2007 has been an interesting year for Boston Condos. The murmur heard on the street is that there is a tremendous amount of inventory on the market, the market is beginning to favor the Buyer more than the Seller, and the Boston real estate market is in a slump. It’s easy to follow what you hear, rather than digging into the statistics to find out what is really going on. So let’s dig into the statistics by analyzing the first quarter (Q1) of both 2006 and 2007 to see what nuggets of information we can find.

Before we look at the numbers, the assumptions that we are working with here are:

• Properties are deemed to be condominiums
• Properties are in the city of Boston itself
• Sold properties represent those that undergo a change in ownership (i.e. we are not counting those that are under agreement)

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Why do bad things happen to good sliding doors? Why do some sliding doors to condominium decks and patios operate just fine for years then decide they prefer to be opened by an NFL line backer? It helps to understand the technology of their materials, how they are put together and they interact with their host building. Glass for sliding doors can be single pane in older models or double-glazed with argon gas as a middle insulator against thermal transfer. Door framing can be aluminum, vinyl, fiberglass, wood of vinyl-clad wood.. Metal sliders will normally have a thermal break between glass and metal frame to reduce thermal conductivity. Different rates of thermal expansion of the glass and the frame can induce twisting in the frame preventing it from riding smoothly in its track. You may find that identical products on one side of your building are working fine while those in a different thermal exposure on the other side of the building are tough to open.

Routine Maintenance
Dentists tell us that it’s important to brush along the gum line to remove debris. The same idea holds true for slider door tracks. I recommend an annual “brushing” out of the tracks and cleaning with solvent followed by a coating of silicone lubricant. Hit the rollers and locking hardware at the same time with a blast of lubricant.

Repairs
The reasons why sliding doors in condominiums become difficult to open and close are not many. Most involve either the rollers at the bottom of the door frame or the alignment of the door in the building. Check for:

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