Pawleys Island is a tiny coastal town (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of South Carolina. With a population of 134 people and five associated neighborhoods, Pawleys Island is the 282nd largest community in South Carolina. Pawleys Island home prices are not only among the most expensive in South Carolina, but Pawleys Island real estate also consistently ranks among the most expensive in America.Pawleys Island is a decidedly white-collar town, with fully 94.12% of the workforce employed in white-collar jobs, well above the national average. Overall, Pawleys Island is a town of sales and office workers, managers, and professionals. There are especially a lot of people living in Pawleys Island who work in sales jobs (37.25%), business and financial occupations (17.65%), and management occupations (13.73%). Of important note, Pawleys Island is also a town of artists. Pawleys Island has more artists, designers and people working in media than 90% of the communities in America. This concentration of artists helps shape Pawleys Island’s character. Telecommuters are a relatively large percentage of the workforce: 28.57% of people work from home. While this number may seem small overall, as a fraction of the total workforce it is high relative to the nation. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes. Another notable thing is that Pawleys Island is an extremely popular destination for tourists and seasonal residents. So much of the population is seasonal such that the town’s population swells significantly during the vacation season, and drops again when the season ends. Because of this, much of the local economy is centered around tourism; some businesses may be operated only during the high season. During the low season, year-round residents will notice that the city is a substantially quieter place to live. In addition, Pawleys Island is home to many people who could be described as "urban sophisticates". Urban sophisticates are people who are both educated and wealthy, and thus tend to be older, richer, and more established than young professionals. "Urban sophisticates" is not just about being educated and well-off financially: it is a point of view and state of mind, one that you might call 'urbaneness'. But such people can and do regularly live in small towns, suburbs and rural areas, as well as in big cities. They read, support the arts and high-end shops, and love travel. Because of many things, Pawleys Island is a great place for families with children to consider. First of all, many other families with children live here, making Pawleys Island a place where both parents and children are more likely to develop social ties with other families, as well as find family-oriented services and community. The town’s good public school district and large population of college-educated adults provide an environment conducive to academic values. With regard to real estate, Pawleys Island has a high rate of owner-occupied single family homes, which tends to reflect stability in the local community. Finally, Pawleys Island’s overall crime rate is lower than average for the country. It is a fairly quiet town because there are relatively few of those groups of people who have a tendency to be noisy. (Children, for example, often can't help themselves from being noisy, and being parents ourselves, we know!) Pawleys Island has relatively few families with children living at home, and is quieter because of it. Renters and college students, for their own reasons, can also be noisy. Pawleys Island has few renters and college students. But the biggest reason it is quieter in Pawleys Island than in most places in America, is that there are just simply fewer people living here. If you think trees make good neighbors, Pawleys Island may be for you. One of the nice things about Pawleys Island is that it is nautical, which means that parts of it are somewhat historic and touch the ocean or tidal bodies of water, such as inlets and bays. Because of this, visitors and locals will often go to these areas to take in the scenery or to enjoy waterfront activities. Residents of the town have the good fortune of having one of the shortest daily commutes compared to the rest of the country. On average, they spend only 15.21 minutes getting to work every day.Do you have a 4-year college degree or graduate degree? If so, you may feel right at home in Pawleys Island. 88.02% of adults here have a 4-year degree or graduate degree, whereas the national average for all cities and towns is just 21.84%. The per capita income in Pawleys Island in 2022 was $116,778, which is wealthy relative to South Carolina and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $467,112 for a family of four. However, Pawleys Island contains both very wealthy and poor people as well. The people who call Pawleys Island home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Pawleys Island residents report their race to be White, followed by Native American. Important ancestries of people in Pawleys Island include English, German, Irish, Scottish, and Swedish. The most common language spoken in Pawleys Island is English. Other important languages spoken here include African languages and Arabic.
