Seaside Heights’ Tax Base Has More Than Doubled Since Pre-Sandy

The Seaside Heights boardwalk, Oct. 2023. (Photo: Shorebeat)

Seaside Heights is becoming a gem for property owners and investors, more than doubling its value since Superstorm Sandy struck more than a decade ago, and seeing double digit year-to-year jumps in the value of property sales.

Ocean County tax data released recently showed the staggering value of the borough, which began an intensive rebranding after the storm to shed its image as the hard-partying bar town portrayed in MTV’s “Jersey Shore” in the late 2000s in favor of a more subdued, traditional resort community. While there have been bumps along the road – consisting of boardwalk antics and litigation over a number of derelict motels that continue to operate – the borough has attracted major investors, including the first K. Hovnanian community on the barrier island, and a grand hotel and banquet facility being built by high-profile Boston developer William Caulder.

Assessments were recalculated for 2025 after last being set in 2013, just after the storm ravaged the borough’s tax base. The results speak for themselves.

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“The net valuation taxable was up 145 percent, and that average assessment … in 2024 was $257,089 and the average assessment now is $594,149, an increase of 131 percent,” said Robert S. Oliwa, the borough’s auditor.

Data released by Ocean County shows the staggering accumulation of real property wealth in the borough. In 2012, the year that Sandy struck, Seaside Heights’ ratable base stood at $842,960,200. In 2013, after the storm, the tax base had been decimated to $617,804,400, a loss of more than $200 million in value. This year, however, the Ocean County Board of Taxation reported Seaside Heights’ ratable base at $1,705,658,300. Another $188 million worth of property was exempt, being owned by the municipal, state or county government, or a house of worship.

The reassessment also showed growth in the borough’s business community, Oliwa said. As a portion of the tax base, $440,581,400 worth of real property was owned by businesses. Commercial property now makes up 26 percent of the tax base, he said, further breaking down the numbers.

“The vacant properties had a 1 percent increase on the new valuations, the residentials went from 68 percent to 65 percent, and there was a bump in the commercials,” said Oliwa. “They’re now at 26 percent from 24 percent. Apartments make up 4 percent.”

Home sales have also seen a significant jump in a short period of time. Last year, in 2024, the average residential sale was $567,278, said Oliwa. The previous year, in 2023, the average was $431,407.

“That’s an increase of 31 percent from year-to-year, which is really something,” said Oliwa.

So far in 2025, state data shows the median home price sitting at $538,400, a 9 percent year-on-year increase. Homes are selling comparatively quickly, with a median of 47 days on the market.

Seaside Heights has numerous, major construction projects underway – many of which are replacing the very nightclubs and motels shown on the MTV series – including the Coastal Edge development, which is being built on the site of the most prominently-featured venue from that era, the Karma nightclub. Its sister club, Bamboo, was also torn down and is being redeveloped after some initial delays, while the oceanfront is seeing construction in the form of the 500 Ocean complex and the future 135-room hotel, restaurant and event center. Construction on the Hovnanian community – a first for the barrier island in any town – is due to get underway within weeks.