end of 2021, it was a total change in virtual programming and communication; more electronic communication than we were used to. We found it to be effective, however, members found it to be lacking. They needed that interpersonal contact — to be able to get together, network and talk about deals. For instance, if you’re on Zoom, you can’t post somebody to the side to converse about projects, or you’re in a chat room, and you’ll be extra cautious or worried about who else can eavesdrop.

How has the interest rate hike impacted Boston’s housing market?

It’s fascinating because we find ourselves at a time when Boston has a housing shortage. Housing is vital because companies can’t grow and develop if their workers don’t have a place to live or if every place where the workers are going to live costs so much that the companies have to pay more in salaries. There’s a shortfall in qualified staff. We’ve seen companies and the workforce having to pay more and later increase it because of rent. Factor that with inflation, the cost of production of both commercial and residential and the fact that we have several commercial spaces in the virtual workplace.

There is lots of uncertainty and speculation about turning some of the commercial buildings into housing. Some of the older buildings in Boston can be turned but there’s a lot involved. And if it could be redone, at what price do they retail? For instance, if you have a rental or resale rate it’ll be off the charts and we’ll never have cash flow.

Some of the stats are between 25 to 40% occupancy in many buildings with high commercial rates. We have a new mayor that’s been pushing that concept. The interesting thing is the public transportation system. You can convert commercial buildings, but there are no parking spaces. It’s better to have a public transportation system that works. Otherwise, there’s going to be a problem.

Furthermore, lots of these commercial builds lack the amenities needed for housing. For example, grocery stores, dry cleaners and the basic stuff because they were business neighborhoods and not residential.

What is the real estate board doing to help its members through workforce shortages?

The people shortage they’ve been experiencing results from fewer qualified individuals available for different job openings. We curate panels, workshops, new letters and networking events to get people together. The difficulty is creating attractions to lure people to Boston because of expensive rents and the weather.

What do gateway cities offer, from the real estate perspective in Massachusetts?

You take an old industrial city where the factories and jobs are gone and try to revitalize it. You do this by getting businesses and companies to relocate and set up shop there, especially on the multifamily residential side. Many of our members have gone in, taken some of the old mills that were falling into disrepair, gotten historical tax credits and other government subsidies, and turned them into viable housing. So, people working at companies relocating to those communities have a place to live.

Gateway cities are important because they reflect our old industrial cities that are trying to be reborn. We have several members that do projects in gateway cities around the commonwealth. Since the pandemic and people leaving the city, I think the gateway cities opened up a huge opportunity. Because the commute into Boston was what everybody did, and the pandemic taught us we don’t have to be in Boston. It’ll be a more attractive environment with a low cost of living outside the gateway city. 

How is the state promoting housing equity?

I believe the state is trying. The difficulty in Massachusetts is we have a home role mentality. Local communities will talk about needing affordable housing and say the right things but won’t make the necessary zoning changes. For instance, they’ll say: “I don’t need the density and height; build it somewhere else. Oh yeah, by the way, we do need affordable housing.” 

They are saying the right things and being politically correct, but they’re not backing it up with their actions. There are some communities in Massachusetts that embrace this, but there are many that don’t.

What are some of the changes you’d like to see implemented?

I’d suggest more height and density on the housing side. It’ll be great to return to the old fashion retail on the first floor and people above. There are several projects in Boston, but if you talk to some city councils off-record, they’ll tell you they have enough in their districts. Housing has to be an original solution. You can’t look to one place to carry the burden because land values in Boston are expensive compared to surrounding communities. If you’re looking at land, construction, and labor, rent costs would be higher unless you get a government subsidy. I’m a registered lobbyist with one on staff and some from outside. We lobby heavily on Beacon Hill at the state level and at Boston City hall.

We have to create new programs that are carrots and sticks. Programs capable of providing funds to local municipalities that need the money in exchange for relief from some of the zoning restrictions that hinder development in those communities.

What is the outlook of the board and the Greater Boston region in the coming years?

Boston will always be desirable. The life sciences industry is picking up in the area. But for now, it’s cooled. It was the goose that laid the golden egg, but we may be at the point where there’s enough lab space under development. We saw this in Cambridge, the seaports, and now it’s everywhere. At some point, there’ll be enough labs, and these companies slow down or stop expanding too much to be able to keep their workforce under wraps.

We’ll move forward because the healthcare sector is great here, and our colleagues and universities still deliver skilled workers. If we continue to create places for them to work, the economy will be healthy. The work environment is going to change within the next five years. I don’t know if we’ll revert to what we were because getting people together in that format is more creative. I’m optimistic, but difficulties are clouding the horizon, and it’s unsure what it’ll look like in the coming years.

For more information, visit: 

https://www.gbreb.com/

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