By James Wedgeworth on January 24th, 2011
Everyone knows that the real estate market was not exactly a bright spot in 2010.
I can say that tourism was good for Hilton Head Island during 2010; hotels, home and villa rentals were up 4.4% according to the Chamber of Commerce. I believe that the real number is higher because a lot of people have started renting their properties through VRBO.
A lot of this increase was due to the lack of uncertainty by the oil spill in the gulf. We saw a lot of tourists who normally travel to the west coast of Florida.
Many rental companies were 100% booked all summer. Other areas also saw an increase in tourism: Charleston was up 9%.
Some good news is that Southwest Airlines has started flying to Charleston and Greenville – this will provide yet another avenue to travel to Hilton Head.
So the question is, will this translate into a rise in the real estate market? I think it eventually will.
By James Wedgeworth on July 6th, 2010
We have seen a record number of people visiting Hilton Head Island this summer – and we love every minute of it.
I think we are getting a lot of first time visitors due to the oil spill that is currently affecting the Gulf Coast. We hate that this is the reason that some are making Hilton Head their vacation destination, but we hope they enjoy it while they are here.
Maybe some of these visitors will come back to vacation again and perhaps someone will even want to own a piece of paradise known as Hilton Head Island.
By James Wedgeworth on June 10th, 2010
I have had a lot of clients call and ask me how the oil spill in the gulf has affected Hilton Head Island.
Hilton Head Island has noticed an increase between 25% and 30% in visitors over the last several weeks.
We had a call from a family friend who visits Panama City, Florida every year. She said that this year they have booked their stay in Hilton Head along with 24 of their family members.
I think there has been a lot of confusion as far as the effect the oil spill has had on the beaches of Florida and it seems to be driving regular visitors of that area to other locations. I would not wish this on anyone, but it does appear that it has had an effect on our market – the rental market has been at its strongest in quite some time.
I’ll keep you posted on any other developments that arise from this disaster. We continue to keep all the people of the gulf and those affected in our thoughts and prayers.
