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With housing debates finally nearing on Beacon Hill, a major real estate industry group will attempt to rally opposition against potential new fees on high-value property sales through a concentrated campaign, and its leaders plan to spend “what is necessary” on the effort.
The Greater Boston Real Estate Board announced Wednesday that it would roll out text messages, patch-through calls and online ads encouraging voters to contact their state legislators and make their displeasure known about a Gov. Maura Healey proposal to let cities and towns attach new taxes on pricier real estate transactions.
The organization launched a new website, StopNewTaxesMA.com, as a hub for its campaign.
A spokesperson declined to say how much the Greater Boston Real Estate Board would spend on the effort, saying only that it “plans to invest what is necessary to make sure voters have the tools to reject transfer taxes and protect their communities, their homes and the Massachusetts economy.”
“Increasing housing costs during an affordability crisis makes zero sense and we need to broadcast that message loud and clear, so legislators are keenly aware,” said Greater Boston Real Estate Board CEO Greg Vasil. “Massachusetts must set deeply flawed policies like transfer taxes aside because they do not provide reliable funding to produce housing units as they are not stable and guaranteed revenue streams. Production with reliable financing should be the paramount focus of the housing crisis. Building more units now and reducing regulatory barriers to housing creation across all price points should be the mission.”
Healey included language in her housing bond and policy bill clearing the way for local-option real estate transfer fees, which communities including Boston have been seeking for years. Proponents view the idea as a way to generate more funding that can be reinvested in affordable housing development at a time when high costs and a lack of units are constraining residents.
The House and Senate plan to take up their own rewrites of the $4.1 billion bond bill (H.4138) in the coming weeks, with an expectation that a final bill will be sent to Healey’s desk in the summer.
House Speaker Ron Mariano told business leaders last month that while he understands concerns about the proposed transfer fees, “we must explore all options that have the potential to make a real difference.” He soon acknowledged, however, that it’s not clear whether the Quincy
Democrat would be able to whip enough votes in support in his chamber.
The 12,000-member Greater Boston Real Estate Board has five divisions: Building Owners and Managers Association; Commercial Brokers Association; Greater Boston Association of Realtors; Real Estate Finance Association, and the Massachusetts Apartment Association.
