From beach bungalows to modern hamlet life on the Long Island Sound
Empty 20-by-100-foot lots for $89.50. While the New York Daily Mirror’s tabloid-subscription-for-property marketing campaign wasn’t enough to keep it in print past the 1960s, it did plenty to jumpstart the beach bungalow community of Sound Beach, as well as the neighboring hamlet of Rocky Point. “Our businesses are very connected to our community, but there’s not really a big divide between the two hamlets. Sound Beach is a little bit smaller and quieter, and Rocky Point has more of a downtown,” says Gary Pollakusky, president of the Rocky Point Sound Beach Chamber of Commerce. Although 1929’s pricing is out of the question today, Sound Beach remains a comparatively affordable housing market among Long Island’s North Shore hamlets, stretching between the established school districts and commercial centers in Rocky Point and Miller Place and the outdoor recreation spaces between pine barrens and the Long Island Sound.
This modern farmhouse in Sound Beach is looking sharp.
Sound Beach is full of little beach bungalow homes.
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Scott’s Beach, public sound access and Sound Beach land recreation
Bluffs tower over narrow, pebble-and-sand beaches along Sound Beach’s shoreline, broken up by stretches of boulders and the kayakers, fishers and swimmers getting out on the Long Island Sound. “There are numerous associations that maintain our beaches. Homeowners pay a nominal fee and get access to what are basically private beach clubs. There are still places where the public can get to the beaches, so it’s a hybrid situation,” Pollakusky says. Bookending Sound Beach are the two extremes of the spectrum, with Scott’s Beach accessible only to keyholders living in the gated Scott’s Beach Club community and Hagerman Landing Beach remaining open to those who live in Brookhaven, albeit with limited available parking. Many locals pay an annual membership fee of $325 to the Sound Beach Property Owners Association to receive beach tags and access to the East and West Beach access staircases along Shore Drive, though reserving space on the association’s kayak racks comes with an additional fee.
On land, cyclists hop between hamlets from Mount Sinai to Wading River on the 10-mile North Shore Rail Trail or explore the forested paths of the nearby Rocky Point State Pine Barrens Preserve. A handful of pocket parks introduce classic community park amenities like Sound Beach Park’s basketball court and the tree-shaded playground and sculpture at Robert Miner Park that ensures it is still commonly called its former name, Rocket Ship Park.
Sound Beach has some beautiful homes overlooking Long Island Sound.
Scotts Beach has stair access to walk along the water in Sound Beach.
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Original cottages and prewar beach bungalows
Shady, quiet side streets branch from wider connective streets throughout Sound Beach, tending toward long, straight blocks to the west and more winding, increasingly forested roads to the east. Original cottages and beach bungalows from the 1920s through 1940s stand down the street from newer, larger homes that replaced older housing stock over the years, including the ranch-style homes of the 1960s and the diverse New Traditional designs that popped up from the 1990s through 2020s. Prices range from $200,000 to $700,000. Behind the controlled-access gates of Scott’s Beach Club, single-family homes from the same eras sit along quiet, waterfront cul-de-sacs and sell for $420,000 to $890,000 plus yearly HOA fees of $1,300. Regardless of HOA membership, uniquely large, new, highly renovated or waterfront homes can sell for up to $1.2 million. Sound Beach has a CAP Index crime score of 2 out of 10, lower than the national average of 4.
This Sound Beach home sits atop a bluff overlooking Long Island Sound.
These Sound Beach homes were built in the 40's.
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Sound Beach Property Owners host an annual Field Day
Members of the Sound Beach Property Owners follow colorful, volunteer-designed signs or consult the group’s Facebook page to keep up to date on community events. The annual Field Day draws families to West Beach toward the tail end of each summer, filling the shoreline with kids competing in events like potato sack races and adult-manned raffle and free food tents. Other events, like occasional wine tastings and the Sound Beach Civic Association’s annual Veterans Day memorial service, are also points of community pride and connection.
Shopping and dining on Route 25A
Down on state Route 25A, a number of strip malls and standalone storefronts form Sound Beach’s commercial district. Anchors like Michaels and Kohl’s stand down the street from ALDI and Stop & Shop. Between national chains, locally owned restaurants like Spiro’s draw loyal regulars, though getting an indoor or patio table at the popular steakhouse may require a reservation at peak hours. Away from busy strip malls, more disparate businesses like the newer Firehouse Restaurant & Bar serve patrons between other community hubs like St. Louis de Montfort Roman Catholic Church and the Sound Beach Fire Department substation. Further shopping and dining destinations can be found in the small downtowns of the neighboring Miller Place and Rocky Point hamlets.
Grab breakfast, lunch or dinner at Sound Beach Cafe.
Head to Stop & Shop in Rocky Point commons, close to Sound Beach.
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Split between Miller Place and Rocky Point schools
Homeowners consult zoning maps to learn their children’s K-12 school district. “Sound Beach is split pretty much right down the middle by the Rocky Point Union Free and Miller Place Union Free school districts, you might be going to a different school than your neighbor down the block,” says Joy Bryant, an associate broker at Coldwell Banker American Homes who has specialized in Suffolk County for 35 years. On the eastern half of Sound Beach, kids attend Frank J. Carasiti Elementary School which serves kindergarten through second grade and earns a B from Niche, followed by Joseph A. Edgar Intermediate School which serves third through fifth grades and also earns a B. Rocky Point Middle School earns an A-minus and Rocky Point High School earns a B-plus. Students on Sound Beach’s west side attend the Miller Place Union Free School District which earns a B overall.
Young minds blossom at Joseph A Edgar School.
This is the main entrance to Rocky Point High School.
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Traveling to the Long Island Rail Road at Port Jefferson
Route 25A provides a straight shot to Port Jefferson and its namesake Long Island Rail Road station which is about 5 miles away. Train riders have a nearly two-hour trip into Penn Station from Port Jefferson, but can drive to Ronkonkoma Station 16 miles away to reduce the ride to an hour and 20 minutes. Suffolk County Transit buses provide limited local service from stops on Route 25A, but most locals rely on cars to get around, even if they’re not regularly using the Long Island Expressway to drive 68 miles into Manhattan.
Written By
Hannah Rainey
Photography Contributed By
Jeff Rainone
Video By
Patrick Johnson
Interested in learning more about homes in this area?
Reach out to
Rose Marie Princi,
an experienced agent in this area.
On average, homes in Sound Beach, NY sell after 42 days on the market compared to the national average of 52 days. The median sale price for homes in Sound Beach, NY over the last 12 months is $515,000, up 11% from the median home sale price over the previous 12 months.
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