History

Palmetto Dunes Resort traces its origins to the mid-1960s, when a group of physicians and business executives from Greenwood, South Carolina partnered with Charles Fraser to purchase 2,000 acres of undeveloped Hilton Head Island scrubland for $1,000 per acre. Formal development launched in 1967. The community's defining engineering feat — the 11-mile navigable lagoon system — was completed by 1968 using sand dredged from the lagoons to build storm-protective dunes along the oceanfront, a design praised internationally as a prototype for coastal resilience. The Robert Trent Jones Golf Course opened in 1968, George Fazio in 1974, and Arthur Hills in 1986. The adjacent Shelter Cove Harbour, a 200-slip deepwater marina and waterfront village, was dedicated in 1983. In 2006, property owners formally assumed governance of the community from Greenwood Development, forming the PDPOA.

Architecture & Housing Stock

Palmetto Dunes is a 2,000-acre oceanfront resort community in the center of Hilton Head Island, developed from 1967 onward. The community is defined by its engineered 11-mile navigable lagoon system — created when engineers dredged lagoons and used the sand to build protective oceanfront dunes — which provides direct water access from many backyards and serves as the community's hydrological spine. Housing ranges from compact 1970s resort villas used as rental condominiums to larger single-family homes on lagoon-front lots. Three championship golf courses (Robert Trent Jones, George Fazio, and Arthur Hills) interweave with residences. The adjacent Shelter Cove Harbour & Marina, a Mediterranean-style waterfront complex, provides owners and visitors with boutique shopping and dining without leaving the community.

Active and recently sold homes in Palmetto Dunes range from $300,000 to $5,000,000, with floor plans spanning 600–5,000 square feet. View current listings →

• Resort Villa Multi-unit oceanfront and lagoon-front condominium complexes built 1970s–1990s; many with full resort rental programs, screened porches, and communal pools.
• Coastal Contemporary Single-family homes with open-plan interiors, expansive windows facing lagoon or ocean, updated with modern finishes on original 1970s footprints.
• Plantation Traditional Larger single-family homes on generous lagoon-side lots with covered porches, cypress or Hardiplank siding, and mature live oak canopies.

Median value sourced from primary data provider.