Real Estate Showdown: A Shore House vs. A Montco Farm

Philly Real Estate Showdown: A breezy Shore house or a Montco farm house?

Jersey Shore houses are usually built to accommodate vacationing crowds. Farmhouses aren’t, but this one’s big enough that you can invite the extended family out for a stay.

401 56th Street, Ocean City

Living room / Photograph by Matt Arch/Aerial Media Productions

The modern manse in Ocean City was custom-built a few years ago, following a trend in which smaller cottages get torn down and replaced by bigger ones like this. Its ground level contains the garage so that a flood won’t damage the rest of the home.

Bedroom / Photograph by Matt Arch/Aerial Media Productions

The upper three floors have bedrooms on the bottom and top, with the open main living area in between.

Kitchen / Photograph by Matt Arch/Aerial Media Productions

There, you’ll find a living room with a fireplace and a deck as well as a kitchen and a dining room. The primary suite caps things off with two balconies and great ocean views. Perhaps even better? The home is just two blocks from the beach.

4753 Garges Road, Schwenksville

Main floor / Photograph by Tohickon Media

Stony Knoll Farm in Schwenksville has a 1710 stone house at its nucleus. The updated home has an open main floor, beamed ceilings, a primary suite with a loft, and a hearth fireplace in one bedroom.

Bedroom with fireplace / Photograph by Tohickon Media

The adjacent bank barn was converted into a dwelling with a two-story living/dining room, a main-floor primary suite and a guest apartment. Next to the main house, a cottage offers more space to put up guests, while a pool and pool house tie the buildings together.

Photograph by Tohickon Media

And the 10-acre lot features a new barn with horse stalls and training facilities, a chicken house, sheep sheds and much more to explore.

Published as “A Shore House vs. A Montco Farm” in the August 2024 issue of Philadelphia magazine.