ASBURY PARK, N.J. – Netflix hasn’t opened the doors to its massive new production campus at Fort Monmouth yet, but the entertainment company’s arrival is already adding a new dynamic to the real estate market in Asbury Park and surrounding Monmouth County communities.
The changing market is now attracting international attention. The Financial Times reported Friday that New Jersey’s expanding film industry, led by Netflix’s roughly $1 billion investment, is becoming another factor in an already rapidly changing housing market near the Jersey Shore.
- Netflix is transforming more than 292 acres of Fort Monmouth into a major film and television production campus.
- Asbury Park and Rumson are among the communities reportedly drawing interest from investors and people connected to the entertainment industry.
- The first section of Netflix Studios Fort Monmouth is expected to be completed in summer 2027.
Asbury Park is particularly well positioned to feel the effects. The city is only several miles from the future studio and combines beaches, restaurants, nightlife and a walkable downtown with rail service toward New York City.
Netflix Is Building a Major Production Hub at Fort Monmouth
Netflix’s project is taking shape on the former U.S. Army installation in Eatontown and Oceanport.
Plans call for 12 soundstages totaling nearly 500,000 square feet, along with production buildings, offices and other facilities needed to make television shows and movies.
Construction reached a visible milestone in June when crews installed the final structural beam on Stages 3 and 4.
Netflix expects Phase 1A to be completed in summer 2027, followed by Phase 1B in fall 2028. The company has said construction of the campus is expected to support nearly 4,000 jobs.
Those workers are only part of the equation.
A major production center can bring actors, directors, producers, set designers, technicians, vendors and other workers into the region for projects that may last weeks or months. Some will need temporary rentals, while others working regularly at the campus could look for permanent homes nearby.
That is where communities such as Asbury Park enter the picture.
Asbury Park Offers More Than Just Proximity to the Studio
For someone moving from New York or Los Angeles to work in the entertainment industry, Asbury Park offers a lifestyle that looks very different from a traditional suburban commute.
The city has a beach and boardwalk, a growing restaurant scene, music venues, nightlife and a compact downtown where residents can walk between many of those attractions.
There is also direct NJ Transit rail service from Asbury Park toward North Jersey and New York, an important feature for entertainment professionals who may continue splitting their time between the Shore and Manhattan.
The Financial Times reported that real estate professionals are already seeing interest from investors and people connected with the entertainment business, with Asbury Park and Rumson among the communities attracting attention.
Netflix alone cannot account for Asbury Park’s real estate changes. The city has been undergoing redevelopment for years, with new apartments, hotels, restaurants and expensive residential projects arriving well before the Fort Monmouth deal.
The studio, however, introduces another potentially significant source of housing demand.
Monmouth County Was Already Building Thousands of New Homes
Netflix is arriving during a period of substantial residential construction across Monmouth County.
Figures cited by the Financial Times show nearly 14,827 new homes were authorized in the county between 2020 and 2025, a 52% increase compared with the previous six-year period.
That growth reflects changes already underway throughout the county, particularly in communities with convenient access to New York, the Shore and major employment centers.
The Netflix campus could accelerate some of those trends.
More workers living nearby could mean additional customers for Asbury Park restaurants, bars, shops and service businesses. Investors may also see an opportunity in providing furnished rentals or other housing to people arriving in New Jersey for individual productions.
There is another side to that demand.
Asbury Park has already experienced substantial increases in property values and housing costs during its redevelopment. Another wave of buyers, renters and investors competing for a limited supply of housing could put additional pressure on affordability.
How much of that ultimately happens because of Netflix will take years to determine.
New Jersey Is Betting on a Bigger Film Industry
The Fort Monmouth campus is part of a much larger effort to turn New Jersey into a major East Coast center for film and television production.
Netflix says it has already filmed more than 20 titles in the state. New Jersey, meanwhile, has been working to attract studios and develop the network of skilled workers, production companies and vendors needed to keep filming in the state.
That makes the Fort Monmouth project more than a collection of soundstages.
If New Jersey succeeds in building a permanent production industry around projects such as Netflix’s campus, the economic impact could spread through communities that never host a soundstage themselves.
Asbury Park could be one of the clearest examples.
The Netflix studio isn’t in the city. But many of the people eventually working there could choose to live, rent, eat, shop and spend their evenings there.
Netflix Studios Fort Monmouth is not located in Asbury Park.
The production campus is being developed on more than 292 acres of the former Fort Monmouth property in Eatontown and Oceanport, several miles from the city.
Asbury Park could benefit from housing demand generated by the studio.
Entertainment workers and investors looking for property near Fort Monmouth may be attracted by the city’s restaurants, nightlife, beach, downtown and rail service.
The studio’s effect on housing prices is still developing.
Asbury Park and Monmouth County were experiencing substantial development before Netflix arrived, making it difficult to separate the studio’s future impact from broader real estate trends.
Sources: Financial Times; Netflix Studios Fort Monmouth; New Jersey Motion Picture and Television Commission.
