Finding a Year-Round Rental on Martha's Vineyard: Tips and Links

It's a daunting prospect, made ever more urgent as summer draws near: How to find a year-round rental on this Island of summer vacations?

My Mom, a Realtor in Edgartown, gets calls from people who are looking for year-round homes to rent. She'd like to help — but like virtually all Island realty offices, Mom's doesn't broker year-round rentals. All she can do is encourage the callers to keep looking and asking around.

"Ask everyone you see and know"

Patch blogger Carol McManus, owner of Espresso Love and a broker with Sandpiper Realty, agrees with my mother's advice:

"I would ask as many people as I can if they know anybody" with an apartment or home to rent, McManus said, because property owners don't always list their rentals in public.

"There are houses people don't post," she said.

"Ask everyone you see and know: People know people," McManus said.

Post on Patch

For my own part, I was so desperate to find a place that I posted an appeal on MV Patch: "Where Can I Live on the Vineyard?"

After it was published, I heard from landlords with apartments and wound up looking at two places.

If you'd like to post a home-wanted appeal on Patch: Click here to get started.

In the end, I found my Vineyard Haven apartment in the new old-fashioned way: online.

Join the Facebook group:

The Facebook group called MV Housing Rentals is where I found my apartment and its landlady, who's also become a friend. This group is a place for owners to post pictures and information about their rentals, and tenants to post what they're looking for. It is technically a "closed" group, but by applying you'll soon be accepted to browse and post.

Check out the Chamber:

The Martha's Vineyard Chamber of Commerce runs its "One Stop Job Shop & Housing" out of the Chamber office on Beach Road in Vineyard Haven, Monday-Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.Check out the latest listings here. 

Call on the county:

The Dukes County Regional Housing Authority has a number of resources for year-round renters:

• Rental Units - Regional Housing Authority
• Rental Assistance - Regional Housing Authority
• Accessory Apartment Program - Regional Housing Authority
• Rental Units - Island Elderly Housing
• Rental Assistance - Morgan Woods Apartments
• Rental Rehabilitation Loan Programs
• Links to Other Assistance

Don't forget the newspapers:

The Vineyard Gazette, Martha's Vineyard Times and Island Trader all have rentals in their classified sections. Patch also runs rental listings from Zillow: Although these tend to be dominated by vacation rentals, it's always worth double checking.

Any other suggestions for home-hunting renters on Martha's Vineyard? Please tell us in the comments.

For more news about Martha's Vineyard homes, land, sales and rentals, or to search homes for sale or rent by ZIP code, please see our Real Estate section.

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