When showing real estate to clients, I am often asked if I live on the Island and, if so, where; followed by, “Where did you move from?” and “How long have you been selling real estate?” My answers usually surprise them. I moved here on a lark in my 20s from Oklahoma (via the University of Texas at Austin) after visiting only once. Like so many friends and clients, I fell in love with the Island the moment my toes hit the sand. I’ve lived here for nearly 30 years and have been selling real estate for that long. Along the way, my wife and I have built many homes and have owned properties in various communities—North Forest Beach, Folly Field, Palmetto Dunes/Leamington and Sea Pines Resort to name a few. Gated or ungated, primary
It’s What’s On The Inside That Counts Thus, after years of restraint and discipline, property owners (and those seeking to purchase property) are eager to move forward with updating, upgrading and renovating.
We’ve all heard it; it’s an old and familiar adage. There is another maxim that takes the first one up a twist and to another level. It reads something like this: What’s On The Inside Always Makes Its Way Out. Put another way, you can try to cover it up but it will make itself known in the end.
Homes are much the same way. A well-designed, quality-built home will stand the test of time regardless of changing styles, decorating fads or the newest building trends. Construction on Hilton Head, like everything else, moves in cycles.
Life on an island conjures many visions from beachy natural and retro rustic, to multi-storied mansions to single floor bungalows; from high-gloss imported wood floors to unfinished local pine planks; from the traditional nautical color palette to sand-inspired muted tones. Tastes and budgets that go along with the lifestyle vary as widely as the amenities within the communities on the Island, yet it all seems to work. It’s a coastal thing.
Hilton Head Island is unique in many ways but since this is a real estate blog, we’ll keep the focus on real estate. I often receive calls from prospective clients who call in after visiting my website. They are somewhat confused over pricing—they are inquiring as to why one house or villa is so much more
You want to sell your home, but it needs some work before you put it on the market. There are no major structural issues, the roof is good, the siding has held up well; it just needs some tweaking to get it up to standard with —and preferably beyond—comparables currently on the market. What are the best upgrades and replacements for the money? Well, it depends on the house, and, of course, the location. But more than that, it depends on the market to whom you are selling.
Let’s say you have a home near the beach. Maybe it’s oceanfront, second-row, third-row (or even further back) and it was built after 1977 (so it conforms to FEMA flood elevation standards). It’s been a good house, it’s a great size, it was built well, has a garage and
