Chilmark Waterfront Rental

Just this past week I received calls from two families that had thought they had their Martha’s Vineyard vacation home rentals secured with the first payment into the owner and a signed lease back from him via HomeAway.

They were able to work a particularly nice rate, in a great location and in a great house, last fall.  Come to find out, this house was already booked through our agency for their time frame and the owner’s account on HomeAway had been hacked.  The tenant had email communications with what they thought was the owner and paid the first payment via wire transfer to the “owner’s accountant” in Texas and received a bogus lease.  The real owner of the house was not aware of the security breach and there is no telling how many other families this may have happened to.  HomeAway, to date, is taking no responsibility for the breach and claims that it was the property owner’s email that was hacked into.  I feel an obligation to share this situation and hope that anyone utilizing these venues will have an awareness of the risk involved.

There has been a recent trend towards rentals by owners on a number of websites such as HomeAway, Flipkey and Cyberrentals, etc.  Many of these options have merged and grown as well.  This provides a tremendous ability to market and dominate the search engine optimization.   The vacation rental business has been around for many years here on Martha’s Vineyard.  We tend to think of ourselves as a small community and I’m sure there have been word of mouth rentals taking place since the beginning.

I’ve often wondered why a tenant would choose to do this work themselves, especially if they are not familiar with the island.  One may think they will save money by going direct or maybe feel they can work a deal.  I’m not sure that there is adequate risk awareness concerning many of these online transactions.

As a rental agent on the island, I take great pride in trying to match each of my tenant inquiries with the best rental possible.  Sandpiper Rentals provides professional service to our tenants and owners in an ethical manner.  We are members of the Board of REALTORS and have taken an oath to abide by the Code of Ethics.

I think I will add this situation to the list of why you should use a qualified agency for your vacation rental needs!

www.SandpiperRental.com

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 This summer, like all summers on Martha’s Vineyard, was  gone with what seemed like a blink of an eye.  Rentals were understandably off to a slow start at the beginning of the year due to the state of our economy. My fingers were crossed that the allure of a sun filled week at State Beach or the Agricultural Fair would be enough to bring back old and new visitors alike. Once June came, with only a handful of sunny days, I knew I had my work cut out for me.

What separated this season from previous rental seasons was the amount of inventory that was still available at the beginning of the summer. Also, owners who have never rented in the past were now opening up their houses to rentals.  When the draw of the Island was just too strong to stay away, last minute renters were able to still find a vacation home that would suit all of their needs.  As more and more last minute renters arrived, Martha’s Vineyard was transformed, once again; into the frenzy we call August.

With the Obama’s scheduled visit at the end of August you could feel the excitement in the air. The First Family enjoyed their stay up-island in Chilmark and enjoyed the occasional round of golf or dinner out. Surprisingly, throughout their week visit they maintained an extremely low profile.  With all of the media attention that their trip received, this presidential trip, like others before it, helped put Martha’s Vineyard back on the map.  Overall, 2009 turned out to be a very successful rental season here on the Vineyard.  However, there is no rest for the weary as I am already booking for next season! Whether you are a first time visitor or have been returning summer after summer to this captivating island, I would be honored to help find you the perfect vacation rental home for 2010!

The kids are back in school, the days are getting shorter and cooler…and it’s hard not to start dreaming about next summer on the Vineyard! Don’t worry, I don’t think you’re crazy, I think you’re very, very smart because planning for a fantastic 2010 summer on the Vineyard really does need to start now!

Here’s my checklist to keep you fully on top of things:

1. If you want the house of your rental dreams, book it now! The fall is actually our busiest booking time as folks scramble for primo houses. Our inventory is huge, our site has been updated and is beautiful, and we get new listings every day!

2. Make plans with friends and family as soon as possible. It’s much easier to plan a vacation for two, or even a family of five (who all do exactly what you tell them because three of them are kids!), than it is to plan for your extended family or groups of friends. The sooner you all get your schedules set, the less stress you’ll have. No one should have their summer planned yet – so you’ll be asking them to commit before you have to dance around everyone else’s commitments.

3. Ferry reservations. Yes, I know you can’t actually book your ferry reservations until February, but let me remind you how much less stressful it will be to plan the times you would like to sail (and sync them up with any other travel you need to do to get here) when you aren’t under the gun of opening day on the Steamships Advanced Reservations Line!! I recommend that you plan it out on paper and clip it to your February calendar. On the big day, just go online and book those tickets!

4. Same with the plane. You can book your plane reservations now and they do fill up! Also, unlike the ferry, airline fares are cheaper if purchased in advance.

5. If you’re really eager, create a list of all of the things you love doing on the island – include beaches to visit, restaurants, festivals and stores. This can be especially fun with the whole family as you reflect on the summer of ’09 and get ready for the summer of ’10. Then make a big calendar and start jotting down activities you don’t want to miss. You can even decorate it with pics from summers past. When the snow starts to fall, this beautiful calendar and homage to Martha’s Vineyard will be sure to warm you up…

Any other questions, concerns, delightful memories to share? Don’t hesitate to ask me!

Image credit: WillPosh

On Thursday, September 10 through Sunday, September 13, the 2009 Martha’s Vineyard International Film Festival takes over Vineyard Haven! All four days will be filled with the best feature and short films from the biggie film festivals like Sundance, Berlin and Cannes – and new films that have yet to be discovered.

This year’s festival films come from every corner of the globe: Palestine, Russia, China, India, Norway, France, Israel, Germany, Spain, Japan, Sri Lanka, Kazakhstan, and more. Some highlights:

• Rudo Y Cursi – one of the top-grossing Mexican films of all time.
• Waltz with Bashir – an innovative animated drama from Israel that was nominated for a 2009 Oscar for Best Documentary.
• Munyurangabo – awarded the Grand Jury Prize at the American Film Institute festival, it explores the Hutu-Tutsi genocide from the point of view of an orphaned teen and is the first film ever in the Kinyarwanda language.
• Local Martha’s Vineyard filmmaking – lead by islanders Liz Witham and Ken Wentworth of Film-Truth Productions.

Of course, there is more to this Vineyard film festival than movies. An opening night cocktail party on the roof of the Mansion House kicks things off, and there will be nightly parties, art gallery and meet-the-filmmaker gatherings for the festival’s duration. Live music, DJ’s food from top island chefs and open bars round out the weekend.

Visit the website for a full schedule and tickets to films and exciting events.

The first family arrived on Martha's Vineyard Sunday, August 23, 2009.

Whether you like him or not, it’s pretty darn exciting to have the President of the United States staying just down the road this week. The ‘summer White House’ for 2009 is a private estate in Chilmark, Blue Heron Farm. Yesterday afternoon around 3:00 several helicopters, including Marine One, flew over the island and landed at the Martha’s Vineyard Airport. From there, they drove up South Road and into Chilmark in the motorcade – the streets lined with people, young and old, hoping to catch a glimpse of the first family, including Bo, the first dog.

The Secret Service and news trucks (even though Obama specifically told the journalists to just have fun this week) cover the long dirt road that leads to Blue Heron Farm, and islanders and summer visitors alike are curious about where the Obamas will go and what they’ll do. Rumors abound and are debunked just as quickly. The girls didn’t go to the Ag Fair on Saturday and Obama says he won’t be playing golf with Tiger Woods on our shores. But, will they go to the Farmer’s Market or Artisan’s Fair in West Tisbury? Will they venture down to the Flying Horses in Oak Bluffs? Will their staff run out for Mad Martha’s or will Barack, Michelle, Sasha and Malia stroll the streets of Vineyard Haven?

The plan seems to be ‘no plan’ – so, I think we’re going to all just have to keep our eyes peeled for any sightings! In the meantime, Plum TV’s Alex Friedman put together a great video that shows Blue Heron Farm and the beauty that is up-island Martha’s Vineyard. Enjoy and let me know if you see anything in the video that you can’t resist! I know we’ll be able to find you a vacation rental close by, you know, one that will let you live the dream you envision!

We all know the economy has been funky since last fall 2008 – that’s not news. And while it hasn’t been all good, it hasn’t been all bad either – especially in the Martha’s Vineyard real estate and vacation rentals market. Last fall, when the market first dropped, we saw a slow down in bookings. But by January through to the summer, things have gone at a normal pace.

Still, that drop last fall, has left us with some nice availability of rental houses across the island and we’re experiencing a strong buyer’s market. It began with home sales, but has now filtered down to the rental market.

Renters are also taking advantage of last minute bookings. And while the renters are eager to negotiate rates, many of the landlords are taking them up on their offers as the season marches forward. Renters are looking to get the most they can for their dollar and the owners are showing flexibility in the range of 15-20% adjustments – depending on their property.

If you’ve been thinking about a beach vacation this summer, but didn’t think you could afford it, I encourage you to give me a call or send me an email. Depending on your budget, I’ll help you find the right house…and with these last minute rentals, it might just be 20% more house than you thought you could afford!

Image credit: jazzylolo

There is so much speculation surrounding President Obama’s summer plans. Will he come to Martha’s Vineyard? Will Michelle, Malia and Sasha spend a month here and will the girls go to camp? Will they stay in Edgartown or on East Chop? Is Washington saying ‘no’ because they’re trying to keep it a secret? Or because he really isn’t coming! Soooo many questions!

When President Clinton and his family visited our island there were a lot of benefits for our community:

• We saw a rise in travel to the island
• This included tourists but also the security and press that follow the Pres…
• Which led to increased sales for our local economy
• It created a wonderful rejuvenation for the Island
• By putting us ‘on the map’ and in the forefront of people’s minds.

So, will Obama hop on the ferry? That remains to be seen, but it sure would be great for Martha’s Vineyard if he decides to come see us.

Have you ever noticed how we all get caught up in what the news media is telling us and forget to check in with what’s actually happening?

In the case of the current vacation rental market on Martha’s Vineyard, the truth is much brighter than the fiction.
Yes, there was some fall off in rental sales last fall, immediately following the stock market’s dive. This made perfect sense as the world paused to regroup and figure things out – especially in light of the close presidential race.

But when 2009 began and the Steamship Authority, our wonderful car/passenger ferry service opened up their summer reservations, we saw a jump in activity. Dollar for dollar and rental for rental, it hasn’t been quite as busy as last year, but our year-to-date is pretty comparable. For example, if you looked at the years side by side and had no idea that there was a recession in progress, you wouldn’t say, ‘Whoah, what happened here!’

I’m predicting a lot of last minute activity and strong rental season. We’re expecting a 15% price reduction from our home owners and, you know, when the sun comes out…no one can resist a little Martha’s Vineyard sand ‘tween their toes!

Image by Clearly Ambiguous

In a time of rapid change in the economy and the real estate industry, I’ve been thinking about how lucky I am to be part of a real estate firm that values and demonstrates two things: reliability and ingenuity.

There’s something to be said for the fact that this will be Sandpiper’s 40th year on Martha’s Vineyard.  We have a solid reputation, and an on and off island community that knows us – just like we know them. Being part of this group of full time real estate agents, makes me feel confident about our future – because our past and our present is so strong.

But, we haven’t been around for 40 years because we’ve done the same old thing. Learning, changing and growing. It’s what makes my blog so much fun for me – I get to be myself (the same person I am with clients) but online.

It’s funny, though, because the blog let’s me get so detailed about the Vineyard and what it’s like to live here and vacation here…all the island has to offer. So, sometimes I forget to mention that we have over 600 Martha’s Vineyard houses in our inventory. To remind you all that we probably have exactly what you’re looking for – to rent or buy. All you have to do is ask! I’m all ears…

Have you ever heard of Plum TV? Plum is located in incredible spots around the U.S. and helps those of you who don’t live somewhere like Martha’s Vineyard, Aspen, Miami Beach or Telluride get a dynamic bite of what’s happening around town. I talked to Tina Miller, the General Manager of Plum’s Martha’s Vineyard branch about all things Plum and Vineyard. Here’s the scoop…

Anne: What is PlumTV?
Tina: Plum is Hyper local TV in some of America’s most treasured locations.

Anne: What types of thing do you feature?
Tina: Plum’s local morning show features the Island’s diverse year-round and summer residents. Plum has great local programs as well as the shared content from our 7 other stations (Aspen, Vail, Telluride, Nantucket, Miami Beach, Sun Valley and The Hamptons).

Anne: Do you create videos all year long? or just seasonally?

Tina: We create content all year long, Plum is a year-round business.

Anne: Why is the Vineyard such a perfect setting for Plum TV?

Tina: The Vineyard is perfect for Plum because of the people, the beauty, the arts and the optimism.

Anne: Who have been some of your most famous guests?
Tina: There have been so many! Tony Shaloub, Dan Aykroyd, Hillary Clinton, Howard Dean, Carly Simon, Arlen Roth, Bill Murray, Keith Lockhart, The Neville Brothers, Geraldine Brooks, Jim Belushi, Cam Neeley, Norman Bridwell, Charlane Hunter Gault. I could go on and on!

Anne: Care to share one of your most interesting guests or stories?

Tina: I’m going to have to go with Dan Aykroyd speaking about UFO’s check out plumtv.com (clip at bottom of the post!)

Anne: And, your favorite thing about the Vineyard?

Tina: The community. We simply wouldn’t be what Plum TV without this outstanding community of people – the people we highlight on the show and the viewers. It’s the people that make the Vineyard so special.