Did you know that owners of rundown trailers in Long Island are now sitting on millions of dollars worth of property? Over the past few decades, house prices in the area have skyrocketed. These trailers, which were sold for a mere $95,000 in the 1990s, are now being rented out to tourists for as much as $20,000 a month. It’s a way for people to experience the high-priced lifestyle of the Hamptons without actually owning a home there.
But what about the people who actually lived in the Montauk trailer park? Many working-class individuals claim that they can no longer afford to live in this luxurious town. The park has become a magnet for the rich and famous who love the “shabby chic” style of the area. As a result, the once-affordable mobile homes now cost upwards of five million dollars each. And during the summer, they are rented out for a staggering $20,000 a month.
The Montauk trailer park was originally built sixty-five years ago to provide housing for working-class people who couldn’t afford the luxurious houses in the Hamptons. However, it has now become an enclave for the rich and famous. Singers like Jimmy Buffett, entrepreneurs like J Darius Bikoff, and producers like Karen Lauder own properties in the park.
Just this month, one of the trailers in the Montauk trailer park sold for a staggering $3.75 million. Despite its small size of just eight hundred square feet, it fetched nearly $5,000 per square foot. The demand for these properties is incredible because of their proximity to the Hamptons, a popular destination for celebrities like Beyoncé, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Robert Downey Jr.
Unfortunately, this newfound attention has come at a cost for the working-class people of Long Island. They are being priced out of their own homes as billionaires and investors snatch up the properties for astronomical prices. These new owners often don’t even live in the trailer park themselves. Instead, they use the mobile homes as changing rooms and stop-overs on their trips to the beach. The sense of community that once existed in the park has been slowly eroding.
“When we first moved here, it was a much tighter community,” said Kathy Pare, a resident of Montauk Shore trailer park. “On the weekends, we’d have parties, karaoke, and hang out with our neighbors. But now, with so many renters, it’s not the same. They can get loud at night and don’t always respect the rules.”
So while the Montauk trailer park may still be known as “Montauk’s best-kept secret,” the secret is fading. With each passing day, more and more working-class individuals are being priced out of their homes and pushed out of the town they once called home.
