Guide to East Boston’s Retail Spaces

Those who are from the Boston area may most likely recall the time when Somerville and Brighton were among the towns where college students would move the day after they graduated. Meanwhile, those who were more affluent would go to Cambridge and Newton where they could find some of the luxury homes in the Greater Boston area.

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However, times have changed, and there are now many choices in the city not only for residents but also for the business owners. East Boston is one of these options now, especially for those who want to stay where they can enjoy waterfront views. One good thing about this area is that it has many of the stuff that people want and places to visit without the need to pay the high prices, especially compared to neighborhoods like Charlestown.

The area is quite nice for boat watching, dining, and living. Also known as the Eastie, the place has become one of the desirable neighborhoods in the city of Boston. It will be even more desirable as more and more new developments arise, which can give way to several other store stores and shops throughout the community.

Market Overview

Finding the right commercial property where you can open your brick and mortar venture is indeed crucial to your business’ success. The location, size, rates, and parking features are all pivotal in making a decision. In fact, these points can make or break you. In this neighborhood, you have some options available, and the one you will choose will depend on your budget as well as the type of business you are running.

If you have a small business, it means you have limited inventory. Some of the companies in the neighborhood that are like yours just open theirs up in kiosks. Meanwhile, for those that do not have budget restrictions and require much more significant unit, they choose a large spot in the malls in the area. Plus, there are stand-alone buildings where they can start their businesses. Either they purchase the building, or they rent it. Some would also rent a unit or two for their store store, especially on the ground floor of the building.

The store development in the Boston area, particularly in Eastie and nearby places, is on the rise. It is no secret that developers have already started responding to increasing rents in the area, along with the increase in customer base. The developable unit is limited for them, but these noncore neighborhoods in the city finally see some huge investments, particularly in redeveloping the once overlooked places.

For instance, Dudley Square, which was one of the ignored areas in the city, is now one of the five sites will provide more commercial places for the business owners who are looking to open their venture in the city. In Eastie, the Portside Pier is gaining its reputation as one of the most significant developments in the neighborhood, especially in store. It will include more than 70,000 square feet of unit that are solely dedicated to store. These projects are indeed lending a hand in contributing to the store growth pipeline of over seven million square feet in Metro Boston.

The popularity of online shopping has hit all over the world, including Boston. Despite that, many consumers still want experiential shopping where they can also socialize and recreate their experience. It is why the business districts in the city, including those in Eastie, are still preferred. The area is full of commercial units that can be used by different retailers. From shops to restaurants to entertainment options to health-inspired venues such as the gym and yoga, there is something in this neighborhood that you can find.

The good thing about the area is that the buildings for rent are well-positioned so that they can serve as a social setting as well. In the past, many buildings, including those in the commercial areas in Eastie, were experiencing high vacancy rates. It was because the tenants on the ground floor were less than ideal as they did not contribute to increasing foot traffic in the business. Often, they do not enhance the business mix in general.

First floor units were filled with users, such as office tenants. Unfortunately, they did not convert to walk-ins, and they were also not open during the evenings and weekends. For this reason, many building owners and landlords have decided to transform the first-floor unit into store. Today, you will mostly find store, services, and restaurant units in the neighborhood. These areas offer significant contributions to crossover patronage from one business to another.

Aside from the mentioned types of commercial units, it is also common in this part of Boston to have a collaborative workplace. Such form is gaining popularity where there are co-working units allow entrepreneurs to work with one another and maximize their efficiency.

Commercial Unit Prices

Store units for sale and lease are dispersed throughout the neighborhood and the surrounding communities. Back Bay and Downtown Crossing are still among the largest and most popular shopping areas, but Eastie is becoming an excellent place for those who are searching for commercial properties.

Store purchase and rental prices vary considerably even if they are just located near each other. It is common not only in this district but also in other areas. Many factors affect the rents and purchase prices of commercial property in the neighborhood, including the lease type which can be modified gross lease, percentage lease, and gross lease.

The triple net lease is the most widely used type of contract for store tenants, but the other mentioned forms of rent are all employed in the market area of the neighborhood. Percentage leases are typically triple-net leases that are applied for shopping malls or centers and those larger tenants. If you are looking into renting older commercial property, gross rentals are commonly used.

The variety of the type of lease can allow you to determine and compare the rent levels in the area. Note though that you will find some landlords in the neighborhood that would offer a rent rate of $20 per square foot as the gross lease while there are some that charge the same amount as a triple net lease. These two prices are entirely different so be sure you are aware of the disparity.

On average, the commercial property for rent in the area is in the middle range, offering $20 per square foot. However, it is not rare to find units that cost $30 per square foot. Of course, there are also for-sale properties in the area. Here are some samples of the commercial areas for rent and for purchase in the neighborhood to give you an insight of what to expect:

1. Storefront for sale at 1020 Bennington Street

This commercial property is up for sale for $1,695,000 and is one of the older commercial properties in the area since it was built in 1920. It was just recently renovated and now has a total of three stories where there are residential units along with store store units. The total leasable area is 4,050 square feet, and the building is located at a part of the neighborhood where there is good traffic. It is also situated next to good transit options, which gives you more chances of gaining new customers.

The mixed-use property is conveniently located close to the Blue Line or the T-station and offers plenty of bus routes. The brick building has four units that are used by the residents. They are all one bedroom units. Meanwhile, there is a storefront commercial property that businesses can lease once the new owner purchases this investment property.

2. Flexible unit at 175 McClellan Highway

If you want high traffic, the unit for rent at the mentioned area offers a total unit of 205,225 square feet. It is a wonderful option for medium to large businesses with nine units for rent available. The units are divided into 3,500 square feet at least with the largest one measuring 14,000 square feet. The building area that can be rented has 400,000 square feet of unit.

It is another vast yet old building since it was constructed in 1910. The lease term is negotiable for the industrial unit that is open for rent. As you rent for unit and you find that your business does not require a big room, the unit allows the lessee to rent it out.

Meanwhile, there is a ground floor unit available, which is best for store shops. The availability of the other vacancies above it can be useful for the business, especially if you rent more than one unit at a time. You can lease the ground floor unit for your store shop or restaurant, and you can help in improving customer traffic for your other businesses in the other units above.

3. One area for lease at 440 William F McClellan Highway

Do not be surprised to see for rent units in the neighborhood that are very cheap. One example is the unit available at the mentioned address, which only asks $1.66 per square foot per month. The total building size is 121,792 square feet, and the open area that is leasable is 0.01 acre or 435.6 square feet.

As you look for a place for your business, you will learn that there are indeed varying prices for rental units and sale ones.

News about the Neighborhood

There are so many things happening in Eastie, including the proposal for Maverick Square where demolition will take place to make way for a two-story building. The plan is to remove three commercial buildings in the area, along with a funeral home so that a shopping district will take their place.

The building will be right at the edge of Maverick Square and will have a total of 25,848 square feet of unit for the store construction if ever the proposal will be approved. The developers from Burlington stated their eagerness to build more commercial property in the neighborhood because they believe there seems to be a lack of it in the area.

The plan is to have the building at the streets of Maverick and Chelsea, according to the developers. It will be diagonally across from the Maverick Station of the MBTA in a shopping district of the neighborhood.

Although more and more businesses require commercial property in the area, there are already several developments that provide these much-needed rooms for companies that want to settle in the city of Boston. An example is the Clippership Wharf, which is a mixed-use development that spans 12 acres of vast land on the waterfront of the neighborhood.

It consists of four buildings where two of them will contain a total of 284 apartments. One will have 80 condominiums, which are more famous for their collective name, the Slip65. Additionally, the fourth building has 114 apartments, along with 321 parking units on site. About 300 of the areas will be in an underground parking garage.

Apart from the residential units, Clippership Wharf will also include about 30,200 square feet of unit, which will be used for store, restaurant, and café units. The location is indeed attractive for those who want to enjoy waterfront views, outdoor areas, and excellent transit options, including a three-minute train ride that will take them to Downtown Boston.

Mentioned earlier is Portside East Pier, which has already completed the first phase of the project. The second and more significant period will be finished this year, as the developers target September as the month to complete the construction. Aside from almost 300 residential units in the two buildings with five stories, there will also be 11,000 square feet of ground floor amenities that include an indoor pool.

The property will also have 253 units for underground parking, which can be used by the customers and the employees as well.

Another is The Residences, which despite its name does have commercial units to offer. At the ground floor of the building, you will find 2,257 square feet of unit that are solely dedicated to store shops. The luxury units in the other parts of the building will benefit from the ground floor store as they can have the things they need in the same building.

Other new developments in the area with commercial units include Coppersmith Village with 3,000 SF of ground floor commercial property, the mixed-use building at 70 Bremen Street with 1,028 square feet ground floor store, and the Seville Boston harbor that has the store area with views of the waterfront and the Boston skyline.

Where You Can Find Listings of Retail Spaces in the Area

There are indeed some options in the neighborhood for commercial units. With the ongoing developments and redevelopments, it is easy to get lost in the area, especially if you are searching for a place for your startup. You want one that will provide you with useful amenities and at the same time will fit your budget and the needs of your business.

You also want to get more traffic from customers so that your business can survive despite the fierce competition in Boston. What you need is to gather all the information you can use in choosing the right commercial property for your business. Here is the good news for you: all you need to do is to sign up with us, and you will get the latest listings of the available commercial units in East Boston. It is that easy and you can even contact us if you want to get more information about the site or you have other questions.

Whether you have a property you would like to keep an eye on, or you are searching for a site found in a specific area, you can get all the details here. It does not matter what kind of business you are running since there are several options in the neighborhood. As you search for commercial property in Eastie, you will find out more about the properties available and whether or not they are up for sale or rent.

You will also see the prices and other essential facts about the unit, such as the lease term and information made available by the listing agency. If you would like to gain more information about a particular unit, it is easy when you are a member of the site. After you have signed up, you can obtain quick access to the list of all the rental and for sale commercial properties in the neighborhood.

You can rest assured that the list is always updated so that you get the freshest details about the buildings or units that you can purchase or lease. If you wish to contact us to get a compiled list of the rentable or commercial property units in the neighborhood, you should sign up today and get these benefits. You will also receive updates regarding a specific property that you have saved or bookmarked.

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