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It really comes down to personal preference. We vacationed for years on Kiawah, looking at property every visit. One trip we decided to ride our bikes over to Seabrook (before the bikepath was installed). We were turned away at the gate. Now that put a sour taste in my mouth for a few years...until my husband was playing golf in another state with a friend of a friend. This guy mentioned his in-laws owned on Seabrook. That's all I needed to hear to get me to looking at real estate on Seabrook.
Our first trip to Seabrook was our "buying trip" Seabrook just felt better to us and our young family (and I was "certain" that Kiawah was it!). Seabrook feels like family to me ( yeah, maybe a little crazy family sometimes); Kiawah always felt like a "resort".
The wonderful thing is I've got friends on Kiawah, Kiawah River Estates, Wadmalaw, and other places around the Lowcountry. A place just has to feel right to you and the economies have to work for each individual. Now if anyone wants a general idea of costs on Seabrook, shoot me a PM. I've got spreadsheets, etc galore
I Would greatly appreciate any spreadsheet on Seabrook island cost you are willing to share!
Kiawah and Seabrook are both great for a certain lifestyle and budget. They're both a bit far out if you want to regularly travel to Charleston or the airport but not too much if it's just an occasional trip.
We are headed there in June for vacation, but also planning to look at condos (2BR/2BA) for purchase/rental/family use.
1) Are there any areas that are more risky for flooding (ie, is it risky if backs up to a creek?)...has Seabrook had flooding in the hurricanes in last several years?
2) Do you think the rental market is good? (ie can rent at least 50 percent of the time and break even?)
3) What else should I find out as a prospective condo buyer?
I understand about the club fees/amenities. We are probably looking at a community membership as we mostly want access to pools, exercise center.
We are headed there in June for vacation, but also planning to look at condos (2BR/2BA) for purchase/rental/family use.
1) Are there any areas that are more risky for flooding (ie, is it risky if backs up to a creek?)...has Seabrook had flooding in the hurricanes in last several years?
2) Do you think the rental market is good? (ie can rent at least 50 percent of the time and break even?)
3) What else should I find out as a prospective condo buyer?
I understand about the club fees/amenities. We are probably looking at a community membership as we mostly want access to pools, exercise center.
Thanks so much!
1) Flooding generally has to be considered property by property. One lot might not flood but the lot two doors down might be at the low spot in the terrain where the water collects. Sometimes it's obvious looking at it and sometimes not. Of course backing up to a creek/river will create a greater likelihood of flooding in general but other factors have to be considered. Mainly the flood risk on Seabrook will be from Hurricane/storm surge.
2) I can't say I have my finger on the pulse of short term rentals on Seabrook. Fees associated with Seabrook tend to be high and taxes on a non-owner occupied property in Charleston County are generally close to 3x what an owner occupied property would be. Crunch your numbers!
3) Condominiums in SC are governed by a Horizontal Property Regime which manages the common property and funds of the property owners. The regime generally covers exterior maintenance of the buildings as well as insurances (flood and hazard) to cover the building structures. The interior of each unit is the owner's responsibility and is usually covered by an HO-6 insurance policy. (This is often referred to as covering "from the sheetrock, in") Regimes can be well run or poorly run and it's important to look into the regime financials when looking to buy. If the HPR doesn't have enough backup funds to cover unexpected expenses, homeowners can be hit with a "special assessment" to collect the needed funds. This can be thousands of dollars and is not optional. Special assessments are not uncommon and can happen even with well run HPR's. It often happens with latent construction defects and is one risk of owning a condo.
There can also be (usually is) a Home Owners Association governing the condo. The HOA and Regime are often confused but aren't the same thing and typically involve different sets of fees and rules. It's important to understand both of them
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Seabrook just felt better to us and our young family (and I was "certain" that Kiawah was it!). Seabrook feels like family to me ( yeah, maybe a little crazy family sometimes); Kiawah always felt like a "resort". 
