500 Bucksley Lane #304
Downtown Daniel Island
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I bought this one bedroom condo on Daniel Island as a new construction in 2005 and have rented it out ever since. In those 13 years, I’ve only had 4 tenants & 100% occupancy.
It always rented to the first people who saw it and they stayed for a few years each because they liked it so much. The good thing about having people who stay for a few years, is that they treat it very well and maintain it.
It was time for a renovation though and it only took a week.
Before
Here are some before photos.
Everything was in good condition, albeit it a little dated. It was showing its 13 years of being a rental.
Kitchen Layout
I didn’t like the height of the kitchen counter, it wasn’t practical to use as an eat in counter so I decided to bring the counter down to the one level and really open up the kitchen.
Counters
The laminate counters were really outdated and needed to be replaced, so I went with one of my favorites, white quartz.
I prefer quartz over granite because granite is porous and can stain easily, while quartz is a man made and is non-porous. I wanted light colors throughout so going with a white counter meant that quartz was the way to go, even though it’s more expensive than granite.
I installed the white quartz in the bathroom too and added new sinks.
Appliances
I hadn’t originally planned (or budgeted) for new appliances since the existing ones were working great, but after completing the kitchen, they looked out of place, so I did a last minute order for all new stainless appliances and even though they pushed the budget over, I’m delighted with how they turned out
Plus, they’re a lot more energy efficient, so the next resident will enjoy lower utility bills
Flooring
The most recent tenant had been rough on the carpet, so new flooring was a must. The neighborhood recently allowed us to add hard surface flooring as long as it met noise requirements and got HOA approval, so that was an easy decision.
I decided to do the new flooring throughout the entire unit and went with a high quality laminate Copper Sands Oak 12mm that looked stunning when installed.
Bathroom
The bathroom got new floors, along with the same counters as the kitchen and I had the tub reglazed, which came out looking fantastic.
HVAC
I had already replaced the HVAC last year so there’s a one year old unit in the condo. I enjoyed the cool air all week while I was working in there and the bills have been a lot lower with the unit energy efficient system.
Paint
The old paint color was a tired looking yellow, very fashionable with builders back in 2005, not so much now. My designer (thanks Jesse) picked out Fleur de Sel, from Sherwin Williams as the wall color. My painting crew came in and painted all the walls, doors and trim in one busy day.
Lights & Fans
My electrician replaced all the lights and fans in the home with more contemporary ones and made sure I bought fans with light kits to add more light to the condo.
Bedroom
The bedroom got new floors, paint and ceiling fan with light and remote.
Porch
I added a new light on the porch. That’s an outside storage unit through the blue door
View from the porch
Floorplan
Other Information
Located in downtown Daniel Island, walking distance to all the restaurants, bars, stores, the Battery stadium, the tennis center
10 minutes to the beaches
20 minutes to downtown Charleston
10 minutes to Boeing
How much is the HOA ? $250/month & it includes water.
3rd floor unit. No one living above you.
There is a very active and social community here, who have holiday parties and lots of other fun activities.
Own for around $1000/month
If you put down 10%, your mortgage for this property will be right around $1,000 per month. This includes your monthly HOA regime fee. That includes water too.
Since it’s a condo, you’ll probably not live there forever, so getting a 7/1 adjustable rate mortgage is a good idea to get the lowest interest rate.
This keeps the rate fixed for 7 years and today they are around 3.5%
1 bed 1 bath 756 Sqft
List Price : $ 165,000
For more Details
contact
Darragh Doran | The Boulevard Company
843 452 2325 | darragh@empirecharleston.com
If you’re thinking of selling your home, read my guide to SELLING YOUR HOME that tells you how to properly prepare your home to get the top dollar in the shortest amount of time.
“Darragh has helped us purchase two homes - one when we moved from Connecticut and knew nothing about the area and the second as an investment property. There is no one who works harder or knows the Charleston area more than Darragh! He always gave unbiased opinions of properties and never pushed us to like something that wasn’t right for us. He also has great vetted connections around town and suggested many different contractors, painters, lawyers, etc that we worked with and loved! Darragh is so hands-on, but never aggressive or “salesman-y.” The relationship isn’t over once the home has been purchased. He really genuinely cares about how you live successfully in that space and if you’re happy, then he’s happy!”