Coakley Bay Condos???

Hi,
We have owned a condo since 2003 there and just love it. We moved here on a permanent basis in January.

Before I give you the pros/cons, in the interest of full disclosure, my husband recently joined the Board.

Here are the pros:
--full time staffed office, plus maintenance and grounds crews
--well maintained property
--great views of the ocean, some with Buck Island views
--lush, mature landscaping
--100 units, although it seems like most are seasonal folks--it's pretty quite now
--reasonable maintenance costs, which includes the cost of water
--nice pool
--onsite restaurant, open for part of the year (Cultured Pelican)
--owners may rent their condos

Here are the cons:
--no back up generator
--no security, although that doesn't really seem to be an issue
--some of the units (like ours!) had 20+ steps up to the front door
--not right on the beach, although a pretty beach is within walking distance
--units near the restaurant have issues with parking and some noise
--owners may rent their condos--sometimes enthusiastic groups rent for a week and it gets a bit noisy, although that usually is dealt with at the time it happens

My husband created a website for Coakley that you might be interested in seeing: http://www.coakleybay.org/

Let me know if you have any other questions. KJ

The buildings look somewhat dated from the outside. They have problems with their sewer system. However the people that do live there seem to be satisfied.

Jim

Are you coming for a short stay, long term rental or buying? If you're coming for a short stay the only thing I would add to the above post is you will definitely need a car. If its a long term rental and a good price, jump on it. If you're looking to buy it's most likely a good investment at the right price of coarse, but explore all the options before you do so.

I have friends who live there and love it. The views are incredible. It is within walking distance to Carden Beach, Chicken Charlies and Smokeys gas station which has a little store for staples and his wife serves up breakfast and lunch. Chicken Charlies has trivia night, movie night and entertainment on the weekends. They are also putting on the Rocky Horror picture show Saturday the 20th of June. Chenay Beach Resort is a short drive away and they have weekly specials like Friday all you can eat fish fry and Saturday night steak night. On Sundays they have afternoon family type entertainment. Just past Chenay Bay is Cheeseburgers in Americas Paradise. They have nightly food specials and entertainment on the weekends. They also have a play area for children. The Buccaneer Resort and Golf course is just a short drive away as well.

Any updates for Coakley Bay Condos?

Any updates for Coakley Bay Condos?

Hi Edward
I think this 2008 thread pretty well covers it. I understand that they now have a back up generator system. The restaurant has gone through some changes. They took a terrible beating from Hurricane Hugo in 1989, so they learned a lot during the rebuilding process. My wife and I looked at them several years ago, but she was put off by the steep hillside walks up and down. There are several currently on the market and prices are getting better. Great views.

Yes, the walk down to the beach is not easy, and walking back up is even tougher.

As I noted above, I live at Coakley. There have been some significant changes since that last post:

--A new generator system has been installed (100% power for everything in your unit & can run for 2 full weeks). There are actually three generators (for redundancy) for the complex. I have enjoyed this the most, as I really disliked the constant power outages.

--Complex-wide wi-fi has been installed

--Sewer system has been upgraded (I don't know what that means exactly, but everything works fine)

--New signage was installed to enhance safety (makes it easier for fire trucks & ambulances to find the buildings) & aesthetics

--Buildings are on a standard rotation for painting the roofs and external walls

--Most (perhaps all) pumps have replacements at the facility so the water supply is constant & the R/O facility stays on-line

--24/7 call in number for emergency maintenance issues

--New owner at the restaurant and the restaurant is terrific

In the interest of full disclosure, my husband was on the board last year, but is not on it now.

Hope that helps, Kim

I visited a unit at Coakley Bay Condos this morning.

I verified all of the upgrades Kim mentioned, especially the new generator system. Wow!

The view was spectacular. Looks like Buck Island is right outside the balcony.

We lived there last summer for 4 months. We really liked it but we were in a lower unit with no air flow and mold issues. Generator worked great, tap water is purfied and the place is well maintained. Pool was great too. I would live there again but higher up. All the mant. crew are really great guys....beach is a walk . Top side is also right there and Ziggys.

Lots of nice Condo's- there are some 15 Condos ups for sale between 150k and 324k, fees run between 750 and 850 a month. Most of these listings have been listed this year. Anything over 225k I would think is wishful thinking.

Not too long ago, you couldn;t touch these Condos for under 250-275k, with 300k not being that uncommon. Remember that over the past 10 years, Condo's exploded in prices- for instance; in 2003 a Condo at Mill Harbor for a 2/2 was on the market for around 50k, St C, about 75-90k.

By 2009, some of the ST C Condo's were listed at 175k, Mill Harbor around 125k. Coakley experienced the same type of appreciation in value.

Now here in 2012- following the recent "developments" of our Island's Economy- prices are already sliding. (I take no pleasure in stating this by the way) Hovensa and their Contractors and Sub-Contractors were the major portion of the Condo Owners and Renters. Yes, these large corporate concerns were supplying between $2000 and $2500 a month in Housing Allowances- with some of the Contractors paying for "the whole ride". This is now drying up- large scale. That means that a lot of Condos will hit the market, there will be a glut of rental properties on the market and prices will resultantly go down (again, I take no delight in this).

It would be better served (if possible) to wait before buying a condo in the present market condition, because I'd be willing to bet that a 40% reduction or more from last year's market prices will be realized by mid 2013. The agents would probably down play this to keep their sales volume up- but make no mistake......

Finally, unless a development is self insured- if they are in a pooled insurance resource (similar to Marine P&I types) then if (God Forbid) we have a storm incursion with consequences- or if the Gulf Coast gets hit badly- then ALL of the rates go up- on a cash call basis- thereby raising the monthly fees.

Make no mistake, Coakley is one of the best places on STX to live- but I personally would wait...

Hi all.....We have a well renovated Coakley Bay condo for long term rental. If interested please PM.

It is one on the best places to live on STX and well priced! Many great amenties.