The zip code 29585 comprises Pawleys Island and Litchfield Beach in South Carolina, two resort-oriented coastal towns rich in beaches and golf communities. The year-round population within the zip code is approximately 13,500, but that number can swell significantly during the peak beach and golf seasons that include spring and fall for golfers and summer for families looking for a week or more on some of the cleanest and most expansive beaches on the east coast.
        Supermarket shopping during peak seasons at beach and golf resorts can be a chore, what with the crowded aisles and long checkout lines as well as prices considerably higher than back home. Neither of those conditions should nag visitors or residents in the Pawleys Island area.
A par 3 at Litchfield Beach's River Club golf community may be difficult to negotiate, but the five supermarkets within a couple of miles of the golf community make shopping easy. Homes currently for sale around the River Club in Litchfield Beach start at just $160,000 for a 3 BR, 3 BA condo.
        In March, the Publix chain of supermarkets will open a large facility on Highway 17, the main north/south thoroughfare through town that stretches all the way south through Charleston and Savannah and north through Wilmington, NC, to Norfolk, VA. The Publix is rising literally across the highway from an established Food Lion supermarket and less than a mile north of a less-than-year-old Loewes supermarket. A half mile north of the Publix is a Fresh Market, a chain of more "boutique" type produce, meats and other products has done quite well since opening a couple of years ago. Less than four miles farther north, in Litchfield Beach, a BI-LO supermarket took over the space formerly occupied by the iconic southern chain with the funny name, Piggly Wiggly. (BI-LO's previous store was ¼ mile from the former Piggly Wiggly.)
        For residents of Pawleys Island golf communities, as well as visiting golfers and families renting the many condos in the area, the glut of supermarkets is good news. The intense competition will keep prices down, and the sheer number of places to shop will ensure short or non-existent wait times to check out. Supermarkets also require a large number of employees, albeit mostly low-wage jobs, but the continuity of employment in off seasons or through tourism dry spells should be an economic boost to the area.
        Pawleys Island and Myrtle Beach golf courses and beach resorts are preparing for a high level of traffic this spring and summer as prices at the gas pump continue to fall. At the gas station in front of the Pawleys Island Loewes supermarket, the advertised price for regular gas is $1.99 per gallon, the lowest I recall since my early visits to Myrtle Beach in the late 1960s. Myrtle Beach real estate officials, who experienced their best year of the decade in 2014, are also anticipating more sales traffic during the peak upcoming seasons. Condo prices still have not recovered substantially from the 2008 recession, and some prices remain low enough to make a vacation home within reach of many couples and families who might have thought such a purchase exceeded their grasp. For example, a 2 bedroom, 2 ½ bath unit in Pawleys Plantation, with a short walk to the first tee of the Jack Nicklaus Signature golf course, is currently listed at $124,900. (I played the golf course yesterday and it was in nice shape for the mid-winter; the greens were fast, the fairways only a little thin, and the dormant rough thick enough to prop up the ball a bit.) That unit can also be rented out to the almost constant flow of visiting golfers and families throughout the year.
        I'll have more to say about the entire Myrtle Beach housing market in the coming days. In the meantime, if you would like more information about Pawleys Island, Myrtle Beach or any golf community rich area in the southeast, please contact me.

        For the price of an iTunes song, a ballpoint pen or a pound of chicken thighs, you can own a beautiful ½ acre lot in an upscale golf community in the Low Country of South Carolina.
        In doing research for a recent article here on building a golf community home (click here to read), we noted that some home sites in such top golf communities as Belfair, Berkeley Hall and Colleton River, all in Bluffton, SC, are still priced at $1. We say "still" because this phenomenon started at the dawn of the recession roughly in 2008 after previously optimistic owners of homes in these golf communities purchased lots thinking they would appreciate in value as rapidly as they had through the early '00s. Many plunked down six-figures for a lot you can purchase today for as much as $300,000 less. The problem was that golf membership in these excellent clubs –- each with a minimum of 36 holes, and designed by the likes of Fazio, Nicklaus and Dye -– was and still is mandatory, obligating the owner of each lot to pay more than $15,000 in association and club fees. Some of the bullish owners had purchased multiple lots in the Bluffton golf communities, as well as in the Haig Point golf community on Daufuskie Island.
        "Owner of this home site now owns a home in Colleton River and does not need two memberships," says one ad for a lot in nearby Belfair Plantation. "Thus he has priced for a quick sale." His sale price is $2.
With two Tom Fazio golf courses and its Low Country location, Berkeley Hall Plantation has plenty of water and fairways to go around. A few lots selling for $1 afford views of water or golf course. The same is true at other top golf communities, including Belfair, Colleton River and Haig Point on Daufuskie Island.

        You might think that lots priced at half that are the worst available in each community; but most are actually choice, with water or golf views and, in a couple of instances, a combination of the two.
        "Magnificent long lagoon to green view of the 2nd hole of the Jack Nicklaus Course in Colleton River!" touts one ad for a $1 lot. "This home site...is located within a short distance of the Nicklaus Clubhouse, Bruce Boland Par Three Course, Fitness & Spa, Tennis Center and Aquatic Center."
        "DOMINATING VIEW OF 17TH GREEN . . . on North Course" reads another ad, for a $1 lot in Berkeley Hall. "No one will ever build across street, no houses will ever be in view -- wonderful privacy for your dream home with screened lanai. Short walk down to 35,000 sq. ft. Clubhouse and staffed state-of-the-art Spa & Fitness Center."
        We counted more than a dozen $1 lots for sale in these fine golf communities, but there are many more that we would put in the "bargain" classification. Count on construction costs in the Bluffton area to run between $140 and $200 per square foot, with the higher price for more upscale cabinets, appliances, flooring and other flourishes. Doing a bit of basic math, the cost to build a nice 2,500 square foot home in one of these high-end communities would run to $350,000 and up -– oh yes, plus $1 for the land.
        The carrying costs in these communities skew a little higher than other comparable golf communities in the Southeast, but we figure you get about 10 years worth of savings with a bargain lot. (i.e. Comparable lots priced at $150K elsewhere divided by $15,000 annual costs equals about 10 years.)
        If you would like more information or to make a visit to Bluffton, please contact me and I will put you in touch with our expert Realtor in the area. His commission on the sale will be about 3 cents, and my referral fee will be less than a penny but, hey, if you're happy, we're happy.