All Blog Entries by Todd Covington

The American Culinary Foundation (ACF) has presented Brays Island Excecutive Chef, Ronald Andrews, with its prestigious President's Medallion for 2009. The ACF honors those who significantly contribute to the culinary profession and the organization. Andrews received his accolades in Orlando, at the organization’s national convention. Andrews was one of only 23 recipients recognized.

Active involvement in the community is one of Ronald's strong suits. Besides being Brays Top Chef, Ronald Andrews also serves as President of the Low Country Chapter of the American Culinary, assist with the Iron Chef competition at the Hilton Head Seafood Festival, and has worked as the Executive Chef at Jekyll Island Club Hotel. His participation is various area events

With the the fist six months of 2009 behind us, I thought it was a good time to compare this year's home sales to 2008 sales in the same period.  As most of us know, 2008 was considered to be one of the worst real estate years on record.  So how does 2009 stack up?  Unfortunately, 2009 numbers paint a not-so-pretty picture.  While the most obvious numbers are down, I believe there are some positive signs.

In 2009, total residential closings are down 20% from 2008.  Last there were 447 sold from January through June compared to just 355 in 2008.  Even Beaufort's best selling community in 2008, Dataw Island, is down from 16 to 6 sales (though 6 are currently pending).  But not all is as bad as as the data indicates.  One statistic I found positive was that

In what has become an annual ritual, Habersham SC has once again been named on Where to Retire Magazine's "Top Master Planned Communities" List.  The criteria included location, cost and amenities. Magazine editors evaluated thousands of communities around the country in coming up with the most accurate list possible.  Readers were also surveyed as to their Retirement Expectation and Relocation Experience.  Residents indicated that neighborhood activity and neighborly interaction were a large factor.  These were sites as helpful for a smooth transition to a new area.

Habersham's wonderful mix of marketplace shops, eateries and services, along with multiple parks and amenities were reasons editors and readers alike included Habersham as one of their

Outdoor Life magazine has included Beaufort, South Carolina on it's list of the "Top 200 Best Outdoor Towns". Calling it a "saltwater paradise, The publication tabbed Beaufort at #108 on the list. The list was based on a variety of factors that seemed to take into account quality of life for humans and abundance of wildlife.  Categories uses to determine the list were:  Median Home Value (2007), Cost of Living Index (2008), Unemployment Rate (2007), Mean Commute Time (mins.), Amenities, Gun Laws, Fishable Species, Huntable Species, Proximity to Public Access, and Trophy potential.

While the accolade is great, it was a head scratcher to see Beaufort so far down the list.  If there is 107 better towns than Beaufort for outdoor life, I would sure like to

Today I wanted to tell everyone a little story about my exploration of an area that's taken me a year to see, Polawana Island (Which is on St Helena Island).  As a Realtor, I have almost unlimited access to visit every community in the Beaufort area.  I simply show my credentials to security and voila, I am in.  Owned by out-of-town developers, this subdivision is different.  Access is limited because the owners are very particular on who has entry rights.  Last Saturday, my wife and I, met a Polawana property owner who was nice enough to allow us access to decide in person if the development was a hit or bust.

To my excitement Polawana Island was much more than I thought it would be.  Our little excursion was more memorable than I thought it could be. 

If you have not heard, a Habersham SC home is one of the choices in Southern Living's "Choose Your Home" Giveaway. I am a little late reporting on this but you still have time.  The last day to enter in June 30th, 2009.  This is great chance to wim a home in one of Beaufort, SC premier communities.  Click here to enter but take a peak at the below video first!!!

The winner of the contest will have a choice of the Carolina Jessamine Cottage in Callaway Gardens (Pine Mountain, GA) , the Sugerberry Cottage in Habersham (Beaufort SC), Whisper Mountain Cottage (Asheville NC), and the Cottonwood Cottage at Traditions Club (Bryan TX). 

Below is a compalation of videos featuring the Habersham community and the cottage to be given away.  If you keep watching

When moving to a new area such as Beaufort, it's important to find a neighborhood that welcomes you.  Having activities to do, meeting new friends easily, a sense of community are qualities that help newcomers fit into their new surroundings.  In this blog I am going to detail what I feel are the three best subdivisions for moving to the Beaufort SC area.

1. Cat Island - This is my hands down favorite choice for newbies.  The community of Cat Island offers a multitude of amenities that can keep even the most active household calendar filled, along with some of the friendliest people in town.  The list of things to do include swimming at the pool, tennis, golf, fishing, boating and great food at the British Open Pub.  The Pub also has events such as "Wild

Today I thought we could take a look at the 2009 Dataw Island housing market.  This subdivision is the most popular retirement community in the Beaufort area.  I looked at this area because while the remainder of Beaufort Country was hit very hard in 2008 by the real estate slump, Dataw bucked that trend.  In 2008, no community in the local MLS witnessed more closings than Dataw Island.  The island saw 34 houses change hands which was extraordinary considering the state of our market.  What's even more impressive is that twelve of the fore mentioned transactions were above $500,000.  I am certainly not saying sales were not down from the glory years of 2005 and 2006.  What I am saying is while affected, this neighborhood hasn't seen the decline that

Cora Bett Thomas makes another move in the Beaufort SC real estate market with it's acquisition of Tideland  Realty.  While not official yet, according to reliable sources, Cora Bett Thomas Realty is in the final stages of taking over Tideland.  This is the second such purchase of anexisting real estate company in the Beaufort area by Thomas.  Cora Bett Thomas bought Town and Country in April 2009.

These moves will prove to be strokes of genius or a setback of enormous proportions.  We won't know the outcome until sometime next year when the Beaufort housing market finally rebounds. Also, don't expect agency consolidation to stop.  If print and other advertising cutbacks are an indicator, every real estate company in town is hurting.  With this many

This past Friday the CBS Early Show had MoneyWatch dot com name their top places to retire and not surprisingly, Beaufort was on the list at number three. Editor-at-Large Jill Schlesinger called Beaufort a charming seaside town.  For you who have visited, I do not need to explain why we made the list.  For those who have yet to visit out wonderful little town, here are some reasons retirement is great here:

• Very low taxes
• Fantastic climate
• Beautiful scenery
• Excellent medical facilities (Duke Univ.)
• Great retirement communities(Dataw Island, etc...)
• Low Cost of living

If you missed the video don't worry, I have it below.