SHIRLEY, Mass. -- Even in the Internet age, real estate agents say, old-fashioned yard signs still help attract buyers to homes.

NewsCenter 5's Kelley Tuthill reported that agents in Shirley are upset because the town wants them to pay a $25 fee for each of the "for sale" signs.

"I may put up 15-20 signs every weekend. Every weekend I'll write a check?" said real estate agent Mark Tavenner.

"It makes doing business more difficult, and in these times, they we need to make it a little easier to do," said real estate agent Jackie Esielionis.

Shirley, like many communities, is desperate for money to pay for services like schools and police. That's why the town is enforcing a 1985 bylaw for the first time.

"No one really wants to impose more fees. All we're trying to do is maintain our government," said Town Administrator Kyle Keady.

"They are grasping at straws to try solve this deficit. Ours is $1.17 million. Like many towns, I think you really need to sit back and figure out how you're going to solve the deficit and that's not how you do it," said Shirley Board of Selectmen Chair Enrico Cappucci.

The temporary sign fees would not apply to political messages, but likely would apply to yard sales and services, like landscaping.

The town isn't charging fees for the signs yet. It will wait until at least May when opponents can have their say at a town meeting.