Scarborough, Galilee & Jerusalem, RI Vacation Rental Investment
Scarborough, Galilee, and Jerusalem are not their own incorporated town -- they are villages and neighborhoods inside the Town of Narragansett, Rhode Island, the same municipality that already has its own dedicated vacation-rental-investment page on this site, built around a town-wide seasonal-population swing. This page is not a repeat of that one. It exists because a real, named, village-level data source -- NeighborhoodScout -- reports a vacancy rate for "Galilee & Jerusalem" specifically that is far more dramatic and far more specific than a town-wide population estimate: 43.4%, described by the source as 98.2% higher than the U.S. average, with 39.6% of housing seasonally occupied. That is a genuinely striking, checkable number directly on point for a vacation-rental question, and it is the honest starting point here. This page also covers the real draws behind that seasonal pattern -- Scarborough State Beach and the working Port of Galilee, plus the Block Island Ferry's real operating schedule -- and is equally direct about what remains unconfirmed: there is no separate short-term-rental rule for these villages, because they are legally part of Narragansett, and this research did not find a confirmed Narragansett-specific ordinance, registration process, or occupancy-tax rate. Nothing here is legal, tax, or financial advice.
The Number That Makes This Market Worth a Second Look: 43.4% Vacancy
Per NeighborhoodScout's own dedicated "Galilee & Jerusalem" neighborhood profile for Narragansett, RI, this specific village pairing carries a vacancy rate of 43.4% -- described by the source as 98.2% higher than the U.S. average -- with 39.6% of housing reported as seasonally occupied. That is a materially more specific and more dramatic data point than the town-wide seasonal-swing framing this site's own Narragansett, RI vacation-rental-investment page already uses (a 2020 Census year-round population of 14,532 against a summer population estimated above 30,000). Both are real and both are worth knowing, but they are different metrics from different sources describing different geographies: one is a town-wide population estimate, the other is a village-level housing-occupancy statistic. A vacancy-and-seasonal-occupancy rate this high is about as direct a housing-market signal for vacation-rental character as a market this size is likely to produce.
NeighborhoodScout is a commercial, largely automated real-estate-and-demographic data aggregator, not a government statistical agency, and its neighborhood boundaries and derived statistics should be treated as a real, named, citable source rather than Census-grade fact. Present this figure clearly labeled as NeighborhoodScout's own estimate for its "Galilee & Jerusalem" geography, and do not blend it with the Narragansett hub page's own town-wide Census, ACS, or Redfin figures as though they were the same statistic -- they are not.
Village-Level Home Prices and Rents, Per NeighborhoodScout
The same NeighborhoodScout profile reports a median home price of $1,091,913 for Galilee & Jerusalem, which the source describes as 95.2% higher than the median for Rhode Island neighborhoods generally, and an average rental price of $3,012 per month, about 85.0% higher than the Rhode Island average. Both figures are notably higher than a town-wide Narragansett number alone would suggest, and that is expected: this is a smaller, specific, waterfront-and-beach village geography, not a town-wide average across all of Narragansett's neighborhoods.
Treat these as NeighborhoodScout's own village-level estimate, distinct from the median sale price and price-per-square-foot figures this site's Narragansett hub page already documents from Redfin's own February 2025 town-wide snapshot. Different source, different geography, different point in time -- do not average or reconcile the two into a single number. Before relying on either figure for a purchase decision, confirm current comparable sales and rental-rate data directly with a Rhode Island-licensed real estate professional and a local property manager familiar with this specific stretch of Narragansett.
What Is Actually Driving Seasonal Demand Here: A State Beach and a Working Fishing Port
Two real, physical draws sit directly inside this footprint. Scarborough State Beach is a two-section, 59.7-acre state beach complex with 0.85 miles of shoreline at 870 and 970 Ocean Road -- Scarborough North, developed with a pavilion in 1937, and Scarborough South, built out from two smaller private beaches the state acquired in 1981 and 1986, with a multiphase redevelopment completed in 1987. It is, per Rhode Island State Parks' own history page, a longstanding "principal destination for a day at the beach" for large numbers of Rhode Islanders -- a real, sourced characterization of popularity, though this research did not find a specific current visitor-count figure, and none should be assumed.
Just across the harbor, the Port of Galilee is Rhode Island's largest commercial fishing port, home to roughly 240 fishing vessels and crews per National Fisherman, moving more than 16 million pounds of seafood and shellfish annually. This site's own dedicated Scarborough/Galilee/Jerusalem coverage goes deeper on the port's history, its named seafood restaurants, and a recent $17.2 million federally funded dock-resilience project there -- worth a look for buyers who want the fuller picture -- but the investment-relevant point here is simple: a working fishing port and a state beach sitting this close together are two independent, real reasons visitors come to this specific corner of Narragansett, and that visitor draw is a plausible contributor to the high seasonal-occupancy figure above, even though NeighborhoodScout's own data does not itself state a causal link.
The Block Island Ferry: A Real, Frequent Reason Renters Choose This Location
The Block Island Ferry, operated by Interstate Navigation Company, departs from Point Judith in Galilee for Block Island's Old Harbor -- a genuine, current transportation draw for anyone renting a property in this footprint. The Traditional ferry crossing takes roughly 55 minutes; a High-Speed service cuts that to roughly 30 minutes. This is not a once-a-day boat: a sample weekday check (Wednesday, July 29, 2026) showed 9 outbound sailings from Point Judith between 8:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m., meaning renters staying in Galilee or Jerusalem have frequent, same-day access to Block Island without needing to plan around a single departure time.
As of that same mid-2026 snapshot, the ferry's own published fares for the Point Judith Traditional route were: adult one-way $12.30, senior (65+) one-way $11.80, child (5-11) one-way $5.15, same-day round trip (adult) $22.60, different-day round trip (adult) $24.60, with vehicle fares of $39.60 one-way for a standard vehicle and $48.70 for a full-size vehicle, SUV, or van. Fares and schedules are seasonal and change; reconfirm current departure times and pricing directly with The Block Island Ferry before using this as a selling point to prospective renters or building it into a pro forma.
No Confirmed Short-Term-Rental Rule Here Either -- Same Gap as the Rest of Narragansett
This is the single most important caution on this page, and it carries over directly from this site's own Narragansett, RI vacation-rental-investment page rather than being re-derived here: because Scarborough, Galilee, and Jerusalem are villages within the Town of Narragansett rather than separate incorporated towns, there is no separate village-level short-term-rental ordinance to look up. Whatever rule applies, applies townwide -- and this research did not find a confirmed, current Narragansett-specific short-term-rental ordinance, registration requirement, licensing process, or occupancy-tax rate at the town level either. That is a gap in what this research could confirm, not a confirmed all-clear.
Jerusalem specifically carries one further, real governmental wrinkle worth knowing even though it does not change which town regulates short-term rentals there: per Wikipedia's dedicated entry on Jerusalem, Rhode Island, the village is not connected by land to the rest of Narragansett -- its only land border is with the Matunuck section of neighboring South Kingstown -- and as a result, fire and police service in Jerusalem is provided by South Kingstown rather than by Narragansett, even though Jerusalem remains legally part of the Town of Narragansett for zoning, permitting, and tax purposes. Before buying anywhere in this footprint with a rental strategy in mind, confirm current short-term-rental zoning, registration, licensing, occupancy, and any lodging or occupancy-tax requirements directly with the Town of Narragansett's zoning office and town clerk.
Before You Buy: What to Confirm, and With Whom
The honest pitch for this specific footprint rests on a genuinely strong, specific data point: NeighborhoodScout's reported 43.4% vacancy rate and 39.6% seasonal-occupancy figure for Galilee & Jerusalem, backed by two real, physical visitor draws sitting right on top of each other -- Scarborough State Beach and the working Port of Galilee -- plus frequent, real Block Island Ferry service from Galilee itself. What remains unconfirmed is just as important: no village-specific or town-specific short-term-rental ordinance, licensing requirement, or occupancy-tax rate was found in this research, and Jerusalem's cross-town fire and police arrangement with South Kingstown is a real quirk worth asking about directly.
Before committing to a purchase here with a rental strategy in mind: confirm current short-term-rental zoning, registration, licensing, and occupancy-tax requirements directly with the Town of Narragansett; get current comparable sales, rental rates, and realistic occupancy figures from a local property manager or Rhode Island-licensed real estate professional familiar with Galilee, Jerusalem, and Scarborough specifically, since NeighborhoodScout's figures are estimates, not a substitute for current comparables; reconfirm Block Island Ferry schedules and fares directly with the operator before relying on them in any listing or pro forma; and consult a tax advisor before committing to a purchase. Nothing on this page is legal, tax, or financial advice.
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Get a Free Agent Referral →Independent research. No ads. No sponsored listings. This page covers Scarborough, Galilee, and Jerusalem -- villages and neighborhoods within the Town of Narragansett, Rhode Island, not a separate incorporated town. Village-level real estate and housing figures (median home price $1,091,913; average rental price $3,012/month; vacancy rate 43.4%, described as 98.2% higher than the U.S. average; 39.6% of housing seasonally occupied) are per NeighborhoodScout's own "Galilee & Jerusalem" neighborhood profile, a distinct commercial data source describing a smaller, village-level geography -- not interchangeable with the town-wide Census, ACS, or Redfin figures used on this site's own Narragansett, RI vacation-rental-investment page. Scarborough State Beach's two-section, 59.7-acre, 0.85-mile-shoreline complex at 870 and 970 Ocean Road, its 1937 origin as Scarborough North, and its 1981/1986/1987 expansion into Scarborough South are per Rhode Island State Parks' own history page and Wikipedia's Scarborough Beach (Rhode Island) entry. The Port of Galilee's status as home to roughly 240 fishing vessels and crews, and as Rhode Island's largest commercial fishing port moving more than 16 million pounds of seafood and shellfish annually, is per National Fisherman and Wikipedia. Block Island Ferry operational detail (Interstate Navigation Company; roughly 55-minute Traditional and 30-minute High-Speed crossings from Point Judith in Galilee; a sample 9 outbound sailings on Wednesday, July 29, 2026; and 2026 fares including a $12.30 adult one-way Traditional fare) is per The Block Island Ferry's own schedules-and-fares page and reflects a mid-2026 snapshot that should be reconfirmed directly with the operator before relying on it. Jerusalem's land border with South Kingstown's Matunuck section and its resulting reliance on South Kingstown for fire and police service, despite being legally part of Narragansett, is per Wikipedia's dedicated Jerusalem, Rhode Island entry. This page does not state, because it was not found and should not be invented, any current Scarborough-, Galilee-, or Jerusalem-specific short-term-rental ordinance, licensing or registration requirement, occupancy-tax rate, or any short-term-rental occupancy, nightly-rate, or return-on-investment figure -- this site's own Narragansett, RI vacation-rental-investment page documents the same town-level gap in more depth. For current short-term-rental rules, confirm directly with the Town of Narragansett's zoning office and town clerk; for current rental-market specifics, consult a local property manager or Rhode Island-licensed real estate professional; for an investment decision, consult a tax advisor.