Extended Summer Vacation at the Jersey Shore

The Jersey Shore Rental Season has Taken a Big Shift

BY LINDSEY GETZ

When the COVID-19 pandemic began initiating statewide shutdowns in March, many people were in the midst of researching their summer shore rentals. Plenty of others had already booked them, but the uncertainty of the time led many to cancel those plans. This left Realtors® wondering what would come of the Jersey Shore rental season. Would it be able to even rebound this year?

The answer has been a marked shift to a later season.

Photo Courtesy of 7 Mile Publishing & Creative

Many of those rentals came through mid-summer and as the season transitioned to fall, rentals just kept coming in. With so many people working from home, it seems many have decided to experience fall at the shore.

Allan Dechert, CRB, RSPS, Broker, with Ferguson Dechert, headquartered in Avalon, experienced first-hand the shift in this year’s rental season. Dechert says that when the shutdowns first began, he was deluged with cancellations. With so much insecurity in the air, Dechert, a Past President of New Jersey Realtors®, says they began making provisions in leases to help renters feel comfortable about getting their money back should they have to cancel because of COVID-19.

A Delayed Season

As the weather warmed up and people began spending more time outside, a shift in mindset began taking place. Realtor® Gregory Rice, with Coldwell Banker Realty in Spring Lake says that people began to realize they could take a socially distanced vacation at the shore. Rice calls it a delayed season. “We never had our spring market,” Rice says. “In April, we were all still in Twilight Zone, so the season got a late start—July is when it really started for many. But instead of ending at Labor Day, like it usually does, many people have just decided to extend their vacations. With people working from home and many schools having gone virtual, there’s nothing to return to. If you can do work or school anywhere, why not do it at the shore?”

Dechert agrees and says rentals were significantly up in September. He received more interest in fall rentals than ever before. It’s a trend he doesn’t necessarily see slowing down.

“I can’t say for certain what will happen next fall, but I do think this pandemic has created changes in our society that could be here to stay,” Dechert says. “For instance, so many people have realized it’s quite possible to work from home. That trend may never go away. If more people continue to work from home, our shore season could be extended in the future, too.”

Photo Courtesy of 7 Mile Publishing & Creative

Dechert says the shore towns have definitely adapted. While many of them typically close shop after Labor Day, many restaurants and merchants have also extended their season. Plus, there are plenty of shore towns, like Cape May and Avalon, that have always hosted fall events. They are seeing more interest in these then ever. In this way, the pandemic has opened peoples’ eyes to all the Jersey shore has to offer in the “off-season.”

It’s also helped that the Jersey Shore is so accessible.

“People still don’t want to fly right now, but here at the Jersey Shore, we are within a five-hour drive for 25 percent of the nation’s population,” Dechert says. “Our primary market is Philadelphia, suburban Philadelphia, New Jersey, and New York—all of which can be here in a couple of hours. The accessibility has created a lot of interest in vacationing at the Jersey Shore.”

Driving Demographics

In addition to families taking late vacations, Rice says the fall and even winter rental market has also been driven by some other demographics. One has been homeowners who are remodeling.

“This demographic has always been a candidate for winter rentals, but we’re seeing a whole lot more of them,” Rice says. “With people working at home they’re realizing they need to build a home office. Or maybe when they didn’t spend a lot of time at home, it was okay for four kids to share two bedrooms or to have a small kitchen. But now people are adding on and making their homes bigger or more comfortable. Some of these people are looking for shore rentals while their homes get renovated.”

Photo Courtesy of 7 Mile Publishing & Creative

The other demographic driving fall and winter rentals has been college students—and those that have recently graduated. Rice says these are young people who are either doing school virtually or recently graduated and don’t want to move home. They can’t afford to buy a house, so they’re looking into rentals.

“The truth is, these demographics have always existed, but Covid has intensified the need,” Rice says. “You combine these demographics with the people who want to delay their summer vacation, and it’s definitely helped turn things around for the shore this year.”

A Boost in Buying?

Beyond rentals, Rice says there are also more people interested in buying beach homes. This year, those folks are more motivated.

“There’s always been the demographic of people who can afford to buy a beach house, but they may not go through with it because they say, ‘I don’t need it,’” Rice says. “But the pandemic seems to have changed all that. Now people want to get out of the city. They want to get down to the ocean. There’s a reason why the shore is so attractive. There is something therapeutic and mentally healthy about being by the water. And now those people who always wanted to be in the city to be around the theater and restaurants and the hustle and bustle of city life are looking for an escape.”

Dechert agrees the pandemic has driven brand-new interest in buying a beach home.

“If the work-from-home trend sticks around, which I think it will, I believe we’ll continue to see more second-home owners,” Dechert says. “Now that so many have gotten a taste of it, I think we’re going to see more people working from home at the shore in the future. It’s a great place to be.”

Photo Courtesy of Cape May MAC