In September 2025, South Street Partners emailed the Palmetto Bluff community. It said it had "elected not to further pursue the alternative of voluntary membership" in the Palmetto Bluff Club, as the Island Packet reported. Homes already under contract were caught in between. A buyer could sign while membership was voluntary and close after it became mandatory, at a time when joining cost $50,000. A few months later, the club cut its joining fee for new homeowners to $0.
That sequence shows how buying into Palmetto Bluff works now. The asking price is one number. The other is the club plan in force on the day you sign, and in 2026 that plan has shifted where the money goes.
Three Years, Four Changes to the Rules
Here is the order of events as public reporting describes it:
- June 2023. Palmetto Bluff Development and the Palmetto Bluff Club recorded a declaration with the Beaufort County register of deeds. It waived the requirement for new owners to join the club and let existing owners resign.
- September 17, 2025. South Street told the community it would revise the Club Membership Plan to remove the voluntary membership provisions.
- January 1, 2026. The base club joining fee went from $50,000 to $0.
- May 1, 2026. Golf club joining fees went up at every tier.
A buyer who signed at any point in this stretch faced a different cost of entry from one who signed a few months before or after. The Wall Street Journal reported in June 2026 that the club is a private, for-profit entity owned by the developer, requires mandatory membership, and runs under a structure that lets its owner change rules at its discretion.
Two Fee Changes, Four Months Apart
Membership in the base club is still required, and it covers pools, fitness centers, and restaurants. Golf is a separate, optional club. Here is the schedule the Island Packet published in March 2026, the most recent detailed schedule we have:
| Fee | Before | As of 2026 | Annual dues |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base club joining fee, mandatory | $50,000 | $0 as of Jan. 1 | Not published in that report |
| Palmetto Bluff Trust | — | — | $15,246 |
| Golf Tier I joining fee | $200,000 | $300,000 as of May 1 | $22,000, unchanged |
| Golf Tier II joining fee | $100,000 | $120,000 as of May 1 | $12,500, unchanged |
| Golf Sports joining fee | $20,000 | $30,000 as of May 1 | $5,000, unchanged |
At the mandatory level, getting in now costs less than it did a year ago. At the top golf tier, it costs $100,000 more. The Island Packet ties the base fee cut to the lawsuit over the legality of mandatory club membership. The paper reported that the exact reason for the golf increase was unclear, and that a club email to members cited growing demand for golf at Palmetto Bluff.
These were two separate decisions, but together they change who pays more. A buyer who skips golf now joins Palmetto Bluff for less than in 2025, while unlimited access to every course costs more than it did.
What Each Golf Tier Actually Buys
The tier gaps make more sense once you see which course each one opens. Palmetto Bluff has three:
- May River, the Jack Nicklaus design and the community's signature course for 20 years. Tier I has unlimited access. Tier II can reserve up to 15 tee times a year.
- Crossroads, a nine-hole reversible course in Moreland Village. Tier I and Sports members have unlimited access, and Tier II gets 15 tee times a year.
- Anson Point, the newest course, which opened in 2026. Palmetto Bluff says it covers more than 500 acres and was designed by Coore & Crenshaw. It's the only course reserved for Palmetto Bluff Club members. Tier I has unlimited play, and Tier II gets four tee times a year.
Guests of Montage Palmetto Bluff can play two of the three courses, so the course reserved for members is the one Tier I pays most to reach. A dining room has grown up around it as well. The Cottage at Anson Point opened in August with a screened porch, a firepit, and a golf shop. It's open to Golf Club Members and their invited guests, and Palmetto Bluff calls it temporary.
The Island Packet also reported that club officials are looking for a site for a fourth course.
Crossroads Puts Both Prices on the Same Lot
This fall's Crossroads homesite release brings both sides of the fee change together. Palmetto Bluff is offering 10 homesites along the Inland Waterway, each permitted for a private dock, with views across the Crossroads course. The developer calls them the first new golf-view homesites at Palmetto Bluff in two decades. It also places them at the community's center point, between Wilson Village and Moreland Village, with Anson Village still to come.
A buyer here can join the mandatory club at no joining fee and look at the course from the dock. Playing the course in the view is a separate step. The cheapest unlimited option for Crossroads is the $30,000 Sports tier, while unlimited play on all three courses is the $300,000 Tier I. Buying the homesite doesn't include any golf membership.
The Crossroads announcement also mentions a future wellness and recreation hub and more dining. Those are plans, not open amenities. The Palmetto Bluff Neighborhood Association's August 2026 newsletter said the homeowner group "would not be sanguine on the timing of any new Crossroads amenities." A buyer weighing a Crossroads lot should treat the planned amenities as just that, with no completion date attached.
Where the Litigation Stands This Fall
The fee change is tied to a case that is still open. In April 2022, a group of homeowners sued Palmetto Bluff Development, the Palmetto Bluff Club, South Street Partners, and related entities over mandatory club membership and short-term rental policies.
The latest ruling decided where the case will be heard, not who wins. On June 10, 2026, the South Carolina Supreme Court agreed with the lower courts and refused to send the case to arbitration. It held the arbitration provision unconscionable because of its 60-day limit for demanding arbitration. On July 24, 2026, the court denied the defendants' petition for rehearing, so the dispute stays in state court.
The question of whether owners can be required to join the club has not been decided. A separate suit filed in February 2026 seeks a refund of a $50,000 joining fee that was paid after the voluntary policy ended.
For a buyer, the practical point is that the schedule above reflects a club structure under active litigation. Some parts of it could change again.
What to Have in Hand Before You Sign
In 2025, the friction came from the gap between contract and closing. These are the documents and questions a Palmetto Bluff buyer can line up before signing:
- The current Club Membership Plan, and whether the contract states which version applies.
- The base club's current annual dues in writing, since the March 2026 public reporting gave the Trust dues and golf figures but not that amount.
- The current Palmetto Bluff Trust dues, last reported at $15,246 a year.
- For golfers, the current joining fee and access rules for the tier you want, plus any waitlist. When Tier I fees went up, people already on the Tier I waitlist could keep the $200,000 rate only if they started the upgrade and paid by April 15.
- For Crossroads lots, which amenities exist today and which are announced plans.
This is general information, not legal or financial advice. Membership plans and contracts carry real obligations, so have a South Carolina real estate attorney confirm how they apply to your purchase.
Questions We Hear About Palmetto Bluff's Fees
Do Palmetto Bluff homeowners have to join the club? Under the current plan, yes, for the base club. Golf membership is optional. The legality of the mandatory requirement is the subject of the lawsuit pending in Beaufort County.
Is the $0 joining fee permanent? No public source has said so. It took effect January 1, 2026, and the Island Packet described it as a response to the lawsuit.
Did the golf annual dues go up with the joining fees? Not as of the March 2026 report. Annual dues stayed at $22,000 for Tier I, $12,500 for Tier II, and $5,000 for Sports.
Can Montage guests play the member courses? Montage Palmetto Bluff guests can play two of the three courses. Anson Point is open only to club members.
If you're comparing a Crossroads homesite with a resale home elsewhere in Palmetto Bluff, or you want to know how the club costs change with each golf tier before you make an offer, I'm happy to lay the numbers out with you. Before you sign, we'll make sure the membership plan in force that day is in writing. Carolyn Kraus Realty can start that conversation today. Let's Connect.
