The name “Nantucket” is adapted from similar Algonquian names for the island, perhaps meaning “faraway land or island” or “sandy, sterile soil tempting no one”.
This summer has surely proven that the latter is not the case! No one could have predicted the performance of the Nantucket real estate market this season. We went into the summer, sheltered at home and in the grip of the pandemic, hoping to simply get through 2020 and looking forward to the return of some semblance of normalcy in 2021. Instead, after a bleak second quarter this year, the market on Nantucket has taken off driven by the phenomenon we call “heading for the hills”. Not unique to Nantucket, brokers in NH and VT are reporting similar conditions as buyers, many from urban areas, seek safe places to be that have some space. Nantucket is likely to again exceed $1 billion in real estate sales in 2020.
The island was busy in July and August but not as busy as pre-pandemic. People on island followed clear directions from our medical and Town leadership and, as a result, Nantucket has the lowest rate of COVID-19 of any county in the state (less than 1% of those tested).
On Nantucket we are so fortunate to have so much open space for the public to enjoy – Land Bank and Nantucket Conservation Properties and our first rate beaches. Sometimes we seem to take these for granted but living through COVID has made us appreciate them even more. We have also noticed more birds, fish, deer and other wildlife around, as we emerged from “shelter at home” to “safer at home”.
We are grateful and hopeful that 2021 will be even better than this year, on so many levels.