I met with a friend last week in Wilmington for lunch. We went by his house in Carolina Beach. The whole way he was discussing how the property value in the area has been on a rocket. I’m seeing new construction booming everywhere. He kept telling me how great of an investment the real estate is in the area. The sun was setting, the sawgrass was blowing as the Cape Fear River gently swept through the marshes filled with grey remains of trees that somehow made the landscape even prettier.
Then I got ruthless. Asked him if he knew why the trees all in the area were void of branches, bark and left grey? Had to explain to him that it is from salt water intrusion and usually found in places with rapid sea level rise and subsidence, extremely prone areas for hurricane surge, areas impacted by frequent tsunamis or earthquake prone areas that subside from subduction zone faults.
Obviously, he wasnt quite sure what that meant so I had to really spell it out. If a large hurricane were to hit between there and Myrtle Beach the water would be up to the power lines. Hope he never experiences it but the developers have to be in the pockets of the government zoning this crap out so they can peddle the dream to unsuspecting people.
He blew me off, said his house was good that he isnt even required to have flood insurance. Meanwhile, I added another mark on my map app marked “surge” so I can go shoot video when it does happen.
I don’t understand how people can invest without looking into this stuff. Then again, I just see skeletons everywhere I drive so maybe it is just me.