If you have orders to Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort and you are deciding where to buy, the useful comparison is simple: how long it takes to reach the main gate, and what homes there have actually sold for. Setup for the move itself, including BAH, schools, and how to use a house-hunting trip, is in our PCS to Beaufort guide. This post is the purchase decision.
The gate address we routed to is the Visitor's Center at 859 Geiger Blvd, Building 2077, Beaufort, SC 29904, from the installation's check-in listing on Military OneSource (read October 6, 2026). Gate details, on-base housing, and the BAH examples we publish live on the MCAS Beaufort page. Start with the military hub if you are also looking at Parris Island or Naval Hospital Beaufort.
How we measured the drive
Distances and times below are routing estimates run on October 6, 2026, with no live traffic. Each trip starts at a named point from OpenStreetMap Nominatim and ends at the geocode of 859 Geiger Blvd. We ran every trip on two public engines, the OSRM API and Valhalla (FOSSGIS). The distance is the OSRM result rounded to the nearest tenth of a mile. Valhalla matched it within 0.02 miles. The time is the range between the two engines, rounded to the nearest minute. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.
These are points on a map, so a house on the far side of the same area will differ. Neither engine includes gate traffic or a shift change. Add time for the hour you actually drive.
| From | Point we routed | Distance | Drive time, no traffic |
|---|
| Burton, closer point | Nominatim place "Burton" in 29904 | 2.7 mi | 4 to 5 min |
| Burton, broader point | Nominatim locality "Burton" | 4.2 mi | 7 min |
| Downtown Beaufort | Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park | 6.0 mi | 9 to 10 min |
| Lady's Island, near the bridge | Sea Island Parkway just east of the Woods Memorial Bridge | 6.9 mi | 9 to 12 min |
| Lady's Island, Sams Point Road | Sams Point Road at Newpoint / Sherwood Forest (29907) | 8.7 mi | 12 to 15 min |
| Shell Point | Nominatim place point for Shell Point | 7.4 mi | 11 to 12 min |
| Port Royal | Town Hall, 700 Paris Avenue | 10.1 mi | 13 to 16 min |
Lady's Island sits east of downtown, across the Woods Memorial Bridge. The air station is west of downtown, so that drive comes back through Beaufort before it reaches Geiger Boulevard.
What homes have been selling for
Use a city figure, and keep the county figure in its place. Zillow does not publish a Lady's Island home-value index. The Lady's Island Zillow page says so, and shows Beaufort County instead: a typical value of $553,576, up 1.6% over the year, updated August 31, 2026. That county number includes Hilton Head Island and Bluffton. A house near the air station should be compared with the city numbers below.
For Burton, the city of Beaufort, and Port Royal, Redfin publishes the same median-sale series. The figures are for all home types over the three months ending August 2026. Pages read October 6, 2026. The sale count is homes sold in August. The median is the three-month figure, so a month with 18 sales is a thin read on its own.
| Place | Median sale price | Vs. a year earlier | Homes sold in August 2026 | Median days on market |
|---|
| Burton | $353,765 | Up 2.5% | 18 | 65 |
| Beaufort | $465,692 | Down 3.1% | 75 | 72 |
| Port Royal | $409,729 | Up 5.3% | 56 | 77 |
Redfin's median sale price per square foot for that same period was $254 in Burton (down 1.9%), $303 in Beaufort (up 8.0%), and $181 in Port Royal (down 4.0%). Port Royal's sale median sits under Beaufort's, and the price per square foot is lower still, which is a size-and-mix difference, not a one-line "cheaper houses" claim. Sale-to-list on those Redfin pages was 98.8% in Burton, 98.1% in Beaufort, and 98.0% in Port Royal.
Zillow's Home Value Index is a different statistic. It is a typical value for the housing stock, updated August 31, 2026, and the pages call it the average home value. Burton was $354,208 (up 0.9%). Beaufort was $413,383 (up 1.3%). Port Royal was $366,809 (up 7.2%). Burton's index and Burton's Redfin sale median are nearly the same number. Beaufort's and Port Royal's are not, because a recent sale median and a value index answer different questions. Both are cited above. We are not averaging them.
Lady's Island and Shell Point are not in that Redfin city set. The figures below are the citywide rows on Realtor.com's market pages for September 2026, read October 6, 2026.
Burton
Burton is the short drive. The closer Nominatim point, in 29904, was 2.7 miles and 4 to 5 minutes. The broader Burton place point was 4.2 miles and 7 minutes. If the house you like is on the far side of Burton, put that address in a map before you treat either number as your commute.
On price, Burton is the low end of the three Redfin cities: a $353,765 median sale price for the three months ending August 2026, with 18 sales that August. Search Burton homes or read the Burton area page.
Beaufort
From Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park the route was 6.0 miles and 9 to 10 minutes. Downtown is small. A house west of Bay Street will be shorter than the park, and a house out toward the Point will be longer. The Redfin median sale price for the city was $465,692, on 75 sales in August 2026.
That is the city of Beaufort, not the historic district by itself and not every subdivision on the island. Search Beaufort homes and the Beaufort area page are the live inventory. For a street-by-street feel of downtown, Habersham, and the Point, the neighborhood guide is the lifestyle piece. The prices in this post are the ones with a date and a source.
Lady's Island
Two points, because the island is long. Sea Island Parkway just east of the Woods Memorial Bridge was 6.9 miles and 9 to 12 minutes. Sams Point Road at the Newpoint / Sherwood Forest segment (29907) was 8.7 miles and 12 to 15 minutes. The Sams Point trip OSRM returned crossed the Woods Memorial Bridge, then Carteret Street and Boundary Street, before Trask Parkway and Geiger Boulevard. The parkway point is east of that bridge as well.
Realtor.com's Ladys Island market page for September 2026 shows a median sold price of $490,000 (down 12.88% from a year earlier) and a median listing price of $549,900 (down 12.89%). There were 294 homes listed, with a median 88 days on market, and homes sold 3.48% below the asking price. Zillow did not offer a separate Lady's Island index, so there is no second value figure to put next to that sold price. Search Lady's Island homes or open the Lady's Island area page.
Port Royal
From Town Hall at 700 Paris Avenue the route was 10.1 miles and 13 to 16 minutes, the longest point in the table. The OSRM trip ran Paris Avenue to Ribaut Road, across the Russell Bell Bridge, then Parris Island Gateway and Trask Parkway out to Geiger Boulevard.
Redfin's median sale price was $409,729 for the three months ending August 2026, up 5.3%, with 56 sales in August and a median 77 days on market. Zillow's typical value was lower, at $366,809 as of August 31, 2026. Read them as two metrics. The town's waterfront, the Sands, and the boardwalk are covered in the Port Royal guide. Listings are on the Port Royal area page and in search.
Shell Point
The Shell Point place point from Nominatim was 7.4 miles and 11 to 12 minutes. That is a single point for the area, so an address at either end of Shell Point will move the number.
Realtor.com's Shell Point market page for September 2026 shows a median sold price of $371,800 (up 7.77% from a year earlier) and a median listing price of $410,000 (down 5.64%). Only 17 homes were listed, with a median 82 days on market, and sales closed 2.52% below asking. Seventeen listings is a thin market. One or two sales will swing the next median. Search Shell Point homes or see the Shell Point area page.
Before you write the offer
Aircraft noise. MCAS Beaufort is an active air station. Beaufort County's AICUZ page (read October 6, 2026) says the county adopted the MCAS Airport Overlay District in 2004 from F-18 sound, and that it is proposing new boundaries for the F-35B mission, three squadrons, and a pilot training center, using Department of Defense sound modeling. The page links an interactive map and a PDF. Look up the address you want to buy. We are not going to tell you from a town name whether that house sits in the overlay.
Flood zone. Lowcountry lots vary from one street to the next. Look up the address on the FEMA Flood Map Service Center before you write.
VA loan. Eligibility, the Certificate of Eligibility, and what you qualify for are questions for the VA or a VA-approved lender. Our VA loan page is the local starting point, and VA.gov's purchase loan page is the program. Basic Allowance for Housing is a monthly amount, not a purchase price. Look up the 2026 rate for your rank and dependents on the Defense Travel Management Office BAH lookup before you pick a budget off a median.
On-base housing. Laurel Bay and the other privatized housing is a housing-office path, not a for-sale neighborhood. The application steps are on the MCAS Beaufort page.
FAQ
How far is the MCAS Beaufort main gate from Burton, downtown, Lady's Island, and Port Royal?
With no traffic, on October 6, 2026, a Burton point in 29904 was 2.7 miles and 4 to 5 minutes. Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park was 6.0 miles and 9 to 10 minutes. Lady's Island ran from 6.9 miles and 9 to 12 minutes near the bridge to 8.7 miles and 12 to 15 minutes at Sams Point Road. Port Royal Town Hall was 10.1 miles and 13 to 16 minutes. Your address and your report time will change that. The method is in the first section.
What are homes selling for near the air station?
For the three months ending August 2026, Redfin's median sale price was $353,765 in Burton, $465,692 in Beaufort, and $409,729 in Port Royal. For September 2026, Realtor.com's market pages showed a $490,000 median sold price for Ladys Island and $371,800 for Shell Point, the latter on only 17 listings. Zillow's August 31, 2026 typical values were $354,208 in Burton, $413,383 in Beaufort, and $366,809 in Port Royal.
How do I check jet noise for a specific house?
Use Beaufort County's AICUZ map, linked from the county AICUZ page. The overlay is based on sound modeling. A town name is not a noise reading.
Where do I look up schools and BAH?
School zones and the first-month setup are in the PCS to Beaufort guide. Confirm the zone for the address with the Beaufort County School District. BAH is the DoD lookup.
Sources
Read October 6, 2026, unless a figure names its own as-of date.
- Military OneSource, MCAS Beaufort check-in procedures — Visitor's Center, 859 Geiger Blvd, Building 2077, Beaufort, SC 29904.
- OSRM and Valhalla (FOSSGIS) — driving routes on October 6, 2026, no traffic. Start points geocoded with Nominatim. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.
- Redfin, Burton housing market — median sale price $353,765, three months ending August 2026.
- Redfin, Beaufort housing market — median sale price $465,692, three months ending August 2026.
- Redfin, Port Royal housing market — median sale price $409,729, three months ending August 2026.
- Zillow, Burton home values — $354,208, updated August 31, 2026.
- Zillow, Beaufort home values — $413,383, updated August 31, 2026.
- Zillow, Port Royal home values — $366,809, updated August 31, 2026.
- Zillow, Lady's Island page — no Lady's Island index; shows Beaufort County at $553,576, updated August 31, 2026.
- Realtor.com, Ladys Island market — September 2026 citywide median sold price $490,000.
- Realtor.com, Shell Point market — September 2026 citywide median sold price $371,800.
- Beaufort County AICUZ — airport overlay and map links.
- FEMA Flood Map Service Center — flood zone by address.
- VA.gov purchase loan and the DoD BAH rate lookup.
Get the PCS Move Pack
The Faris Group is led by Hamza Faris, a Marine veteran. When you want the short list, the MCAS Beaufort page has the free PCS Move Pack for this station: homes for sale near the base, VA payment math, and a PCS-to-closing timeline, on screen and by email, plus new-listing alerts. The button reads "Send My Move Pack." The same pack is on the military page and the VA loans page if you want to switch bases.
To browse on your own, open search and filter from there.
