According to the Island-Wide Housing Needs Assessment, Martha's Vineyard added 2,700 seasonal and part-time homes and 1,000 owner-occupied homes, but built fewer than 50 new year-round rental apartments and distributed less than 20 youth lots for affordable homeownership in the 1990's. During the same period, the local economy added more than 1,500 relatively low-paying service and retail jobs. This imbalance between the exclusive development of high cost homes and the creation of lower-paying jobs defines the problem. High home prices (85 percent above the statewide median), high rents (at least 30 percent over the statewide median) and low wages (27 percent below the statewide average) are the result.

Click here to view the "Island-Wide Housing Needs Assessment" executive summary or to view the full report

Housing Goal

The scale of the affordable housing problem calls for the creation of 500 affordable units (between 100 and 150 affordable units per year) divided evenly between year-round rental housing and affordable homeownership. This does not necessarily mean new housing but it does require that the housing be dedicated to serve long-term affordability aims. If sustained at even the 100-unit level for the eight remaining years of this decade, it would bring the number of affordable homes on island to at least 10 percent of the year-round total. More importantly, it would represent a tremendous legacy left by the current residents of the Island to future generations.

Town Housing Strategies

Each of the six town on Martha's Vineyard have created housing strategies that are updated annually for their communities, including:

Aquinnah
Chilmark
Edgartown
Oak Bluffs
Tisbury
West Tisbury

Housing Legislation

There is currently a bill before the Massachusetts State Legislature to promote affordable housing on Martha's Vineyard, including:

Martha's Vineyard Affordable Housing Covenant (H1510) - Authorizes perpetual affordable housing covenants for housing that serves families and individuals earning 150% or less of the Dukes County area median income.

Housing Toolbox

The Regional Housing Authority has created an Affordable Housing Toolbox to assist towns in planning and creating local inventive housing solutions. The toolbox includes various affordable housing strategies from inclusionary zoning to how to secure land to types of funding sources that island towns and communities across the commonwealth are using. Much of the information was taken from a publication prepared by CHAPA and MHP entitled "Taking the Initiative - A Guidebook on Creating Affordable Housing Strategies."

Town Zoning Analysis

The Regional Housing Authority has completed a Town Zoning Analysis that provides an overview of each of the town's zoning regulations on Martha's Vineyard as they relate to affordable housing. The analysis also recommends new zoning provisions to increase the town's stock of affordable housing.