Home Watch · the Lowcountry
About 39 percent of homes on Hilton Head have no year-round household, and Daufuskie runs close to half vacant. Home watch companies check on those houses while the owners are away: scheduled walk-throughs, a call when something looks wrong, and a visit before and after a storm. In a closed-up house in August, they are mostly looking for a failed AC or a dripping supply line.
Ask how often they visit, what they check each time, and how they report: photos, a written log or a text. Many insurance policies limit coverage once a house sits unoccupied for 30 to 60 days, so a dated record can matter; see hiring from out of town.
A real visit means running water at every fixture and opening the cabinet under every sink. Walking in, glancing at the thermostat and walking out isn't watching much.
Based in the Lowcountry
Junk hauling is just one line on Redcap's list. The Depot Road outfit in Beaufort, locally owned since 2014 by its own account, works more like a home concierge: local moving and storage, furniture delivery and assembly, home watch for absentee owners, pressure and window washing, dryer vent cleaning, storm prep and cleanup, attic cleanouts, and small jobs like hanging mirrors or installing shelves and filters.
Overwatch Home Services keeps an eye on vacant and vacation homes from an office on Spanish Moss Road, covering Hilton Head Island and Bluffton. Routine property checks come with detailed electronic reports, and the company coordinates repairs and vendors and supports vacation rentals.
Long-term rentals of houses and apartments are the core of ForeShore, a property manager on Goethe Road in Bluffton, and it also runs home watch for second-home and absentee owners. Rent collection, rental advertising, market analysis, periodic inspections and maintenance are on the services list, with emergency service available.
Long-term rentals are the specialty at Realty Management Advisors on Fording Island Road in Bluffton, which claims more than 150 units under management across Beaufort County and over 60 years of combined experience. Beyond tenant placement, credit checks, rent collection and inspections, it offers maintenance, construction oversight, home watch and concierge services for absentee owners.
Mostly a real estate shop, Luxury Homes of Hilton Head works from an office on New Orleans Road and handles buying, selling, vacation rentals and property management for island homes. Its own description says it focuses on near-ocean properties and folds in interior design, remodeling and new construction project management for owners.
Moss + Marsh Properties dates itself to 2022 and works from May River Road in Bluffton, managing rentals, apartment and condo complexes, homeowner associations and commercial properties across Bluffton, Hilton Head Island, Okatie and Beaufort. Tenant screening and credit checks, rent collection, move-in and move-out inspections, maintenance and monthly financial reports are all part of it.
Since 2008, according to its website, HH Cleaning Services has worked out of a spot on Hunter Road on Hilton Head. Housekeeping runs weekly, biweekly, monthly or one time, and the list goes well past that: departure and move-in cleans, post-construction work, carpet, upholstery and tile cleaning, window cleaning and glass restoration, soft-spray exterior washing, and key service for absentee owners.
The inside of screened porches, screens, ceilings, floors and furniture included, gets soft washed too at APP Home Services, and the owner says that has become a customer favorite. The Bluffton business dates itself to 2007 and also handles house soft washing, pressure washing driveways and pavers, roof blowing, paver sealing, painting, light carpentry and home watch.
Owners can pick their level of help at between the rentals, from full management to co-hosting and assistance for owners who run their own listings. The Palmetto Bay Road company pitches its Distant Assistant Program to absentee owners, along with house checks and property maintenance, and lists bike rentals and guided tours for guests.
From Shelter Cove Lane on Hilton Head Island, GW Services mixes association management and home checks with general maintenance, interior and exterior remodeling and real estate sales. It offers 24-hour emergency service.
Handyman work and home watch go together at CMT Home Services on Waterway Drive in Bluffton. Its website lists painting, smart thermostats, switches and door locks, HVAC filter changes, garage door maintenance, hanging art, TVs and drapes, and disposal and dishwasher installs, alongside house sitting for Hilton Head and Bluffton homes.
Gutter cleaning, janitorial work and services for absentee owners round out the carpet cleaning at this Carolina Carpet Cleaning on Bay Pines Drive on Hilton Head. The company dates itself to 1993 and also cleans upholstery, area rugs, boats and campers, takes after-hours commercial cleaning and helps with building moves.
Eco-friendly products are a selling point for All Season Clean, which works from Brunson Street in Bluffton and, per its website, has served Hilton Head and Bluffton for over two decades. Rental owners get turnover cleaning, linen service and amenity stocking with toiletries and kitchen basics, and absentee owners can have the place kept up while they're away.
Be Our Guest Property Services, a short-term rental manager on Maywood Court in Bluffton, takes care of deep cleaning, dish washing and small maintenance jobs. It also offers pest control and home watch, and its site books units in Palmetto Dunes, Shipyard, Sea Pines and Mid Island.
Kary Gregor owns Bluff & Bay Interiors on Flatwater Drive in Bluffton, and a good share of the work is for people building a new home, often from out of state. Besides furniture and decor selections and room layouts, she offers builder liaison: reviewing floor plans for furniture placement, helping with builder selections and keeping an eye on construction progress.
Live video feeds, along with regular reports and photos, are how Tidal Property Care says it keeps part-time owners in touch with their homes. The Bluffton company on Bluffton Road builds a care plan for each house that can include regular checks, scheduled maintenance, repairs and project management, using its own network of tradesmen.
Weekly or every-other-week visits are the base service at Coastal Estate Watch, a Bluffton-based home watch outfit. Each visit gets a digital report with photos, and the menu adds storm and hurricane checks, post-storm damage assessments, emergency checks, arrival prep, departure shutdowns, mail collection, key holding and vendor coordination.
Home watch is only one piece of what Hilton Head Concierge Services does. The Hilton Head Island company also offers senior watch, absentee owner services, vacation planning and event management, and its site mentions grocery setup, bike delivery, beach chair service and private chefs.
Airport runs and car detailing sit on the same services list as home checks at The House Butler HHI, an absentee-owner service on Office Park Road on Hilton Head Island. The company visits and monitors homes while owners are away, manages vacation and rental properties, and lists carpet cleaning and architectural drawing among the extras.
Absentee owner services and condo cleaning sit alongside the window work at Hilton Head Soft Spray on Hunter Road. The island company lists interior and exterior windows, pressure washing, carpet cleaning, ceiling fans and annual maintenance cleanings for homes, vacation rentals and commercial buildings.
On Hilton Head Island, Lighthouse Lane Home Watch makes regular visits to look over homes while the owners are away, working from a checklist that can be adjusted for each house. It also keeps keys and security codes for supervised access, handles arrival and departure visits and checks homes before and after storms.
Serves the area from nearby
A Pooler-area company out of Savannah, Georgia, Honest Greene Handyman leans toward electrical work: light fixtures and chandeliers, outlets and switches, ceiling fans, wiring repairs and outdoor lighting. Its site also lists furniture assembly, TV mounting, baby proofing, home watch, punch lists and commercial maintenance.
Errands, large or small, are the starting point for Coastline Concierge & Errand Services, which says it has worked Savannah, Tybee Island, Bluffton and Hilton Head since 2014. The list runs from vacation rental management, absentee-owner check-ins and light housekeeping to event setup and cleanup, waiting for repairs and deliveries, organizing and downsizing, staging, notary and courier work, and baby equipment rentals.
Rental property management is the main business at PMI Bluffton HHI, which covers Bluffton and handles marketing, tenant screening, rent collection, maintenance, accounting and evictions. Its site also lists home watch, project management, a free rental analysis and a page for military owners.
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