If you’re getting bored with this scary climate change talk, don’t worry - it has ended in my previous post. This post is more on a positive side, and is all about how we are not going to let climate change affect us.

One thing is true though - whether the sea levels will rise or not, people’s psychology will affect the prices on coastal houses waaaay before they will be washed out to sea. It’s what we believe that matters, and if enough people believe that the sea levels will rise, then areas specifically mentioned in the report will see a reflection of that in the prices on waterfront property.

Let me give you some reasons to be skeptical about the huge rise in sea level by 2100. The climate change report is full of predictions based on assumptions. When I mentioned that people have been building relatively close to the shoreline because the sea level around Australia was pretty stable over the years, I didn’t back that - well, here are the numbers.

Between years 1842 and 2002 the sea level around Australia rose by about 17 centimeters. If you do the math, 17cm divided by 160 years gives us about 1 millimeter per year. Which means that if the sea level continues to rise at the same pace, 100 years later we will have a rise of 10cm - no big deal.

The report also assumes that greenhouse gas emission will continue at the present rate - well, maybe they will and maybe they won’t. The awareness has clearly been created and is being backed up by legislation and regulations of all sorts, to have the emissions reduces, etc.

It is also not a given that we, humans, have caused the global warming and there are quite a few scientists who claim that we’re now going through a natural process of global warming which has been closely followed by Ice Age in the past - in which case we need to worry about icy roads, not flooded houses.

All in all, I would say - if you love the ocean view, there’s still no reason to give up on it, especially if this climate change report affects the coastal property prices and creates some opportunities for you. One thing to bear in mind is that you would be facing difficulties insuring property that can be inundated - probably would be a wise thing to call an insurance company or two and ask about their policy regarding coastal homes.

photo source

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