Analysis: Georgia zip code among top 20 most expensive in U.S. now

Move over, Buckhead. A barrier island along Georgia’s Atlantic coast is now more exclusive—and prohibitively expensive—than any other place in Peach State history. 

That’s according to officials with PropertyShark, an online real estate database and property search tool, which determined Sea Island’s 31561 zip code to be the No. 17 most expensive in the U.S. right now, after median home prices ticked up 2 percent over last year. 

The coastal 31561 zip code in Glynn County, in fact, has set a new median Georgia price record of $4.3 million per property sale. That’s based on sales of private properties that closed (not listing prices) between January and Sept. 30 this year, per PropertyShark.   

Sea Island—a private barrier island on the Golden Isles—includes five miles of beaches, three championship golf courses, and prestigious hotels. Notable recent sales have included late Atlanta architect and developer John Portman’s beach house, Entelechy II, which fetched $30 million in late 2025.  

Georgia was one of just 15 states to notch zip codes in the top 100 priciest list. Beyond Sea Island, no other Georgia zip code made the cut, however, per PropertyShark.

Along with Miami Beach in Miami-Dade County (No. 3), Sea Island’s zip code was the only one in the South to rank among the top 20 priciest right now. 

The next closest was in South Carolina (Sullivans Island in Charleston County), which ranked at No. 30 with a median sales price of $3.6 million. 

Sea Island’s was one of 25 zip codes to surpass $4 million in median sales this year. 

The analysis took into account sales of single-family homes, condos, co-ops, and two-family homes, with California dominating the list with more than half of the 100 priciest U.S. zip codes. 

The New York City region tallied 25 percent of the zip codes in question (a record-high share), boosted by gains in New Jersey, Connecticut, and the Hamptons, per PropertyShark. 

Meanwhile, outside San Francisco, uber-affluent tech billionaire hub Atherton, Calif. surged back to the No. 1 spot by notching the first eight-figure median sales price ($10.73 million) ever, analysts found. 

So yes, affordable housing news this is not. 

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• Photos: John Portman's iconic modern beach house fetches record price (Urbanize Atlanta)