HRES proposes 2004-05 increases for Affiliated Housing

Proposed 2004-2005 rents for current affiliated residents living in Affiliated Housing:

Harvard Real Estate Services (HRES) has proposed a 0 percent rent increase for the majority of current Affiliated Housing residents who live in the approximately 2,500 Harvard Affiliated Housing apartments. The proposed rents for current Affiliated Housing residents have been reviewed by the Faculty Advisory Committee on Affiliated Housing* and will take effect July 1, for a term of one year, when the 2004-2005 rental season begins.

“As a result of the slowdown in the economy, the market rental data indicated that, overall, rents for current residents who renew their leases for July 1 should remain flat for the second year in a row,” said Susan Keller, HRES’s director of Residential Real Estate.

Specific rents for all 2,500 apartments will be detailed in the lease renewal packages that will be distributed to all affiliated residents in March. Current affiliated residents who would like additional information or help in determining their continuing rent rates for 2004-2005 may call Harvard Real Estate Services’ Affiliated Leasing Office at 617-495-1459.

Proposed increases for continuing former rent-control residents:

Proposed rent increases for continuing former rent-control residents who reside in Harvard’s properties will be announced in late March or early April.

Proposed 2004-2005 rents for new affiliated residents who sign leases as of July 1, 2004:

HRES performed market research before proposing this year’s rent increase. In setting the proposed 2004-2005 rents, a database covering more than 4,200 Cambridge and Somerville apartments listed with the Harvard Housing Office by non-Harvard property owners over the past three years was analyzed.Market indicators from outside sources and historical demand trends in the local market were also considered.

The result of the analysis was a recommendation that the overall market rent on average should not significantly increase for Affiliated Housing on July 1, 2004. However, to support the fair market rent policy on a unit-by-unit basis, some unit types will increase by 0.7 percent, some will decrease, and some will stay at current rates. The proposed new market rents have been reviewed by the Faculty Advisory Committee on Affiliated Housing and will apply to affiliates who sign leases as of July 1, 2004.

All revenues generated by Affiliated Housing in excess of operating expenses and debt service are used to fund capital improvements and renewal of the facilities in HRES’s existing portfolio. An example of how capital funds have been used is the refurbishing of 29 Garden St.

Twenty-nine Garden St. was originally built as a hotel in the 1920s and has been newly redesigned to contain 75 apartments with modern amenities to provide Harvard graduate students an affordable housing option. Twenty-nine Garden St. features a new apartment configuration known as a double studio. Available in two styles, the double studios are an economical housing option for single graduate students living with a roommate. The on-site dining facility (Buttery 29), a student lounge, and a group study area provide opportunities for informal learning and interaction by graduate students.

Market rate averages for affiliated apartments are listed below.

• 18 Banks/8A Mt. Auburn: one bedrooms $1,372-$1,467; two bedrooms $1,758-$1,809.
• Beckwith Circle: three bedrooms $1,753-$1,858; four bedrooms $2,206-$2,258.
• Botanic Gardens: one bedrooms $1,230-$1,289; two bedrooms $1,663; three bedrooms $1,922.
• DeWolfe Street: one bedrooms $1,492-$1,523; two bedrooms $1,799-$1,863; three bedrooms $2,520.
• 29 Garden St.: studios $959-$981; double studios $1,424-$1,550; two bedrooms $1,643-$1,663; three bedrooms $2,265-$2,285.
• Haskins Hall: studios $1,062; one bedrooms $1,245.
• Holden Green: one bedrooms $1,110-$1,267; two bedrooms $1,409-$1,530; three bedrooms $1,864.
• Kirkland Court: one bedrooms $1,288-$1,492; two bedrooms $1,588-$1,894; three bedrooms $2,371-$2,473.
• 65 Mt. Auburn St.: studios $1,166; one bedrooms $1,340-$1,474; two bedrooms $1,744.
• One Western Ave.: studios $1,267; one bedrooms $1,520; two bedrooms $1,929-$2,005; three bedrooms $2,310.
• Peabody Terrace: studios $1,074-$1,120; one bedrooms $1,222-$1,270; two bedrooms $1,621-$1,665; three bedrooms $2,179. Please note that Peabody Terrace rents do not currently include electricity. If electricity is included in the rent, these prices will increase. Actual rents will be stated on leases or lease renewal documents.
• Shaler Lane: one bedrooms $1,241; two bedrooms $1,514-$1,668.
• Soldiers Field Park: studios $1,139-$1,270; one bedrooms $1,363-$1,486; two bedrooms $1,669-$1,913; three bedrooms $2,222-$2,365.
• Terry Terrace: studios $1,102-$1,142; one bedrooms $1,283-$1,423; two bedrooms $1,739.
• Walker Street: two bedrooms $1,826; three bedrooms $2,120.
• 472-474 Broadway: one bedrooms $1,385.
• 27 Everett St.: one bedrooms $1,297-$1,570; three bedrooms $2,156-$2,438.
• 2 Holyoke St.: one bedrooms $1,179- $1,365.
• 1306 Massachusetts Ave.: studios $1,044; one bedrooms $1,200; two bedrooms $1,592.
• 8 Plympton St.: studios $1,082-$1,196; one bedrooms $1,424; two bedrooms $1,755-$1,868; three bedrooms $2,191-$2,302.
• 16 Prescott St.: studios $1,082; one bedrooms $1,288-$1,387.
• 18 Prescott St.: studios $1,082; one bedrooms $1,288.
• 20-20A Prescott St.: studios $1,082; one bedrooms $1,288-$1,492; two bedrooms $1,755; three bedrooms $2,263-$2,411; four bedrooms $2426.
• 22-24 Prescott St.: studios $1,085; one bedrooms $1,292.
• 85-95 Prescott St.: studios $1,062-$1,111; one bedrooms $1,362.
• 9-13A Ware St.: studios $1,081; one bedrooms $1,288; two bedrooms $1,590.
• 19 Ware St.: two bedrooms $2,242; three bedroom $2,347.
• Wood-frame buildings, Agassiz area: studios $984; one bedrooms $1,186; two bedrooms $1,609; three bedrooms $1,860; four bedrooms $2,556; five bedrooms $2,634.
• Wood-frame buildings, Harvard Square/mid-Cambridge area: studios $1,039; one bedrooms $1,197; two bedrooms $1,449.
• Wood-frame buildings, Riverside Area: studios $941; one bedrooms $1,303; two bedrooms $1,476; three bedrooms $1,883.Written comments on the proposed rents may be sent to the Faculty Advisory Committee on Affiliated Housing, c/o Harvard Real Estate Services, 10 Mt. Auburn Street-Lower Level, Cambridge, MA 02138-6010. Comments to the committee may also be sent via E-mail to leasing@camail2.harvard.edu. Any written comments should be submitted to either of the above addresses by Feb. 20.The comments received will be reviewed by the Faculty Advisory Committee, which includes Peter T. Ellison, dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences; William Hogan, Lucius N. Littauer Professor of Public Policy and Administration, John F. Kennedy School of Government; Jerold S. Kayden, Frank Backus Williams Professor of Urban Planning, Graduate School of Design; David Herwitz, Austin Wakeman Scott Professor of Law, Harvard Law School; Daniel P. Schrag, professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Harvard University; and Sally Zeckhauser, vice president for administration (chair), Harvard University.

  After the comments are reviewed and considered, the final rent schedule will be published in February.

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  * In keeping with the University’s fair market rent policy that was established in 1983 by a faculty committee chaired by Professor Archibald Cox, the rents for Affiliated Housing are set at prevailing market rates. The original faculty committee determined that market rate pricing was the fairest method of allocating apartments and that setting rents for Affiliated Housing below market rate would be a form of financial aid which should be determined by each individual school, not via the rent setting process. Additionally, the cost of housing should be considered when financial aid is determined.