No inside access to ground floor in Outer Banks, NC vacation home?

[DerbyDad03]

So here I am vacationing on the Outer Banks, NC in a rental house. Don't hate me! ;-)

Typical of most houses in the area, it is built up on 6 x 6 posts to protect the living area against flooding. This house also happens to have the ground floor enclosed and appears to include a garage.

I say "appears to" because I see a garage door as well as an entry door on the ground floor, but the keys they gave us don't open the ground floor door so I don't know what's behind the garage door.

Now, I've explored every inch of the 1st floor living area and can find no access to the ground floor. There's no staircase hidden behind any door that would lead down to the ground floor. I checked every closet, hallway, etc.

The only possibility is a small room with a stacked washer and dryer off of the kitchen that might have lead to a staircase but based on the layout of the bathroom behind it, I'm not sure a staircase would have even fit there.

OK, so here's my question...

Is it typical of these types of flood safe houses not to have access to the ground floor from inside the upper ("1st") floor or is it because this house is (maybe was built to be?) a vacation rental?

[bob haller]

probably a bit of both........

[DerbyDad03]

I know why we didn't get a key...we also didn't get a key to the attic, one closet on the 2nd floor and the backyard storage shed. That had nothing to do with the question, but thanks responding anyway.

[krw]

I would expect that, too. An interior stairway takes space from both floors that would be better used as living (or storage) space. Since it can't be used as "living" space (doing so would defeat the whole purpose of the stilts), there is little downside to having no internal access.

[Stormin Mormon]

We'd be just guessing. See if you can get a hold of the property owner, and ask.

Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus

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Typical of most houses in the area, it is built up on 6 x 6 posts to protect the living area against flooding. This house also happens to have the ground floor enclosed and appears to include a garage.

I say "appears to" because I see a garage door as well as an entry door on the ground floor, but the keys they gave us don't open the ground floor door so I don't know what's behind the garage door.

Now, I've explored every inch of the 1st floor living area and can find no access to the ground floor. There's no staircase hidden behind any door that would lead down to the ground floor. I checked every closet, hallway, etc.

The only possibility is a small room with a stacked washer and dryer off of the kitchen that might have lead to a staircase but based on the layout of the bathroom behind it, I'm not sure a staircase would have even fit there.

OK, so here's my question...

Is it typical of these types of flood safe houses not to have access to the ground floor from inside the upper ("1st") floor or is it because this house is (maybe was built to be?) a vacation rental?

[gfretwell]

It is because 99% of those enclosures are bootlegged in after the final inspection and it is not supposed to be living area. FEMA would be happier if they were totally open. Any partition has to be "break away".

[Harry K]

That would be my guess. Built as a stilt house and the lower area enclosed later.

Harry K

[Ed Pawlowski]

I do know that some codes for beachfront properties call for the house to be raised. The ground floor is OK for storage, but that is all. No heaters, no fuse boxes, etc.

I can think of a couple of reasons it would be in accessible from the living quarters. One is the code that would prohibit an access point that could be a potential path for water to get upstairs.

The other is taxes. If you have access, the tax code may define that space as living quarters and raise the assessment and taxes.

Ask the locals and they will have a better explanation for you. Meantime, enjoy the beach. That is a nice place to stay. Last time I was down that way the scenery was being ruined. The police were cracking down on the nude/topless bathing. No sense of aesthetics.

[krw]

[DerbyDad03]

Hey, I would have responded sooner but it was a beautiful night for some body surfing under the stars.

You didn't miss anything in my question, in fact you answered it very well.

However, I didn't ask why we didn't get a key to the ground floor, yet you answered that "question" anyway. I only mentioned that the key didn't open the ground floor to explain my comment that there "appears" to be a garage, but I can't be sure. It really had nothing to do with my question about ground floor access in a stilt built house.

[DerbyDad03]

Really? Water needs a staircase to up stairs? If the water level reaches the living area, it's getting in, period.

I spent a year in Germany while in the USCG. The island that I was stationed on had a number of nude beaches - family style. Little kids all the way up to grandma and grandpa. It was the in betweens that made it tough on us 20 something's.

[Jim Yanik]

DerbyDad03 wrote in news: [e-mail]:

maybe that is where the owners store their own extra stuff,that they don't want a renter to access. Or it's stuff for when THEY use the house,so they don't have to truck it and out in each time.

Or sinisterly,that's where they hide their recording/internet gear for all the hidden webcameras in the rental space above..... [play Hitchcock theme music]

[DerbyDad03]

It was tonight! We did some crabbing with chicken legs and caught enough Blues for us all to have a taste.

2 years ago, while vacationing in Ocean City, Maryland we found out about a crabbing spot about 2 miles down a dirt road into a nature preserve. (It was legal to crab there) We caught close to 3 dozen in just a few hours. That was full meal of blue crab.

We're doing a half day charter tomorrow, so hopefully it'll be seafood again.

[DerbyDad03]

Oh well, the fishing sucked. We caught a bunch but they were mostly undersized. Only kept 4 for 6 people so dinner was a taste of blue fish and Spanish mackerel for everybody, with a salad, linguine with red sauce and broccoli with garlic. Not a perfect match of foods, but that's vacation eating!

Much cheaper than a restaurant for 6!

The fishing was so bad that about 2 hours into the trip our captain's cell phone rang and he answered it with "Please tell me you found some fish!" By the look on his face I knew the answer was "No". When we got back to the (huge) marina everyone was bitching about how bad it was.

[DerbyDad03]

It's not the last meal, but we picked up 4 dozen steamers in a fish market that was local to the seaside town we ferried over to today. My son is getting them ready as them as I type.