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| Summerville, South Carolina is nestled on a ridge in the woods just
20 miles northwest of Charleston, has had a
history of ups and downs. In the late
1700s, wealthy Charleston plantation owners
began coming to this soothing spot to build
homes and escape the Lowcountry summer
heat and mosquitoes. In 1847,
Summerville became an official village, but the Civil War and an earthquake in 1886 took
a serious toll. Fortunes soon changed, however,
when in 1899 the International
Congress of Physicians declared Summerville, thanks to its healing
surroundings, one
of the best places for the treatment of lung
disorders. Soon, visitors from
all over the
world were coming to this quiet retreat,
some staying permanently. Today,
Summerville is known as "The Flower Town
in the Pines," and 49,000
people call it home; of these, 22% are age 45 to 64, and 11%
are 65 years of age or better.
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The imprint of Charleston's early plantation owners
is still seen in Summerville today, as many of these summer residents'
elegant homes remain
standing in all of their antebellum grandeur. Nearly 700
of Summerville's structures, including private homes,
various businesses and B&Bs, are listed on the National
Register of Historic Places and exemplify Colonial, Queen
Anne and Georgian architectural styles. For many
years, the population here numbered about 3,000 people,
but in the 1980s, and particularly within the last ten
years, the numbers began to grow, and new homes and developments started popping up.
While much of the housing is
new,
the
median home price of $170,000 remains below the national
average, as does the average cost-of-living (by about 5%).
City home prices start around $100,000, and
well-kept, single-family homes (roughly 1,200 sq. ft. to 1,600 sq. ft.) in
comfortable neighborhoods start in the low- to mid-$100,000s,
although dwellings can be found for less. There appears to
be a good housing selection in the mid- to high-$100,000s range.
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The median home price of $170,000 will purchase 2,100 or
more sq. ft., 3 to 4 bedrooms, 2 to 2.5 baths, an upgraded
kitchen, a screened-in porch, hardwood floors, an attached garage
and a large, forested lot in a desirable neighborhood.
Million dollar homes are for sale, too, and $2 million will buy a mansion with four stories, six bedrooms, five baths, 7,000
sq. ft., 21 acres, a freestanding circular staircase, a wine
cellar, triple bathroom sinks, a marble foyer, a barn and horse stalls, a
pool, a fishing pond and two garages, each one with a second floor
(which is what every garage needs). Del Webb has an active adult community in Summerville named
Del
Webb Charleston (even though it is actually in
Summerville). Homes here start at $149,900 and come with all of the standard Del Webb amenities including a
large, stylish clubhouse. The tony Club at Legend Oaks is a beautiful,
Southern-style, all-ages golf course community with homes from the
mid-$300,000s. Listings in the active adult neighborhood, Linkside
Village, in the Pine Forest
Country Club start from $160,000. There
are numerous golf courses in the area, so finding a home on a
fairway at a somewhat reasonable price is not that difficult.
Summerville apartments seem in decent, although not great,
supply, with the average one bedroom leasing for around $700 a
month and a two bedroom leasing for $850 to $900 per month.
This is an interactive map.
Click on the arrows in the upper left hand corner to move the map
to the East, West, North or South, and click on the +/- signs to
zoom in and out.
All homeowners automatically receive a $100,000 property tax
exemption, and real estate is assessed at 4% of its fair market
value (6% if the home is a rental property or second home).
The annual taxes on a $250,000 home would be roughly $1,500. For homeowners 65 and older, the state's homestead
exemption allows the first $50,000 of their property's fair market
value to be exempt (on top of the automatic tax exemption).
Retirement income is taxed, but Social Security is exempt.
Summerville,
South Carolina Continued....
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Summerville South Carolina Real Estate Active Adult Communities in Summerville South Carolina
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