Should I move to Dennisport? (Boston, Yarmouth: real estate, house, rental)

[saintsvalentine]

My boyfriend and I are a young couple without a large income. He is an airline pilot and i'm in school for court reporting, so I have to work around my class schedule. Finding work in the afternoon/evenings can be tricky. We need to relocate, and we were thinking of Portland, Maine. We spent the summer in Dennisport, and on a whim I looked at apartments there. We are looking at a small cottage for $700/mo and another apartment for $950.

My question is this: is the cost of living generally much higher on the Cape? Can a couple on a tight budget live happily there? Is it hard to find p/t work year round?

THANKS VERYMUCH

[Ronniec78]

Well I would say Dennis Port is a good choice for you. Generally, the real estate on the Cape is pretty pricey if you're looking to purchase a house. As far as renting year round goes I don't think it'll be too bad. Dennis Port is definitely not a pricey area of the Cape and there is still enough activity so you won't get bored. I think you'd enjoy living there but I will say there aren't a ton of young people who live there year round. The Cape does have a young professional's organization that is great to meet and network with young people on the Cape who are mostly white collared. If you're into drinking, most likely that will be your social life unless you like being active doing other things. I say Dennis Port is a great choice though. West Yarmouth seems to be another popular place for young people as is Hyannis since they are all affordable to live. The towns on the Lower Cape are great but I think the rental prices will be higher there than in Dennis Port.

[bryfry]

Having lived in Dennisport for a few years, the one thing is that it's fairly quiet in the winter. The town is comprised of mostly summer cottages south of RT 28 and the "downtown" has been sort of dead for a long time. In the summer the place explodes with vactioners and second home/cottage owners and it can be fun for young people. Short of that, movies, dining out and drinking are the norm with an emphasis on the latter. As for jobs, there are plenty if you want to work at the one of probably 50 Dunkin Donuts. If you dig, you can find work. But you are competing with many others who are just as hungry. don't expect to be paid well either.

Living on the Cape is not easy for young people. Prices of goods are generally higher; gas, food, rent, etc are all more than most young people care for. But again, it depends on the area you live. Hyannis has lower prices than say, Orleans. But Hyannis is on the verge of a small city and has to stay competative. There can be stuff to do, but the Cape really kowtows to the Seniors. It takes a massive undertaking and quite a bit of money raising to do anything for the younger set. Senior centers get a fast track if needed. It's just logistics, really. The towns will cater to the people who line their pockets. It's a shame really. Young people want to stay here, but are forced to move after graduation because the chances of purchasing a house on Cape wages are pretty slim. Would you want a mortgage of $2k a month? Not me. Many of us work more than one job to cover expenses. Look at Mass overall: young people are leaving this state in droves.

I don't mean to be negative, but after 25 years here, I have seen some really disturbing changes. That's why I'm leaving.

[capecodcathy]

Originally Posted by bryfry

Having lived in Dennisport for a few years, the one thing is that it's fairly quiet in the winter. The town is comprised of mostly summer cottages south of RT 28 and the "downtown" has been sort of dead for a long time. In the summer the place explodes with vactioners and second home/cottage owners and it can be fun for young people. Short of that, movies, dining out and drinking are the norm with an emphasis on the latter. As for jobs, there are plenty if you want to work at the one of probably 50 Dunkin Donuts. If you dig, you can find work. But you are competing with many others who are just as hungry. don't expect to be paid well either.

Living on the Cape is not easy for young people. Prices of goods are generally higher; gas, food, rent, etc are all more than most young people care for. But again, it depends on the area you live. Hyannis has lower prices than say, Orleans. But Hyannis is on the verge of a small city and has to stay competative. There can be stuff to do, but the Cape really kowtows to the Seniors. It takes a massive undertaking and quite a bit of money raising to do anything for the younger set. Senior centers get a fast track if needed. It's just logistics, really. The towns will cater to the people who line their pockets. It's a shame really. Young people want to stay here, but are forced to move after graduation because the chances of purchasing a house on Cape wages are pretty slim. Would you want a mortgage of $2k a month? Not me. Many of us work more than one job to cover expenses. Look at Mass overall: young people are leaving this state in droves.

I don't mean to be negative, but after 25 years here, I have seen some really disturbing changes. That's why I'm leaving.

While I agree with some of this comment, I can't agree with all. But I don't live in Dennis. I'm on the Upper Cape.
The elders are not as wealthy as everyone would like to think. Nor are us "boomers" with kids. There can be a balance. My town has a relatively new Senior Center which combines Youth Services, as well. Basketball courts, playground, skate park, ball field. We also have a 6 year old Middle School that's state-of-the-art and we're building a new Elementary and Early Childhood Education Center.
There CAN and should be a balance between what is available to a wide spectrum of citizens. All towns have children, Elders, professionals, tradesmen (and women).
Some towns are more friendly to one group, more so than another. All depends on what you're looking for.
Coming from the North and South Shores, I think my kids are getting an excellent education and a wonderful community where I am now on the Cape.

[Ronniec78]

Cathy,

This person never mentioned wealth. Overall, I don't think there are as many wealthy people as most people who live off Cape think. I do believe that there are more homeowner's on the Cape with old money than new money and that a large number of these people are absentee owner's whose primary residence is outside of Boston, NY, CT, NJ, and various other states. Of course there are also a fair amount of retired people on the Cape with a nice size nest egg.

You really can't compare Bourne to Dennis Port because they're 2 different places. 60% of homes in Dennis Port are absentee owned. You can't compare that to Bourne since most of the villages in Bourne have year round residents. Dennis Port is not a year round community. The further you go down the Cape the less primary ownership you have. Dennis Port is extremely seasonal compared to Bourne and any of it's villages. In general it's hard to compare towns on the Cape because they're so unique.

[capecodcathy]

Ronnie,
Exactly my point about the wealth issue. It's common for many to believe Cape residents have more money. Not so.
There are many people who have inherited their summer homes. Others who worked their whole lives to have a little spot here. They're now retired and living here year round. That home they bought in 1940 for $10,000 is now valued at $400K or more. Their taxes have increased significantly, but their pensions and SSA have not. So while they have a house on Cape Cod, they can't afford to pay the taxes.
Bourne does have a large population of seasonal residents, but not as high as further down Cape. Wings Neck, Scraggy Neck, Mashnee Island. What we have been able to avoid are the vacationers. We don't have the hotels/motels/B&B's. Many summer residents do rent their homes for a few weeks but for the most part, we don't get the traffic other towns do. We rather like it that way!
But back to the Elder issue. There was a gentleman here who bought waterfront property decades ago for short money. He built a modest house on it and retired here. Over the past 10 years, the properties around him have skyrocketed to million dollar valuations. So now HIS property is assessed at a value he just can't pay taxes on.
I guess I generally take exception to people saying that the Cape kowtows to seniors. And the assumption that they're all wealthy "old" money. For the most part they are not. My Aunt & Uncle worked for New England Tel until retirement. They raised three kids and put them all through college. Their little cottage on Bass River was the one thing they got for themselves.
Most seniors on the Cape are still on fixed incomes, without trust funds, and old (or new) money. Many are retired military. No significant pension there!
But, yes, we do need to take care of them and make sure that the services are there for them. They've been paying taxes here a heck of a lot longer than I have. We also need to take care of our younger families and children.
It's all in the balance.

[Ronniec78]

Cathy,

I hope you don't take offense to this but almost all of your posts talk about raising kids. I like to stick to the original thread and discuss that topic. In this instance you're talking about raising kids, elderly, and old/new money. This is just a young couple who is curious about Dennis Port. I've noticed that in all your posts you mention how great it is to raise your kids on the Cape. I say great but you tend to get away from the subject at hand. It's a lot more exciting and interesting when you talk about the original thread without going back to talking about raising families, etc. I could care less about raising kids, elderly demographics, money, etc.

[capecodcathy]

No offense taken.
But if you read my last comment it was about "kowtowing" to seniors and the insinuation that there isn't much here for young people because the older folk are the ones who "line the pockets".

[capecodcathy]

RC1978, welcome! I see this is your first comment. Hope to see many more of your discussions.

[bryfry]

Originally Posted by capecodcathy

But if you read my last comment it was about "kowtowing" to seniors and the insinuation that there isn't much here for young people because the older folk are the ones who "line the pockets".

What I am saying is that there is a huge senior presence on the Cape and they get the attention. They comprise the bulk of the population, so yes, they are the money holders. They just get all the perks and the younger set (kids under 25) get almost nothing. Case in point, the place in Orleans that closed down where the kids used to hang out. If that was a senior center, a new one would already be built. Instead, a grass roots effort had come about for these kids to raise money. I know it's a private entity, but the outrage would be loud if it were a senior center. The young are just left out in the cold here.

You can site specific examples on either side of the fence, but overall, the seniors rule the Cape. It's just a fact.