Nantucket is gentrifying rapidly and is in a building boom. What is interesting about this building boom compared to previous building booms is it is not just happening in the suspected areas – Cliff, Brant Point, Town, ‘Sconset, etc. It is happening in every area of the island, including what were at one point considered undesirable areas – outskirts of Town, mid-Island, etc. What is happening is the demand for the low-end of the market, under $1mm, is so strong that the only areas a buyer can find a house for under $1mm are in areas like south of Town and mid-Island. The homes being bought are not necessarily “up to par” with the buyers’ standards, so the buyers are having to renovate and add-on. This in turn makes the building boom more prolific than past booms. My wife, Jenn, and I have experienced this first hand. We bought a property on outer Hooper Farm Road, sub-divided it into two lots and essentially built three new houses – two on one lot and one on the other lot. At the beginning of the project, which was about two years ago, people thought we were from another planet to invest heavily in this area. So far, we have grossed phenomenal rental income on a weekly vacation rental basis in both houses, with not a single week empty (we live in the third house). Every tenant, without exception, wants to return. They love the area, we love the area, which goes to show, there are no undesirable areas left on Nantucket. Since then, four of our neighbors have either built their properties out 100% new or gut renovated the existing house. Also, there are several new builds starting this summer one street away and I imagine there are other neighboring properties currently in permitting. One of our neighbors that built new even has a private squash court. That was not a typo – a private squash court on Hooper Farm Road. The times they are a-changin’…
