Houston, We Have a Real Estate Problem

Let’s be honest. The Moon has had better PR. It has Neil Armstrong, Pink Floyd, and a permanent spot in every romantic dinner ever served. But when it comes to where you should actually live — where you should raise a family, build equity, grill a steak on a Saturday afternoon, and walk your dog without a pressurized spacesuit — the Moon has some serious shortcomings. Mount Sinai, New York, a charming hamlet on Long Island’s North Shore, offers everything the Moon does not: breathable air, property rights, Cedar Beach, and a median home price that won’t require a NASA-sized budget.

This is not a joke post. Well, it is a little bit. But buried inside the absurdity is a genuine real estate truth: the fundamentals that make a place worth living — community, schools, appreciation, access to nature, and proximity to economic opportunity — are exactly what Mt. Sinai delivers. The Moon? Not so much.

1. Real Estate Market: Lunar Dust vs. Long Island Gold

Metric	The Moon	Mt. Sinai, NY
Median Home Price	$0 (no market exists)	$640,000–$733,000
Price Per Sq Ft	N/A (no structures)	$318–$334
Avg Home Size	0 sq ft (Apollo LM: 235 cu ft)	2,877 sq ft
Property Tax	$0 (no government)	$10,000–$16,000/yr
Appreciation Rate	0% (no economy)	+11.6–16.3% YoY
Commute to NYC	238,900 miles (3 days)	~90 min LIRR to Penn Station
Breathable Atmosphere	No	Yes (included free)

The Outer Space Treaty of 1967, signed by 114 nations including the United States, explicitly prohibits any nation from claiming sovereignty over celestial bodies. Article II states: ‘Outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, is not subject to national appropriation by claim of sovereignty, by means of use or occupation, or by any other means.’ Translation: you literally cannot own lunar real estate. Those novelty ‘Buy an Acre on the Moon’ certificates? Legally worthless. Mount Sinai, by contrast, offers fee-simple ownership, title insurance, and a housing market that has appreciated 11.6–16.3% year-over-year.

The total cost of the Apollo program — which put 12 humans on the Moon between 1969 and 1972 — was approximately $25.4 billion in 1973 dollars, equivalent to roughly $257 billion today. For that price, you could buy every single home in Mt. Sinai approximately 350 times over. Or, as a more practical exercise: one Apollo mission’s inflation-adjusted cost could fund a portfolio of over 36,000 Mt. Sinai colonials.

2. Living Conditions: A Side-by-Side You Won’t Believe

The Moon’s surface temperature swings from +260°F (127°C) in direct sunlight to -280°F (-173°C) in shadow. A single lunar day lasts 29.5 Earth days — meaning 14.75 consecutive days of scorching sunlight followed by 14.75 days of absolute freezing darkness. There is no atmosphere, no magnetic field protecting you from solar radiation, and no sound. The silence is not peaceful; it is the silence of a vacuum that would kill you in approximately 15 seconds if your suit depressurized.

Mount Sinai’s maritime climate, moderated by Long Island Sound, delivers four distinct seasons. Average summer highs of 82°F, winter lows around 25°F, and 25–30 inches of annual snowfall. You can hear birds. You can breathe. You can walk to Cedar Beach in flip-flops. The Moon offers none of these amenities.

Lunar regolith — the fine, powdery soil covering the Moon’s surface — is composed of sharp, electrostatically charged glass fragments that cling to everything and are toxic when inhaled. Apollo astronauts reported that it smelled like spent gunpowder and caused respiratory irritation even with brief exposure. Mt. Sinai’s soil, by contrast, supports oak and maple trees, vegetable gardens, and the occasional dandelion.

3. History, Culture & Things to Do

The Moon’s cultural résumé is admittedly impressive. It has been worshipped by every civilization in human history. The ancient Greeks personified it as Selene; the Romans as Luna. It inspired Beethoven’s ‘Moonlight Sonata’ (1801), Georges Méliès’ ‘A Trip to the Moon’ (1902) — the first science fiction film — and Pink Floyd’s ‘The Dark Side of the Moon’ (1973), which spent 937 weeks on the Billboard 200 chart. Buzz Aldrin described the lunar landscape as ‘magnificent desolation.’

But you can’t visit a museum on the Moon. You can’t grab coffee at a Port Jefferson café. You can’t browse the shops on Main Street in Stony Brook Village or take your kids to the Long Island Aquarium. Mount Sinai’s cultural life includes Heritage Park (walking trails, historical exhibits, playgrounds), Cedar Beach concerts, the annual Mt. Sinai Civic Association events, proximity to the Ward Melville Heritage Organization in Stony Brook, and the cultural programming of Stony Brook University — a top-tier research institution minutes away.

Mount Sinai’s own history stretches to the 1660s, when the Seatocot people lived along its harbor under the name ‘Nonowatuck.’ Colonial shipbuilding, 19th-century resort tourism, and 20th-century suburban development created the community you see today. The 455-acre harbor is a New York State Significant Coastal Fish and Wildlife Habitat. The Moon has no fish. It has no wildlife. It has six American flags, slowly bleaching white from UV radiation.

▶ Video: NASA: Return to the Moon — Artemis Program — Watch on YouTube

▶ Video: Mount Sinai NY & Cedar Beach Tour — Watch on YouTube

4. Schools & Education

The Moon has zero schools, zero teachers, and zero students. The closest educational institution is approximately 238,900 miles away.

Mount Sinai School District serves 2,300+ students across an elementary, middle, and high school campus, with a reputation for individualized learning and strong community involvement. Stony Brook University — ranked #1 among public universities in the SUNY system — is a 10-minute drive away, offering dual-enrollment programs, cultural events, and world-class research facilities. Suffolk County Community College’s Ammerman Campus is also nearby.

5. Infrastructure & Daily Life

On the Moon, every resource must be launched from Earth at a cost of roughly $1.2 million per kilogram to the lunar surface. A gallon of water (3.78 kg) would cost approximately $4.5 million to deliver. A single egg? About $70,000. Groceries on the Moon make Whole Foods look like a dollar store.

In Mt. Sinai, Stop & Shop is on Route 25A. King Kullen is in Port Jefferson Station. Heritage Diner serves breakfast 24/7. The LIRR Port Jefferson branch connects you to Penn Station. Route 347 links you to the Long Island Expressway. Amazon delivers in two days. The infrastructure of suburban Long Island — roads, utilities, fiber internet, hospitals, fire departments, schools — is so deeply embedded that we forget how extraordinary it is until we compare it to, say, a barren celestial body with no infrastructure whatsoever.

6. Active Mt. Sinai Listings — Your Launchpad to Homeownership

While the Moon remains permanently off-market, these Mt. Sinai homes are available now. Search Heritage Diner’s IDX for the latest:

2025 Modern Colonial on 0.8 Acres — Mt. Sinai

Price: $899,000

Details: 5 Beds | 3 Baths | 3,500+ Sq Ft

Newly constructed modern colonial with soaring cathedral foyer, chef’s kitchen, first-floor primary option, and private wooded lot. Minutes from harbor and beaches. The Apollo Lunar Module offered 235 cubic feet of living space for two astronauts. This home offers roughly 60,000 cubic feet — 255 times more room, with gravity.

View This Listing on Heritage Diner IDX: https://search.heritagediner.com/idx/search/address

Stately Colonial in The Hamlet Gated Community — Mt. Sinai

Price: $1,175,000

Details: 5 Beds | 3.5 Baths | 5,200+ Sq Ft

Overlooking the 8th hole of Willow Creek Golf Course and a serene pond. Cherry wood floors, grand two-story foyer, and resort-like grounds. Buzz Aldrin called the Moon ‘magnificent desolation.’ This home is magnificent abundance.

View This Listing on Heritage Diner IDX: https://search.heritagediner.com/idx/search/address

Updated Colonial on Cul-de-Sac — Mt. Sinai

Price: $699,000

Details: 4 Beds | 2.5 Baths | 2,500 Sq Ft

Designer showpiece with refinished white oak floors, cathedral ceilings in den and living room, Belgian block driveway. Low taxes. The entire Apollo 11 landing site fits inside this home’s lot.

View This Listing on Heritage Diner IDX: https://search.heritagediner.com/idx/search/address

Sprawling Ranch with Tenant Income — Mt. Sinai

Price: $599,000

Details: 3 Beds | 2 Baths | 1,800 Sq Ft

Corner lot, 2-car garage, tenant-occupied (paying $3,500/mo through 2029). New roof with $31K in recent improvements. Better ROI than a $257 billion moon mission.

View This Listing on Heritage Diner IDX: https://search.heritagediner.com/idx/search/address

7. Investment Analysis: Moon Rocks vs. Home Equity

Lunar samples returned by the Apollo program are valued at approximately $50,800 per gram by the federal government for insurance purposes — making Moon rocks among the most expensive materials on Earth by weight. However, they cannot be legally sold by private citizens (they are national property), they generate no income, and they appreciate at 0% per year.

A Mt. Sinai home purchased for $700,000 appreciating at 12% annually generates approximately $84,000 in equity per year. Over 10 years, that is $840,000+ in wealth creation — enough to fund a very comfortable retirement, your children’s education, or approximately 0.00000033% of a Moon mission.

Conclusion: Choose Gravity. Choose Mt. Sinai.

The Moon is a magnificent, awe-inspiring, scientifically invaluable celestial body that deserves our continued exploration. It is also a radiation-blasted, airless, waterless, lifeless rock where you cannot own property, grow tomatoes, or let your kids play outside. Mount Sinai is a thriving Long Island community with a 455-acre harbor, beaches, excellent schools, rising home values, and a Heritage Diner that serves pancakes at 2 AM. The choice, respectfully, is clear.

Contact Paola Meyer at Realty Connect USA to begin your search for a home where the atmosphere is included at no extra charge.

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