Even top market resort like the Hamptons and Palm Beach are experiencing a flattening out, according to real estate agents. Median prices have shrunk. There have been a few top end sales but a slowdown in the total number of transaction, according to figures from New York based Miller Samuel.
And Florida, where beach communities have been very popular, is on such a downward spiral that property even near Disneyland is going for bargain prices. Cape Coral, just south of Tampa, has seen family home prices drop by 17% and condos fall by 24% this year, according to the National Association of Realtors.
It is a combination of factors and not just the credit crunch that is affecting prices. Jonathan Miller of Miller Samuel says price is a consideration and top end buyers in places like Nantucket, Martha's Vineyard and Laguna Beach are more careful about spending. 'People are taking longer to make decisions and are worried about the impact of falls on Wall Street and the possibilities of lay-offs,' he said.
But they are also concerned about coastal erosion. When buying a coastal property investors are increasingly asking about the chances of natural disasters, hurricanes and erosion.
'A beach community becomes, in some sense, a multigenerational family destination. Buyers tend to want to have it for a long time and the possible effects of global warming which may be 50 years away are being noted,' said Steve DiFrancesco, an agent with Hunter, Reed and Company.
It is the eastern shore of the US that is most prone to coastal erosion. According to a recent academic report it loses two to three feet a year to erosion compared with a national average of one foot. The amount of property built on the coast has also massively increased and this has impacted on the environment.
In Florida erosion caused by hurricanes costs the state millions of dollars in shoring up beaches. More than 485 miles, or nearly 60%, of beaches are eroding and it is just sand that is the buffer between the sea and property.
Such is the state of concern that developers and architects who do not take climate change into account could end up facing public liability claims from property owners, according to Andre Logan, of Ceres, a non-profit organisation which directs the Investor Network on Climate Risk.
