Sydneysider Garry Silk has just one word to describe how he feels after his million-dollar Collaroy beachfront property was damaged by king tides: "Shattered".
The 62-year-old spent the weekend watching the surf slowly eat away at his backyard, inching closer and closer to his home.
After leaving on Sunday night, Mr Silk returned on Monday morning to find 15 metres of his yard claimed by the waves and the in-ground swimming pool lying on the beach.
"It started getting hairy at 4.30pm yesterday when we lost our rear fence and then it actually undermined the house," Mr Silk told AAP.
"We've lost our garden."
Mr Silk, a resident of Pittwater Road, said he and his neighbours were the only beachfront residents in the area without a sea wall.
The Warringah Council would not allow anyone to build sea protection on council land, he said.
"We moved in three years ago. We talked to council, but it's a bit late now," he said.
"This is the only strip without sea protection."
Seven beachside homes and a unit block were evacuated about 8pm on Sunday night as eight-metre waves slammed the coast leading to major erosion.
Mr Silk's sister-in-law Susie Cummins, of Clontarf, said the experience was a surreal one.
"There was water up to the road," Ms Cummins said. "There was even a crab walking along."
Storms lashed the east coast of NSW at the weekend, with Sydney's northern beaches one of the areas worst affected.
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Waves up to eight metres high crashed against local shores, damaging million dollar homes and causing heavy damage to the Collaroy Beach Club.
Collaroy Surf Club has been severely damaged by the pounding surf and the nearby Collaroy Beach Club has its second storey balcony collapsing onto the beach.
State Emergency Service engineers will assess the properties on Monday.
More damage could be on the way after the Bureau of Meteorology warned of the possibility of another king tide at 9pm.
Collaroy beachfront resident Thomas Falvo, 41, had his own sea wall installed on his property at great expense but his house suffered minimal damage.
"That's part of living on the beach," Mr Falvo said. "Obviously government has not really helped on its part."
Northern beaches residents spent Monday morning walking along the debris-littered beach taking photos and surveying the damage.
Collaroy resident Mark Quinlan, 59, said the storm's intensity on Sunday night was frightening.
"It's not the same but it gives you an indication of what it must be like when a cyclone hits, because the winds were just cyclonic," he said.
NSW Premier Mike Baird toured the area on Monday.
Another "abnormally high tide"is predicted for about 10.30pm on Tuesday night.
Sandbags are being sent to the area in an attempt to save beachside homes teetering on the brink of collapse.
