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THE FINANCIAL SERVICES AND REAL ESTATE WEEKLY FOR MASSACHUSETTS BY THE NUMBERS
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County close-up: Middlesex Spotlight: Maynard
IN PERSON
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Noreen O’Toole spent decades reviewing developers’ proposals in her role as a town planner on the South Shore. Now, she is putting her decades of planning experience to work helping communities figure out thorny land use questions and developers move projects through local land use boards.
WEEK OF MONDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2019
RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE BY THE NUMBERS
2,119 The number of condominiums sold in October, the most since 2006. See Week on the Web on page 2. Source: The Warren Group’s Statistics Module
23.27 percent The year-to-date increase in Concord’s median single-family sale price. See By the Numbers on page 6. Source: The Warren Group’s Statistics Module
25 percent
TRENDS IN M&A
STATE SEES STEADY PACE OF M&A ACTIVITY
The share of male realtors who found themselves in a threatening situation in the last year. See Beth Cheney’s column on page 4. Source: National Association of Realtors
$400,000
Low interest rates for the next few years could spur smaller mutual bank mergers as bank profit margins are put under pressure.
The year-to-date median single-family sale price statewide. See Week on the Web on page 2. Source: The Warren Group’s Statistics Module
4 Four of the five most-expensive residential sales in recent weeks were condominiums in the One Dalton tower. See the Gossip Report on page 9. Source: The Warren Group
8,986 The number of single-family homes sold in Middlesex County so far this year. See By the Numbers on page 6. Source: The Warren Group’s Statistics Module
39 percent The share of Realtors who have taken self-defense classes. See Beth Cheney’s column on page 4. Source: National Association of Realtors
-1.9 million The change in the number of borrowers eligible to refinance their mortgages in one week. See Lew Sichelman’s column on page 4. Source: Black Knight
Unless otherwise noted, all data is sourced from The Warren Group’s Mortgage Market Share Module, Loan Originator Module, Statistics Module and/or proprietary database. For more information please visit www.thewarrengroup.com/business/ datasolutions.
More Mutual Combinations Expected BY DIANE MCLAUGHLIN BANKER & TRADESMAN STAFF
F
rom some of the largest state banks to some of the smaller ones, Massachusetts community banks maintained a steady pace of merger and acquisition activity in 2019, a pace expected to continue in 2020. This activity, like the banks themselves, will likely see impacts from the broader economy, including the low-interest rate environment.
“While 3 to 5 percent of community banks are acquired annually, community bank merger activity is really a prisoner of the current macro environment,” said Arthur Loomis, president of Loomis & Co., a New York-based investment bank that works extensively with community banks in the Northeast on mergers and acquisitions. “They are inextricably linked.”
Opportunities for Buyers and Sellers
“Because interest rates are going to stay low, that’s going to continue to put pressure on bank’s spreads and margins,” Loomis said. “That’s going to continue to dampen the ability for community banks to grow their earnings.”
Loomis has seen prices soften with M&A transactions so far this year compared to 2018, and he expects that trend to continue. Still, low interest rates could drive buyers to place a premium on banks with a high level of non-interest bearing deposits or noninterest income, Loomis said. Community banks looking to sell should consider more than the value on the date of the announcement or the closing, specifically evaluating the long-term return potential that a higher performing bank might offer, Loomis said. Community banks are sold, not bought, Loomis said, and because banks have longstanding ties within their Continued on Page 9
COMMERCIAL INTERESTS
OVERDUE DILIGENCE
Once a Symbol of Better Government, Now a Relic
Possible Sale Ignites Battle of Boylston Street
By Scott Van Voorhis | Banker & Tradesman Columnist
By Steve Adams | Banker & Tradesman Staff
Boston’s Brutalist Hurley Building Hotels Hopping Mad Is Ready for the Wrecking Ball About Hynes Proposal
Commercial Real Estate PAGE 3
Commercial Real Estate PAGE 7