What HOA Documents Should You Review Before Buying in a Myrtle Beach Gated Community?
Myrtle Beach Luxury Home is a boutique real estate experience serving buyers and sellers across Myrtle Beach and the surrounding areas.
The head agent, Rick Sarver, has years of real estate and business-owner experience and has lived in the Myrtle Beach area for over 15 years.
Every client works directly with Rick from first showing through closing.
Buying into a gated community on the Grand Strand means buying into the HOA. The physical property is only half the transaction — the association's financial health, governing restrictions, and legal obligations follow the deed and bind every subsequent owner. Buyers who review HOA documents carefully before going under contract protect themselves from special assessments, rental restrictions, architectural conflicts, and community instability that never appear on listing pages. Here is what to request, and what to look for in each document.
Why Choose Rick?
COMMUNITY ROOTS
Rick and DeAnn Sarver have called Myrtle Beach home since 2010. They built a business here, planted a church here, and raised a family here. When Rick represents you, you're working with someone who knows this market the way only a long-term resident can — the neighborhoods, the HOAs, the flood zones, and the people.
LOCAL EXPERTISE
From oceanfront estates on the Golden Mile to gated communities in Grande Dunes and Cypress River Plantation, Rick knows the Grand Strand's luxury segment inside and out. He's tracked this market through growth cycles, inventory shifts, and post-storm re-sales. That depth means smarter pricing, sharper negotiation, and no guesswork when it's time to move.
PEOPLE FIRST
Rick returns calls. He listens before he talks. And he'll tell you the truth about a property — even when it's not what you want to hear. No assistants, no coordinators, no handoffs. Every client gets Rick directly, from first showing to closing day.
Connect with Rick
The Governing Documents:
CC&Rs, Bylaws, and Rules and Regulations
The Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions — CC&Rs — are recorded against the property and bind every owner who purchases into the community. They establish what you can and cannot do with your property: rental use, exterior modifications, signage, pet restrictions, and occupancy limitations. On the Grand Strand, CC&Rs in communities like DeBordieu Colony, Wachesaw Plantation, and Prestwick contain deed-level rental restrictions that prohibit short-term use regardless of what Horry or Georgetown County zoning permits. These are not HOA policies subject to board discretion — they are deed restrictions enforceable by any neighboring owner. Reading the CC&Rs before making an offer is not optional due diligence at the luxury price point. A buyer in a coastal condo who skipped meeting minutes review received a $35,000 special assessment four months after closing — the project had been discussed by the board for 18 months and was visible throughout the minutes.
The bylaws govern how the association itself operates — board elections, voting rights, meeting requirements, assessment procedures, and the process for levying special assessments. Understanding whether a special assessment requires a membership vote or can be levied by board action alone is material information for any buyer whose ownership economics depend on predictable monthly carrying costs. Rules and regulations cover day-to-day living and can be changed by the board without a member vote — making it worth reviewing recent board meeting minutes to see if any rule changes relevant to your intended use are under active discussion.
The Reserve Study and Financial Statements
South Carolina does not currently require HOAs to conduct reserve studies by law, though House Bill 5204 — currently moving through the 2025–2026 legislative session — proposes requiring reserve studies every three years for new HOAs and a fully funded reserve account standard. Whether or not state law requires it, the reserve study is the single most important financial document a buyer can review before purchasing in any Grand Strand gated community. It documents the condition and remaining useful life of all major common elements — roofs, roads, gates, pools, elevators, club facilities — and assesses whether the association has adequate reserves to fund their replacement. A reserve study older than five years should be treated as outdated — component conditions and replacement costs change materially over that timeframe in coastal South Carolina's climate.
An association with a reserve fund below 50 percent of fully funded status carries meaningful special assessment risk. Some Grand Strand condo associations have issued assessments of $20,000 to $60,000 per unit in a single cycle when reserve underfunding converged with a major capital expense. Annual HOA fee increases of 3 to 5 percent are typical and healthy — they keep pace with inflation and maintenance costs. Increases significantly above that range, or no increases over many years, are both signals worth investigating. Request the most recent reserve study, current financial statements, the last 12 to 24 months of HOA meeting minutes, and special assessment history for the past five years.
What Rick Reviews Before Clients Go Under Contract
Rick requests the full HOA document package — CC&Rs, bylaws, rules and regulations, current budget, reserve study, financial statements, and last 12 months of meeting minutes — on every gated community transaction before clients go under contract. He specifically confirms rental permission status at the sub-community level, reviews reserve fund adequacy against community asset age, checks for pending or discussed special assessments in meeting minutes, and confirms club membership terms, transfer fees, and initiation costs where applicable. None of this is delegated to a coordinator. Contact Rick Sarver at Myrtle Beach Luxury Home before you make an offer on any Grand Strand gated community property.