Myrtle Beach area ~ No. 1 Golf-home community in the nation

If you want to live on a golf course, there is no better place in the United States than Myrtle Beach - the No. 1 golf home community in the nation, according to Golf Digest, June issue.

The magazine’s editors said the quantity, quality and rating of the Grand Strand’s 109 courses - along with the area’s relatively low cost of living and high number of playable days - pushed it to the top spot out of 244 counties.

Clinching the rating, Golf Digest editors said, was the area’s golf score - with 28 courses carrying player ratings of 4½ stars or more in the “Best Places to Play” guide.

The area also scored well in cost of living and health and medical services.

Baby Boomer Driven

The magazine decided to rank “America’s Greatest Golf Home Towns” because of the droves of baby boomers looking to retire, move and make golf their new way of life. This is the first time the magazine has ranked cities based on where to live.

“Americans bought more than a million vacation homes, and golf was a deciding factor in nearly a third, so people are buying these things like crazy,” Finch said. “There’s a boom in golf course homes. It’s all over the country. We know that our readers are interested in this.”

Finch said the guide, which ranks golf towns by region, is meant to give interested buyers a starting point.

Comparative Value

The article notes that while oceanfront homes have skyrocketed in the past 18 months on the Grand Strand, golf course homes are a relative bargain.

Local golf course homes are also appreciating, on average, faster than the overall market.

The median price for golf course homes increased 25 percent to $300,000 between Jan. 1 and May 24, 2006, from $240,000 in the same period of 2005, according to the Multiple Listing Service for Horry and Georgetown counties.

Homes overall increased 10 percent in median price during the same time period.

“That says our golf course stuff is appreciating at a higher rate than the overall market,” said Tom Maeser, president of the Fortune Academy of Real Estate.

Maeser said the allure of golf course living is the views and open space - especially since studies show 80 percent of those buying in golf course communities don’t play golf.

Source: Jenny Burns, The Sun News, Myrtle Beach, SC

For more information on golf course homes or condos, contact Barbara Chartier at 843-902-0204.