Issuu

N A N T U C K E T

SUMMER

Summer is here and the island is in full bloom. The roses are beauful and the hydrangeas are pung on a real show this year. Every weekend is ﬁlled with happy visitors enjoying what makes Nantucket so special. Here is the update on the current real estate market on Nantucket....

With half of the year in the books, it is clear that we are in different territory than during the pandemic years. There were 178 sales in the first 6 months of this year (+56% from last year) for a total of $523,360,000 (+13%). The average sale price (of all properes sold) has dropped from $3.995M to $2.940M (-26%). It feels like the wishful thinking pricing strategy by some sellers may be tempering somewhat. This is supported by the fact that the average selling price, as a percentage of list price has dropped to 89%, the first me under 90% in over a decade.

The average selling price, as a percentage of assessed value, has also dropped from 136% last year to 125% to date in 2025. Perhaps the most important indicator that the market may be shiing is that the average me on the market is now up to 7 months; from 2021 through 2024 it was averaging 5 months. When the me it takes to sell rises, it means that lisngs are priced too high for the current market. Today it may also be a sign that buyers are becoming more cauous about a major discreonary purchase, due to the uncertainty surrounding the current economic climate. Nantucket is mostly a discreonary real estate market, driven by second, or third homeowners. No one HAS to buy on Nantucket.

The average selling price of a residenal property on Nantucket is now $3,832,000 (-16% from 2024). The median home sale is $2,555,000 (-30%). The average vacant lot is selling for $1,722,000 (-36%); and the median vacant land sale is $1,400,000 (-40%). More than 75% of all property sales on Nantucket were over $1M. And 44% of all sales to date this year have been over $5M. Connued on Page 2....

MARKETNEWS

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So far this year, only one fair market residenal property has sold for under $500,000 and it was located in an area subject to erosion. The good news is that there have been 3 sales of Covenant Properes under $500K this year. To date in 2025 there have been 15 sales of commercial property on the island, averaging $3.4M. It is no surprise that the properes that are selling the most rapidly are those that are in move-in condion and with a high level of amenies and ﬁnishes, including swimming pools.

At the end of Q1 there were only 151 property lisngs acvely on the market, about half what it was prior to 2020. At the end of Q2 there were 244 acve lisngs. In pre-pandemic markets, the average number of lisngs ranged between 350 and 400. Inventory connues to be low due to the unprecedented number of sales between 2020 and 2023.

The Nantucket real estate market exceeded $1B for the first me in 2017 and the average, since then has been $1.4 billion in annual sales. The outlier years were 2020 ($1.8 billion) and 2021 ($2.3 billion) as people escaped to places like Nantucket that were perceived as safe during the pandemic. It is important to note that, historically, just under 35% of sales on Nantucket close in the first half of the year meaning that more than 65% of all sales dollars close in the last two quarters of the year. Based on the market acvity for the first half of 2025, it is likely that Nantucket will see total sales in excess of $1.5 billion in 2025.

Atlanc East has deep stascal analyses available. Please contact your favorite Atlanc East broker if you would like more informaon on the market.

NANTUCKET REALESTATEATAGLANCEYTD as of Q2 2025

There are currently only 244 active listings, 52 pending sales, 178 closed salesYTD, average residential price is down 16% and average land price is down 23% from 2024, average time on market is up from 5 to 7 months, and the average selling price, as a percentage of list price is 89% and 125% of assessed value.

Community Spotlight: Egan Maritime Institute

The Egan Marime Instute was founded in 1989 by island nave Albert F. “Bud” Egan, Jr. and his wife Dorothy H. Egan. The goal of the Instute is to preserve and celebrate the island's marime heritage.

Their Mission Statement: Egan Marime Instute promotes and preserves Nantucket's marime tradions. We strive to ensure that our Island's culture and community connue to be shaped by its seafaring legacy. We achieve this through programs in the classroom, at the museum, and on the water. We envision a Nantucket where every resident and visitor experiences the Island's rich marime history and culture, and where future generaons of Nantucketers will be inspired to explore marimefocused learning and career opportunies.

Egan's educaonal programs provide diverse, hands-on learning opportunies for Nantucket students at every stage of their academic journey. Their mission is twofold: to connect students with the Island's rich marime environment beyond the classroom and to culvate the next generaon of marime professionals. “By equipping local youth with the skills and experiences needed for careers on the water, we strengthen their futures and our coastal community”

The Nantucket Shipwreck & Lifesaving Museum in Polpis is an affiliate of Egan Marime Instute, and is dedicated to honoring Nantucket's history of shipwrecks, lifesaving, and rescuers. The museum is located at the edge of Folger's Marsh, and the grounds are open year-round. The public is welcome to visit one of the most scenic sites on the Island for the view, enjoy a picnic, or watch the variety of birds interacng on the marsh. You can catch the FREE Shipwreck Shule from Visitor Services at 25 Federal Street. The shule runs hourly from 9:45 AM to 2:45 PM, Monday through Friday, from June 23 to October 3. Egan Marime and the Tall Ship Lynx, a privateer, offer a full season of engaging public programs. From a fesve Fourth of July fireworks sail and golden-hour marime music evenings to family-friendly dockside puppet shows and morning cruises with local breakfast treats, this summer's calendar is designed to welcome the enre community aboard. Several programs are presented in collaboraon with beloved local partners, including Nanpuppets, the Arsts Associaon of Nantucket, and Lemon Press. Throughout the summer, Capt. Don Peacock owns and operates a separate business via the Lynx. His calendar includes daily sails, sunset cruises, and private charters. Egan Marime members receive discounts on all Tall Ship Lynx Sails. To learn more about nonEgan Marime-sponsored sails aboard the Tall Ship Lynx, visit: hps://tallshiplynx.org/ For more informaon about the Egan Marime Instute visit them here: hps://eganmarime.org/

THE PLANNING BOARD

In Massachuses, a Planning Board plays a crucial role in guiding a community's growth and development. They are responsible for creang and implemenng a Master Plan, administering Zoning Bylaws, and overseeing subdivision control. They also review development proposals, conduct public hearings, and make recommendaons on various land use maers. Their job is to interpret and apply exisng regulaons to land use. On Nantucket the job of the Planning Board is also to review residenal subdivisions; review secondary dwelling permits; and special permits for major commercial development, moorlands management district developments, major residenal developments, mul-family developments, and second curb cuts. The Nantucket Planning Board meets on the second Monday of each month (and more oen as needed). For Planning Board agendas and minutes go to hps://nantucketma.portal.civicclerk.com/?category_id=31

Not to be confused with the Planning Board, the Nantucket Planning and Economic Development Commission is one of 13 regional planning agencies in the state and the only one represenng just one town. The NP&EDC is a non-regulatory board and was established in order to plan for the orderly and coordinated development and protecon of the physical, social and economic resources of the Island of Nantucket.

2025 Sales by Price Sector, as of Q2

Tips for Vacation Rental Owners

$5-$7M

Over the last couple of years, we have seen a slowdown in rental bookings aer the frenzy of the pandemic years. As a result, prices have started to moderate and the decline in numbers has started to level out. It's just as important now, as it was before the pandemic, to put your best foot forward when it comes to markeng your rental and welcoming tenants to your home.

A recent survey of vacaon travelers revealed that one of the most important things guests look for in a rental is the feeling of home. They want a space to feel familiar. One of the things that can help a tenant feel seled is a house book. There's nothing more frustrang when checking into a new space than hunng for the Wi-Fi password or trying to figure out how to work the TV. Having this informaon compiled in one obvious place can provide a sense of comfort for weary travelers. Providing suggesons for where to shop for groceries, produce, fish or a list of your favorite restaurants or acvies can also give tenants a jumpstart on enjoying their vacaon. A house book is also a great place to consolidate the state and locally required documentaon for all rental homes…state and local registraon cerficates, permits and a map of all egresses. Another safety item that should be addressed is smoke and CO detectors. Even if they are working, they must be replaced by the expiraon date, generally 10 years from the manufacturer date. And let's not forget recycling instrucons. Nantucket has stricter recycling guidelines than many other communies so it's a good pracce to provide detailed informaon to tenants on what is expected of them. A guest that feels welcomed upon their arrival and provided for during their stay is a guest that will in turn care for your home and come back year aer year.

NANTUCKETVOTERS RE-AFFIRM PROPERTYRIGHTS

The Nantucket Associaon of Real Estate Brokers (NAREB) commissioned an independent research group to update the vacaon rental study done previously. With the update, we now have five years of data on leases done through NAREB member offices from 2019 through 2024. The study confirmed that high intensity renng is rare - 95% of all properes were rented fewer than 8 mes in a year. Half were rented for 4 weeks or less in duraon. This clearly debunks the myth that “there are mini hotels on every corner” The number of leases has been stable and stascally flat since 2021. Town has the largest number of vacaon rentals (28%), followed by 'Sconset (11%) which makes sense given the density of the two locaons. In 2024, 1,555 Nantucket properes matched the Department of Revenue list for filing the short term rental tax (those who rented for fewer than 31 days). Not surprisingly, 70% of all vacaon rentals occur in July and August with July passing August in popularity. A full 93% of leases were for less than 31 days with the vast majority renng for only one week. Only 7% of all leases are for longer than 31 days. All of this is important because of the 12,700 dwelling units on Nantucket, fewer than 10% have registered with the local registry for this year. There is no possible way that 10% of all the properes on Nantucket can be blamed for the majority traffic, the crowding and difficulty geng a dinner reservaon. The other 90% of properes are either owner occupied or rented longer term. It makes sense that the care and maintenance of these properes is why there are now nearly 20,000 people living on Nantucket year round, many of whom work in the service industries (pools, hedges, care taking, painng, cleaning, and landscaping).

At our Annual Town Meeng in May, Arcle 66 sought to codify short term rentals in our Zoning By-Law. Arcle 66 received a favorable recommendaon from the Finance Commiee and a YES vote from 60% of voters present but failed to meet the 2/3 threshold necessary to pass. There were 3 other arcles seeking to restrict the right to rent on a short-term basis, none of which garnered more than 33% in favor. Nantucket voters clearly understand what is going on here with short-term rentals and have once again spoken up for property rights. Since ATM, a Land Court judge has issued an opinion that makes STR rentals of one's home in the ROH zoning district illegal because they are not speciﬁcally allowed in our Zoning By-Law. The Town has chosen to appeal the decision and will not be enforcing this ruling this year. There will be a Special Town Meeng this fall, giving our community one more opportunity to bring rentals (all rentals, not just short-term ones) into our Zoning By-Law. The Town has received nearly $50 million from the tax revenue from vacaon rentals of less than 32 days since 2019. We will connue to ask how can the Town and the Commonwealth tax and regulate rentals, as they do, if they are an illegal use?

Nantucket: Lot Prices (In 000's YTD) As of Q2 2025

IsThat a Kennel Next Door?

Underneath all development on Nantucket is our Zoning By-Law. If you are curious about your zoning district and what uses are allowed by right, or by special permit, or are not allowed at all, please check out this Nantucket Zoning Chart. hps://nantucketrealestate.com/wp-content/uploads/NA0948-139b-Use-Chart.pdf

The Town has a property tax calculator that can be used to understand the impact of various spending overrides on your property tax bill. For instance, Nantucket recently voted an override of $6.8 million to build a bike path on Tom Nevers Road. Go to hps://atmtaxratecalculator.nantucket-ma.gov/ , and you can see the impact of a speciﬁc override on your property tax bill.

There is a new concierge luggage and transportaon service called The Luggage Trolley. They will meet you and your bags at your ferry or plane and pick up, store and deliver your stuﬀ to your desnaon. This is parcularly useful if you are traveling without a vehicle. Check them out at theluggagetrolley.com or by calling 508-901-9771. You can also book on-line.

A t l a n t i c E a s t

N A N T U C K E T R E A L E S T A T E

Penny Dey, GRI, ABRM, Broker/Owner

Linda Bellevue, GRI, CBR; Heidi Drew, ABR, RSPS, SRS; Peter DuPont; Angel Conrad Frazier; Mary D. Malavase, GRI, ABR, RSPS, SFR; Jane Miller, ABR, RSPS; Erikka Perkins, Rental Manager; Meg Ruley, ABR, RSPS; Lisa Sherburne, ABR, RSPS; Melinda Vallett; Geri Walker, RSPS, SFR; Mary O’Donnell, Office Manager; Yesenia Valer, Office Assistant

We believe in doing one thing and in doing it well!

82 Easton Street Nantucket MA 02554 508.228.7707 NantucketRealEstate.com

Volume XXI, Issue 3, Summer 2025