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My husband and I have vacationed at Pawleys and Litchfield by the Sea and love the area. Any input on the following would be appreciated. What are good quiet communities in the $350-$450 range? Single family or condo would be okay. Are there very many volunteer opportunities? Does anybody really live at Litchfield by the Sea full time?
Thanks for your thoughts.
There was a recent thread about volunteerism here, you can check that for other ideas, but the SCHUTE orgaznization is focused on Sea Turtle protection, and the usual hospital, school and church opportunities are all available.
There are really folks who live fulltime in LBTS, although I suspect it's a pretty low percentage. A nice place to be in the winter, but it would redefine high-density living come summertime. Still, our friends who live there luv it and have no plans to move.
In today's market, your price range gives you lots of choices. If you're not intimately familiar with the area, a good realtor will save you lots of headaches and wasted time. With the exception of the uber-pricey areas, many developments were built covering a wide range of home/lot sizes and prices. It is not at all unusual to see $800K+ and $250K+ homes in the same community, particularly right now. Some popular examples are Willbrook, Traditions, Pawleys Retreat, Ricefields, Heritage, Hagley, Allston Plantation, maybe Pawleys Plantation, to name a few.
Most of these are west of Hwy 17. East of 17 becomes a mix of fulltime owners, vacation properties, trailers, high$$ estates, etc. It's a trickier market plus it has higher insurance rates.
Thanks for answering, PawleysDude. I was waiting to hear from you! Yes, we've only stayed at LBTS during the offseason, and it's so, so peaceful and beautiful. We will look more seriously at the other side of 17 since that's probably more realistic for living there fulltime. I just wonder, how easy is it to access the beach? I guess we'll continue to vacation at LBTS and look across the highway at the various neighborhoods and see how they feel.
We buy an annual pass to Huntington St Park and make any serious beach excursions up there. I prefer my beaches to be highrise-free. If you haven't done it already, the next time you're in town, check out the beach at the north parking lot in the park. For a sunrise/sunset stroll, we also like the beach at the South end of the island, although that's a busy place during the day in the summer. A few of the developments were built by the Litchfield Company, and residents in some of those also have beach access thru LBTS. I'm not sure of all the ones on that list.
We are also looking at retiring in the Pawleys Island area and have been looking online at the various locations. We also have contacted a realtor and are in communication with her. Are the areas west of 17 less crowded year round? How about medical care, gyms and bike trails? Can anyone give me an idea on insurance and real estate taxes?
My husband and I have vacationed at Pawleys and Litchfield by the Sea and love the area. Any input on the following would be appreciated. What are good quiet communities in the $350-$450 range? Single family or condo would be okay. Are there very many volunteer opportunities? Does anybody really live at Litchfield by the Sea full time?
Thanks for your thoughts.
As PD mentioned you will have a lot of choices in your price range. A lot of the homes west of 17 are on golf courses: River Club, Tradition, Willbrook, Litchfield Country Club, The Reserve, Heritage Club and Founders Club - and they all have homes for sale in that price range. Pawleys Plantation is the only one east of 17 and they too have homes in that range. As for beach access, Tradition, River Club, The Reserve, Willbrook/Alliston Point all have private beach access through LBTS.
In addition to all the golf course homes and the places at LBTS, there are some new raised beach houses to-be-built just east of 17 in Pawleys called "The Enclave".
We are also looking at retiring in the Pawleys Island area and have been looking online at the various locations. We also have contacted a realtor and are in communication with her. Are the areas west of 17 less crowded year round? How about medical care, gyms and bike trails? Can anyone give me an idea on insurance and real estate taxes?
When you ask about medical care are you referring to cost, quality, or availability? Waccamaw hospital is just north in Murrells Inlet. We have been very pleased with the quality of care we have received there.
Insurance and taxes will vary depending on where you decide to hang your hat. Coming from up north, we find the taxes extremely reasonable. If you are looking at particular areas, ask your real estate agent what you might expect to pay for a house in your price range.
We are also looking at retiring in the Pawleys Island area and have been looking online at the various locations. We also have contacted a realtor and are in communication with her. Are the areas west of 17 less crowded year round? How about medical care, gyms and bike trails? Can anyone give me an idea on insurance and real estate taxes?
The communities mentioned above that are west of 17 are typical residential communities, without any significant amount of vacation rentals, so there's no seasonal changes to speak of. There are a couple condo complexes west of 17 (True Blue, etc) that have a large percentage of vacation rentals, but otherwise, it's just us home folks.
As Neecie mentioned, Waccamaw Hospital is located in Murrells Inlet, with a large grouping of medical facilities having grown up around it. It's becoming a significant medical complex. Waccamaw Hosp is a part of the Georgetown Hospital System, a few miles South of PI, and they also have good facilities there. Regarding gyms, HealthPoint is the largest and most popular in PI. It is also part of the G'town Hosp System.
Bike trails are primarily limited to Bike the Neck, with the most popular section in the vicinity of Huntington Beach State Park. Bike the Neck is/was an ambitious citizen-driven initiative to provide a continuous bike path from Murrells Inlet to Georgetown. The original target date for completing it was 2002. So far, maybe 5% of it is done, with nothing South of PI planned for the immediate future. There are an awfully lot of road bikers in the area. Given the average age, reaction times, and eyesight of PI drivers, IMO that's closely akin to a death wish.
Thanks PD, we should arrive in PI on Tuesday 11/27/12 and may stay at Litchfield Resort for a week or so to check out the various neighborhoods and shopping. I have viewed the gym facilities of HealthPt and they look good. Any areas to stay away from?
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If you haven't done it already, the next time you're in town, check out the beach at the north parking lot in the park. For a sunrise/sunset stroll, we also like the beach at the South end of the island, although that's a busy place during the day in the summer. A few of the developments were built by the Litchfield Company, and residents in some of those also have beach access thru LBTS. I'm not sure of all the ones on that list.
