5 cool beach towns across America where you can buy a house for $300,000 or less

Yes, you can still afford a beach house. Maybe not in Boca or San Diego, but in plenty of other spots. We’ve scoured the country to find beach towns where the median home value was around $300,000 or less, though you do have to factor in other costs that may be higher in beach towns. These may be related to maintaining the property; dealing with flooding and storms; hiring great local tradespeople in the area, if you need to do work on the home; and home insurance for hurricanes, fires and anything else that might come up in the future,” says Justin Feil, a real-estate agent with the Feil Group. The other good news? Mortgage rates are down from their over-6% highs of this year (see the best mortgage rate you might qualify for here).

Here are five beach towns that could make your second (or even primary) home or retirement dreams a reality.  

For the golf enthusiast: Myrtle Beach, S.C.

TripAdvisor named Myrtle Beach in its 2021 Traveler’s Choice Best of the Best list of “best beaches” (the area boasts about 60 miles of them). There’s plenty of outdoor recreation to enjoy beyond the beach, including deep-sea fishing and more than 90 area golf courses, including Dunes Golf & Beach Club, Caledonia Golf & Fish Club and Tidewater Golf Club. All that — and the fact that there’s a major airport in town with flights from both Chicago or New York taking just about two hours — may help explain why nearly 20 million people visit annually.  (Though, admittedly, it can at times feel overrun by tourists, and summers are hot and humid.)

Median home value: $310,375
Population: 35,555
Cost of living: Below average (score of 84.8/100, with 100 being average)
Sources: Median home values from Zillow; other stats from Sperling’s Best Places

For a New England vibe: Rockland, Maine

Located in Maine’s midcoast region, just 90 miles north of Portland, Rockland sits on Penobscot Bay, which is home to more than a dozen lighthouses and lots of lobster boats (it even has a lobster festival). From outdoor activities like swimming, biking, boating, hiking and golf to cultural experiences like museums, performing arts and cinema, Rockland offers an array of things to do and places to go. That said, winters are very chilly, so this may be more of a summer beach home rather than a year-round getaway for you. (Check out today’s mortgage rates here.)

Median home value: $255,624
Population: 7,183
Cost of living: Below average (82/100, with 100 being average)
Sources: Median home values from Zillow; other stats from Sperling’s Best Places

For the outdoor enthusiast: Coos Bay, Ore.

Set amid lush emerald forests and the Pacific Ocean, this west coast beach town is the largest city on Oregon’s coast. It offers mild weather — temperatures average in the middle to high 60s during the summer and remain mild even during the winter, when the average is in the low 50s. And there’s no shortage of outdoor activities in Coos Bay, with fishing, water sports, boating and golf some of the most popular recreational activities available. The scenery is spectacular in parts (some of the sand dunes are 500 feet high), and it sits at the southern entrance to the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area, a 40-mile expanse of 7,000 acres of coastal sand dunes. Crime is elevated in the city, but there are areas that are safer than others. And smaller homes can be had for under $300,000.

Median home value: $346,688
Population: 16,342
Cost of living: Below average (84.3/100, with 100 being average)
Sources: Median home values from Zillow; other stats from Sperling’s Best Places

If you want a ton to do: Atlantic City, N.J.

Atlantic City is far more than just a place to gamble, as many of us think of it. It’s also an epicenter for entertainment, offering a wide array of arts and cultural activities, as well as shopping, dining, nightlife, golf, boating and fishing alongside the gambling, with casinos like Bally’s Atlantic City, Caesars at Atlantic City and Hard Rock Atlantic City calling the seaside city home. Notable restaurants in the area include Dock’s Oyster House, Capriccio and Tony Boloney’s. Anyone looking for action will appreciate the nearby boardwalk, outlet shopping center, amusement park, aquarium and museums like Ripley’s Believe It or Not, the African American Heritage Museum of Southern New Jersey and Holtzman Art Gallery. Plus, it’s just 130 miles from New York City. Unfortunately, theft in Atlantic City is something to consider, but there are safer areas you can live in.

Median home value: $179,781
Population: 37,569
Cost of living: Below average (78.3/100, with 100 being average)
Sources: Median home values from Zillow; other stats from Sperling’s Best Places

If you love to fish: Palm Bay, Fla. 

Nature enthusiasts and anyone who loves to fish will enjoy Palm Bay’s freshwater lake and its oceanfront pier. Located at the mouth of Turkey Creek, this is central Florida’s second largest city, and a relatively affordable one at that. Located just minutes from the Melbourne International Airport, Port Canaveral and the Kennedy Space Center, Palm Bay offers activities including hiking, biking, boating, dolphin and manatee watching, tubing, and wakeboarding.

Median home value: $308,361
Population: 116,932
Cost of living: Below average (89.9/100, with 100 being average)
Sources: Median home values from Zillow; other stats from Sperling’s Best Places