One of the things that can make searching for real estate in Bluffton and Hilton Head Island a little confusing is the terminology. You will see properties described as villas, condos, townhomes and single-family homes, and at first glance it can seem like those words tell you exactly what you are looking at. The truth is, they do not always tell the whole story.

Sometimes the word being used is describing the style of the property. Sometimes it is describing the legal ownership structure. And sometimes, especially here in the Lowcountry, the term is simply part of the local real estate language. That is why I think it is more helpful to look beyond the label and focus on what really matters: what you own, what the association owns or maintains, what…

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My wife Barb and I absolutely love summer here. There’s just something about this time of year that seems to bring everybody together.

Hilton Head Island has always had a way of doing that. Families come in from all over, and before long you have moms and dads, grandparents, cousins, aunts and uncles all spending time together. That’s pretty much what summer looks like for our family too.

Every year, our kids come in and spend a couple of weeks with us. We’ll rent a house near the beach, and from there the days tend to take care of themselves. We spend time at the beach and the pool, ride bikes, go out to dinner, and let the cousins have as much fun together as possible. We have an absolute ball.

Hilton Head Makes It Easy to Be Outside

One of…

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What Buyers Notice First When They Walk Into Your Home

We spend a lot of time walking through homes with buyers, and one thing I’ve learned over the years is that buyers start forming an opinion almost immediately.

Sometimes before we’ve even made it through the front door.

They may not say anything right away, but they’re noticing how the house feels, how it smells, how much light there is, whether it feels cared for, and whether they can picture themselves living there. Once those first impressions start forming, they can be hard to change.

That’s why, when we’re talking with someone about selling a home, we don’t start by telling them they need to renovate everything. We start by looking at what a buyer is actually going to notice.

It…

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People ask me all the time what makes Hilton Head Island different.

And there are plenty of easy answers.

The beach.

The weather.

The golf.

The water.

The restaurants.

But I think the real answer goes back much further than that.

My wife and I moved here in 1972, so we've been fortunate enough to watch a lot of this area grow up around us. And one of the things I've always thought was special about Hilton Head is that there was a vision behind how this Island developed.

I was thinking about that recently while standing at Shelter Cove Harbour on Labor Day weekend.

People were walking around, having breakfast, shopping, heading toward the beach and just enjoying the morning.

And when you look around at Hilton Head today,…

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A Perfect September Weekend in Bluffton & Hilton Head Island

There are certain times of year when I think we're reminded just how fortunate we are to live where we do.

September is one of them.

Summer isn't exactly over in the Lowcountry. There are still plenty of beach days ahead, the water is warm, boats are still out on the river and you can absolutely spend an afternoon by the pool.

But things start to feel a little different.

The summer vacation season begins winding down, the calendar starts filling up with local events, and we get into one of my favorite stretches of the year to simply get outside and enjoy where we live.

So if you're coming to Bluffton or Hilton Head Island for a weekend this September, here's how I'd spend…

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