Living year round in Nantucket (Boston: real estate, rentals, house)

[bellasmom]

Hello
Could anyone please share their thoughts about living year round in Nantucket? I am have a position there and wondered what life would be like with my two young children. I have heard the housing situation is horrible.
Thanks!

[smarty]

In term of housing... try this link...
http://www.haconcapecod.org/NewsDetail.asp?NewsID=22

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For many Cape Codders, finding a safe, stable and decent place to live is a monumental challenge.

60% of our workforce earns between $11 and $16 per hour in the service industries, not nearly enough to afford an average-priced rental – if they can find one.
The average price of a house on Cape Cod is now about $450,000, which would require an income of about $120,000 to afford – about twice the actual average income of Cape Cod families.
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You can go to Mass Department of Education for school info. I think there are less than 10K residence during winter and 50K during the summer.

Never lived on the island. I have no idea what it is like. I've seen $1000 per month (for room rental).

[maggiekate]

Originally Posted by bellasmom

Hello
Could anyone please share their thoughts about living year round in Nantucket? I am have a position there and wondered what life would be like with my two young children. I have heard the housing situation is horrible.
Thanks!

Nantucket is a nice place to visit. Living there, well you are on an island.
You either need to fly or take the boat to get off. Nantucket as lots of visitors in the summer, and to live there is big money. People who live there, have had their homes forever. or are very rich. Everything needs to come over by boat or plane. You should ask, about housing, even cape cod which
was around 8 years ago reasonable, is money now. People move there and commute into Boston for work.You always could live on the cape and take the boat over. I am not sure but thet may have boat passes. The tel. co. has people who work there and either flys them over, or they take the boat.

judy

[mlhm5]

Most expensive real estate in MA and Summer 4 bdr house rentals go for $2500-4500 a week and it is full thru October. Winter rentals are cheap. Maybe you could find a house that needed a full time house sitter and live in the guest house for free.

[RichCapeCod]

A gentleman I work with has been trying to find a home he can afford (he and his wife earn around $200K a year) on Nantucket for the better part of a year. The least expensive place he found, which he and his wife would even consider living in, cost $825,000 dollars. He heard that the realtor involved in the deal called him a "bottom feeder."

Good luck.

[sevdie]

Wow. That's all I'm going to say...WOW.

[CityGirl52]

YES it's BIG bucks there now more than ever! I used to be able to spend a few weeks there every summer for the longest time because my friends sister lived on Nantucket. We didn't realize what we had all those years going there, we took it for granted oh we'd fly down from Hyannis or Boston and spend 2 to 3 weeks on that island faithfully for like 6 or 7 years, we had a ball! Well now we have memories of it and that's IT for our Nantucket days, they're OVER. Her sister had to sell the property down there, there was NO way she could afford living there.

Personally I don't like what Nantucket's become. I liked the old Nantucket much much better. A lot of extremely wealthy New Yorkers & New Englanders of course they're culprits too & wherever else these elite are from have completely taken over the island in droves and we were there 2 summers ago on a weekend trip and we just couldn't believe what we saw there now. A lot of charming wonderful older New Englanders that were there for years were either ripped down or bull dozed down one or the other and all these newer mega monstrosities have taken their place, it was unbelievable to us if you only only knew the old Nantucket we knew, it was incredible to see that type of change! Here and there you still saw some charming older homes of course, but it's not what it used to be at all down there and it's kind of sad actually, people call it progress? I certainly don't and I'll tell you, if I had all the money in the world? That's the last thing I'd want to do with it!

[scottinmass]

You know what the Eagle's say: " city girls just seem to find out early"

[mb1197]

My husband grew up living on Nantucket. Graduated from high school there. I only know the island as it is now, but he tells me it was much different 15-20 years ago when it was more affordable and less crowded. He loved living there and my brother in-law and his girlfriend still live on the island year round. It's cold and there really is not much to do during the winter months when everything shuts down. They definitely pay extraordinary prices to love there, BUT they don't seem to want to leave so something must be keeping them there. I think community is a big factor. Everyone knows everyone. It's an interesting place.

[jessy01010]

hey, i lived on nantucket for six months. it is one of the most beautiful places in the world in my opinion, nice people, great beaches, gorgeous sunsets....... BUT

1 - housing is incredibly expensive during the summer months, if you rent there, your rent is like triple during the summer as it is during the off season.
many people move back and forth just to be able to afford to live there

2- there are basically no commerical shops. there is a stop and shop, and be prepared for no parking, really long lines, things sold out often, and to pay sometimes twice as much as you might pay elsewhere... (and i'm from Boston!) also gas is at least a dollar more per gallon - although, in 6 mos i filled my tank twice.

3-traffic during the summer is crazy.... although you can bike/walk/public transportation/cab to places, even getting a cab sometimes can take awhile - you dont hail one like you might in a city, you have to call ahead

the island population increases from like 10000 to 50000 during the peak season

4-it is an island. so you are stuck there unless you take a boat or airplane, and weather is a factor, ie the airport closes, the boats dont run, etc, in bad weather.

5- not speaking for all ACK year rounders, but alcohol and drugs is a large problem on such a small island.... come october/november, downtown is like a ghost town, shops and restaurants are closed, even the movie theatre is closed..... some bars stay open though, and i just assume its for lack of anything else to do....

6- finding a parking spot downtown in the summer is a miracle.


well, i dont mean to scare you away from nantucket because it really is a beautiful place, but if you dont have millions, it can be a tough life...