Study: Rising Seas Consume Millions In New England Home Values

Flooding caused by rising sea levels threatens property values in Maine and New England, with $69.9 million lost in Maine and $403 million lost across the region, a study released Tuesday found. The report found dramatic drop-offs in home values from Kittery to Winter Harbor, with the most severely affected community being Bath, where researchers found two homes that should be worth nearly $150,000 apiece now valued at just more than $90,000 because of the higher water. The lost home values were recorded between 2005 and 2017 in a study by Columbia University and First Street Foundation, a Brooklyn, New York-based nonprofit that studies sea level rise and its effects.