Home and Garden

Property Owners’ Associations and Homeowners Associations help build better neighbors.

Purchasing a home is a major milestone in anyone’s life, whether it is a first home, a vacation home, or a home to enjoy your golden years. No matter what stage of life you are in, buying a home in a neighborhood you will enjoy is important. One way to help make sure you are choosing a neighborhood that will fit your lifestyle is to understand what is expected by the homeowners in the neighborhood of your choice. By understanding Property Owners’ Associations (POAs) and Home Owners’ Associations (HOAs), you will be able to make an informed choice about where to live.

Inovative energy solutions can help save the planet and hundreds of dollars in energy bills.

ENERGY EFFICIENCYAre you afraid to open your monthly utility bill? Cutting energy costs is easy – just look for the Star. In 2005 alone, Americans saved enough energy to power nearly 22 million homes – that’s more than $12 billion in energy costs – and reduced greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those produced by 23 million cars using Energy Star appliances. Energy Star is a program created by the Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Energy that helps businesses and individuals protect the environment through superior energy efficiency.

If every American home exchanged the five most used light bulbs with Energy Star qualified bulbs, one trillion pounds of greenhouse gases would be kept out of the air – that’s the equivalent of the annual emissions of 8 million cars – over the course of the bulbs’ lives. At the same time, such action would result in $6 billion in energy savings, or the annual output of more than 20 power plants.

A few beautiful blossoms for a Southern spring

CRINUM LILYWith the advent of spring and the last possible day of frost safely past, we launch confidently into our ongoing alphabetical romp to explore what is out there to enhance our gardens.

“J” is for Jessamine, Carolina Yellow, sometimes confused with Jasmine, but not the same thing. The southeast coastal native Jessamine, (genus Gelsemium), appears in the tops of trees as a sudden sweet surprise in late February-March, ushering in spring with its burst of bright yellow, mildly fragrant blossoms. Jasmine, (genus Trachelospermum), usually Confederate, though there are other types, is a white, four petaled flowering vine of a more formal nature, very fragrant blooms in June and is capable of leaping to the treetops. It is best controlled by strict pruning after the bloom is finished, but is definitely worth having in the garden.

A charming & elegant collection of homes, just a short walk to the shores.

Singleton by the BEACHSingleton by the Beach is a charming community located in the mid-island area. A small neighborhood, it is big on charm. All of Singleton by the Beach’s Charleston-style homes are elegant and stately, yet they have been constructed with the latest advances in technology.

Developer/builder John Melkon, of Palmetto Investors Group, visited Seaside, Florida, and returned to Hilton Head an inspired man. Melkon wanted to build a new community and what he saw in Florida was a wonderful starting point for his creativity. He wanted to create a community bursting with charm, where homes were constructed using only the best materials, while keeping the entire area in harmony with nature. This is exactly what Melkon did with Singleton by the Beach.

Home Discovery

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