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BREWSTER VISION ADVISORY GROUP
SUMMARY PAPER
HOUSING
OCTOBER 2017
I.Background
The cost and availability of housing in Brewster was identified as the largest single
challenge at the June workshops, with an emphasis on how the lack of affordable
housing impacts young families. Workshop participants saw housing as key to allowing
young families to stay in Brewster thereby maintaining the diverse community that
residents value and providing the workforce that the local economy needs. In this way,
housing is closely inter-related to community character and local economy building
blocks of Brewster’s vision.
Affordable housing, generally defined as housing available to households with incomes
at or below 80% of area median income (e.g. currently $61,200 for a 3-person
household) and at a cost that does not exceed 30% of the household’s gross monthly
income, was identified by workshop participants as the biggest challenge the Town
faces. Approximately 26% of Brewster households have incomes of $35,000 or less.
While those with the lowest incomes face the greatest housing need and challenges, the
cost and availability of housing—both for year-round rentals and ownership
opportunities—is an issue as well for many households that do not qualify for affordable
housing, making it challenging for both younger families and older residents to remain
in Town. How to provide these wide range of housing opportunities while maintaining
Brewster’s community character, identified as the Town’s top treasure, is the
conundrum.
Current status
Brewster, as well as the rest of the Cape, is facing housing issues that are common with
a number of resort, tourist-based areas throughout the country that have a significant
percentage of their housing stock used on a seasonal basis (nearly 44% of housing units
in Brewster are for seasonal use). These areas all have high housing costs in part
because the average income of second home owners is greater than that of year-round
residents and thus they can drive up the cost of housing. Environmental and
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infrastructure factors also contribute to the higher cost of housing in Town. In addition,
these tourist-based areas are also characterized by low wages. Over the last 15 years,
the average wage on the Cape has been at least 30% lower than the average wage in the
state. The combination of high housing costs and lower wages makes it incredibly
challenging for communities to provide housing that residents and workers can
reasonably afford, e.g. a household with an income of $40,000 should pay no more than
$1,000 per month for rent or for their mortgage, taxes, and insurance if they own.
Since 1969, the state has had a goal that every community should have 10% of its year-
round housing stock designated as affordable. Currently the Town has 250 units
counted as affordable, 5.2%, and needs to add 231 affordable units to meet the 10%
goal. The 10% metric however understates the range of housing needs—affordable and
otherwise—that exists in Town. Housing cost burden is a more telling indicator of a
community’s affordable housing need. The 2017 Brewster Housing Production Plan
reported the following:
•960 low or moderate income households (those below 80% median income)
were cost-burdened, i.e. paying more than 30% of their gross income on housing
costs. 575 of those households were paying more than 50% of their income on
housing costs. These figures include both owners and renters.
•Approximately 84% of the 4,803 year-round housing units are owner-occupied,
while only 16% (about 800) were renter occupied. 76% of the housing units in
Town are detached single family homes.
•There are limited housing options for the approximately 1,300 single person
households.
•8% of Brewster households live below the poverty line.
•There is a 2-4 year wait for senior housing apartments owned by the Brewster
Housing Authority.
•The median sales price of a single-family home in 2015 was $389,750. A
household would need an income of over $100,000 to afford the median priced
home. The median household income was $66,306—a gap of well over $30,000
of what would be needed to purchase that median-priced home. By comparison,
under current interest rates, the “affordable” price for a 3-bedroom home would
be about $225,000.
Trends
The most significant trends, perhaps not surprisingly, are related to demographics. As
reported in the Housing Production Plan, between 1970 and 2000, Brewster’s
population increased four-fold to just over 10,000; however, since 2000, the town’s
population has declined about 1.4%. The population of those age 65+ is growing—now
about 29% of the population compared with 14% state-wide. Since 2000, the Town has
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seen a significant decrease in the numbers of individuals in both the 25-34 and 35-44
age groups. Those 25-34 account for 5% of the Town’s population compared with 13% in
this age group state-wide. Those 35-44 account for 9% of the town’s population
compared with 13% state-wide. Population projections provided by the UMass Donohue
Institute indicate that the Town’s population could decline to 7,888 by 2035—a 20%
decrease over 20 years. These trends and projections suggest that there will be a need
for more housing options for the growing older population along with a strategy for
more and affordable housing options for younger people combined with strategies to
provide more economic opportunities that pay a livable wage in order to reverse the
demographic trends the Town is facing.
Recent actions by the Town of Brewster and community groups
While creation of new affordable housing basically stopped from 2008-2014, activity has
picked up over the last few years. The Town just completed a state-approved Housing
Production Plan that assessed demographic and housing data, identified local affordable
housing needs and development barriers, and developed a set of priorities and 16
recommended strategies that would enable the Town to make progress toward
achieving the 10% goal. One of the recommended strategies was to hire a housing
coordinator, and the Town recently hired a part-time housing coordinator with
Community Preservation Act (CPA) funds to coordinate the remaining strategies
identified in the Housing Plan. Over the last two years Town Meeting approved $1.2
million in CPA funds to enable Habitat for Humanity to acquire land on Tubman Road to
construct 14 affordable homes for first time homebuyers using the Habitat sweat equity
model. At the spring 2017 Town Meeting, voters also approved a $550,000 CPA funding
request to assist two non-profit organizations to construct 30 affordable rental
apartments on land that will be leased from the Brewster Housing Authority. In
addition, two Chapter 40B homeownership developments by for-profit developers are
nearing completion: White Rock: 12 homes with 3 affordable and Brewster Landing—28
homes with 7 affordable. As these houses come on line, the Town will have made
progress toward the 10% goal.
II.Key Issues Moving Forward
Challenges
Many of the community character factors participants mentioned as treasures and that
make Brewster a desirable place to live: access to water—both the beaches and ponds
(about 80 of them covering 10% of the Town’s surface area—2,000 acres—the largest
amount of pond acreage on the Cape); recreational amenities including protected open
space; and historic and cultural resources—play some role in increasing the cost of
housing in Town. The fact that the Town, along with the rest of the Cape, relies on a sole
source aquifer for its drinking supply necessitates the protection of land from
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development around the drinking water wells. Residential zoning in Town typically
requires large lots (60,000 square feet or more) for a single-family house, and there are
minimal zoning options that allow the creation of affordable or multifamily housing. The
lack of a centralized or smaller scale wastewater treatment infrastructure also limits the
development potential of available land. There are limited commercially zoned districts
in town and thus fewer potential redevelopment opportunities to create housing along
with the commercial uses. It is very expensive to construct new affordable housing, and
developers, whether for-profit or non-profit, typically need a density bonus and/or
public subsidies to make a development economically feasible. Recent new construction
affordable housing developments on the Cape have typically had total development
costs (land acquisition, site and construction costs, and so-called soft costs) that ranged
from $325,000 - $350,000 per unit. For example, Habitat’s 14 home development on
Paul Hush Way will have a total development cost of about $375,000 per home. The
challenge for the town is to create the amount of housing that is needed in appropriate
areas in a way that does not significantly detract from what draws people here.
Opportunities
As the Housing Production Plan noted, there is no single approach or magic bullet that
will provide more housing options for our residents and workforce. The Plan
recommends that the Town make regulatory/zoning changes; increase funding for
housing; support education and advocacy efforts; and conduct local planning and make
policy changes. The following are examples of how other towns have tackled their
affordable housing challenges:
•Yarmouth has successfully established and staffed a municipal housing trust,
primarily using CPA funds, which can acquire, own, and manage property, to
both oversee and provide funding for the redevelopment of a motel site that will
become 69 units of affordable family rental housing and also to continue a long
running homeownership buy-down program that involves the purchase of
existing homes. Provincetown, Chatham, Dennis, Eastham and Falmouth also
have housing trusts.
•Bourne and Yarmouth have both converted surplus historic school buildings into
affordable rental housing for those age 55+.
•Provincetown provides property tax relief to owners who provide affordable
rental apartments, and has provided a priority for its available annual
water/wastewater allocation to owners/developers who will create affordable
housing as part of their development.
•Dennis in 2003 created a local comprehensive affordable housing bylaw that,
among other provisions, provides density relief for affordable housing
developments that have Town support. All new affordable development in
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Dennis since 2003 has been created under this local bylaw instead of through the
Chapter 40B comprehensive permit process.
•Barnstable and Wellfleet have both created separate but effective accessory
apartment bylaws.
•Chatham, Mashpee, and Wellfleet all have used Community Preservation Act
funds to implement rental voucher programs to reduce the rent burden of lower
income households.
•In general, those towns on the Cape that have made the most progress in
providing more and affordable housing options have either a part or full-time
staff person dedicated to affordable housing issues.
III.Draft Vision Goal
Provide more affordable, safe, and accessible rental and ownership housing options,
particularly for single people, young families, and our older population, at different price
points. Achieve the state’s 10% affordable goal by 2025.
Purposes
1.Promote housing choices to allow families to live, work, and prosper
2.Provide opportunities to address the varied housing needs of Brewster’s aging
population
3.Address the housing needs of the Town’s year-round and seasonal work force