More places available on the Cape this summer

For the last few years, finding a summer rental on Cape Cod has felt nearly impossible as prices soared, making it increasingly out of reach. But in a rare bit of good news on the housing front — at least for vacationers — renting at a reasonable rate might be a little more possible this year due to an uptick in availability. The Cape has nearly 18,000 short-term rentals on the market this summer, a 12 percent increase from April last year and nearly 50 percent more than March 2021, according to the Massachusetts Department of Revenue and the Cape Cod Commission. Why? A big reason is the ripples from the wave of second-home buying that hit the Cape during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many second-home owners are now looking to recoup some of their costs as they spend less time on the Cape and return to more normal work and school routines, said Paul Niedzwiecki, executive director of the Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce. That increased availability has stabilized the cost of rentals. Prices were unsustainable during 2021 and 2022, Niedzwiecki said, when people flocked to the Cape as a safe space during the pandemic, sending costs to rent a house for the week (or longer) soaring. They improved last year and will level off even more this summer. However, some traditional Cape lodgings, such as hotels and bed & breakfasts, are seeing demand fade, and don’t command the high rates that short-term rentals do, according to an AirDNA report compiled by the Massachusetts Office of Travel & Tourism. For example, the report shows that in July of last year, traditional lodging in Barnstable County had an occupancy rate of 71 percent, with an average daily rate of $286, compared to short-term rentals in the same period that saw an occupancy rate of 86 percent with an average daily rate of $552. But if supply is up, demand is still strong, too — a sign that overall interest in Cape Cod remains high. Bookings at WeNeedaVacation, an online platform with nearly 4,000 rentals on the Cape and Islands, are running 3.4 percent ahead of last year’s pace, said co-owner Joan Talmadge; prices are up 2 to 3 percent. Compared with 2019, bookings are up 27 percent through March. — BETH TREFFEISEN