The following essay is designed to test your ability to read, synthesize ideas, and then write persuasively.

Million-dollar homes dot more of island's landscape...

By Julia Fairclough

Jan. 15, 1998:

The sale of million dollar homes on Nantucket is the fastest growing segment of the real estate market, with million dollar transactions up 25 percent from last year and consuming 36 percent of the market's total gross dollar volume, according to real estate statistics.

The year 1997 reaped 54 real estate transactions for homes or properties going for $1 million and over, totaling $119,636,150 million in property transfers. In 1996 there were 43 sales for over $1 million, reaching $83,500,433, according to property transactions recorded at the Land Bank office.

The popular areas are those that have historically been attractive to homebuyers, those with water views. They include the Cliff, running through town, up along Monomoy and into the eastern portion of the island in the Polpis and Sconset areas.

The main reason for the growing $1 million home market is that people have seen their stock portfolios rise dramatically and are reinvesting their funds in something more enjoyable. And many eyeing Nantucket's real estate believe it is a sure thing, according to Nantucket Association of Real Estate Brokers President Hammie Heard.

"Nantucket is expensive but where we live (Fairfield County, Conn.) is also expensive," said Redding, Conn. resident Jeanne Billett, who with her husband James bought a $1.2 million home on Woodbury Lane last January. "But we felt that by buying the kind of house we did, it would hold its value or increase its value. We paid what others would consider an exorbitant amount for a house like that, but there is a limited market there. We felt it was a good investment."

The Billetts don't plan to move to Nantucket right away, but secured their dream home as a summer place for their children, Billett said.

The Billett's four-bedroom home is on a .2-acre parcel of land in the up-scale development on the edge of town.

High-end sales last year ranged from $1 million to $7.1 million, for a home on a 68.6-acre parcel at 260 Polpis Road.

Heard said buyers are looking in the $1 million range these days. A million dollars today is equal to $600,000 years ago, Heard said. Plus, there is a scarcity of the higher end homes on Nantucket.

"They know the market is viable right now," Heard said. "Nantucket is a special place and it seems as if Utopia has been discovered."

The market is up due to the strong economy coupled with land values increasing, especially in the open areas, he said. Heard estimated prices could continue to escalate.

Jeff Lee, the owner of Lee Real Estate, said real estate figures bear out that as long as the Dow Jones industrial average is high, so are real estate sales.

Realtor Flint Ranney has been tracking the stock market, or the Dow, compared to real estate sales. Last year the Dow was up by 23 percent and Nantucket real estate sales were up by 32 percent. "They are directly related," he said. "Since most people who are property owners don't live here, to have a second home on Nantucket means they are probably stock market investors."

Sconset has seen a rise in prices, which could be attributed to the new golf course, which is still under construction. For example, a non-waterview .61-acre plot of land on Baxter Road sold for $1 million last November.

"I find that incredible," Lee said. "Especially considering that the land was not by the water."

Richard Hajjar, 41, of Duxbury, bought a $1.5 million home and adjoining cottage on Underhill Lane in Sconset last September. He said, "it was something to do," but added he hoped his summer home was a wise investment. Hajjar recently sold his Martha's Vineyard home because the land value there has depreciated over the years, he said.

"I can't see losing money on property down there (Nantucket), but then again you never know," he said. "I do know land has appreciated quite a bit in the past few years."

And Nantucket is expensive, Hajjar noticed. Land values are slightly more expensive than the neighboring Martha's Vineyard and on par with the upscale winter resort in Palm Beach, Fla., he said.

"But it depends where you're looking," he said. "If you want water or to be in the middle of town."

As far as the future, no one can predict, realtors agree. The difference with Nantucket, however, is that it has a finite product, Lee said.

"And there is still a lot of demand," he said. "Nantucket is still considered the premier summer destination for the East Coast corridor. We still have a lot of very wealthy individuals and families looking to own here. And they are chasing a relatively small pool of properties. We have stable demand and relatively small supply, which drives the price up.”

Do you believe that there will be more million-dollar homes bought on Nantucket?

In five years, how do you think this will affect year round residents of Nantucket?

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