Home Discovery

In the Hilton Head Island/Bluffton area there are more than 24 gated communities. As Realtors prepare to show property to customers and clients they first interview them on lifestyle choices and how they plan to use the property. Each of the 24 communities and other traditional neighborhoods have different features and benefits. It is the Realtor that showcases the different communities and available inventory to potential buyers.  

If you do not plan to sell your home in the near future, you may not think about it, but as a property owner you want your neighbor who is selling their house to have the most exposure of their property allowing as many potential buyers to view it and make an offer.  

PLANNED COMMUNITIES SET LOWCOUNTRY APART

When Charles Fraser first set foot on Hilton Head Island in the summer of 1950, he saw much more than beautiful beaches, virgin pine forests and rich groves of majestic live oak trees.

He envisioned a world-class gated community, a planned development that would be low-impact and environmentally friendly. To make this grand vision a reality, he brought in the brightest, most creative minds in the real estate industry. Harvard business school graduates worked alongside land planners, contractors and marketing experts. Together, they pioneered new land development and management principals, forever changing Hilton Head Island and the surrounding Lowcountry.

WEXFORD HOME EXUDES EASY-LIVING LOWCOUNTRY LIFESTYLE

The colors are soothing, like an early evening Lowcountry breeze in late summer. The backdrops in shades of whites and grays are splashed with blue, muted green, turquoise and soft red accents throughout the spacious Wexford Plantation waterfront home.

The visual color palette exudes calm and comfort and the easy-living coastal lifestyle.

BUILDER TAPS MEMORIES OF LONG ISLAND FOR OCEANFRONT HOME

When Mike Ruegamer moved from his native Long Island to the Lowcountry 30 years ago, he packed his portfolio of considerable architectural talent.

Two years ago, he tapped his visual memory of the ubiquitous New England-style architecture of the Hamptons and Nantucket Island near Cape Cod to design a second residence on Dune Lane for a New Jersey couple.

ELEGANT DAUFUSKIE ISLAND HOME IS FAR FROM COOKIE-CUTTER

It was a warm, cloudless and very breezy Lowcountry Thursday morning when the Haig Point ferry left the dock.

Skimming slowly south on Broad Creek and then full throttling on the wide-open Calibogue Sound, all was good on this day, and 28 minutes later a golf cart was waiting as planned to take a short jaunt to Tabby Circle. (No cars allowed on Daufuskie Island, remember? All one hears are the spring leaves shuffling and the birds chirping.)

KITCHEN AND BATHROOM REMODELING ARE LARGE INVESTMENTS YOU CAN MAKE IN YOUR HOME GIVING YOU THE GREATEST RETURN

Two of the most notable home trends in 2014 have been the amped-up transformation of two rooms that used to serve functional purposes into luxurious spaces: the kitchen and the bath.

The kitchen now is seen as a social hub for entertaining and a place for family to gather.

And bathrooms have become important spaces that define a home’s overall feel, making them some of the of the most elegant and artistic rooms in the home.

Who doesn’t cherish the Lowcountry outdoors, especially if it features twisty, towering live oak trees and a grassy marsh that stretches wide until it gives way to the peaceful Okatie River in the distance? Especially if this grand view can be enjoyed while sitting comfortably in a cozy spot somewhere in the more than 1,000 square feet of screened porch that embraces two backside floors. Inside this elegant residence, the same majestic natural backdrop captivates the eye from the kitchen, “great” room, dining room, master suite, and two upstairs bedrooms and media room.

This is the Thames family’s view in their vacation home on Old Oak Road in Oldfield Plantation. Lowcountry beauty resides in every inch of this 4,000-squarefoot, four-and-a-half bathroom architectural masterpiece that anchors the ¾-acre property. (Above the attached garage is a 400-square-foot bonus suite with full bathroom.)

SEA PINES HOME A DREAM COME TRUE FOR OWNERS

When homeowners Rick Amatucci and Maryann Bastnagel bought the ½-acre property on which an older home sat 14 years ago as a vacation residence, the promise of that view in their mind’s eye was just a matter of when, not if, it would be theirs to enjoy.

Rick Amatucci and Maryann Bastnagel built their 4,029-square-foot, five bedroom, six bathroom dream home on Marsh Wren Road in the South Beach area of Sea Pines. The home features a T-shaped pool, an expansive living room and an unbeatable view of the Atlantic Ocean.

“It’s something we had dreamed about since our honeymoon really (21 years ago when they first visited Hilton Head Island), and, you know, we bought the older house and it was really our dream to build a house with this fabulous view,” Amatucci said, pointing to the rolling white caps from the spacious porch. “We were able to accomplish this nice vision, and the result? We couldn’t have asked for more…it’s fabulous.”

WHEN DR. RICHARD AND ANN WALTON BEGAN LOOKING FOR A RETIREMENT AREA A FEW YEARS AGO, THEY KEPT RETURNING TO SPRING ISLAND.

They scoured the Lowcountry from Charleston to Jacksonville — but nothing compared to this 3,000-acre nature preserve and secluded residential community set amidst a maritime forest teeming with loblolly pines, live oak trees, creeks, ponds, rivers, marshes, abundant wildlife and flora.

“We kept looking around and kept coming back … we loved it,” the physician said. “When we drove onto Spring Island, I thought, ‘Wow, this must be the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen.’ ”