(Bloomberg) — When Hurricane Sandy roared through New Jersey two years ago, it not only tore up the shoreline. It also pushed out much of the middle class.

From Ocean City to Toms River, one-story cottages and bungalows damaged by the worst Atlantic storm on record are being replaced by multi-story homes that go for twice as much. Sales of million-dollar homes on the Jersey Shore surged to a seven-year high in the third quarter.

Sandy accelerated the turnover of existing homes to higher-priced ones, said Kevin Gillen, an economist at University of Pennsylvania's Fels Institute of Government. Meanwhile, those relying on insurance claims and government grants are sometimes unable to rebuild as quickly as their wealthier neighbors.

Want to continue reading?
Become a Free PropertyCasualty360 Digital Reader

Your access to unlimited PropertyCasualty360 content isn’t changing.
Once you are an ALM digital member, you’ll receive:

  • Breaking insurance news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
  • Weekly Insurance Speak podcast featuring exclusive interviews with industry leaders
  • Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
  • Critical converage of the employee benefits and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, BenefitsPRO and ThinkAdvisor
NOT FOR REPRINT

© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.