Short answer: Port Royal Plantation is a 24-hour gated residential community of more than 1,000 acres and over 970 homes at the north end of Hilton Head Island, on both Port Royal Sound and the Atlantic. Its covenants, restated in December 2025, prohibit rentals shorter than 180 continuous days and any timeshare or fractional ownership. The 2026 annual assessment is $2,282 for an improved lot and $1,940 for an unimproved lot, and a transfer fee of one-half of 1% has applied to home sales since May 2017. Golf club membership is optional.
Key facts
- Size: more than 1,000 acres and over 970 homes (Association of Land Owners of Port Royal Plantation).
- Gate: staffed 24 hours; every vehicle needs a decal or pass (association rules).
- Rentals: anything under 180 continuous days is a prohibited short-term rental (Second Amended and Restated Declaration, December 10, 2025).
- 2026 assessment: $2,282 for an improved lot, $1,940 for an unimproved lot. A separate Beach House Assessment applies to every owner (association).
- Transfer fee: one-half of 1% on home sales, in effect since May 2017 (association).
- Beach: about 1 mile of beach and 21 association beach access paths, three with parking (association).
- Golf: Port Royal Golf Club membership is not required (association).
- Minimum home size: 1,700 sq ft enclosed, with at least 1,500 sq ft on the main living floor, excluding screen porches and garages (Declaration).
What kind of community is Port Royal?
It's a private residential community. The association describes it as having no commercial development or short-term rentals and calls it the island's only completely private oceanfront residential community; its own lifestyle page notes that the Port Royal Golf Club and the Westin Hilton Head Island Resort are situated in the Port Royal community. Under the declaration, homes are detached single-family houses, except in one area the plat sets aside for attached or detached homes.
The association runs an oceanfront pool, the Beach House (rebuilt and reopened in January 2019 after a landowner vote), six pickleball courts, two tennis courts, leisure paths and three historic sites, including the Steam Gun and Fort Sherman.
Can you rent a home in Port Royal?
Only on long leases. The Second Amended and Restated Declaration, made December 10, 2025 and recorded in Book 4490 at Page 3304, says short-term rentals are prohibited and defines short-term as less than 180 continuous days. The exceptions are narrow:
- A rental between a buyer and seller under a binding purchase contract, as part of that sale.
- A shorter lease that continues an existing lease of at least 180 days between the same parties.
- One owner leasing another owner's home for at least 90 days.
Before any lease or renewal takes effect, the owner and tenant both sign the association's lease approval form and give the association a copy of the lease. The declaration also bans selling or using a home through timesharing, interval or fractional ownership, or similar rotating-use arrangements. If your plan depends on rental income, Port Royal isn't the place for it. A Town short-term rental permit doesn't override the covenants.
What will you pay?
The 2026 annual assessment is $2,282 for an improved lot and $1,940 for an unimproved lot. Each landowner is also responsible for the Beach House Assessment, from the multi-million-dollar rebuild completed in 2019. The association publishes its budgets, audits and a reserve study on its website.
A transfer fee of one-half of 1% has applied to home sales since May 2017. The association's page doesn't say who pays it, so confirm that in the contract and with the closing attorney. It's in addition to the Town of Hilton Head Island's 0.25% transfer fee.
How do the gate and guest passes work?
Owners get resident decals at the Administration Office for vehicles registered to them or to immediate family living at their Port Royal address. Renters named on a lease get a renter decal that lasts no longer than the lease. Owners can buy one relative decal a year for each family member living within 50 miles.
For guests, owners can issue a one-day pass (driving only to and from the owner's home), an overnight pass, a multi-day pass of 1 to 30 days, or a 30-day pass of daily entries. Contractors without an annual pass need an owner-requested pass, interior-only weekend work is limited to 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and estimate passes are free. Golf carts aren't allowed on the roads unless grandfathered or approved by the association with a decal.
What does the Plans Approval Board review?
Everything built on a lot, from houses to fences and signs, plus drainage, landscaping and sewage plans. If work doesn't start within 120 days of approval, the plans must be resubmitted. From the guidelines amended January 1, 2026:
| Item | Fee or deposit |
|---|---|
| New construction review | $2,000 |
| Escrow deposit, new residence | $8,000 |
| Major addition or renovation review | $750 |
| Standard addition review | $500 |
| Variance application | $500 |
| Change request review | $200 |
| Interior remodeling, tree removal, exterior painting, roof replacement | No fee (application still required for the minor exterior items) |
| Permit extension, days 1 to 90 past expiration | $100 a month |
How we help
We send Port Royal listings, request the association's resale documents and the current lease rules, and make sure the transfer fee and Beach House Assessment are accounted for in your numbers. We pull the flood zone and any elevation certificate on file with the Town before you commit.
How do you get to the beach?
Port Royal has about a mile of beach where Port Royal Sound meets the Atlantic. The association owns 21 beach access paths spread along the shore, 10 to 50 feet wide. Only three have parking: the Steam Gun, Fort Walker Park and the Beach House. Each path's sign shows the association's number and the nearest Town beach marker, for emergency response.
Homes along the sound and ocean are exposed to storm surge, and flood zones change from street to street. Check the exact parcel with the Town's flood hazard search and see our flood zone guide.
Questions
Are short-term rentals allowed in Port Royal Plantation?
No. The December 2025 restated declaration prohibits rentals of less than 180 continuous days, with narrow exceptions, and every lease needs the association's lease approval form. Timeshare and fractional ownership are also banned.
Does Port Royal Plantation charge a transfer fee?
Yes. The association says a transfer fee of one-half of 1% has applied to home sales since May 2017. The Town's 0.25% transfer fee is separate, and the resale documents show any other charges.
Do you have to join the Port Royal Golf Club?
No. The association says golf club membership is not required to live in Port Royal. The club is part of the Heritage Collection operated by Heritage Golf Group.
Sources
- Prospective Landowners and Realtors, Association of Land Owners of Port Royal Plantation (checked October 2026)
- Second Amended and Restated Declaration of Covenants and Restrictions, December 10, 2025 (checked October 2026)
- Rules and Regulations, Port Royal Plantation (checked October 2026)
- PAB Guidelines, amended January 1, 2026, Port Royal Plantation (checked October 2026)
- Lifestyle, Port Royal Plantation (checked October 2026)