HOMEownership on cape Cod
Planting Roots on the Peninsula
Cape Cod Towns 2025 Property Tax Rates
Barnstable County Towns | Taxes | Assessed Values | School District |
|---|---|---|---|
Barnstable (Town) | $6.94+FD | Barnstable Assessor | Barnstable |
Bourne | $7.81+WD | Bourne Assessor | Bourne |
Brewster | $6.88 | Brewster Assessor | Nauset |
Chatham | $3.47 | Chatham Assessor | Monomoy |
Dennis | $4.33 | Dennis Assessor | D-Y |
Eastham | $7.71 | Eastham Assessor | Nauset |
Falmouth | $5.87 | Falmouth Assessor | Falmouth |
Harwich | $5.91 | Harwich Assessor | Monomoy |
Mashpee | $6.42+WD | Mashpee Assessor | Mashpee |
Orleans | $6.24 | Orleans Assessor | Nauset |
Provincetown | $5.60 | Provincetown Assessor | Provincetown |
Sandwich | $10.57 | Sandwich Assessor | Sandwich |
Truro | $6.18 | Truro Assessor | Nauset |
Wellfleet | $7.11 | Wellfleet Assessor | Nauset |
Yarmouth | $7.08 | Yarmouth Assessor | D-Y |
Building & Construction
Traditional 'Cape' style houses have a certain look, but their structure is built to protect from the crushing weight of heavy snowfall in the winters. Most construction on Cape Cod is wooden framed with cedar shingles or clapboards for siding and pitched asphalt roofs. You can find 'Half Capes' and full Capes all over the peninsula, though many older homes have made additions or added dormers to increase usable space.
Utilities
A fact of life on Cape Cod (as with anywhere) is the occasional power outage. Cape Cod, being a peninsula in the Atlantic Ocean, receives a number of storms during the year, particularly during the winter. Affectionately known as Nor'easters from the direction of the wind, these storms can cause some damage if you don’t prep and safeguard your home ahead of time.
Basements
Given the Cape’s coastal geology, high groundwater levels historically dictated shallow foundations. Early settlers dug small, circular "root cellars" by hand, many of which can still be found beneath the kitchens of the Cape's oldest antiques. As modern life evolved, the traditional "Cape Cod Basement" emerged. Typically accessed via an exterior bulkhead, these unique spaces often feature a finished "standing height" section for utilities like furnaces and laundry while the remainder of the basement remains a traditional crawl space.
