Top 5 reasons why Gen Y’ers are choosing luxury buildings over brownstones:
They have to put less money down!
This is a simple answer and the headline says it all. Most buildings only require 1 month down and some sort of minimal security deposit. The building has the advantage of economies of scale and can afford to take the risk of someone leaving; a small landlord can’t afford that. This is the reason private landlords make you put so much money down, because they don’t want you walking out on the lease! Additionally, almost all luxury buildings pay the broker’s fee, which due to the rental market, most private owners have never had to do. In the past, people were willing to pay to get into their places, now with the economy that has changed.
Gen Y likes to be coddled
Growing up Gen Y was the group that was always told they were the best and the brightest and they could do anything they wanted! Their parents took care of them; they weren’t the latch key kids from prior generations. But now that they are out on their own, who is going to do that? Allow me to introduce, 24hr concierge and maintenance staff! Services that had previously only been available to those making high six figure incomes are now available to everyone. Have a problem? Call the maintenance staff; they will take care of it for you just like mom and dad used to. Private landlords can vary in how well they respond, but you definitely can’t get them at 3am if you have problem.
Gen Y likes feedback
Feedback has always been important to Gen Y; they like to know how they are doing. This is a large part of why Gen Y gets technology, because it’s really all about speeding up the feedback process. Keeping this in mind, luxury buildings have responded. Luxury buildings in Boston have developed something called “Building Link”. It’s a system that after a quick setup, sends an email or text message to your phone when an action occurs. This can be that your dry cleaning was returned and is now waiting for you to pick up, or that a package or fax has arrived. If it’s a package, the system will even let you know which delivery company dropped it off. It’s constant feedback. Needless to say, private landlords don’t have anything like this.
Someone waiting for you when you get home
When Gen Y’s came home generally there was someone (a parent) at home waiting for them, to ask them how their day was. Luxury buildings have even figured this out, and have positioned doormen at the entrance so when you get home after a long day’s work there’s someone there to greet you. If you’ve lived there long enough, possibly even by name and ask how your day is going.
They have had better than their parents had
It’s certainly the wish most parents have, that their children have more than they had, but now it’s out of hand. When most parents tell the story of their first apartment they talk about leaks in the ceiling and strange neighbors and bugs of some variety. They generally had to walk to the laundry-mat down the street in the winter and it was up a hill. Gen Y will have no such stories. Many of their first apartments feature granite counters, stainless steel appliances and have laundry directly in the unit. The buildings have rules and regulations that prevent obnoxious neighbors and if something breaks, once again there is someone on call to get it fixed.
So what can private landlords do to compete? The answer is simple, pay the broker fee if asked, and make sure you update your units every 10 years or so. In ideal world it would be less than every 10 years, but people will settle for a 10 year update. For more information on luxury buildings in Boston call us at 617-449-3642
Boston Real Estate Market | chris | 
April 14, 2010 10:40 am | 
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