When Lonnie Brooks visited friends along the Outer Banks about a decade ago, he thought about how nice it would be to own a home there. One look at the prices kept him a tourist.

Not until a business trip to Washington, N.C., where he also has friends, did a second home for a weekend getaway seem possible. There's not a view of the water from the Fourth Street home he purchased, but it's close enough for him.

Jason A. Frizzelle/The Daily Reflector (ENLARGE)

Lonnie Brooks works in the yard of his Washington, N.C., home.

"With the rising prices on the coast, I kind of gave up on that thought," said Brooks, a Siler City native who lives in Raleigh and works for the Department of Transportation. "If you're on the water, that's still kind of out of my price range. If you weren't on the water itself, it was reasonably priced, I thought. It seemed like it was a good investment."

Brooks, 45, bought a two-story home, built in 1941, less than two years ago and joined the growing number of Americans purchasing second homes either for a vacation retreat, investment property or retirement spot. Second homes accounted for 36 percent of all residential property sold in the United States last year, according to the National Association of Realtors, and the abundance of rivers and beaches make eastern North Carolina a prime destination for recreation-loving baby boomers.

"The advantage of someone coming here and getting a second home is they're never more than 10 or 15 minutes from water, whether they want the river, the beach, the sound or the ocean," said Serena Sullivan, a real estate agent with Re/Max Ocean Properties in Morehead City. "That's one really nice thing about this area. ... There's a little bit of everything for everybody."

But don't expect many bargains.

Any property with a view of the water comes with a premium price, whether it's in Atlantic Beach, Beaufort, Belhaven or Bath.

Sullivan said speculation buying contributed to driving up housing costs, with investors looking to cash in on quickly escalating prices. Atlantic Beach also is undergoing a transformation with condominium complexes replacing old hotels and mobile home parks.

"There's a lot of inventory at the beach right now," Sullivan said. "There's a great selection for people. You can still get a cute condo in Morehead City for $150,000. If somebody doesn't want to spend $250,000 or $300,000, they can cross the bridge and be over to the beach in 10 minutes or less."

David Harrell and his wife, Malda, recently got a taste of the shock value when pricing condos in Atlantic Beach. They have a time share in Myrtle Beach, S.C., but wanted a vacation retreat more convenient to their Greenville home.

"I love Myrtle Beach because there is so much to do there, but it is a long ride," said David Harrell, who works at Harrell Financial Services. "... Real estate is really high. When you look at what people bought these places for back in 2002 and 2003, it's at least double for them (now). It kind of bothers me. It's ridiculous. That's been my holdup. It's so expensive."

Communities with access to water activities like many in Beaufort County benefit with buyers willing to move inland to save money, said Maria Wilson, vice president of Coldwell Banker Coastal Realty in Washington.

And a few miles — or even a couple of blocks — from the water makes a big difference in price, she said.

"We got a lot of that overflow," Wilson said. "In the Washington area and throughout Beaufort County, you're so close to the water no matter where you live. A lot of people are coming and finding that for a very moderate price they can be close to the water."

Wilson said the housing market nationwide is undergoing a correction after the bubble burst last year. A stagnant market in other areas of the country has a trickle-down effect, she said.

"The market in other areas has affected us somewhat, but we still have a brisk second home market," Wilson said. "We still have people who are selling their properties in other places and coming down and buying. It just isn't as immediate as it was. I can't say that we're not affected by that, but we aren't as affected as some other areas are."

Convenience aided by the U.S. 264 Bypass bring Triangle-area residents to the east. And it's also a quick drive for Greenvile-area resident.

"Washington's been so popular because of its proximity to Greenville, because Greenville has excellent health care, and you've got the university there and a good employment center," Wilson said. "If one spouse is working and one spouse isn't, that's been an option for a lot of my clients."

For Brooks, a Washington home was a perfect fit.

"It's a great place for boating," he said. "The Pamlico Sound is right there, so as far as taking your boat out, it's nicer than being at the coast.

"I've met all my neighbors down there," he said, "and everybody's just as friendly as can be."

Mike Grizzard can be contacted at mgrizzard@coxnc.com and 329-9580.