The Island Housing Trust and MassHousing have closed on $1.12 million in financing for the seven-unit housing development, a former bed and breakfast in Vineyard Haven.
Ruling that the dire need for low-cost rental housing trumps traffic
concerns, the Martha's Vineyard Commission voted unanimously last
night to approve the Pennywise Path affordable housing project in
Edgartown.
Bad news if you bought or built a new house on the Vineyard and figured you could cover some of your mortgage by renting it out for a chunk of summer: You weren't the only one with that idea. Now real estate agents say the market is glutted with houses for rent.
"There's a lot of houses out there to rent," said Deborah Hancock, a longtime real estate broker in Chilmark. "We have houses that have never been vacant that are still vacant . . . . It used to be that anything good was gone by January."
Edgartown officials will soon get their foot in the door of every rental property in town, the result of a selectmen-endorsed regulation which forces property owners to license rental properties and allow inspectors to ensure dwellings meet state habitation codes.
You know exactly who they are - your son's second grade teacher, your neighbor whose spouse left last year, the EMT who revived your father last month. It's the regional high school class of 1997.
This is but a snapshot of the nearly 2,000 faces of those unfortunate enough to struggle month after month, year after year with the lack of affordable housing on Martha's Vineyard.
You've heard their stories dozens of times, but do you know just how severe the affordable housing problem is?
The Vineyard's summer rental market is soft this season.
How low the market has slumped, reasons for the dip and long-term projections have yet to be determined, but real estate agents across the Island feel the hit.
Some companies slowed slightly this season while others experienced as much as a 20 per cent fall. Real estate brokers feel the pinch in a variety of ways — dollars, volume of inquiries, length of vacation stays — but all are reporting a downward turn.
Many of the agencies see a correlation between a jump in rental prices and the slowdown.
