Real Estate Development

Developing Affordable Housing

Just-A-Start (JAS) is a 50 year-old Community Development Corporation (CDC) and a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization engaged in the building, preservation and maintenance of affordable housing.  JAS takes pride in the quality and craftsmanship of our properties and understands the importance of working with reliable contractors who consistently deliver projects on time and on budget.

JAS engages in competitive bidding on all major projects and selects general contractors based on cost, understanding of the proposed project, completeness of their bid and references and reputation for producing quality results within the projected budget and schedule. We require all selected contractors to abide by the wage, insurance and reporting requirements dictated by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, local municipalities and funding sources involved in each project.

Affordable housing is funded by a combination of increasingly scarce resources provided through municipalities, the Commonwealth, investors and private lending institutions.   These funders require that the cost of housing development are acceptable to their standards.

The reliability of a general contractor, the quality of work and the costs are all balanced when reviewing bids and making the selection of a contractor.

Rental Housing

As part of its core mission, Just-A-Start (JAS) develops and owns affordable apartments that allow low and moderate income residents to live in Cambridge at rents that are within their means. JAS currently owns nearly 600 units and has partnered with Maloney Properties and Wingate to provide the portfolio with professional management. If you are interested in affordable rentals in Cambridge, please contact Maloney Properties and Wingate for more information. Our portfolio of rental properties includes:

Saint Patrick’s Apartments 26-50 York Street, Cambridge, MA 32 Units in 4 buildings	Squirrel Brand Apartments 12 and 17 Boardman St., Cambridge, MA 20 units in 2 buildings
Webster-Bristol Apartments 69-73 Webster Ave and 51-53 Bristol St, Cambridge, MA 9 units in one building	Rindge Tower Apartments 402 Rindge Avenue, Cambridge, MA 273 units, 22 stories
Cardinal Medeiros Apartments 409-415 Cardinal Medeiros Way, Cambridge, MA 6 units in one building	54 Berkshire Street Apartments 54-56 Berkshire Street, Cambridge, MA 6 units in one building
Webster Avenue Apartments 75-83 Webster Avenue, Cambridge, MA 5 units in 2 buildings	Putnam Place 260 and 264 Putnam Avenue, Cambridge, MA 12 units in 2 buildings
72 Elm Street Apartments 72 Elm Street, Cambridge, MA 6 units in one building	Churchill Court 2505-2529 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge, MA 12 units and 1 commercial space in 4 buildings
George Close Building 243 Broadway, Cambridge, MA 61 units in one building	Otis Apartments 206-210 Otis Street, Cambridge, MA 8 townhouse-style units
Norfolk Street Apartments 55 and 59 Norfolk Street, Cambridge, MA 8 units and 1 commercial space	Trembridge Apartments 106 Tremont and 1175/1179 Cambridge St, Cambridge, MA 8 units and 1 commercial space
Linwood Place 200-210 Columbia St, 40 Market St, and 261-69 Broadway, Cambridge, MA 45 units in 8 buildings	Scouting Way Apartments Prospect St and Scouting Way, Cambridge, MA 14 units
Next Step House Medford Street, Somerville, MA 6 units in one building	Hovey Avenue Apartments 35 Hovey Avenue, Cambridge, MA 7 units in one building
Bishop Allen Apartments Bishop Allen Dr and Norfolk St, Cambridge, MA 32 units in 4 buildings

Homeownership Development

JAS develops homes sold at prices within reach for low and moderate income households. All of the units are sold pursuant to an Affordable Housing Agreement with the City of Cambridge, allowing the City to repurchase the units when resold at a restricted sale price. Buyers are selected through a lottery process with preference given to Cambridge residents and families with children. Homeowners are required to take a First Time Homebuyers class prior to purchasing their home and JAS provides Condominium training and support in the first year of operation. Our portfolio of home ownership properties includes:

Condo Resale Program

There are more than 500 homeownership units in the City of Cambridge currently subject to Affordable Housing restrictions, including many developed by JAS. JAS manages the preservation, rehab, and resale when an owner decides to sell their unit. New buyers are selected from the Homeownership Resale Pool, which is administered by the City’s Housing Division.