Harbor House Condos for Sale

Living in Harbor House

Harbor House sits at 200 Bay Avenue on the north-end bayfront of Ocean City, built in 1975, and the first thing to know about it is the calendar. This is a seasonal community. The water is turned on in April and shut off around the first of November, and the building is winterized for the winter months. Every unit is fully heated and cooled — the seasonal operation is what the members prefer rather than what the building requires — but if you were picturing Thanksgiving at the shore, this is not that building. Understand that going in and everything else here is upside.

And there is real upside, starting at the dock. Harbor House has its own marina, and certain units convey with a deeded 40-foot boat slip — a specific numbered slip that comes with the purchase, water and electric at the dock, and direct bay access with no bridge between you and open water. That is a materially different arrangement from a building where owners rent slips by the season, and it is worth understanding which you are looking at, because a unit with a slip and a unit without are two different assets at this address. If you do not own a boat, owners rent their slips out. And people fish off the docks in the evening, which tells you what kind of place this is.

The homes are consistent: one bedroom, one bath, right around 600 square feet, most with a washer and dryer in the unit and a private waterfront balcony. Top-floor units carry the sunset views the building is known for, and those trade at a premium over the lower floors — the whole west-facing side of this building looks straight down the bay. Compact, honestly so, and priced at a level that makes Harbor House one of the genuine entry points to bayfront ownership on this island.

The common areas do more than the unit sizes suggest. A heated pool, expansive sundecks with BBQ grills and fire pits, a large entertainment deck facing the water, a clubhouse, an owners-only lounge, ice machines, an elevator, bike racks, designated parking, and exterior storage for each unit. There is a one-time buy-in due at closing. And the location works both directions — you are on the bay with the sunsets, and roughly four blocks from the beach, the boardwalk and the amusements when the family wants the other side of the island.

If you are shopping the bay side, compare against Bay Club, which also runs its own marina, and 500 Bay and Sunset Harbour further down the avenue — all year-round buildings, which is the trade against the entry price here. For houses with their own docks, start at Ocean City bayfront homes, and every building on the island sits on the Ocean City condos page.