Charleston is changing. Our neighborhood, Ansonborough, is changing. The neighbors no longer live here. Of the 13 houses on our block, the owners own a total of 25 residences spread across six states and three countries. They are geographically dispersed. A neighborhood where residents do not live permanently is less of a neighborhood than a temporary place to rest.
A real estate investment is not the same as an investment in the city. Charleston’s popularity as a tourist destination has made it popular as a place to invest in homes as well. Property values are driven up, but city values are declining.
Two of the property owners in the neighborhood own four units each. Two others own three houses. And four own two units each. Six own only one property. I am one of those “onesies.” If you count us onesies, the average housing unit per resident is 2.27.
One of our geographically dispersed neighbors has his primary residence on a nearby island resort. He has three residences in total – a beach house, a downtown house, and a house in the mountains several hours’ flight from here. It’s a good life. I don’t know where he chooses. The beach house and the downtown house are half an hour apart. It’s easy for him to spend part of the day at one or both houses. He can choose where he sleeps.
Another neighboring couple has their primary residence on another resort island, Hilton Head. It’s not quite as close – a four-hour round trip. They typically stay two to four nights at a time in their Charleston home. In addition to their two SC residences, they own two other residential properties.
Another family in the neighborhood also owns two cars here in South Carolina, one in North Carolina and another in Colorado. I don’t know where they have their voter registration. If I had the choice, I would vote North Carolina. There is a chance that my vote could make a difference in a presidential election there. On the other hand, I like to vote in the local elections in Charleston. These elections are close to my heart and my vote counts. Voting in local elections is an important part of civic engagement.
I still vote in federal elections, but it’s more of a performative act. I know my vote for president doesn’t really count.
Another house on the block belongs to a man who is a permanent resident of Manhattan. He also owns a beachfront property in Delaware. He found that he was spending less and less time in his Charleston home, so he recently rented it to a retired couple from Silicon Valley. This couple had never been to Charleston before signing a one-year lease on the house, but they were familiar with the public image of Charleston.
The owners of the homes on our small block of 13 also own three other properties in South Carolina, for a total of 16 properties in South Carolina: two homes in North Carolina, two properties in Manhattan, two properties in Colorado, one in Florida, one in South America, and one in Europe.
A longtime friend of mine – a Charleston native, a contemporary, a lifelong citizen from a family of lifelong citizens – grew up south of Broad and still lives there. He has a similar complaint about his street as I do: No one lives there.
In simpler times, when Hurricane Hugo made landfall in 1989, every house on our block was permanently occupied by one resident. In the two weeks after the storm, when our neighborhood had no power, we helped each other with repairs. We pooled the contents of our refrigerators and freezers. We worked together during the day and cooked, ate and drank together at night. That probably wouldn’t happen today. We couldn’t reach a quorum.
Roy Owen is a resident of Charleston.
