O
n Tuesday, a coalition of Nantucket’s leaders appeared before the Massachusetts legislature on Beacon Hill to champion a bill that would impose a new tax on high‑value real‑estate transfers, earmarking the revenue for affordable‑housing projects. They highlighted how the island’s housing crisis is pushing essential workers—teachers, police officers, and other community staff—out of the area and underscored the need for a dependable funding source to address a $500 million shortfall.
“Young teachers who have spent years sharing cramped apartments or hopping from one seasonal rental to another feel they have no choice but to leave,” said Superintendent Elizabeth Hallett of Nantucket Public Schools. “Veteran educators who would gladly finish their careers here are being priced out. The demand far exceeds our capacity, and a real‑estate transfer fee would give us a reliable, local stream of money to preserve year‑round housing and keep educators and families rooted on the island.”
For more than a decade, Nantucket has petitioned the state to establish a Housing Bank financed by a seller‑paid transfer fee, mirroring the Land Bank’s 2 percent fee that buyers pay. The state has consistently denied the request. “A transfer fee that has proven successful for the Land Bank could boost funding for this urgent community need without negative side effects,” said Rachael Freeman, Executive Director of the Nantucket Land Bank. “The Land Bank demonstrates that a local transfer fee on Nantucket works.”
The current version of the bill, co‑sponsored by Representative Thomas Moakley and Senator Julian Cyr, would levy a 0.5 percent seller‑paid fee on property sales exceeding $2 million. “Our housing crisis threatens our ability to provide essential services today and in the future,” said Police Chief Jody Kasper. “The real‑estate transfer fee won’t solve every aspect of the crisis, but it is one strategy that will make a real difference. Together with other solutions, it will allow those who serve our community to stay and continue delivering vital services.”
Housing advocates view the fee as a critical tool that would deliver guaranteed, flexible funding for affordable housing. Kristie Ferrentella, Director of Nantucket Housing, noted that last year alone the fee could have generated $4 million. “Over recent years, voters have committed more than $150 million of taxpayers’ money to affordable housing. We’ve tripled our subsidized housing stock, launched a lease‑to‑locals program, and adopted every zoning change,” she said. “But the real‑estate transfer fee offers something extra to our toolbox. It would empower us to generate our own local, dedicated funding stream—revenue that stays in the community to meet our urgent housing needs.”
The state legislature has remained skeptical. The fee has long faced opposition from key members of the leadership and has drawn sharp criticism from the Massachusetts Association of Realtors. Nantucket real‑estate agents, however, largely disagree with the state association. “The Nantucket Association of Real Estate Brokers has voted numerous times to support the fee legislation over the last decade,” said former president Penny Dey, who also serves as vice chair of the Nantucket Affordable Housing Trust and chair of the Nantucket Housing Authority. “I urge you to let Nantucket have the tools to do what is right for our community.”
Other islanders who testified included Select Board member Brooke Mohr, Housing Nantucket executive director Anne Kuszpa, Planning and Economic Development chair Abby De Molina, Preservation Trust executive director Mary Bergman, and Affordable Housing Trust member Forest Bell.
