Top 10 Stories from 2023

02/26/2024

While we are excited to see what 2024 has in store for Nantucket, we wanted to reflect on the highs and lows that last year held. Here are the top 10 stories that directly impacted real estate on Nantucket in 2023.

1. Interest rates hit a 20-year high The average 30-year mortgage rate in the U.S., which was below 3% less than two years ago, exceeded 7% in August 2023 and peaked at 7.79% in late October, making it the highest mortgage rate since November 2000.

2. Sconset Beach Preservation Fund, an organization dedicated to preserving the Sconset Bluff from erosion, stated back in January 2023 that their 10+ year effort to save the bluff along Baxter Road has ended. But just 11 months later, a formal notice of intent was filed by the Select Board and SBPF with the Conservation Commission, which would aim to expand the geotube installation in a phased approach.

3. Highest single-family home sale 68 & 72 Monomoy Road sold in September for a whopping $42,000,000, boasting 8,000+ square feet.

4. First Republic Bank, one of the island’s major home lenders, collapsed in May 2023, becoming the second largest bank failure in U.S. history with most of its business sold to JPMorgan Chase.

5. Special Short-Term Rental (STR) Town Meeting 4 years of debate and counting. After heavy politicking and a great deal of confusion, at the 2023 Annual Town Meeting, Nantucket voted down rental regulations proposed by the Short Term Rental Work Group, which was formed in last year’s ATM to establish regulations. Rental regulations are back on the ballot for the 2024 ATM.

6. A busy year for the Nantucket Historic District Commission In 2023, the HDC issued 90 new dwelling permits and 112 new residential pool permits.

7. Housing advocate Billy Cassidy A collaboration between the Affordable Housing Trust, local builder Billy Cassidy, and Housing Nantucket will provide affordable housing in the Wiggles Way area off Fairgrounds Road to 22 households this year. Cassidy was the inaugural recipient of the Dr. Howard Dickler Affordable Housing Advocacy Award.

8. Town buying historic Lifesaving Station The Town of Nantucket reached a deal in December 2023 to buy the former Surfside Lifesaving Station and Star of the Sea Hostel property for $6 million from Blue Flag Partners. The property, located at 31 Western Avenue, will be used as seasonal lifeguard and municipal employee housing. Blue Flag Partners originally purchased the property in October 2020 for $3,550,000.

9. Nantucket’s “new downtown” In November 2023, the Nantucket Planning Board approved the “new downtown” development on Sparks Avenue, one of the largest mixed-use buildings to be permitted by the Planning Board. The 1.6-acre property has plans to include a bowling alley, arcade, multiple restaurants, and 32 apartment units.

10. Wind farm construction underway Vineyard Wind, a 62-turbine wind farm spaced one nautical mile apart, is set to become the country’s first large-scale offshore wind farm. Under construction in federal waters 15 miles southwest of Nantucket, each turbine raises 837 feet in the air and is sometimes visible from the island’s South Shore beaches.

Check out our 2023 Annual Report for more information!