Hollywood Is Heading to New Jersey. Rental Investors Should Too.
The development of a massive Netflix East Coast production hub is raising demand for real estate in the surrounding communities.
A splash of Hollywood in the form of a Netflix production hub, slated for completion in 2028, is taking over the former U.S. Army base at Fort Monmouth, located about 55 miles south of New York City.
The 292-acre site, which will have at least 12 soundstages, back lots and production facilities, straddles Eatontown and Oceanport and is anticipated to transform Monmouth County and nearby towns. The $1 billion Netflix project is expected to create 3,500 construction jobs and at least 1,400 permanent jobs. The forthcoming Netflix presence hands real estate buyers in the area an opportunity for both future home value growth and rental investment.
Agents have already seen an uptick in demand.
“People are excited about ‘Hollywood East’ coming to the Jersey Shore,” said Keith Kernan, managing broker of Ward Wight Sotheby’s International Realty in Spring Lake, New Jersey. “We’re already seeing a surge in demand for housing in the immediate area within a 10-minute radius.”
Investors have started searching for older homes close to Fort Monmouth that can be renovated and converted to rental properties, he said.
“The military base at Fort Monmouth had been abandoned for years, so this is a great redevelopment for the area,” said Danielle Coyle, an agent with Re/Max Select in Tinton Falls, New Jersey. “We’re already seeing smaller businesses open and lots of construction nearby, mostly condos in the $800,000 range.”
Coyle said some people are relocating to New Jersey now in expectation of a career with Netflix as a makeup artist, cameraman or another role. Parts of the production hub are expected to open in 2027.
“The buzz about Netflix started more than a year ago and its building now that the company took ownership of the site in January,” said Alan Kurlander, an agent with Coldwell Banker Realty in Manalapan, New Jersey. “There’s speculative investment happening now, especially in the Fort Monmouth area and Eatontown.”
Whether you’re a seller looking to seize on rising demand or a prospective rental investor, the housing needs associated with Netflix are likely to hit every level. The facility will attract a cross-section of everyone from blue collar workers to executives, Kurlander said.
“We’ll need more rental housing, middle-market housing and luxury homes,” he said.
Luxury markets near Netflix include Sea Girt, Spring Lake, Bay Head and Mantoloking, popular second-home markets because of their proximity to Northern New Jersey and Manhattan, Kernan said. Luxury homes in those markets range from $2 million to $4 million, but they are rarely available, he said.
In Long Branch, about 10 minutes from the new Netflix site, average sales prices rose by 10% between 2024 and 2025, luxury condo sales prices (priced at $1 million and up) rose by 12%, and residential sales volume rose by 14%, according to a report by Christie’s International Real Estate Group.
“About a year ago we started to see people who own homes in Long Beach and nearby towns buy a second home as an investment property,” said Teresa Minnick, an agent with Christie’s International Real Estate and director of sales at the Atlantic Club Residences in Long Branch, N.J. “These are people looking to rent these properties to short- or long-term residents coming to the area to build the Netflix production center, work there or come to the area for specific projects.”
First Demand: Rental Properties
One issue as Netflix begins to bring in construction workers and staff: There are very few hotels in the Fort Monmouth area, according to Coyle.
“Investors are looking for places they can convert to Airbnbs,” she said.
Demand is rising for short-term furnished executive rental properties with three, six or 12-month leases, according to Kernan.
“Those are condos, townhouses and single-family homes close to the Netflix site,” he said. “In another six to 10 months, we’re likely to see that demand spread to nearby towns, including some already notable hot spots like Asbury Park, Red Bank, Spring Lake, Manasquan, Sea Girt and Mantoloking.”
Kernan said he expects those towns will become more popular than they already are because of the Jersey Shore lifestyle as well as proximity to New York City via trains, buses and ferries.
“Inventory is tight in those locations, so any new construction and new supply is likely to get gobbled up quickly,” Kernan said.
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The Market Was Already Booming
Most of Minnick’s buyers in the past have had a connection to the Jersey Shore, such as spending summers there as a child or their parents owning a vacation home in the area.
“For the last several years, we’ve had a large population of people who own homes in Florida and the Jersey Shore and split their time seasonally,” Minnick said. “We’ve got demand from those seasonal buyers, plus more people wanting their primary residence here because of remote work, and now there are investors for rental properties because of Netflix.”
That combined demand in an area with limited inventory is anticipated to drive prices higher in the next several years, Minnick said.
“Monmouth County has only a 1.5-month supply of homes right now, so we need more development,” Coyle said. “Anything that gets built or becomes available is likely to be a good investment since demand will be even higher from the Netflix effect.”
Within 30 minutes of the Netflix location, buyers can find a variety of luxury properties, including homes with a water view on smaller lots from $3 million and above and larger inland properties with more acreage in Colts Neck and Rumson for $4 million to $5 million.
“The hot spots for luxury include Rumson, which has lots of private clubs and exclusivity,” Coyle said. “Red Bank has more cultural amenities and restaurants, plus good transportation options to Manhattan.”
New Construction Options
Like many places in the U.S., housing has been underbuilt in New Jersey for decades, Kurlander said.
“Land costs are high and building costs are high, so there’s not an enormous amount of construction happening yet,” he said. “Now buildable land and investment properties that can be renovated are selling in an hour in some cases.”
“Officers Row,” a cluster of residential buildings designed for high-ranking military personnel at Fort Monmouth, was preserved and redeveloped into single-family homes that sold out several years ago, Coyle said.
Plans for the Atlantic Club Residences, a 132-unit building in Long Branch, were in place before the Netflix decision was made. The condos are anticipated to be ready for occupancy in April or May 2027, with 50% of the building already sold, Minnick said. Prices range from $1.175 million to $5.5 million.
“Every unit has a private terrace, and the oceanfront units have space on theirs for a hot tub or a cold plunge pool,” she said. “We’ve had calls from investors to buy here, but we have to be careful to make sure we have more full-time residents in the building rather than too many renters.”
Other new construction options near Netflix are mostly non-luxury townhouses priced from the $700,000s to $1 million and up, Coyle said.
Kernan added that “There’s a new sense of urgency to buy in Monmouth and Ocean counties,” now that the rumors of Netflix coming have become a reality. d. “It’s not uncommon to see multiple bids in these markets even for homes with a multi-million dollar price tag. Homes consistently sell in seven to 10 days,” he said.
In other words, investors eager to get in on the Netflix effect may want to make their moves sooner rather than later.
Source: Mansion Global
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