Vacation co-buying is on the rise across the Carolinas

Our parents had timeshares, we have fractional homeownership.

Why it matters: Buying a beach house with others isn't new, but online platforms are making it easier to do it with strangers.

The big picture: High home prices and mortgage rates are making the vacation home dream harder to achieve solo.

How it works: Fractional homeownership, or co-ownership, allows you to own anywhere from 1/8 to half of a house.

• If you co-buy the property through a company like Pacaso, you book your vacation time through their app, Austin Allison, founder of the platform, tells Axios.
• There's potential to build equity, and you can sell any time on platforms like Zillow, Redfin, etc.— just like a primary property, he says.

Of note: This isn't quite the same as a timeshare, where you're buying time versus a portion of property.

Some people buy with strangers, some buy with friends and family.

• "Two couples agreed that one would buy at Kiawah Island and the other at Vail, since they love skiing and golfing together," Brian Corbett, COO of Timbers Company, tells Axios.

Zoom in: For Timbers, sales boomed during the pandemic as people were looking for an escape. It was 75% sold out in February 2021 and completely sold out by November, Corbett tells Axios.

• People are looking for regular access to places like Kiawah, with its private beaches and iconic golf courses, but don't want the hassle (or cost) of full ownership — especially if they're only visiting a few weeks each year, Corbett says.

Yes, but: The price for a slice of paradise isn't cheap. In June, one-eighth shares sold for $500,000-$926,000 apiece in top Carolina destinations like Bluffton, Sullivan's Island and Isle of Palms, according to data Pacaso shared with Axios.

The bottom line: People would rather have a slice of luxury than none at all.