Beach nourishment is a policy used to rebuild eroding beaches with sand dredged from
other locations. Previous studies indicate that beach width positively affects coastal
property values, but these studies ignore the dynamic features of beaches and the
feedback that nourishment has on shoreline retreat. We correct for the resulting attenuation
and endogeneity bias in a hedonic property value model by instrumenting for beach
width using spatially varying coastal geological features. We find that the beach width
coefficient is nearly five times larger than the OLS estimate, suggesting that beach width is
a much larger portion of property value than previously thought. We use the empirical
results to parameterize a dynamic optimization model of beach nourishment decisions
and show that the predicted interval between nourishment projects is closer to what we
observe in the data when we use the estimate from the instrumental variables model
rather than OLS. As coastal communities adapt to climate change, we find that the longterm
net value of coastal residential property can fall by as much as 52% when erosion rate
triples and cost of nourishment sand quadruplesIn addition, proximity to an apartment complex is capitalized as a negative quantity, as do locations on a busy street. The real sales price of residential properties that closed during May or July tend to be higher. In addition, houses designated as a national historical monument tend to carry with them a modest price premium, as do properties that are simply located within the Savannah Historic Landmark District.