for The New York Times: Home Sales in Flood Zones Are Booming. Here’s Why Buyers Take the Risk. by José A. Alvarado Jr.

Media

for The New York Times: Home Sales in Flood Zones Are Booming. Here’s Why Buyers Take the Risk.

josé a. alvarado jr.

Oct 2, 2024

Location: New York, New York

Summary

New Yorkers are spending billions on houses in flood-prone areas despite growing awareness of the effects of climate change.

At first sight, Carmen Borrero fell in love with a three-bedroom bungalow built in 1940 with a white picket fence and a driveway, steps away from the beach. She bought it in February for $270,000.The house is in the New Dorp Beach area of Staten Island and sits in a flood zone on the island’s eastern shore. Ms. Borrero, a benefits administrator for a teachers’ union, said the possibility of storms and flooding was a necessary gamble to be near the sand and surf.“If you want a house with a good view, close to the water, you know what the deal is,” she said.

Ms. Borrero is not alone in accepting that risk.

For many New Yorkers pursuing the American dream of homeownership while navigating the realities of a housing crisis, low-lying areas remain an affordable and popular option despite the mounting effects of climate change — including rising sea levels and more intense rainstorms.

Photographed for The New York Times, with words by Hilary Howard

Home Sales in Flood Zones Are Booming. Here’s Why Buyers Take the Risk.
New Yorkers are spending billions on houses in flood-prone areas despite growing awareness of the effects of climate change.
Nytimes.com

1,061

José A. Alvarado Jr.

Also by José A. Alvarado Jr. —

for The Minnesota Star Tribune: A Columbia professor’s warning for the University of Minnesota

for The New York Times: Columbia Concedes to Trump

for The New York Times: ICE Can’t Enter Rikers for Now, Judge Rules

for The New York Times: Outside Official Will Take Over Deadly Rikers Island Jail, Judge Orders

for The New York Times: Officer Pleads Guilty in Fatal Beating of Prisoner Seen on Camera

for Bloomberg: New York’s Selective Return to Office Is a Problem

for Bloomberg: Caribbean Worried About Impact of Fines on China-Made Vessels

for Bloomberg Law: Blue Owl’s Legal Chief Surges to Top-Paid Among Asset Managers

for Bloomberg: NYC Office Buildings See Resurgence as Investors Pile Into Bonds

for Bloomberg: KKR Veteran Joins Blue Owl to Lead Global Family Office Push

for Bloomberg: JPMorgan’s Former ‘Punch Card’ Building Unveils $10,000 Rentals

for NPR: This Harlem pastor fights mental health stigma — and shares his own struggles

for NPR: This Black church is facing the teen mental health crisis head on

for The New York Times: A Black Studies Curriculum Is (Defiantly) Rolling Out in New York City

for The New York Times: How a Plan for Reparations Became a Debt Trap for Marijuana Retailers

for STAT News: What happens when a rare disease drug seems to work, but the health care system doesn’t?

for El Nuevo Dia: Mujer del Año 2024

for NPR: Cancer interrupted their school lives, but also set them on a mission

for NPR: In New York, immigration weighed heavily and divisively among immigrants themselves

for The New York Times: He Was One of New York’s Busiest Shoplifters. His Mother Was a Cop.”, The New York Times

for The Wall Street Journal: The King of Risky Hometown Bonds Is Back

for The Wall Street Journal: The Office Therapist Will See You Now

for DVEIGHT: A Conversation with Ray Turner

for The New York Times: The U.S. Open Is Busier Than Ever. Some Fans Are Not Happy About It.