What adds up to make an area special? Is there a magic recipe that makes a community attractive to visitors, residents, or commerce?
The answer, of course, is there is no right answer. The features and amenities that make an area special to one person may not matter very much to someone else. This is similar to real estate because there is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all approach to providing exceptional service—successful agents know they have to adapt to meet the changing needs of their clients.
But I digress. The point is Georgetown County has a lot to offer, from wide sandy beaches and a downtown waterfront with restaurants and shops, to marinas, golf courses, and museums, but the most attractive feature I’ve been hearing about lately is the Georgetown County Airport.
Recently, I had the honor and pleasure of representing the buyer of an oceanfront home in DeBordieu Colony, a gated community with a golf course, a private beach, a saltwater creek that goes to the ocean, a clubhouse/tennis courts, and a pristine setting surrounded by nature preserves. All of those amenities are highly sought-after, of course, however, the airport was the differentiator in this case.
The buyer I worked with lives in Knoxville, Tennessee…one of the first things he said to me was that he could be in Georgetown in less than an hour because of the airport. Time was an important factor in his decision, but it was the convenience of our airport that made it the perfect base of operations for him.
With no commercial activity, flights are not monitored by a tower at the Georgetown County Airport. The result is that air traffic control crews are unnecessary here, unlike the neighboring communities of Myrtle Beach and Charleston, which are busy areas with lots of commercial activity, where the airspace has to be carefully managed and controlled.
What this amounts to is a much simpler, easier traveling experience for private air traffic and pilots who want to visit our area, as the airport is much less restrictive. And, according to the Georgetown Airport Manager Jim Taylor, around 40 percent of the air traffic on the weekends is from people like my clients, who just purchased here. For the most part, these are individuals with private planes that have second (or third) homes in the area.
Owning a hangar is a big part of the dream of having a private plane, as it makes things a lot easier, and there is still plenty of room to make that happen in Georgetown. While Charleston and the Myrtle Beach areas are bustling with activity and are completely built out, the Georgetown Airport has ample space to grow and expand.
All of this makes the Georgetown Airport a hidden secret…a diamond in the rough. It is quickly being discovered, however, and at this point, it may be unclear whether I work for the airport or if I’m still helping individuals and families buy and sell real estate.
The thing is, I love the airport and all of this has been particularly special for me, as I spent a lot of my childhood there since my father was a private pilot. The day that he did his first solo flight in a single-engine plane is a vivid memory for me…all of the events and air shows ‘back in the day’ were a big deal for our family. I can even remember celebrating the Bicentennial in 1976 for the 1776 Fly-In!
Of course, there wasn’t as much traffic at the airport back then as there is today. If there was, I can’t imagine they would have let me learn to drive on the runways...in a four-speed Ram Charger!
Being raised here gives me a unique insight into the area, one that is unmatched by many other agents. It’s also worth pointing out that I have built a vast local network of service providers and colleagues over the years. This makes overcoming transactional hurdles much simpler. Also, many of my clients prefer a referral to a trusted individual or company for many necessities, such as landscaping, renovations, pest control, home inspections…you name it.
After all, why do the research yourself? It’s a lot easier to just reach out to someone who has experience working with nearly everyone in town.
I may be partial, but with so much to see and do, it’s likely the luxury market here is going to continue to grow and evolve. The Georgetown Airport is likely to expand in lockstep with the area and considering the number of parks, natural areas, shops, and restaurants to explore, Georgetown County is going to be hitting the radar of more and more real estate buyers.
If you’re currently being grabbed by the Fear of Missing Out, I encourage you to reach out because there are numerous opportunities in the Georgetown County real estate market right now, especially in the upper tier of the marketplace. And, I should mention that it’s always a pleasure for me to share what I know about this area I know and love so well, so I can help my clients #LiveLikeALocal.
To learn more about what our area has to offer, please hit the subscribe button as I am considering writing a blog about it, or just give me a call. I’m always looking for an excuse to visit my favorite spot for lunch or coffee!