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(Admittedly I have not read all the posts here.. I just realized it was 4 pages, so this may have been discussed. Sorry if so.)
I currently live about 5 blocks from the VA hospital in a section called Seagate Village. It is made up of all of the Air Force Base officer's houses. It is Myrtle Beach's largest neighborhood made up of 2,3 and 4 bedroom duplexes and houses. Currently there are DOZENS of houses and duplexes available here for rent or buy.
All of these units were built in the 1950s, but in 2004, all of the houses were gutted and remodeled with new cabinets, flooring, walls etc..
The entire are is landscaped for you, every unit has a backyard, all streets & houses are connected with sidewalks and WE HAVE A DOGPARK!!
Although I am 40, the area is mostly made up of folks over 50 and retirees. It is EXTREMELY quiet and I can get to the new Market Common in 15-20 minutes on foot and less than 5 on a bike without ever leaving the neighborhood and getting on busy streets.
The beach and the State Park are right across the street less than a 15 minute bike ride.
The places are priced very reasonably for sale and rent ranges from 650-1200 a month
Here is a pic of the place....
The VA hospital is over by the Technical College, Market Common would be below the ball fields, the dog park is not far from the sales center, and I live under the word gate.
The houses are not the most contemporary and hip, but the proximity to the beach, the Market Common, the dog park, sidewalks, bike paths etc make this a great place to live.
Any questions, let me know...
oh.. PS .. even if you bought one of the stand alone houses, not a duplex, these are officially condos. Meaning you can't do any major changes of the outside structure without approval. Many people have added porches, sunrooms, additions and such so that is not too big a deal, but you can not change house color.
You own 15 feet out from your house and can landscape and fence in that area, but anything beyond that is 'common' area. the trade off is that all landscaping is taken care of by the HOA, and any outside structure, roof, siding etc is their responsibility.
nnJim
Last edited by Global Friend; 03-29-2009 at 05:00 PM..
Reason: no links permitted by new members
nnJim, thanks so much for your reply and all of the information you shared with me. I found it very helpful and really appreciate that you put a picture. Love your enthusiam about the DOG PARK!! I can't wait to see it and check out the Seagate area. Thanks again, so much for writing back to me. Very encouraging!
nnJim, thanks so much for your reply and all of the information you shared with me. I found it very helpful and really appreciate that you put a picture. Love your enthusiam about the DOG PARK!! I can't wait to see it and check out the Seagate area. Thanks again, so much for writing back to me. Very encouraging!
Hi vrexy,
The link was removed because I am a new member, but if you google, 'Myrtle Beach Seagate Village', there is a site of information on it that includes pics and specs and contact info.
I am not affiliated with any sales person in any way just live here.
Yes, I saw that and thanks for the update. I did look at their website yesterday right after your original post. I know you're not supposed to advertise on here, but your post did not come across like that at all in my opinion. I'm surprised they removed the link. Oh, well. Thanks again!
The Myrtle Beach area certainly has its positives and negatives. I am from Michigan, lived in Myrtle Beach, and recently returned to Michigan. Since it seems like you're already planning to move, I'll stick to what can be helpful. What you are describing you want sounds quite like Seagate Village, which others have mentioned. The homes are effectively duplexes, but they're pretty decent little homes that seem well-built and are very reasonably priced to rent. The homes are individually owned, but all rentals go through the main office. I almost moved there myself before a sudden change of plans had me moving out of state. The close by Market Commons offers entertainment, and there are a couple of grocery stores that are a quick drive (or even a walk) away. Don't underestimate the benefit of that. With such a tourist-town leaning, finding a decent grocery that's close can be a challenge (though I preferred driving to Lowe's Foods off 17 Bypass on 544). And one other piece of advice... Avoid 501 at all costs. Don't live on it, near it, or have to drive on it for anything. My wife worked in Conway and took 544 to get there even though it was more out of the way. Just pretend 501 doesn't exist and plan accordingly.
Thanks Torcastle, I appreciate hearing your opinions. Everyone seems to agree that 501 is to be avoided, so avoid it I will! And yes, I do like the idea of being able to walk to stores, etc. and plan to check out the Seagate area. Where did you live when you were there (in the MB area)? Oh, and by the way, I lived in Lansing, MI many years ago. Loved it there!
Thanks Torcastle, I appreciate hearing your opinions. Everyone seems to agree that 501 is to be avoided, so avoid it I will! And yes, I do like the idea of being able to walk to stores, etc. and plan to check out the Seagate area. Where did you live when you were there (in the MB area)? Oh, and by the way, I lived in Lansing, MI many years ago. Loved it there!
I lived in Lansing from 1997-2002, and now live in Ann Arbor. While in Myrtle Beach, my wife and I lived in apartments off Palmetto Pointe Blvd. It's 3 or 4 miles from Market Commons (and the old military base), but required crossing the 17 Bypass (which I did a couple of times on my bicycle - scary!). There are some condos to rent off Palmetto Pointe Blvd, and it's not a bad place to live, but not always the most convenient location. Personally, I loved Surfside Beach but I can see where the number of tourists would get annoying. Fortunately, Surfside Beach has a much better grade of visitor, much cleaner beaches, and a much nicer atmosphere than the city of Myrtle Beach. If you lived in Seagate Village you would be able to walk/bike to Market Commons, a very nice dog park, a couple of grocery stores, and a nice park. The Myrtle Beach State Park is practically across the street (you can get a yearly pass for $35 with a SC driver's license at the library). Seagate Village is also close to Surfside Beach where you might prefer to do other shopping (side note: the added city sales tax in Myrtle Beach puts it up to 9.5% - shop elsewhere). Surfside has some good places to eat too: Eggs Up Grill (breakfast), Surfside Jenny's (breakfast/lunch), Southside Grill (dinner) if you like burgers and comfort food.
One other tip: Use the Robert M. Grissom Parkway to go North-South through the city of Myrtle Beach if you must go there. Hardly anyone knows about it - especially not tourists - and it makes the drive to places in Myrtle Beach FAR more tolerable. It's a nice quiet, low traffic drive.
Torcastle, thanks again for posting with even more information. This is exactly the type of response I love reading because it gives me a feel for what to expect. I'll be there next week for several days and hope to have a chance to explore all of these places you mentioned and check out the neighborhoods, traffic, etc. So far, I am leaning towards the Surfside Beach or Seagate areas based on what you and other people have written. Everyone has their own opinions, of course, but there seems to be a general consensus that these are good areas to live. Thanks so much.
Keep in mind that Seagate is over 50 years old. They are the old military base housing and they show their age. I rented there for a while a few years back when they started selling them outright and they weren't worth half the going price for them. They needed MAJOR work and, yes, the walls WERE gutted but guess why? ASBESTOS. We moved shortly after finding out we lived in a unit that still had asbestos (moved to Palmetto Pointe as mentioned above, actually, until our house was built). Sure, the dog park is nice but you can go there without living in Seagate. Oh and keep in mind that your flood and homeowners insurance will be the highest rate because you will be east of 17 Bypass. Do yourself a favor and look west of Bypass.
In my opinion, there are just so many better options for the money than Seagate.
I agree ...I also looked at Se agate and didn't care for it. I worried about "the commute" when I chose a more southern community but it is like anywhere else you figure out the roads and shortcuts. When we looked at homes I was surprised at how bad of shape some places were....I went in one place that was advertised as new but found out three college kids had lived there for a few months and it looked awful. The guy told me it was new and had new pictures but as soon as I walked in I knew it had been lived in and the neighbor filled me in...
You also want to go into neighborhoods at different times.Palmetto point was lovely during the day but when I went back at night there were kids loitering around in the streets and I didn't get a good vibe at all.
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