The Best Construction Materials For Your Beach House
10/15/2024
Why It Matters
First of all, let me say that I am just a humble real estate agent and not a building professional. Please consult builders (preferably multiple builders) and “ask around” for what they are doing for construction materials here on the Outer Banks. I have a perspective and it’s based on years of going into homes at the beach and seeing which materials are holding up well in 10+ year old homes, which materials are being used on renovations and which ones are being used on new construction. Our area is different than a mountain region or a dry climate, so materials that might be fine (or even superior) in those environments could do poorly here, and vice-versa.
But the Outer Banks is a very specific environment - we have salty air, lots of wind-driven rain, and for certain areas flooding should be a consideration too. We get nor’easters churning off the coast in the winter and the occasional hurricane in the summer or fall. Wouldn’t you rather pay for something that costs a little more one time and enjoy 30 years of maintenance-free ownership? What if materials like PVC or vinyl are actually cheaper than higher-end products but hold up better in our area?
I could spend a lot of time going through the back story on a lot of these materials but for our area and for what’s available today, these are what I would consider “best practices” if you are renovating, repairing or building a home here.
Make Your House Water-Tight
This is the #1 rule and I don’t think people realize how problematic something as simple as water can be when it comes to your home. The slightest drip coming in from a window, given enough time to drip for weeks/months/years can turn into a rotten wall below the window and lots of mold to rip out. Homes here need to breathe but keeping water out should be mission #1.
Windows
A lot of homes here still have Andersen wood sashes that were installed in the 90s. At the time this was a popular choice because Andersen makes quality windows. They were using best practices for the 90s, this stuff was top of the line. And we see a lot of those windows still in homes today because they have held up for 20+ years. But if you go into a house and see black staining or “furring” on these sashes, it’s because wood isn’t great at keeping water out.
Some owners have been proactive and replaced the sills and frames with vinyl upgrades on those wood windows. And not all of them seem to decay at the same rate. But if you are looking at replacing windows now, I think vinyl is the way to go. Pella’s vinyl windows, for instance, don’t need to be painted and have unique weather protection built in to keep the water out. Fiberglass windows can also be a good option here, but the best value for the best performance that lasts longest = quality vinyl windows. You may want to use ZIP tape on your window framing as well, it’s an added layer of protection in case water makes it through.
Siding
This is another key area to focus on if you want to keep water out of your beach house. With so much wind and wind-driven rain, the slightest crack or gap in your siding can let a large amount of water through to your house sheathing. For a long time now the consensus best siding material here has been cement fiber siding (or the trademarked name, Hardie siding). But that’s been changing recently as we’ve had a 30+ year window to see how it holds up. It’s certainly a more durable choice than vinyl siding (which actually isn’t too bad in our area, just more vulnerable to wind and breakage) but it has its flaws as well. If installers nail it with galvanized nails they can rust and make your house look old and run down with all of those dripping rust stains. Then you end up having to paint it and as some of you know, that’s really expensive on a 4k sq ft 3-story house. Another issue with cement fiber siding is that the planks closest to the deck or the ground level can quickly degrade when water is constantly splashing against it.
I think the best option for a beach house now might be PVC composite siding. The last 5 or 6 years we’ve seen contractors using PVC trim boards for areas that come into contact with decks or the ground due to its great water resistant properties. They rip off the old cedar shakes or hardie planks that run close to your deck and just replace those boards with a thick white PVC trim board. Why not use the same material to side your entire house? Everlast siding is a great choice for our coastal area because it’s a polymer based “hybrid” material, the paint is melded into the top layer and water can’t cause problems over the years. Westlake Royal’s Celect is another similar option, it just expands more. Celect siding is PVC but can be a little harder to work with.
You can see an example of Everlast siding installed in Currituck County here, I stopped by and from a few feet away you would think it’s high-end wood board & batten siding.
Roof Materials
The most important line of defense against water intrusion might just be the roof over your head. Here in NC we have a program that allows owners to upgrade their standard roof for a fortified roof. There’s a big difference when it comes to wind and hurricane resistance - check out this video or this video. A fortified roof isn’t much more than a new roof either on a new construction or an existing home. And it saves you money on your homeowner’s insurance as well. The state of NC will provide you with a grant if you install a fortified roof on your home - I’ve had multiple clients take advantage of this program and get up to $8,000 back towards their roof replacement cost.
These fortified roofs offer multiple additional layers of protection vs a standard roof but they can also be asphalt shingle roofs, so there’s no huge cost difference - just pick shingles approved for this use. Metal roofs do great vs hurricanes and high winds as well, but that’s typically a much higher expense than a replacement asphalt shingle roof.
Insulation
This is something that I really didn’t focus on when I first started out as an agent because it’s hard to see what’s going on with insulation in a house - it’s typically behind the drywall or protected by plywood if used as the underpinning of a home. But over the years I’ve seen exposed underpinnings after storms, garages or 1st floor buildouts that have exposed insulation and something you might not realize is that even fiberglass retains moisture. I’ve seen homes that had flooding 3 or 4 years before an inspection but moisture was detected in the walls and floors. It was being retained by the insulation!
To me the best 2 insulation options in an area like ours are Rockwool or Hempwool. Both of these materials “wick” moisture out - they are moisture resistant but vapor permeable. So water doesn’t stay in your wall! They are also mold resistant not just because they allow moisture to move out of the material, but they have natural properties to prevent mold growth.
Tweet Of The Week
Ever since the Fed cut rates mortgage rates have gone up! But as Mr. Gammon points out here, things rarely happen in a straight line. And because investors and financials are concerned about inflation, that’s why this “sticky” mortgage rate is hanging around. Be patient and let things take their course, and I think the drop in mortgage rates will happen quickly.
In the meantime, you’ll hear all sorts of scary headlines about how mortgage applications are down or real estate sales have fallen off a cliff. If rates are higher now than they were a month ago, it makes sense that people would hold off on buying a home until rates come back down (at least to where they were a month ago).
Slow and steady wins the race.
10% Homes List
Down from 51 properties last week to 50 properties this week
29 have been on the market 90+ days
24 are listed for $1m+
Local News
Not a good meeting at the town of Kill Devil Hills commissioners meeting on Monday. They are floating the idea of restrictions on large homes (6,000+ sq ft) and new requirements since they view those homes as being ROI machines and not actual homes. If you are considering a large oceanfront (their cutoff seemed to be 11BR) I would pay extra attention to this. I’m sure existing homes will be grandfathered in on the FAR limits but requirements for “emergency lanes” may impact you. I don’t like the direction they are headed, I wish they would put a higher consideration on property rights.
I was at the Parade of Homes last week and it was great to see some new builds (although a lot were pretty standard 4-8BR rental layouts). Saw some new materials being used, met some vendors, talked with some builders, overall my favorite was the restored “Winslow Cottage” in South Nags Head. Brian Smith at Smith Contracting (no relation) is one of the better builders on the OBX, if you are looking for someone to build your dream beach house he would be my pick.
Not a lot of local news this week, and I’m out on vacation until the 21st. As always if you need anything feel free to call, but I’ll be checking emails in the evenings.
30-year mortgage rates were down 7 basis points last week - give it time…
Listing Of The Week -
1082 Whalehead Dr in Corolla. It’s not often you see a 10BR/10+BA home in Whalehead for ~$150k under comps but here it is. This is a desirable beach community with half acre lots and plenty of community walkways to the ocean! Listed for $1.899m, this home did over $145k in advertised rents this year with the owner taking multiple weeks and a few other weeks going unbooked. Rental projection on file for almost $205k/yr as well. This is the kind of house that needs some updates, some new pictures and could really take off! At almost 6,000 sq ft it has an elevator, a game room, private pool and just based on pictures and seeing those solid wood doors this was an expensive home to build. Go in and do a little renovation with some of the “latest and greatest” materials and enjoy 20+ years of rental income in an area that’s always in high demand.
Have a great rest of the week!
Here are this week's local stats:
There were 28 houses sold on the Outer Banks last week
Average sale price of those homes was $809,339
Average time on market was 56 days
There were 59 new listings last week
Based on information from the Outer Banks Association of REALTORS® MLS for the period 10/8/2024 through 10/15/2024.
Detailed Market Reports
Curious about the market in Duck or Colington Harbor? You can click the link below for more detailed info on your area:
CLICK HERE FOR MONTHLY MARKET DATA BY AREA
(just X out “Polygon Area” (the entire OBX) and enter the town you want to examine)
It doesn't matter to me if you do a real estate transaction today or 10 years from now - I want to be the agent that helps you when the time comes! This email newsletter is my way of keeping in touch with my clients and friends, but if you think someone would enjoy the information feel free to forward or share it with your friends as well!
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Stephen Smith
Real Broker, LLC
stephensmithobx@gmail.com
252-216-9230
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Great write-up about building materials, particularly interesting point about insulation.