Your Second Home: The Carolinas
05/03/2004
Bill and Angie Marshall live in paradise—in the coastal city of Fort Walton Beach, Fla., home to some of America’s most beautiful beaches. But they place their second home in the mountains of North Carolina on a pedestal—literally.; function voidFunc() { } voidFunc();)
The Marshalls’ 3,000-square-foot home at Mountain Air Country Club in North
Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains sits on three concrete piers and floats above
the forest; a footbridge connects the house to the ground. The Marshalls love
the house because it maximizes their views, and the easy access from their
Florida home—just a two-hour flight on Bill’s private plane to the paved runway
at Mountain Air—clinched their decision to build their dream home there. (Click image to enlarge); function voidFunc() { } voidFunc();)
Floridians who purchase second homes in western North Carolina are part of
an established trend. There are so many Florida transplants that local real
estate agents have coined a name for them: “coconuts.” (Click image to enlarge)Mountain Air Country Club has condominiums and single-family homes ranging in
price from $350,000 to $3 million. For 90 percent of the residents, Mountain Air
is their second home. The community boasts tennis courts, a swimming pool, a
clubhouse and golf, as well as scenic vistas and temperatures that rarely
venture into the 80s. It is just a 30-minute drive from Asheville, an artsy,
eclectic city with great restaurants, cultural events, a vibrant college scene
and an array of outdoor activities. The area also has a world-class spa and the
magnificent Biltmore Estate, with its winery, hotel, artistic treasures and
gardens.
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At 5,000 feet above sea level, Mountain Air in Burnsville, North Carolina, offers cool temperatures, golf on Slickrock Mountain, a private airplane runway and second homes priced from $350,000 to $3 million. (Click image to enlarge)“We have it all,” says Ann Skoglund, a sales associate with
Beverly-Hanks & Associates. “Everyone seems to be happy here.” Skoglund says
that many of her second home buyers want privacy and mountain or golf course
views; others enjoy living downtown and having easy access to its offerings and
nightlife. “Lots of glass” is a frequent request to better enjoy the views as
well as decks and patios, notes Skoglund.
In addition to Mountain Air,
affluent buyers are attracted to Biltmore Forest, which adjoins the Biltmore
Estate (homes priced from $500,000 to $7.5 million); Sunset Mountain, which
offers incredible views close to the city ($300,000 to $2 million); and Grove
Park, which is quaint and has historical interest ($300,000 to $1.8 million).
Flat Rock in the Hendersonville area has estate properties on considerable
acreage that date from the 1800s ($500,000 to $5 million).
In addition to
its high-altitude western areas, North Carolina’s Atlantic coastline has prime
beachfront properties. “The Outer Banks is an area rich in history and offers a
variety of lifestyles and places to live,” says Lee M. Whitley, a broker in
charge of the Kitty Hawk Land Co. in Kitty Hawk, N.C. The Outer Banks has
everything from condominiums and townhouses to luxurious oceanfront mansions and
world-class resorts. Second home buyers tend to congregate in the northern Outer
Banks, from Southern Shores and Duck to Corolla. The Currituck Club, a gated golf community
where prices range from $410,000 to $1.4 million, is also popular.
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A Biltmore Forest home; $7.5 million. (Click image to enlarge)Most second home buyers on the Outer Banks come from Virginia, Washington,
D.C., Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York, Whitley says. “Our beaches,
compared to the Hamptons, are more affordable, less crowded and not overly
developed.” Plus, the area is about an hour’s drive from the Norfolk, Va.,
airport.
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Hendersonville home; $2.3 million. Beverly-Hanks & Assoc. (828.681.2057). (Click image to enlarge)Pinehurst, N.C. is also an area that second home buyers know well.
Prices for single-family homes there range from about $350,000 to $2 million,
and up to $6 million for horse farms. The area’s primary draw is golf, of
course, but there is also a large equestrian community. There are 45 golf
courses within a 30-mile radius of Pinehurst, as well as thousands of acres of
“hunt country” where fox hunting and equestrian events abound. James W.
Saunders, of Prudential Gouger O’Neal & Saunders, says that buyers of second
homes in the Pinehurst area find the Country Club of North Carolina and
Pinehurst Resort and Country Club to be especially appealing. Many seek
contemporary, open and bright homes that are low maintenance, he adds.
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Hilton Head estate listed with Gerry Prud’homme. (right and below, click image to enlarge)The
primary draws in South Carolina are Hilton Head and the beaches close to
Charleston. Hilton Head is composed of about 25 different communities on and off
the island and features both condos and single-family homes. Palmetto Dunes and
Sea Pines are two of the most popular areas for second homes. Both are
world-class oceanfront destinations that have all the amenities people desire:
beach, golf, tennis, boating, fishing, biking, dining and the arts. Prices for
villas at Palmetto Dunes averaged $460,000 last year; single-family homes
averaged $1.2 million and homesites about $570,000. ; function voidFunc() { } voidFunc();)
“Our ownership base is
exceedingly diverse and includes entrepreneurs, corporate executives and people
in the world of sports and entertainment who come from the U.S., Canada,
England, France, Germany and Switzerland,” says Philip A. Schembra, owner of
Schembra Real Estate Group. “All come to Hilton Head Island looking for the good
life.” (Click image to enlarge)
Most second home buyers want to be on or close to the ocean, reports
Gerry Prud’homme, a broker with Sea Pines Real Estate Co. They are looking for
houses with at least five bedrooms, entertainment-size kitchens, elevators and
heated pools.
The barrier islands off Charleston are popular, due to the
easy 20-minute drive into the city. Sullivan’s Island, Isle of Palms, Wild Dunes
and the very exclusive Dewees Island are hot with buyers now; prices range from
$210,000 to $4 million. Alexander Stone III, owner of Island Realty on Isle of
Palms, said that half of his clientele are locals, hailing from the Carolinas;
most of the rest are from Georgia. “The biggest plus is the city of Charleston
and all of its cultural amenities,” he says. The area offers boating, fishing,
crabbing, shrimping, horseback riding and, of course, the beach.
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Isle of Palms home listed with Vicki Hollingsworth (843.886.4056). (Click image to enlarge)Sources
Mountain Air Country Club
800.247.7791
www.mountainaircc.com
Ann Skoglund,
Beverly-Hanks & Associates
828.681.2057
www.beverlyhanks.com
Lee Whitley
800.488.0738
www.khlc.com
Jim Saunders,
Prudential Gouger O’Neal & Saunders
800.672.2228
www.jimsaunders.com
Phil Schembra,
Schembra Real Estate Group
800.845.9506
www.schembrarealestate.com
Gerry
Prud’homme, Sea Pines Real Estate Co.
843.342.9191
www.hiltonhead-isl.com
Alexander
Stone, Island Realty
800.476.0400
www.islandrealty.com