458E2 - Oceanfront House

Not for everyone, but will be an adventure for others!
When we decided late into the summer to take a one week rental at the Carolina Coast the pickin's were kind of slim. When I go to the beach, I want to be AT and ON the beach or I don't care to go at all. Well, with this house we couldn't have been any closer to the beach and the water without actually being on a boat! Warning, high tide when the water rushes under the house and slams into the ginormous sandbags and stilts supporting the home can be a little intimidating. Folks with anxiety or fear of water may not like the sensation at all. My family was mesmerized when we arrived at high tide to witness it. Sadly the owners appear to be putting all their money into saving the home and it's outer upkeep to the detriment of the interior which needs "help" it is not receiving. The biggest issue for us was literally nothing comfortable to sit on. The coach is from around 1988 and is flat as a pancake at this point. The home may technically sleep a lot of people but the beds were pretty awful too. Only the master king bed was decent and every other bed really only appropriate for small kids or teens. I hope the owners read this review and consider updating these old mattresses and the couch! I do realize this house is one good hurricane away from total destruction but hey, that's what insurance is for - give your guests something decent to sit and sleep on while you are still raking in the rental money! Positives for us were that the moon was full our week at the house and we thoroughly enjoyed the top deck every single night. With bright moonlight like that you can just really enjoy the waves and stars. Getting your feet in the sand is quick and easy, even when the tide is high because of the empty lot next to the house. You just sit further up on it and move out in front of the house once the tide begins to go down. At low tide you have a huge expanse of beach, and mostly to yourself because the condo/motel complex two doors down has no easy access to the beach so there are just not a lot of people on it. Since the pandemic is still raging we were specifically looking for a house with elbow room like this and no crowd to have to share the beach with. On the one rainy day we had we all enjoyed the lowest deck (there are 3) because it is built under the house and kept us dry from the rain while we continued to enjoy the sea breezes and views. That deck appeared to be brand new, as was a really nice outdoor shower. We later learned these had been improved and redone in the last year. In pictures on the Sloane site there didn't appear to be any outdoor furniture so we brought deck chairs with us, which was inconvenient and could have been avoidable with better pics. It was a nice surprise to see 3 rockers on the middle deck when we got there, along with a kayak no picture had shown and my husband did use. The kitchen was "fine" though I am glad I did bring along my two favorite pots since the homes pots were not great. The oven, fridge and dishwasher worked well. And I should add, the homes AC was good. Really, if I heard the owners bought new beds and a couch I wouldn't hesitate to rent this home again in the future even if the place is really dated and the bathrooms pretty tiny. It's also worth mentioning the flat screen tv's were nice, though the internet a little spotty. Sloane was easy to deal with and very responsive the times I called, which I appreciate. I would rent with them again for sure. So bottom line, GO, see it while it lasts because it will not be there in 10 years and unless you rent a house boat you are never going to stay this close to the water and beach anywhere else :), as long as you can handle a not so great mattress and don't plan to sit on the couch to watch the tv. My family loved Ocean Isle and our time on the beach.

- Kathleen S from Fancy Gap, VA, Posted: 08/30/2021

mrs
the house was very nice in that is was private d/t the location, very close to the beach, awesome views, but after being at the beach and seeing other homes and checking them out on line it was very dated for the price, the location made up for the defects but not sure would rent it again for that price.

- bethanie A , Posted: 08/01/2015