Wood Frame Means There Is Rarely a Shell
Across the masonry cities the central question after a fire is whether the shell survived, because a standing brick structure removes the demolition and much of the rebuild. That question mostly does not arise in Dorchester.
A triple-decker is a wood frame building: platform framing, wood floors, wood stairs, a wood roof structure, usually with a clapboard or shingle skin. Where fire reaches the framing there is seldom anything structural worth preserving, and where it is contained to one unit the framing above and below still has to be assessed for heat and water damage. The statewide layer is on our page covering Massachusetts certificates, claims and excise.
Is a Burned Triple-Decker Worth Restoring?
Three Units Is Why the Numbers Still Work
The triple-decker belt was built out largely between the 1890s and the 1920s, which puts effectively every building here past the 50 year threshold that triggers Article 85 review. A smoke alarm Certificate of Compliance is required under c.148 §26F on buildings of 1 to 5 units built before 1 January 1975, and a carbon monoxide certificate under §26F½ regardless of age. Landmarks Commission staff have 10 calendar days to determine significance, and a finding brings up to 90 days of delay. Inspection fees are set by each municipality, and the deeds excise is collected at the Registry of Deeds on recording. Photoelectric alarms have been required within 20 feet of kitchens and bathrooms since 2010.
The counterweight is the unit count. Three dwellings on one lot produce a finished value that a single-family on the same footprint could not approach, which is what makes a full rebuild viable on land that would otherwise not support it.
That is also why buyers here divide into two camps quoting on different logic. A flipper prices a restoration and a resale. A multi-family investor prices the rental income of three restored units over a long hold, and on a triple-decker they frequently pay more. Both are legitimate; they are simply valuing different things.
Why Do Two Buyers Give Such Different Numbers on the Same Triple-Decker?
We publish no per-unit construction figures for Dorchester. Triple-deckers vary considerably in size, layout and condition even within a street, and a neighbourhood-wide number would mislead in both directions.
Three Tenancies Survive the Fire
The third fact is the one most often established late. A triple-decker usually means tenants, sometimes in all three units, and their position does not end because the building became uninhabitable.
Establishing where each tenancy stands before soliciting offers is worth real money, because a buyer facing three unresolved positions discounts for all of them. A buyer facing three documented positions prices what is actually there.
Dorchester in Context
The other dense neighbourhood of stacked units, where proximity to neighbouring buildings adds a further complication, is covered on our page about a dense waterfront neighbourhood. Where brick row building sits alongside frame three-families and the answer depends which you own, see our page for a mix of brick rows and frame three-families.
Dorchester Questions
The Fire Was in the Top Unit Only.
Then the question is whether it reached the roof framing. If it did not, the building below may be largely intact and restoration is usually right. If it did, the calculation changes quickly in wood frame construction.
My Building Is Over Fifty Years Old. Does Article 85 Apply?
Yes, and virtually every triple-decker in Dorchester is. Review is required before a demolition permit issues, though a "not significant" determination clears it in short order.
Will You Buy With Tenants Still in One Unit?
Yes, though the position has to be established and it affects both the figure and the timetable. Tell us at the outset rather than later.