When people think of the Jersey Shore, the MTV reality show might come to mind. Gym, tan, laundry; fist pumping, and nightclubs. But a small beachside city is drawing a more chic crowd to the beaches of New Jersey, and redefining what the shore looks like in the process.
Long Branch, New Jersey, which is an hour’s drive from Trenton and a similar distance from Manhattan, has largely kept its small-town charm. But a transformation is afoot, and sisters Jennifer and Michele Maybaum have seen it up close.
“We’ve really seen the evolution of Long Branch going from a, you could say, lower- to middle-class city to what’s being built today,” Michele told Business Insider.
The pair run Max’s Bar and Grill, a local landmark in Long Branch. The restaurant has been in their family since 1950 and in New Jersey since 1928. But new construction is changing the shoreline and the town itself.
“With the advent of all the condos that are being built, new restaurants and new things that have come into Long Branch, a new type of person is moving to Long Branch,” she added.
New luxury developments, restaurants, and stores are luring wealthier visitors and residents away from other hot spots around the country, changing the fabric of the once old-school beach town.
The condo market in Long Branch is on the rise
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The condo market in Long Branch has adjusted in recent years.
Data from Redfin shows the median sales price for condos and co-ops was $818,242 in April 2020. That same month in 2025, that number was $950,000 — a 16% increase.
The increase in price could be due to the increase in ritzy selections in the area, like The Atlantic Club, a luxury beachfront condo building scheduled to open in 2026. It’s home to what is now the most expensive condo sale in the county: A penthouse that sold for $5.95 million in 2024. According to MLS data, condo sales over $1 million increased year over year in Long Branch by nearly 11%.
The 132-unit Atlantic Club features a pool deck, a fitness center, a business center, and a pet spa, among other amenities. It opened up sales in 2023 with prices ranging from $1.12 million to over $5.95 million.
Dennis Drazin, a 73-year-old attorney, bought a four-bedroom unit, which he plans to pay between $3.65 million and $4 million for, depending on what features he chooses to install.
“The unit that I chose has a big terrace on it where I walk out of the living quarters and I can sit and relax in the sun and watch the ocean,” Drazin told BI. “That’s what I like to do when I’m not working.”
Drazin was born in Long Branch but has lived a 10-minute drive away in Fair Haven, New Jersey, since 1988. He and his wife are downsizing from their two-acre property and getting closer to the beach.
“I wanted to be on the ocean,” he said. “I wanted to have the beach within a few steps of where I was. I wanted to have the boardwalk where I could walk long distances back and forth. I wanted to have restaurants in the area that I would be able to utilize.”
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Peter Rokkos, a 56-year-old professor at Rutgers University , was in the market for a second home and was looking far and wide for a new spot. He looked in New Jersey and even went as far as Florida, considering Fort Lauderdale and Naples.
He was close to settling on Naples, but sided with convenience and a tamer climate.
“In my mind, I’ve got sort of an over-under of 100 nights,” Rokkos told BI. “If I’m going to get a hundred nights, how often am I going to want to fly down to 100 degrees in Florida?”
Rokkos’ getaway home is about 15 miles from his home base in Holmdel, New Jersey. He paid about $1.9 million for a two-bedroom unit with a den, he said.
A bittersweet transformation
The essence of Long Branch is rooted in vacationing — mainly for New Jersey locals. The pier used to be complete with quintessential boardwalk necessities like arcades, waterslides, and mini golf. Now, while some of those classics still remain, fine dining restaurants, fashionable retail stores, and condos are in the mix, changing the ambiance.
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That change in ambience is a benefit for a lot of the people choosing Long Branch, like Rokkos.
“I’m not sure this would’ve been the purchase we would’ve made 15 years ago when my kids were a little bit younger — but now they’re a bit older,” Rokkos said. “They like the ability to pop down the block and get a cup of coffee, or go visit the yoga studio down the block.”
“They started bringing more commerce to the area, bringing more people to the area, bringing more restaurants to the area, spreading the tendrils out from that little beach strip out to more and more gentrification, turning Long Branch from the sleepy, beach community that it was into more of a commerce destination.”
Longtime business owners like the Maybaum sisters are happy to see business booming and patrons from all over the world — noting that people from France, Spain, and beyond have visited their restaurant.
But when new buildings are constructed, they take over old ones.
Jennifer highlighted Seashore Day Camp, a camp that both the Maybaums and their children attended that, as of 2025, has turned into condos starting at $1.9 million. The camp would have celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2026.
“Seeing that gone is sad because you grew up seeing that, and it was part of your history, part of your memories and your experiences,” Jennifer said. “There have been some businesses that the local community had a connection with that are no longer there.”
“I do think what’s happening is amazing,” Jennifer added. “It’s almost bittersweet.”
