Cape Cod Assembly Weighs Luxury Real Estate Fee for Housing
Delegates Receive Briefing on Process
August 21, 2025 (Barnstable, MA) – Cape Cod’s Assembly of Delegates is considering a new regional luxury real estate transfer fee aimed at funding solutions to the region’s housing crisis.
County Administrator Michael Dutton briefed delegates this month, stressing that the proposal is in its earliest stages. He said the plan would require both a home rule petition to the state legislature and a county ordinance to set up a housing fund. Key questions still to be decided include the fee percentage, exemptions, and whether individual towns could opt in or out.
“This is just the very beginning,” said Administrator Dutton. “This body needs to make political decisions after hearing a lot of input.”
“Provincetown and Eastham have already advanced their own versions, with rates from 0.5% to 3%,” said Deputy Speaker Gessen of Falmouth. “Towns should have the flexibility to set the rate and threshold that’s right for their community.”
“Housing is a regional problem that transcends the boundaries of the Cape’s 15 towns — the type of issue that’s the Assembly’s mission to address. We have a responsibility to find new ways to fund sustainable approaches while protecting the environment and scenic waterways people flock here to enjoy,” said Assembly Speaker Randi Potash of Chatham. “If we can’t do that, who will visit here — who will live here?”
Environmental advocates stressed affordability and water protection can go hand in hand. “We are not blind or immune to the impacts of the lack of reasonably priced housing on our workforce,” said Andrew Gottlieb, Executive Director of the Association to Preserve Cape Cod.
“You can achieve the kind of density that you need to obtain affordability without exacerbating water quality problems that we are all spending a lot of time, energy and money trying to resolve.”
“As the County Administrator clarified, we are in the initial stages of considering a real estate transfer fee. Working transparently with town officials throughout the county, we can determine local interest, how to minimize environmental impacts, possible rates and thresholds, and revenue allocation,” said Mashpee Delegate Wyman-Colombo. “Given the intersection of housing and the Cape’s fragile environment, it is critical that the Association to Preserve Cape Cod is participating in this process.”
The Assembly will continue discussions in the weeks ahead.
ABOUT THE ASSEMBLY OF DELEGATES The Assembly of Delegates is the Cape Cod Regional Government’s legislature. Each town’s voters elect one representative to set policy, make laws, and approve spending.
MEDIA CONTACTS:
Owen Fletcher, Assembly Clerk | [email protected] | 774-327-3564
Randi Potash, Speaker | [email protected] | 774-212-7166
Dan Gessen, Deputy Speaker | [email protected] | 508-208-1760
