Dru Finley, 43, says she fell in love with Fire Island while
visiting a college friend's summer home during the past three years.
So she and her husband, Hsiao-Li Pan, 48, who jointly own a Brewster, N.Y.,
medical equipment sales firm that exports to China, decided that it was time to
put down some seasonal roots and buy a second home.
After looking at 10 homes in about five of Fire Island's 17 communities, in May
they purchased a contemporary house in
Ocean Bay Park that needs "a lot of work." It's 1,400 square feet, with six
small bedrooms and two bathrooms.
But for the couple and their children, Colby, 14, and Avery,
11, the $866,000 fixer-upper had three strong selling points - a prime beach
location, a family-friendly neighborhood with activities for the kids and a
price within their budget.
"We know that if we put work into this home, it will be a good investment over
time in a safe, nice, laid-back area that's great for kids," Finley says. "It's
definitely not the Hamptons, which has a very different attitude and much higher
prices for the kind of great location that we have with our home."
Oceanfront bargains?
Agents said that, although housing values continue to steadily climb and the
area is certainly not inexpensive, Fire Island remains an undervalued market
compared with other popular seasonal resort destinations such as the Hamptons.
Most of the 32-mile-long island can be reached only by ferry, and vehicles
aren't permitted, except in limited circumstances.
Unlike the rest of Long Island - which is suffering from a glut of homes on the
market - Fire Island's limited number of residences has kept sales strong and
prices rising. Not to mention, no more building is permitted.
"We're seeing more newcomers and ex-Hamptonites buying on Fire Island," says CJ
Mingolelli, regional director of the newly opened Fire Island office of
Prudential Douglas Elliman. "Also, with the availability of the Internet, there
is a huge demand from people who work at home and can bring their work with
them."
Buyers are aware of erosion and flooding issues, Mingolelli says. "But that does
not deter them from buying on Fire Island," Mingolelli adds. "The area has had a
good track record in standing up against the elements, and homeowners can always
find buyers and flood insurance."
Gerard Stoddard, president of the Fire Island Association, which represents
residents and communities, agrees.
"Yes, sometimes there has been flooding and bad weather, and some homes are
damaged," he says. "People talk about it, and then it is eventually forgotten.
This is just not enough to stop people from buying homes on Fire Island."
Prices are up 12 to 18 percent from the same time last year, and volume of sales
remains steady, says Mingolelli. At any one time, about 10 percent of the
market's 4,000 homes could be for sale.
The average selling price for a three- or four-bedroom home with a pool is
$900,000. That price jumps to $1.2 million for oceanfront property, Mingolelli
adds. Those prices would probably triple for comparable homes in the Hamptons.
Overall, prices start at $500,000 for an 800-square-foot, three-bedroom,
one-bathroom cottage with no pool up to a high of $3.5 million for a 3,000- to
4,000-square-foot, five-bedroom, three-bathroom house on the ocean, says Glenn
Taylor, owner of Rapid Appraisal & Associates in
Bay Shore.
In The Pines community alone, for example, sales prices and volume are up 10
percent from 2006, with prices ranging from $775,000 to $2.5 million, says Bob
Howard, broker-owner of Bob Howard Real Estate Inc. in The Pines. Jon Wilner,
broker-owner of Island Properties of The Pines, says prices are up an average of
$50,000 to $100,000 per home from last year.
Well-heeled clientele
"The buyers in this area are mostly from Manhattan and are a well-heeled
clientele not affected by the problems that have taken place with the subprime
market and mortgages," Howard says.
In fact, other than the AIDS crisis of the 1980s and the terrorist attacks of
Sept. 11, nothing has slowed down the Fire Island housing market, notes
Philadelphia-based real estate agent Ron Blum, 58, who has been visiting the
area for the past 38 summers and owns a home in The Pines.
He estimates that his three-bedroom, two-bathroom house located less than 200
feet from the beach has appreciated about 15 percent since he bought it in
October 2006 with his partner, Steve Rosen, 48, a Philadelphia public relations
executive. Public records show they purchased the house for $767,500. "This is a
unique market that will always be strong," Blum says.
Although there are predominantly gay and child-free communities on Fire Island,
there are others that have drawn families, like Manhattan attorney John
Harkrider, 41, and his wife, Anja Kroencke, 38, a fashion and advertising
illustrator. They bought a two-bedroom, one-bathroom oceanfront house on 1 acre
of land in the Cherry Grove community in July 2006 for $995,000.
They say they plan to double the size of the two-story, 1,200- square-foot house
for themselves and their two children - June, 4, and Rose, nearly 2.
The couple had looked at about 20 homes over a two-month period.
"The house had the land and location that I desired, and I was able to spend
under $2 million," Harkrider says. "I had sticker shock the other way around ...
shocked at how cheap this area was compared to even other neighborhoods in Fire
Island and the Hamptons."
In the summer, about 25,000 people live on Fire Island; the rest of the year,
only 400, says Stoddard. But that might soon change.
More buyers of vacation homes on Fire Island are winterizing them and using them
year-round, not just in the summer, notes Scott Bromley, co-founder and partner
in Bromley Caldari Architects PC in Manhattan, who has designed 40 homes in Fire
Island over the past 25 years and owns a home there himself
"People are proud of their homes on Fire Island and are putting more money into
them and making them more comfortable and livable," he says.