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Boston's Morning Newsletter
Looking for a Cape Cod summer rental? It might be easier this year
Editor's Note: This is an excerpt from WBUR's daily morning newsletter, WBUR Today. If you like what you read and want it in your inbox, sign up here.
It’s Right Whale Day in Massachusetts, so say hi to Calvin if you’re near the aquarium around lunchtime. (If you’re in the mood for a deep dive, read more here on the threats to right whales and how they became a pawn in a larger political fight.)
Now, to the news:
Looking to rent on Cape Cod this summer? It might be easier than years past, thanks to an increase in short-term rentals. Even though vacationers are still flocking to the Cape in high numbers, real estate experts say the supply of rentals this summer has rebounded in a big way. “What we’re looking at now is just higher inventory, more availability,” Jim Reese, an exec at the Cape rental website We Need A Vacation, told WBUR’s Samantha Coetzee.
- Why? A few factors led to “frantic” booking seasons the last few years, according to Reese. Many homes were taken off the rental market during the COVID pandemic, and there was a wave of second-home buying. But now, many of those homes are rentable again. “Maybe in years past when they purchased their home, they were renovating, it wasn’t ready for rentals, or they were using it for personal reasons,” Reese said. He also noted “a lot of repeat renters” are now looking to travel out of town and overseas, forcing owners to find new renters.
- By the numbers: Nearly 18,000 Cape summer rentals are on the market, The Boston Globe reported earlier this month. That’s 12% more compared to last April and 50% more than March 2021.
- What does that mean for prices? CBS News reports the average daily price for a Cape Cod rental in July was $272, down from $387 in 2021.
- Pro-tip: Don’t limit yourself to a vacation in the “heart of summer.” Reese says you’ll have better options around the “end of June, early July, or at the end of the summer.” “You’ll see a lot stronger availability — in the 30-40% range,” he added.
What’s next for Marshfield: Town meeting voters in Marshfield rejected zoning changes this week that were intended to bring the South Shore town into compliance with the MBTA Communities Act. However, whether Marshfield ends up in the same legal battle with state officials as Milton is still a bit TBD.
- Why? Marshfield is considered an “adjacent community” under the law, meaning it has until the end of this year to comply. So, town planners could make tweaks to the proposed zoning bylaw and hold another vote in the fall, Marshfield town counsel Robert Galvin told WBUR’s Amy Sokolow.
- Easier said than done? The trick will be finding a compromise bylaw that both allows denser development (as required by the MBTA Communities Act) and addresses concerns about “the character” of the town. “The town has a very passionate group of residents that feel very strongly about its determination as to what should be appropriate for the town,” Galvin said.
Up in the air: Massachusetts is spending nearly $800,000 to install roughly 200 softball-sized air sensors around the state. WBUR’s Barbara Moran reports they will be deployed in environmental justice neighborhoods — places that historically have experienced a disproportionate burden of environmental hazards that affect health and quality of life — to measure tiny airborne particles that aggravate asthma and other respiratory problems.
- What will the data be used for? Bonnie Heiple, the state’s Department of Environmental Protection commissioner, told Barb the data will be available online in real time. Not only will that allow folks to make informed decisions about how they spend their day, Heiple says it will also allow people to report issues to the state.
- Zoom out: According to a new report, over one-third of Americans routinely breathe in unhealthy air, with communities of color and low-income Americans having higher exposure.
ICYMI: Gov. Maura Healey called her transportation secretary’s comments suggesting Massachusetts would consider adding tolls along the state’s border “a very poor choice of words” during her appearance yesterday on Radio Boston. “It’s not how we do things. It’s not how we operate. And we moved on from that,” Healey said.
- Click here to read and listen to Healey’s full, wide-ranging conversation with Radio Boston host Tiziana Dearing.
P.S.— Here & Now is marking Earth Week with a new edition of their Reverse Course series — this time looking at how to clean up the way we move around and ship goods. The transportation-focused segments cover everything from battery-powered big rigs to efforts to make planes more emission-friendly. Read the latest here.
