The Cape and Islands are in a housing crisis. The average home sale price is over $650,000 on Cape Cod, and with a 1% vacancy rate, rentals are scarce across the region.
The housing crisis is affecting people of all walks of life, incomes, and ages. Essential workers such as fire fighters, police officers, teachers, and nurses are struggling to find housing they can afford in the towns where they work. Older residents who have lived long, productive lives on the Cape and Islands are becoming homeless at higher rates because the cost of living and housing prices outpace their fixed incomes. Families with children can’t find suitable housing that fits their budget.
Many individuals and families are faced with desperate decisions if they lose their housing. Some are forced to share cramped spaces with relatives or friends, some bounce from place to place, some live in their cars or in a tent. Others leave, giving up their lives on the Cape and Islands in the hope of finding an affordable place to live over the bridge. In short, the housing crisis is changing how Cape Codders and Islanders live and work across the region.
That's where YOU come in. Your support can help Housing Assistance offer viable solutions when residents come to us in crisis, needing help to stay in their housing or find emergency shelter.
When you WALK FOR HOPE, you're joining your neighbors in support of a thriving, year-round Cape and Islands community!