Residential Record Falls in New Jersey Vacation Spot

A small town on the Jersey Shore is harboring the new record holder for priciest purchase in local history.

A buyer plunked down $12 million to buy the home at 8808 1st Avenue in Stone Harbor, one of two towns on Seven Mile Island near Cape May (Avalon is the other). The price narrowly set the record for most expensive in the island’s history, Compass agent Nicholas Giuffre told the Daily Voice.

The lot last traded hands in November 2020, when a developer purchased it for $5.1 million with a project in mind. It hit the market a year ago at $13.9 million, but still managed to squeeze in a record sale without hitting that initial ask.

The identities of the buyer and seller could not immediately be determined. Giuffre held the listing; Giuffre did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Real Deal.

The 4,700-square-foot home has five bedrooms and six bathrooms. There is an in-ground pool with a hot tub and a large backyard with an equally large cabana. Giuffre told the publication that the price of the vacation home is dwarfed only by the value of the investment on the island, where homes tend to hold on to their value.

The sale only narrowly topped the previous record for the island, according to Giuffre. The prior mark came only eight months ago, when a home on 170th Street in Avalon went for $11.9 million.

The real estate market along the southern Jersey Shore, particularly in Avalon, remains strong. In November, a businessman purchased two lots in Avalon for a combined $21 million, a record for that segment on the island.

One of the lots had a 4,700-square-foot home destined for the wrecking ball, while the other was vacant. The new owner plans to build an 8,000-square-foot home across the two lots.

— Holden Walter-Warner