The Gulf Coast second-home playbook for 2026

Alabama has roughly 60 miles of Gulf coastline, and somehow most of America still thinks Florida owns the entire panhandle. We're not going to correct them. Quieter beaches, sugar-white sand, fewer t-shirt shops shouting at you, and prices that — even after the post-pandemic re-rate — are still meaningfully more rational than 30A. Long may that misconception last.

The pandemic surge cooled. The lifestyle did not. The question for 2026 isn't whether to buy a place in Gulf Shores or Orange Beach. The question is how to underwrite the deal before you write the offer, because the difference between a great coastal investment and an expensive lesson is almost entirely about the boring stuff.