Second Homes & Dream Homes
Where we want to go is always about where we’re at.
By Andrew Burmon
35% Want a Home on the Northeast Coast
29% Want a Home in Europe
19% Want a Home on the Southeast Coast
18% Want a Home in Hawaii
Upper Middle ’s “Dream Second Home” survey examined what Oat Milk Elites want from a second residence and how their geographic preferences reflect their life circumstances.
The survey focused on fantasies unconstrained by realities and, secondarily, on constraints.
The findings suggest that there are, in fact, two different but overlapping second home markets – and that the desire for Nantucket vibes is correlated strongly (though not necessarily positively) to professional circumstance The findings also suggest that very few of us really want a “getaway.” What we want is to get to the people and places that allows us to occupy a specific headspace.
Where respondents dream of owning a second home correlates with where they live and what they do — though certain aspirations seem to transcend geography 2 .
Among survey respondents, the most desirable domestic second home location was the Northeast Coast (35%), followed by Europe (29%), the Southeast Coast (19%), and Hawaii (18%).
The fact that the Northeast and Europe top the list suggests that neither climate nor convenience outruns aspiration .
Within those broad preferences, wealth and profession predict destination more precisely than income bracket alone 3 .
The wealthiest respondents ($2.5M+ net worth) concentrate in Northeast Coast (40%) and largely abandon Florida (15%) , while those with less savings ($100-249k net worth) lean more heavily (24%) toward the Sunshine State.
These divergences are most evident around premium mountain destinations — Jackson Hole draws 8% of the $2.5M+ cohort and zero from middle-wealth respondents.
Profession does its own sorting: tech workers lead on abroad interest (72%), creative professionals skew hardest toward Mountain (31%), and business and finance respondents are the most enthusiastic about warmer, southern beaches (33%).
Second home preference doesn't just reflect wealth.
It reflects paths to wealth.
The obstacles to second home ownership are predictable: cost (62%), maintenance (52%), and concerns the home won't get enough use (36%) dominate.
This suggests that second homes are not purchased solely as luxuries but as sites of productive leisure .
ROI is calculated in terms of time spent in the headspace they represent.
Nearly two-thirds of respondents (65%) want a second home abroad, with the overwhelming preference (64%) being Europe — specifically Italy (26% of Europhiles), France (21%) 4 , the United Kingdom (10%), and Spain (10%).
Counter to expectation, less wealthy respondents were considerably more likely 5 than wealthy respondents to want a place in Europe : respondents worth under $50k want Europe at 84%, while those worth over $2.5M want it at only 56% — the lowest of any bracket.
The top non-European destinations were Central America and the Caribbean (21% of abroad-wanting respondents), Mexico (9%), and Asia (9%).
The desire to live abroad was mediated by work engagement — or disengagement 6 .
Respondents who self-reported being checked o
