Wellfleet Housing In The News
If voters approve, Wellfleet will buy Maurice's Campground for $6.5 million
Denise Coffey Cape Cod Times
Published 5:00a.m. ET April 19th, 2022
WELLFLEET — Taking advantage of a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," the Select Board has agreed to buy Maurice's Campground for $6.5 million, a deal the board says could go a long way in providing affordable housing.
On Friday the Select Board announced it had signed a purchase and sale agreement with the owners of the 21.5-acre property. Completing the sale will need voter approval at a special town meeting on Sept. 10. A closing date is scheduled for Oct. 31, pending approval.
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Boston University Statehouse Program
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“A coffee shop is nice to have. But a fireman or a policeman … we are a community where the average age is well advanced compared to the state as a whole,” said Wellfleet resident Gary Sorkin. “So just someone to take care of you, so whether it’s a home health aide … in all the ways that older folks get taken care of. Those resources are becoming more and more scarce.”
Sorkin leads the Wellfleet Local Housing Partnership, which promotes affordable housing in the town by fundraising, building awareness and coordinating and collaborating with existing departments and groups within the town focused on the same goals.
Over the past decade, Wellfleet has been the fastest-growing town on Cape Cod, with a year-round population increase of approximately 30 percent, according to a Cape Cod Commission report using U.S. Census numbers.
Longstanding problem: Funds sought to provide housing assistance in Wellfleet
Sorkin said he thinks this growth has been further fueled in the pandemic by two groups: those who decided to retire, potentially early, and move into their second or third homes on the Cape, and those who decided to take advantage of working remotely from the beach.
Buy Down Pairs Generous Seller With Grateful Buyer
Wellfleet’s 12-year effort has yielded 9 hard-won sales
By Lee Kahrs Feb 16, 2022
WELLFLEET — Nancy Lange wanted to sell her vacation house in Wellfleet to a local family instead of to the highest bidder.
So, she agreed to sell her three-bedroom, one-bath house at 29 Buck St. through Wellfleet’s buy down program as a deed-restricted affordable home for $464,200 — the highest price allowed under the program’s regulations for a three-bedroom.
Lange could certainly have gotten more for the house, which she bought in 1999 for $195,000 and which is currently assessed at $450,800. The buyer, Meghan Cox, received $175,000 from the town towards the purchase, reducing the price to $289,200. Cox qualified under the program’s income and asset limits for recipients.
It’s only the ninth home sale in Wellfleet’s buy down program, which began in 2010 to help low- and middle-income families buy homes. Because the houses are deed-restricted, they incrementally increase the town’s affordable housing stock.