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Hi! We are currently looking at relocating and building in the Summerville areas and would love some feedback!
Background:
We love mount pleasant area but have decided we don’t want to be on an island
We want to build so we don’t have to think about updating or doing work and can relax on weekends
We work from home so commute is not an issue, airport commute eventually may matter
We are coming from Wisconsin and a huge lot so the smaller lot and more community feel is a huge plus.
We prefer the detached rear/ally garage look without all the cars all over the neighborhood
Safety is important
School is not a big deal as we likely will go private
Would love a neighborhood where the neighbors are neighborly
Budget 450-500k
We are looking at Carnes Crossroads, Nexton Midtown & Summers Crossing
Builders we are looking at: Toll (Sabal), Ashton Woods, Pulte & Homes by Dickerson
Open to other options!
I would appreciate any feedback you have on any of the builders or neighborhoods. Most of the information we find is 5-10 years old.
Last edited by hHSmomx2; 02-19-2021 at 08:20 AM..
Reason: Forgot something.
Quality private schools in Charleston are not cheap, they will run you about the same cost as tuition to College of Charleston. While commute to work is not an issue, commute to a private school will be and should be considered.
Most subdivisions in the area have homeowners associations to at least manage community property. Some are more restrictive than others as far as architectural requirements go. Your building plans will need to be approved by the Architectural Review Board for the subdivision. Unless you go with one of the "pre planned" neighborhoods where you get to pick from 4 different house plans.
I've personally never been a fan of the large scale "stamp them out" builders like you've listed. We've built and always went with a quality custom home builder in the area and don't do the pick your floor plan thing.
Mount Pleasant isn't an island any more than Charleston or West Ashley is. I can understand that it may seem so because you have to cross bridges over rivers to get to sections of them. You would be extremely limited in Mount Pleasant if you wanted to build with a 450-500k budget in this market.
I'm with you on the cars parked all over the neighborhood. Carolina Park is horrible about that. Streets are narrow, people don't park in their driveways and park on both sides of the street. Sadly I expect a child to be hit in there at some point because they'll dart out in front of a car and the driver wont see them for the parked cars. But they're pre-selling those homes as fast as they can break ground.
IsNull is correct about private schools. Tuition at one of the few in Summerville (Pinewood Prep) runs around $10K-13K/yr. I'm pretty sure they are higher than that in Charleston, and there is definitely the commute to consider. I suggest checking the quality of the public schools for any house you are considering, both as an option and for resale.
Have you looked at the Ponds? Not sure if the builders you mentioned are in there, but it might meet your other needs. There is a nice YMCA on the grounds. One of the posters here built in there not too long ago, and might give some insight. Also, it's in DD2 school district which is the better one IMO.
Carnes and Nexton are both in Berkeley County, I believe.
Did you mean Summers Corner? Funny how a neighborhood that makes some people cringe is what another might be looking for! There was just a conversation on this forum about that area.
Also, if you're not used to HOA's and restrictive covenants you will want to get familiar with those. Almost all of the large, planned neighborhoods have them. Not only do they control what you build, but what you do with your property once you're there. I would thoroughly read the CCR's for any neighborhood I was considering to be sure you can abide by their rules. You may get away with violations, but you may not. It depends on how strictly they are enforced.
Our private schools up here are 20-60k/year, so what we have seen is a bit better and we only have limited time left. I’m not that concerned on the school front, I simply pointed it out because it wasn’t an issue.
IsNull - totally agree, we have done 6 custom builds throughout the US, downsizing now to 2-3k sq feet and something more simple to manage. Charleston, Weat Ashley and Mount Pleasant are all islands. We would have a very different budget if we went that route but will wait a few years to watch climate change/longer term flood patterns BTW there are 43 floor plans to select from not 4
BSJSAS - We have always lived in cities and neighborhoods with struck requirements. Typically I appreciate it because it stops a rogue neighbor from tanking everyone’s property value when he paints his house purple...I’ve rarely seen any that didn’t make sense (but I am
Sure they exist!) I have not heard of the ponds, thank you so much. I will take a look at that right now.
Your comment on”cringe” is exactly why I asked - we don’t know the area (we aren’t renting a year it’s a waste) so I was asking for feedback about the various neighborhoods.
We live in the northern part of Berkeley County, in Summerville (the newer area). While we are in a retirement subdivision, I do know about our greater community of Cane Bay.
This is a very fast growing bedroom community comprised of homes built by multiple builders. There are HOA rules for each section. Perhaps the loudest complaints are about schooling. On the plus side, our elementary, middle, and senior high schools are within Cane Bay. They can be reached without children having to cross streets with traffic. They were built to serve our Cane Bay families.
The negative side about our schools is that they weren't built to serve the rapidly expanding student population. Buying into Cane Bay doesn't automatically qualify your child(ren) for entry into the schools. Some parents buy with the anticipation that their children will attend these schools and then find out that instead, they will be bused to a nearby community. While this may not personally affect your decision regarding schooling your children, it may impact the potential resale of your home in the future.
Cane Bay's growth impacts our roads. It's only in the last year that Nexton Parkway opened and we don't rely solely on SR 176 for travel into (southern part of) Summerville. We also have another road about to open; Spine Road C. It takes you out of the community and onto SR 176 without having to drive all the way from Cane Bay Blvd. Black Tom Rd. is another one. I mention these because until recently, there was only one ingress/egress in Cane Bay.
With growth, we've acquired a YMCA, small library, police sub-station and fire station within Cane Bay. There is major development of shopping centers directly across the street from Cane Bay, on the Nexton side, as well as a shopping center with a major supermarket within Cane Bay.
A new hospital is 10 minutes away as are stores and eateries catering to families.
The drive into Charleston is about 35 minutes and slightly less for the airport. Mt. Pleasant is 45 minutes away.
Nexton has homes being built with detached garages. The price range you mentioned should be more than adequate there.
While I couldn't address every point in your query, I hope this has been helpful. Best of luck to you and your family in the search for your new community and home.
Hi! We are currently looking at relocating and building in the Summerville areas and would love some feedback!
Background:
We love mount pleasant area but have decided we don’t want to be on an island
We want to build so we don’t have to think about updating or doing work and can relax on weekends
We work from home so commute is not an issue, airport commute eventually may matter
We are coming from Wisconsin and a huge lot so the smaller lot and more community feel is a huge plus.
We prefer the detached rear/ally garage look without all the cars all over the neighborhood
Safety is important
School is not a big deal as we likely will go private
Would love a neighborhood where the neighbors are neighborly
Budget 450-500k
We are looking at Carnes Crossroads, Nexton Midtown & Summers Crossing
Builders we are looking at: Toll (Sabal), Ashton Woods, Pulte & Homes by Dickerson
Open to other options!
I would appreciate any feedback you have on any of the builders or neighborhoods. Most of the information we find is 5-10 years old.
I think you've picked out some of the most likely neighborhoods and I would agree with BSJSAS about adding The Ponds into your list. Your budget in Summerville should give you some flexibility in your search.
The larger builders tend to favor the detached, rear garage these days if they're building on smaller lots so that shouldn't be too hard to find. All of the builders mentioned can turn out a reasonably quality home and all of them have problems at times. It's hard to rate a builder because there's so many variables that everyone can have a different experience. I've had clients with good experiences with Sabal, Ashton Woods and Pulte. I haven't interacted with Dickerson yet. What I note from all of the bigger builders is that the individual components are usually pretty low quality unless you upgrade to the higher level cabinets, etc. Those upgrades come at a steeper premium than you might expect so in the end you can get what you want but it will be considerably more than the "sticker price" that is advertised up front.
I think you will find most of the neighbors to be friendly in these newer communities. They're mostly all new there and often open to making friends. I've not lived in Wisconsin to compare, but the Charleston area is about the friendliest, most relaxed place I've ever lived. You can always run into a jerk anywhere but it seems to happen less often here.
Our private schools up here are 20-60k/year, so what we have seen is a bit better and we only have limited time left.
I think the most expensive private schools in Charleston are around $30K.
BSJSAS - We have always lived in cities and neighborhoods with struck requirements. Typically I appreciate it because it stops a rogue neighbor from tanking everyone’s property value when he paints his house purple...I’ve rarely seen any that didn’t make sense (but I am
Sure they exist!) I have not heard of the ponds, thank you so much. I will take a look at that right now.
Your comment on”cringe” is exactly why I asked - we don’t know the area (we aren’t renting a year it’s a waste) so I was asking for feedback about the various neighborhoods.
It all depends on how consistently the restrictions are enforced and whether the violators are willing to amass fines to "do what I want on my property." That kind of thinking is pretty common here AEB comments on local social media.
"Cringe" is subjective, I know. Large houses on small lots, close together, isn't for me but it's ok if others like that.
Hi! We are currently looking at relocating and building in the Summerville areas and would love some feedback!
Background:
We love mount pleasant area but have decided we don’t want to be on an island
We want to build so we don’t have to think about updating or doing work and can relax on weekends
We work from home so commute is not an issue, airport commute eventually may matter
We are coming from Wisconsin and a huge lot so the smaller lot and more community feel is a huge plus.
We prefer the detached rear/ally garage look without all the cars all over the neighborhood
Safety is important
School is not a big deal as we likely will go private
Would love a neighborhood where the neighbors are neighborly
Budget 450-500k
We are looking at Carnes Crossroads, Nexton Midtown & Summers Crossing
Builders we are looking at: Toll (Sabal), Ashton Woods, Pulte & Homes by Dickerson
Open to other options!
I would appreciate any feedback you have on any of the builders or neighborhoods. Most of the information we find is 5-10 years old.
The Emerald line up with DR Horton in Westlake is a nice option in the Lakes portion of Cane Bay.
Also, check out Crescent Homes. I'm not sure if they're building another phase or not in Cane Bay, but they have some really nice option and are semi-custom.
Since you're going private, have you looked into the other side of Summerville as well, areas like Legend Oaks, Summer's Corner, and The Ponds have a lot of what you're looking for, are less commercial (so far) and in your price range. Just a thought.
Since you're going private, have you looked into the other side of Summerville as well, areas like Legend Oaks, Summer's Corner, and The Ponds have a lot of what you're looking for, are less commercial (so far) and in your price range. Just a thought.
The OP already mentioned Summers Corner, and has been directed toward the Ponds. Since they are looking to build new, I'm not sure Legend Oaks has anything but there is a newer section that might. Might be called The Club at Legend Oaks? Hopefully, someone on here will know.
Not sure what you mean by "since you're going private" as the public schools for these neighborhoods would be the preferred ones (DD2). It sounds as if you are saying that private school is the best option in those areas, and that's not the case. There are subdivisions where private or charter schools would be preferable (thinking of some zoned for Charleston county) but not these. I wouldn't want the OP to get the wrong idea.
The OP already mentioned Summers Corner, and has been directed toward the Ponds. Since they are looking to build new, I'm not sure Legend Oaks has anything but there is a newer section that might. Might be called The Club at Legend Oaks? Hopefully, someone on here will know.
Not sure what you mean by "since you're going private" as the public schools for these neighborhoods would be the preferred ones (DD2). It sounds as if you are saying that private school is the best option in those areas, and that's not the case. There are subdivisions where private or charter schools would be preferable (thinking of some zoned for Charleston county) but not these. I wouldn't want the OP to get the wrong idea.
Going private means that you don't really have to worry about school zones like DD2. Nothing more or less than that. I could have easily said, since you're going private, take a look at Ravenel or Park Circle. It wasn't a jab at a particular school district. I think we have a fine public school system here in Charleston.
There's several new communities popping up around Legend Oaks (Lennar, True Homes, Ashton Woods) and so I was being descriptive to the area as most people have an idea of where Legend Oaks is. Kind of like a waypoint of where to look.
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