Cape Cod Real Estate Market - State of the Market (Sandwich: for sale, rentals)

[Hammie]

Hey All,

Need more real estate professional's opinions please...

What's the state of the market? What's the best time to buy on the Cape?

I've been searching for about 9 months, and am noticing a lot of price cuts, pending sales --> back on markets, more cuts. Many homes seem to be priced well over value (final sale price) to the tune of 10% or so. Of course some go under agreement quickly, but that doesn't seem to be the norm anymore.

So, my observation is that homes listed in the late winter/spring are pretty over-priced and last well into the summer and beyond, and those listed in the fall are more reasonable and close mid-winter.

Are there a lot of people just testing the waters in the market (i.e. not serious about selling)?

Do you see the market leveling off? If Zillow is any indication, the market is cooling...a lot. Many zip codes for show very little forecasted increase for the next year in the Zillow Market Reports, with some declines. Of course, I don't know how accurate Zillow is.

So, tell me what you think about the Cape market as a whole. FYI, my price point is anywhere from 450k to 650k.

Thank you!

[Beachcomber4]

The Cape is a very large geographic area. Kind of hard to generalize.

The same houses throw the for sale sign out every year at the start of the summer and take them down in the fall. Lots of people, who if they get their number, they will sell.

We've seen lots of Air BnB investors around here in recent years. Not sure what the new taxes have done to that market. The Chamber of Commerce says rentals are down this year. Houses that sat on the market for a long time have been selling and some have gone on and been snapped up quickly.

[Hammie]

Originally Posted by Beachcomber4

The Cape is a very large geographic area. Kind of hard to generalize.

The same houses throw the for sale sign out every year at the start of the summer and take them down in the fall. Lots of people, who if they get their number, they will sell.

We've seen lots of Air BnB investors around here in recent years. Not sure what the new taxes have done to that market. The Chamber of Commerce says rentals are down this year. Houses that sat on the market for a long time have been selling and some have gone on and been snapped up quickly.

Thanks for replying.

Good point about the geographic area...Let's say Sandwich and the Mid-Cape towns.

What are you saying about "new" taxes?

[mickdaddy]

There have not been many changes in the Cape Cod market over these last few years. Outside of the GBA, the Massachusetts property market as a whole is remarkably underwhelming. Any competition you're going to find will be among the more prized parcels with good views, deeded water access, etc... but beyond that it's mostly just stagnation and people cycling their homes on/off the market in between renting them out/using them. I don't think there is a good or a bad time to buy. Depends what you want to do with it and specifically where you want it. I am sure you are aware that the Cape is an absolute depressing ghost town during the Winter and has large petty crime/drug issues.

[MikePRU]

Originally Posted by Hammie

Thanks for replying.

Good point about the geographic area...Let's say Sandwich and the Mid-Cape towns.

What are you saying about "new" taxes?

I believe the state passed a new law maybe last year or the previous year which created a tax on short term rentals. They were responding to lobbying from the hotel industry. Obviously, when you stay at a hotel you pay tax on your stay so they wanted to "level the playing field" between private short term rentals and hotels.

If you're not buying in order to use the property as a seasonal income property then this tax will not affect you.