We are catching up on our reading and noticed that an April report in USA Today named Myrtle Beach, Kiawah Island, Pinehurst, Sea Island, GA and Naples, FL, the top golf destinations in the world, a clean sweep for the Southeast region. This seems significant given USA Today's wide circulation.
Of these top five golf-rich areas, we believe the best bargains in golf homes are currently in the Myrtle Beach area, where a large inventory of properties for sale adjacent to and near the Grand Strand's 100 golf courses and a sluggish local economy are putting significant downward pressure on prices. Anyone looking for a vacation (second) home with plentifully good golf virtually across the street is especially in luck. Recently, we recommended the units just across the street from True Blue Golf Club in Pawleys Island, about 40 minutes south of Myrtle Beach airport, to a customer who was looking first and foremost for a low-priced option. Two-bedroom, two-bath condos there are priced from around $90,000. Although we would not recommend these or many other condo units in the area as permanent homes, they are more than adequate for those looking for a getaway golf vacation a few times a year, as well as for those who might want to offset expenses with a bit of rental income.
The finishing hole at True Blue Golf Club, a wild ride designed by the late Mike Strantz, is a journey around a large pond to a green shaped like a fat eel. The rest of the course is no less "interesting."
When I conducted a search a few days ago of all Myrtle Beach area single-family (detached) golf community homes listed at $300,000 or less, 206 properties showed up. Those listings begin at less than $90,000, but the lowest-priced homes are located beside some of the lower quality golf courses. Homes on better golf courses begin in the mid $100s.
We work with Cathy Bergeron of the Litchfield Company, a specialist in golf community properties in the area south of Myrtle Beach, which comprises Pawleys Island, Litchfield Beach and Murrells Inlet. The advantage of the area south of Myrtle Beach is that the roads are less crowded, the restaurants are the best on the Grand Strand and shopping is nearby. (The fifth major supermarket within a couple of miles of Pawleys Island will open in 2015.) Please contact Cathy if you would like more information or a recommendation on which golf communities match up the best with your requirements. Better yet, fill out our Golf Home Questionnaire (click here) and we will get back to you with some recommendations in Myrtle Beach, Kiawah Island, Naples or any other area of the Southeast you might have your eye on.
Condominiums across the street from True Blue Golf Club are listed as low as $90,000. They make an excellent second home venue.
