Weekly chit-chat about new listings, sales or other insider info on the Martha’s Vineyard real estate market, by Fred Roven, Martha’s Vineyard Buyer Agents
I love riding the waves, enjoying the deep, lush sand, and riding beach trails to desolate South Shore beaches as much as the next guy. Homes with easy South Shore access provide great rental income, easy town access for the kids and bright, light contemporary homes. What about those of us who want good kayak access, wooded bike trails and safe swimming?
For those of you with a bent toward outdoor activities, nothing compares to owning a home in a North Shore association of homes with private beaches. The feature that most distinguishes the South Shore from North Shore are trees; real trees, tall trees, multiple varieties of trees, climbing trees, swing trees . . . Anyway, you get the idea. Because of prevailing winds, the South Shore offers low trees of nondescript identity and the pine trees which (I am convinced) have a limited life expectancy.
The first association beach that comes to mind is Spring Point. Located off North Road with easy access to Vineyard Haven and Menemsha, you get up-Island living at its best, 125 acres of common land and ¾ miles of private beach. Currently listed in Spring Point is a 10-acre parcel ready to build a main house, guest house, pool, barn and garage. The property at 26 Hammett Road is listed by Tea Lane Associates for $995,000. Oh, I forgot to mention the tennis courts!
Traveling east (down-Island), the next beach stop is Makonikey with not just one, but two association beaches. One has access cliffside and another parking and easy walk-in access. Both provide miles of walking trails your dog(s) will adore. One home currently available is a classic, elegant country home with water views, pool and of course easy beach access. Located at 40 Norton Farm Road, priced at $2,395,000 and listed by Tea Lane Associates.
One of my favorites because of the additional amenities is Tashmoo Woods, which includes association tennis, swimming pool, clubhouse, dock and private beach access. Minutes to Lake Tashmoo, Mink Meadows Golf, West Chop Club, Vineyard Haven Yacht Club, restaurants, shopping and ferry. Currently listed is a new single family home with views of Mink Meadows Golf Club. Located at 48 Sandpiper Lane, priced at $1,299,000 and listed by Alisan-Lohan Conway Properties.
There are many other associations island wide with their own private beaches and boat launches and I have only considered North Shore here. You can see other current North Shore listings like those at Brickyard Road and Mink Meadows in beachfront communities at associations with private beaches. There are many ways to search for properties with specific attributes and circling a waterfront area you have some interest and adding a keyword like water or beach to the search criteria should help narrow that search.
