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Hilton Head Builders

843-892-6227
843-892-6227

Let's Build Your Dream Together

Building a custom home in Hilton Head Island

Building a custom home on Hilton Head Island is a different undertaking than building almost anywhere else in the Lowcountry. Every lot sits inside a maritime forest, a marsh system, or a barrier island shoreline, and the island’s plan review process was built around protecting that. Hilton Head Builders has worked on the island since 1995, based at 222 Halyard Dr, and builds custom homes, new construction, and large-scale renovations across Hilton Head Island, Bluffton, and Okatie, generally in the 1.5 to 2.5 million dollar range.

Ed Flynn owns and runs the company directly. On a project of this size, that matters. The person making decisions about your budget, your schedule, and your subcontractors is the person you are talking to, not a layer removed from it.

This page is for people who already own a homesite on Hilton Head Island, or are close to buying one, and are trying to work out who should build the house.

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What building here actually involves

Hilton Head Island is a barrier island, and conditions vary block by block. A lot under a live oak canopy near Broad Creek behaves differently than an oceanfront lot on the south end, and both behave differently than an interior lot near a lagoon. Before design work starts in earnest, a few things about the specific site typically need to be worked out:

Tree cover and setbacks

Grand and specimen trees are protected under the town’s tree ordinance, and a mature oak canopy can dictate where a house sits on the lot more than the lot lines do

Elevation and flood zone

Much of the island falls within FEMA-mapped flood zones, and requirements affect foundation type, finished floor height, and in some cases whether a home is built on piers

Marsh and wetland buffers

Lots backing onto marsh or a lagoon carry buffer and setback requirements separate from standard zoning setbacks

Architectural character

Homes here tend toward a Lowcountry vernacular, including elevated construction, deep porches, metal or shake roofing, and muted exterior palettes, though the degree of formality varies by neighborhood

Primary residence or second home

A large share of construction here is for people relocating full time, building a retirement home, or building a second home used seasonally, which affects how a project gets sequenced and managed from a distance

None of this is unusual to anyone who has built here before. It is worth knowing up front if you have not.

The review and approval process

This is the part that catches people off guard who have built elsewhere. Hilton Head Island reviews development activity under its Land Management Ordinance, and depending on the scope of a project, that can include review from the Town’s Design Review Board in addition to standard permitting and staff-level plan review.
If your lot sits inside a gated community, several of which, including Sea Pines, Wexford, Port Royal, Palmetto Dunes, Long Cove, and Callawassie, maintain their own architectural review body on top of the Town’s process, your design will also need approval from that community’s review board or committee before you can pull a permit. We’ve written a separate page walking through how each of the island’s major architectural review boards works, since the requirements differ meaningfully from one community to the next.
The specifics of any one project, what gets reviewed, in what order, and how revisions are handled, depend on the lot, the community, and the scope of work, and we go through that in detail once we know your site. What we won’t do here is give you a generic answer that doesn’t hold up once your specific lot is in front of a reviewer.

How we work

Most custom builders price a project as cost plus a percentage. We don’t. Hilton Head Builders works on a flat builder fee instead of a percentage markup, which means our compensation doesn’t go up when the project costs more. Clients see the actual project bills directly, and project funds are held in a separate account for that project rather than combined with the company’s operating funds. This isn’t a pricing gimmick or a discount pitch. It’s a structure that gives you visibility into where the money is going and removes the incentive problems that come with a percentage-based fee. We’ve written more about how the model works on its own page, and we’re glad to walk through it in detail before you sign anything.

Lots and homesites

Some clients come to us with a lot already under contract. Others are still deciding between two or three homesites and want a builder’s read on what each one actually involves before they commit. Either way, a few things are worth checking on a Hilton Head lot before you design around it:

A current survey and, where relevant, an elevation certificate

The buildable envelope once setbacks, buffers, and tree protection are applied

Soil and drainage conditions, particularly on lots near marsh or lagoon

Utility access, including whether the lot is on town water and sewer
Any community-specific restrictions on height, footprint, or style

If you’re still evaluating a lot, we’re glad to walk it with you before you’re under contract, not just after.

What it costs

Hilton Head Builders generally works on projects in the 1.5 to 2.5 million dollar range, whether that’s a new custom home or a large-scale renovation of 500,000 dollars or more. We don’t take on kitchen or bathroom remodels or general handyman work; the projects we build are substantial enough to justify the level of oversight and the flat-fee structure described above.

Cost on any given project is driven mostly by the lot. Grading, foundation type, tree protection, and utility work can vary widely even between two lots in the same neighborhood, and finish level makes a significant difference on top of that. We’ll give you a real number once we’ve seen your site and talked through what you want, not a per-square-foot figure that doesn’t hold up once the details are in.

Talk to us about your lot

If you own a homesite on Hilton Head Island, or you’re deciding between a few, the most useful next step is usually a conversation, not a proposal. Call Ed Flynn directly at 843-892-6227, or reach out through the site, and we’ll talk through your lot, your timeline expectations, and what the review process looks like for your specific community. Hilton Head Builders is based at 222 Halyard Dr, Hilton Head Island, SC 29926.

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FAQs

Do you build outside Hilton Head Island proper?
Yes. Alongside Hilton Head Island, we build in Bluffton and Okatie.
Yes. Each of those communities runs its own architectural review process on top of the Town’s. See our page on the island’s architectural review boards for how each one works, or ask us directly about your specific community.
We take on substantial renovations, generally 500,000 dollars and above. We don’t take on kitchen or bathroom remodels or smaller renovation work.
Instead of charging a percentage of the project’s cost, we charge a flat fee agreed on up front. You see the actual project bills, and your funds are held in a separate project account. It’s a structural difference, not a discount.

Yes. You can verify any South Carolina contractor’s license directly through the SC LLR license lookup.

It depends on the lot, the community’s review process, and the scope of the project. We’ll walk you through a realistic schedule for your specific site once we’ve seen it, rather than quoting a general timeframe that may not apply.