Thanks for asking - The Housing Crisis

A resident asked: “What is your message to the locals we have who are struggling to find long-term housing?” and “Also to those who wish to purchase a home and build equity like their parents and grandparents on Cape did before them?”

These are interrelated questions. I’ll begin by responding to the first question and tackle the second question in a subsequent post.

It is a frustrating situation to not be able to find long-term housing in the town where you grew up. It’s particularly frustrating when you work full-time and then some. Mashpee’s housing crisis makes it difficult for many local folks to live here. This is a challenge for local home seekers. It is also a challenge for all Mashpee residents who rely on a healthy workforce.

There is no easy solution! But, we do need to act in informed ways.

What is Attainable Housing?

According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), housing is affordable when a family spends no more than 30% of their gross income on housing and utilities. According to the Cape Cod Commission, from 2019 to 2021 housing costs increased at three times the rate of weekly income. The average price of a home in Mashpee is over $600,000. This is not affordable to most local folks. Rental vacancy in Barnstable County is only about 1%, which also makes it difficult for folks to find a place to rent.

What is the Context for the Housing Crisis? 

As we know, Mashpee is not the only Cape Cod town facing housing issues. The Cape and entire state is faced with an “unprecedented” housing crisis (Simón Rios, January 24, 2023). On Cape Cod 82% of Cape Cod housing are single family homes, which are more expensive than other options. Another factor that contributes to the housing crisis is that approximately 35% of houses in Mashpee are occupied seasonally. Many of these are second homes, which contribute to Mashpee’s economy in terms of creating jobs for local landscapers, property maintenance companies, and home contractors. Others are investment homes, which rent for thousands of dollars weekly. We use funds from the short-term rental tax to help pay the State Revolving Fund (SRF) loan for the wastewater treatment plant.  Additionally, short-term renters contribute to Mashpee’s economy in many ways. They eat at our restaurants, shop at our stores, and spend their vacation dollars here.

Another factor that contributes to the unavailability of attainable homes is the current practice of tearing down modest homes to build much larger ones. The selling prices for larger homes with more bedrooms and bathrooms are higher than those of smaller homes.   

What are the Solutions?

The solution to the lack of attainable housing is as complex as the crisis itself. The Cape Cod Commission is in process of a Cape-wide housing study, which they anticipate will be available late summer 2023. This will likely provide useful recommendations for Mashpee.

The Home Housing Assistance Corporation of Cape Cod (HAC) suggests that there is no one solution to this crisis.  HAC reports that we need multiple measures to address the crisis, including multiple family homes, accessory dwelling units, and denser clusters of smaller homes.

One caveat: We need to think about how we will ensure that new housing remains attainable to our local folks. It won’t help local folks who are seeking housing if the new homes we build attract an influx of second homeowners.  This would only complicate the housing crisis we are trying to address.  

The residential tax reduction is one small way the Town of Mashpee has moved forward to give some help to full-time residents who are fortunate enough to own their own home but may be struggling to make ends meet in this economy.

The Chicken and the Egg

So, we know we are in a housing crisis. At the same time, we are in a water quality crisis. The primary water pollutants are excess nitrogen and phosphorous. Approximately 85% of the nitrogen is from existing septic systems and cesspools. (Septic systems are the predominant waste-water treatment system in single family homes throughout Cape Cod.)

What Does the Water Problem have to Do with Housing?

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts told the Town of Mashpee (and other Cape Cod towns) that we need to address our water pollution. For more information about this please see https://www.mashpeema.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif3426/f/news/dep_presentation_mashpee_select_board.7.11.22.pdf

The Commonwealth is in the process of finalizing regulations to ensure that each Cape Cod town addresses pollution with urgency. Wastewater is on the frontline. New regulations for wastewater will be released soon. Preliminary regulations require towns to either replace all septic systems and cesspools with alternative innovative systems within 5 years or submit a nitrogen reduction watershed plan.

Mashpee will submit a nitrogen reduction plan. We must show how we will reduce nitrogen loads by 75% within 20 years. The plan must include the nitrogen load contributed over the past 10 years and the projected nitrogen load over the next 20 years. So, our water and housing crises are interrelated, and we must move forward on these together.

Every 5 years Mashpee must submit a monitoring plan that shows a reduction in nitrogen load.

To reduce nitrogen by 75%, we will need to move forward with sewers. No other single method will do this. Due to several factors (cost, construction time, materials, etc.) the sewer project cannot be fully achieved right away.

Unless HAC-recommended housing is directly connected to a sewer system it will greatly increase the nitrogen load we are mandated to reduce, impacting Mashpee’s ability to meet the Commonwealth’s requirements.

I will continue to post as more information is available.