The Large House Review Study Committee billed last Monday’s meeting as a chance to hear from Needham builders as the committee considers recommending changes to zoning bylaws that would potentially lead to smaller, less expensive new homes than the ones currently being constructed on Needham’s smaller lots.
While only a handful of builders attended (a few called in), most expressed doubt that the kinds of height or building-area changes that are being considered would benefit neighborhoods, current residents or prospective buyers. They even cast doubt on the idea that smaller new houses would sell at more affordable rates.
Large house committee members, in particular co-chair Artie Crocker, invited builders and real estate agents to offer their approaches to the current situation: that new houses tend to dwarf their older neighbors and command prices north of $3 million, a high bar for a young family seeking entry to Needham.
The answers were not encouraging. Builder Garrett Federow grew up in Needham and now builds houses here. “You know, Needham was farmland before,” he reminded the committee. “Somebody came and decimated farmland and just put ranch after ranch in the neighborhoods.
“What’s more change?” he asked. “Coming in, tearing down farmland and building subdivisions or tearing one house down at a time and making new houses that people want? Change is inevitable. It’s going to happen. I feel like you should only regulate so much of what people do when they buy a property and pay taxes on it.”
Real estate agent Lou Wolfson agreed that demand is setting the agenda. “Demand is what’s going to increase the values. The cost of construction is going to increase the values. So [new zoning regulation] is not going to adversely affect it. You’re just going to be paying more for less. And the larger homes are going to cost a lot more because those people that have the extended families, blended families, home offices are going to pay the premium for that.”
“Let’s just say if you change the bylaw where you can now, let’s say, only build a 3,500- to 4,000-square-foot house,” said Kevin Griffin, of Griffin Building & Development, “that house is going to sell for the exact same price as the current 6,000-square-foot home does. It’s just going to increase the cost per square foot of the sale price.
“We’re doing a house in Wellesley now. It’s about 3,500 square feet without the basement. And that house is going to sell for probably $3.6 to $3.8 million.
“Because if we’re buying lots at the same price and the cost to build the house is basically the same, we’re not gonna save a lot of money by not finishing the attics, or the basements, for that matter. It doesn’t cost us a lot of money to finish attics or basements.”
Committee co-chair Moe Handel asked Griffin, “Can a successful builder build a smaller home in Needham that fits better into its neighborhood and still make a profit? And can this homeowner who sells that lot to that builder still realize what they are expecting to get from that sale?”
Griffin then presented another possibility: Lower purchase prices for the homes builders are acquiring to tear down.
“I think you’re going to see a drop in teardown prices,” Griffin said. “If [builders] can’t build as big of a house as they’re building now, you’re going to see prices on those lots drop anywhere between $100,000 and $200,000 in the beginning. Maybe that will change, but that’s going to be all because we’re all not willing to take a $100,000 to $200,000 gamble to see if the housing market in Needham is going to support a sale price on a smaller home.”
“If you have to do something,” said Griffin, “you guys definitely have your work cut out for you. Trying to make everybody happy is always a problem.” He described a house he custom built (not on spec) on Henderson Road that was on a relatively large, 20,000-square-foot lot. The owners did not max out the building size or finish the third floor. “And guess what? All three neighbors still complained.”
Along with several builders, real estate agent Diane Hughes Valente said one reason buyers want large houses is because people often work from home now. In addition to bedrooms for their families, they want two home offices.
As co-chair Handel closed the public hearing portion of the meeting, he said, “We’re not here by accident. In my experience in Needham affairs, which goes back about 30 years, this issue has been at the top of many people’s lists. So it’s not a frivolous issue. It bothers many people that things are changing at a degree that they’re not comfortable. We’re grappling with that. We will be making recommendations to the Planning Board, and we are anxious to hear from anybody who has an interest in this matter, which as it turns out is everybody who lives in this town.”
If you have comments, he said, send them to planning@NeedhamMA.gov and make the subject line, Large House.
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